Black & White (Bartop)

[mattsoft]

Just started my first arcade build: Black & White -- this is going to be a modern take on a classic bartop! My objective is to create a sleek, modern looking 2-player bartop arcade for side-scrollers, side-shooters, and fighters (think Neo Geo MVS).

It's obviously a work-in-progress.

I need to:
* Install t-molding
* Replace motherboard (current one has bad audio port)
* Finalize monitor bezel with high-quality mat board (current one is construction paper)
* Finalize CPO -- probably with mat/poster board (current one is construction paper)
* Mount the "guts" inside the cabinet
* Install power switch
* Figure out volume control
* Marquee: I'm probably going to install an LCD in the marquee space and use a dynamic setup with HyperMarquee/HyperSpin

Current pic:


I'll post specs and build diary later.

[JDFan]

* Replace motherboard (current one has bad audio port)

IF you have an open USB port - rather than replace the entire MOBO just get a $1 USB sound adapter : ( http://www.ebay.com/itm/USB-2-0-5-1-Channel-Track-3D-Sound-Card-Speaker-Mic-Earphone-Audio-PC-Adapter-/281788338571?hash=item419be4d18b:g:H48AAOSwd0BV5Y-4 )



They are pretty much plug and play on any windows system and have decent sound quality ( about the same as onboard audio ) and make great replacements for broken/bad audio ports on the MOBO ! Takes a few weeks to get here from China but are much cheaper if you have the time to wait for them ( Newegg sells some also for about $12 if sold by them directly but they are pretty much the same thing just a bit faster shipping) So worth waiting on if you are not in a hurry to install it.

[mgb]

Looks good so far.
I'm looking forward to see how it goes

[mattsoft]

* Replace motherboard (current one has bad audio port)

IF you have an open USB port - rather than replace the entire MOBO just get a $1 USB sound adapter : ( http://www.ebay.com/itm/USB-2-0-5-1-Channel-Track-3D-Sound-Card-Speaker-Mic-Earphone-Audio-PC-Adapter-/281788338571?hash=item419be4d18b:g:H48AAOSwd0BV5Y-4 )



They are pretty much plug and play on any windows system and have decent sound quality ( about the same as onboard audio ) and make great replacements for broken/bad audio ports on the MOBO ! Takes a few weeks to get here from China but are much cheaper if you have the time to wait for them ( Newegg sells some also for about $12 if sold by them directly but they are pretty much the same thing just a bit faster shipping) So worth waiting on if you are not in a hurry to install it.

Thanks for the tip. The motherboard is brand new and under warranty, so Amazon is sending a replacement.

[mattsoft]

Some more info on this...

The cabinet was a flat pack kit purchased from ArcadeForge (all the way in Germany!) -- it's chipboard with a white melamine exterior. It assembles using wood pegs and was easy. It was a little expensive coming from Germany, but I really liked the look and the features: This cabinet has some nice features:
* The marquee box is completely enclosed so if you have a backlight, it doesn't spill out into the monitor cavity
* The control panel is removable with 4 bolts -- you can pretty easily swap-out control panels
* The LCD monitor mount is adjustable and the plexi bezel overlay is super easy to install
* The control panel is made of aluminum and allows for low-profile pushbuttons:


I wired up the panel using Sanwa JLF joysticks Seimitsu quiet pushbuttons. The I-PAC2 interfaces the controller hardware to the motherboard via USB:


I used a Dell 4:3 LED LCD panel and trimmed out the edge with black vinyl tape to cut down on the metallic glare of the panel:


Inside is a full-fledged Windows 10 PC:
* Gigabyte Intel H81 Mini ITX DDR3 1600 LGA 1150 Motherboard GA-H81N
* Intel Core i3-4370 Haswell Dual-Core 3.8 GHz with Intel HD Graphics 4600
* 8GB RAM
* 256GB mSATA SSD (plugs right into the mSATA port on the motherboard -- no cables!)
* Intel mini PCI-E WiFi & Bluetooth card

Here is a video of HyperSpin running with MAME:
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/8998202/IMG_0592.m4v

My goal is to put this LCD display into the marquee box (more on this later):
http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-18-5-Inch-1-3-Stretched-Bar-LCD-display-digital-advertising-screen/291529931181?_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20140602152332%26meid%3D5707b7059c0445c5a19071998cc7bec4%26pid%3D100011%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D2%26sd%3D301244624380

[mattsoft]

T-molding!

[Yenome]

looks nice how wide is the CP? seems a nice size looks better than my unfinished bartop

[mattsoft]

looks nice how wide is the CP? seems a nice size looks better than my unfinished bartop

It's German, so it's metric. 450mm wide or 17.7 inches.

[Yenome]

looks nice how wide is the CP? seems a nice size looks better than my unfinished bartop

It's German, so it's metric. 450mm wide or 17.7 inches.

i was thinking it was gonna be wider than that/ mine is 20" but i feel like the players dont have enough room.

[mattsoft]

yeah, it's definitely narrow -- it's ok for me and my 7 year old son, but 2 adults playing would be kind of cramped.

[Yenome]

well still a nice clean build. Im still working on mine but i keep redoing the game list. perhaps one day ill have it ready for when the family is in town.

[mattsoft]

Some minor updates:

* I've got the MB, power supply, and AMP all installed.
* Installed an AC fuse/switch plug.



I'm still looking for an LCD panel that will fit the marquee space -- I have a good lead. Hopefully soon!

Now I'm waffling between staying the "black & white" theme and blatantly ripping off markc74's awesome Blip control panel design (http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,137295.msg1415987.html#msg1415987)

Or going with a Sega Aero City "candy cab" inspired CPO (I would replace the black t-mold with matching blue) -- I've done a mock CPO and I like the look:


Anyway, this is hella fun and a great learning experience.

[TheDude]

Nice build

[leapinlew]

Nice clean look. I think buttons with different color rings would look pretty nice.

[mattsoft]

Some updates...

I've brought the monitor forward using nylon spacers in the back -- it's now near flush with the control panel:


I could never get a good cut on matte or poster board for the bezel, so I ordered a custom laser cut picture matte from a frame company online ($12). It's BLACK and is cut perfectly square.


And in a departure from the black and white theme, i went with the aero city CPO (designed by me, printed by gameongrafx) -- and I think it looks good. I've also put some LED-lit 1 and 2 player buttons:



Next up:
* Going to replace the middle white "coin" button with a red LED lit button
* Going to replace black t-molding with blue t-molding that complements the CPO
* I've ordered a "bar" type LCD that fits pretty well into the marquee space on this cabinet -- plan to use HyperMarquee to make a dynamic LCD. Should have an update on this in 2-3 weeks.

[yamatetsu]

Some suggestions.

- white dustwashers & white balltops for the joysticks

- blue bezel

- blue speaker grills

- blue coin button

- change the name to 'Blue & White'

[johnrt]

- change the name to 'Blue & White'

NO! Because black and white is the color of our soccer team. Blue and white is the colors of our rivals . So the OP better stay with his original plans!

[mattsoft]

Maybe black & blue? Nice mockup yamatetsu -- now I know what the blue trim looks like before it's on!  (and am having 2nd thoughts... hah!)

[emphatic]

Nice build.  Where did you find the bar shaped LCD screen?

[yamatetsu]

I ... am having 2nd thoughts... hah!

Mission accomplished 

Maybe black & blue?

Would work, but I think it would make the cab look too dark. White would pop more.

[mattsoft]

Nice build.  Where did you find the bar shaped LCD screen?

The LCD comes from vitrolight.com. They have an Alibaba and eBay store -- I contacted them through Alibaba. I don't yet have the LCD, here's hoping it ships, it arrives safely, it works, it fits, and that I can figure it all out. Hah hah. I'll post more once I know more, and hopefully have it hooked up and working.

[mattsoft]

Stretched bar LCD arrived!



It fits perfectly in the marquee box! will connect tonight and try to get working, then will figure out mounting next weekend.

[fablog]

Mattsoft, very good job so far!

Could you give us more information about this bar LCD? Model, dimensions, price, picture quality...)?

[mattsoft]

This is the LCD panel: http://vitrolight.en.alibaba.com/product/1080175978-221253599/18_5inch_1_3_stretched_bar_lcd.html?biz_type=Notifications_MC&crm_mtn_tracelog_task_id=c3d60a04-16dc-4b07-910b-a5b6200359d8&crm_mtn_tracelog_log_id=10814844808

It was suppose to be (according to the specs) 430mm wide x 100mm tall x 10mm deep. My plan was to route out the top and bottom forward edges of the marquee box and slide this in. However, what arrived was a 430mm x 90mm panel -- which is great because I don't have to route the marquee box (the marquee box is exactly 90mm tall so the panel fits), BUT, those 10mm make this thing look REALLY wide and narrow, which is a super odd aspect ratio for marquee art. Oh well. My current plan is to retain the marquee art's aspect ratio, and use the left and right matting of the LCD for high-scores and game info. HyperMarquee is kind of a PITA though.

The bar was $300 + $70 shipping from China. Very expensive -- the most expensive part of this build!!! and I'm not totally happy with it, but figured return and exchange would be difficult.

I will be working on mounting it this week. I need to glue/screw some mounting blocks in place, drill a hole for the cables, find a suitable mounting spot for the power/LVDS interface box, etc...hopefully by this weekend it will be suitable for some pics/vids.

[mattsoft]

Marquee LCD installed and working with Hyper Marquee! Here is a crappy video demonstrating the LCD marquee: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/8998202/IMG_0708.m4v

I'm very close to officially calling this done. Everything is installed and working -- just waiting for a laser-cut black mat board marquee bezel to cover the LCD frame (should be here this week). My goal is to put the build to bed next weekend. Final (for now) photos will be next weekend.

In the meantime, having friends over for arcade pizza parties has been very popular during the holiday break. There have been some late nights playing old favorites and discovering new ones.

[ChanceKJ]

.

[yotsuya]

Why, are they not going to exist in 2016?

[rablack97]

Why, are they not going to exist in 2016?

Stupid sandworms....

[Rotgut]

Extremely nice job on this, my friend! Seriously, everything looks super kick ass!

What front end is that?

[Rotgut]

Feeling pretty silly — I figured out that you are using HyperSpin, just never saw that default theme before.   

I am willing to re-configure my entire MAME artwork content in favor of that.  Love that aesthetic — so great!

Did you create that theme?  Where might I get my hands on it?

[mattsoft]

Yeah, its hyperspin -- using "HyperMamu" by EvilDindon (http://www.hyperspin-fe.com/topic/5675-default-mame-theme-with-custom-wheels-including-mamus-icons/) -- it's a lovely theme. Only for horizontal games, and only the ones he chose (around 450 i think).

[n3wt0n]

Love the marquee. Great job. 

[acme64]

The bar was $300 + $70 shipping from China. Very expensive -- the most expensive part of this build!!!

Welp, that's my cue

[stigzler]

Nice.