*FINISHED* Project: Compu-Game

[durak]

EDIT: Finished the cab yesterday, here's a small site with pictures:
http://koti.mbnet.fi/starr/arcade/
Thanks for everyone in the forums, wouldn't have made it without your help!
off to play ->

-durak




The project is named Compu-Game simply because that's what the original art on this classy looking cabaret says. It fits the mame theme well, and looks nice on the cab. I won't be adding any sideart, since the cabinet has a very nice finish and looks better without I think. I did put some arcade flyers on the wall for a better atmosphere. (You can't see in the pictures, but I also have a smoked glass and a bezel for the cab)

Started this project a little over a month ago, I guess I'm about 50-60% done at the moment. Completed the control panel tonight, I'm very pleased with the results. I made a wooden template, took it to a metal shop and they made a beautiful aluminium panel for 20 euros. I then proceeded to cut square holes to the original panel for the button areas, the joysticks take use of the original joystick holes. This proved to be the hardest part of the project so far. We drilled small holes around the square areas and then used a bi-metal blade to cut them out.

Getting an arcade monitor in the country I live in has proved to be very tricky, I'll be driving next saturday to look for one, hopefully it will be ok and I can go on with the project. Once I have the monitor, I'll order an arcadevga, few j-sticks (will ball tops or oval tops look better on this cab? I kind of have a feeling black oval tops would look nice) and some other stuff form ultimarc. I already have a i-pac ve, so that will be used to interface the controls with the computer.

Also still left to do are holes for start & coin buttons to the front door, mounting the pc inside, mounting the monitor, making holes for fan(s) and maybe in the future buying an electronical coin mech for euros.

Opinions & suggestions welcome!

-durak

[durak]

the control panel

[durak]

side profile

[DougHillman]

If it were me, I'd be putting red and/or blue ball tops on this cab.  I'd go with some sorta single color per player button config though.  Maybe red top & buttons for P1 and blue top & buttons for P2.    If you're sticking with the multi-colored buttons though, maybe black ovals would be the better choice.   I don't care for the look of the black ball tops.

[TOK]

That's a slick looking little cabinet, I like it.
I would make the button colors match for both players. I found it much easier to explain what they do for new players by color, and this is easier for you when boths sides are the same.

Looking forward to seeing how this one progresses. I want my next cab to be a cabaret or bartop.

[paigeoliver]

Is that an Artic (ATW) chinese cabinet?

[SirPeale]

Where are your start buttons?

[durak]

Where are your start buttons?

Also still left to do are holes for start & coin buttons to the front door

 


The cabinet is made by Compu-Game A/S, Esjberg Denmark.  There's a sticker inside, don't know if it is by the original manufacturer or added later, it's dated 4/3 1986.

The button layout was just random to show how the buttons fit., they weren't attached. The colors will be the same though, with possible replace of some color with blue.

I got the monitor today, will be posting a thread about it soon. (need help identifying things and with connecting to the isolation transformer)
Paid 130e (+around 20-25e on gas because of various problems with this seller) for an isolation transformer and a monitor which seems to be 18" and never been used, has lied in the warehouse for X years.

[durak]

Update:

The project is advancing fairly nice, with some luck it will be up and working in the end of next week!

I have gotten confirmation that my monitor will work with the ~115V my isolation transformer gives out, even though it is meant to to be fed 100V. The confirmation comes not from the unreliable seller I got the monitor from, but from a guy who worked in the company that imported and cased these monitors, he said they never had any problems running them at higher voltages.

I mounted the coin and start buttons to the front door, bought an electronic coin mech and credit board (i'll wire on/off switches to the coin buttons so I can make the cab work only on coins if wanted  ),  bought a 2.1 speaker set, mounted the monitor to the new plywood bezel board etc etc..

ArcadeVga, j-sticks (I went for the black bat tops) and some other stuff should be arriving from ultimarc soon, right now they are in East Midlands - UK (online tracking  ).

Left to do:
-wiring up everything
-fan hole(s)
-configuring the computer

here's some new pics:

[durak]

another view

[durak]

coin mech and start & coin buttons

[Edgedamage]

Great work so far. What kind of keyboard incoder is that?

[durak]

Thanks!
It's a credit board for the coin mech. The mech is an electronical multi-coin mech (programmed for euros, particularly 2e, 1e, 50 cent & 20 cent coins) and the board is used to adjust the amount of pulses sent for each coin.
Once the j-sticks arrive i'll be putting my i-pac in.

[durak]

WOW! I got my monitor and arcadevga to work tonight.. The picture quality is amazing! I don't have any energy left to start installing mame etc  tonight (I had these preinstalled but had to buy a new motherboard and do a fresh install of windows cause the old mobo didn't recognise arcadevga for some reason), I've just been watching music videos from it!

I'll try to get the cab to working condition tomorrow, cause after that I'll have to take a few weeks break from it, need to study.
I'll be posting pictures tomorrow or whenever I finish it!

[durak]

update, look in the first post

[mikroman]

Great work, It's always nice to see a finished cabinet  

Why not cover the monitor with smoked glass?

[durak]

Thanks!
Heh, it has a smoked glass on it (not very dark though), just that I wiped it so clean you don't even notice there's a glass on it.