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Post your mame cab "guts" photos

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RayB:

This weekend I started installing/mounting the hardware and wiring into my MAME cabinet, and I'm running into a couple little obstacles.

I thought it would be helpful if people posted photos of their "guts" so we can see what kind of mounting solutions various people have come up with and why. Could we do this please? And feel free to discuss how you worked it out. Whether airflow is a factor, etc. Show us where you mounted: IPAC, JPAC, wiring, power supply, motherboard, hard drive, etc. (If all you did was keep a full PC tower in there, then don't bother posting it).


Here's my story as to why I'd like to see photos:
-------------------------------------------------------------
My cab is a smallish one. 24 inch wide control panel. And inside the back there is a convenient shelf near the bottom.

First I found a good spot for my JPAC and harness, tucked away to one side, where I will still be able to reach in through the coin-door and plug my keyboard in.

For my PC mobo, my choices are a bit fewer. I figured that mounting it flat would only collect dust, so it has to go on one of three available vertical surfaces. I chose the right side and have mounted it there. I will need to install a little piece of wood to keep the cards stable. No problem there.

Then comes trouble: My ATA100 IDE cable is a bit short. The HD will have to be mounted close to the side the mobo is. That in itself is not too big a deal. I have two metal mounting brackets that the HD is screwed to and then I can screw the mount to the cabinet wood. At first I was going to mount it flat on the bottom of the "shelf" my cab has. But it occurred to me that that is the circuit side of the HD and will likely build up heat if it's flush against wood. I will have to build something to raise it up a bit.

Next, there's no easy way to have a CD-ROM drive in there, so I opted to only connect the CD drive when I really need to. (I could always get a wireless network card to manage files on here anyways).

Then came the power supply. My options are again limited by short wiring. I will have to find myself an ATX power extender, but they are not a common item in stores. Once I get this extender, I should be able to mount it either in the very bottom (under the shelf) or up on the left side of the shelf, opposite the mobo. I am wondering if I should bother cutting a hole in my back door, and venting the PSU fan out through that hole?

I will also have to find a spot for my OptiPAC, but that won't be too difficult.

~Ray B.


rescue161:
Here is a pic of the motherboard and the bottom of the cab.

and a pic of the keyboard hack mounted near the cp


Absolutely no over-heating problems.  I did mount a fan on the lower back side that sucks air in and cut slots in the top that allow the heated air to escape.

Harry Potter:
I was always weary of people mounting MBs bare inside a cab. Sure the game PCBs were bare but they're nowhere near as intricate as todays hardware which would be more sensitive to open conditions.

Each to their own though. But unfortunately I'll have to install a MotherBoard bare in my next two projects. Meh.  :-\

rescue161:
This one has been up and running 24/7 for over a year with no problems.  I leave it on all the time so it's always ready.  I leave all of my pc's on 24/7...

To me, leaving a MB in a tower and then putting that into another enclosure would worry me as overheating would be more likely to happen (I realize a lot of people do this, it's just my opinion/preference).

My games frequently are moved due to being in the military, so I feel more secure about the components being properly secured inside.  Not too many options for bolting down a tower especially in a cabaret machine.

RayB:
In my opinion, a game cabinet IS a case. It's just a little larger.

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