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Can a 19" monitor fit in a mini cabinet?

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shardian:
Personally, for a kid a Jakks hack with a TV would be Ideal for a bedroom setting. There is a detailed build on here where the guy made a modified pac-man mini with a 19" tv. The front of the pac-man had a door that gave access to a dvd player, and a switch box to switch between a handful of Jakks handheld games.

If you are set on mame, You could do the same thing with an arcade VGA card and TV.

If TV is definitely out, then a 17" pc monitor would be perfect for a pac-mini build. 19" arcade monitors fit into the original pac man without that much room to spare. 19 pc monitors stick WAY far out the back of an original cabinet (I'm stuck currently with this situation on my Taito cab and 21" vertical pc monitor.)

javeryh:
Hmmm...  now I'm undecided on what to do...  What do you guys think about LCD monitors?  I was looking at this: http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?sku=320-4421&cs=19&c=us&l=en.  If I use a flat panel monitor I can keep the proportions of the original cabinet (or actually make it a little less thick).

Also, I was thinking about maybe going for a 13" monitor (http://www.happcontrols.com/monitors/491345vp2.htm) but I'm afraid it would be too small.  I really want the cabinet to look nice aesthetically otherwise my wife will never allow me to put it in my daughter's room (can you hear the crack of the whip?).

Oh, I also thought about the Jakks hack but I think I'd rather load this thing up with a ton of differet games for her...

Nannuu:
I know a 17" vertical PC monitor barely fits in a 75% mini pac.  I would say no it won't but arcade monitors are slightly different.  An LCD would work great though.  If you are using a 15" LCD you may as well use a 17" CRT instead since you can get FREE 17s all over.

ArtMAME:
If you want to keep the 75% proportions accurate, you might as well use a 15" PC monitor since the viewable area is about 14.5" and if you take 14.5 divided by 19 you get about 0.76... 

You should be able to get a 15" PC monitor in there, plus you could find one anywhere for dirt cheap.  This would be a good choice because you could save money on the monitor solution.  If you want the cabinet to look really nice, you could invest that money back into artwork and make it look really awesome.  Custom artwork is rather expensive these days...

Best way to go about it is to find a monitor, then build the cabinet around it.

 :soapbox: Again, I say, it is your project, and the design choices you make come down to your own (or your daughter's) personal preference. 

If you feel comfortable spending $189 for an LCD monitor, then that's your right.  If you feel comfortable spending $10 for a nice old CRT PC monitor from the thrift store, then that is your right also.  If you want to get a Happs monitor and ArcadeVGA card and have the time to tinker with the hardware to get the original arcade accurate resolutions, then tinker away to your heart's content.

One last thing, then I will get off my  :soapbox: ...

Try not to over-analyze things to the point where it hinders progress on your project. It can be very confusing, and sometimes frustrating to decide on stuff since there are so many design choices to pick from.  I would say explore your options, make your choices, then roll up your sleeves and start working... and have fun... that's what the whole BYOAC experience is all about.   :cheers:

javeryh:
Thanks for the response!  I definitely don't have a problem with the $189 for the LCD monitor.  It's not that money isn't a problem it's just that when I do this I want to do it right even if it ends up costing a little more in the end.  I figure the monitor is going to be the most expensive part of this project because I'm only planning on one joystick, 3 action buttons, a small coin door, paint, t-molding and artwork printed by mamemarquees.  I have a junker computer I'm putting in there.  I'm thinking I can do this entire project for less than $500 even with the $200 monitor.

So what are your thoughts on a 17" LCD picture vs. a 13" CRT picture?  If I can get a nice "authentic looking" picture on the LCD (with the scanlines and not looking so pixelated/blocky) then I'm leaning towards that since it is much bigger than the 13" one.  I love my 19"arcade monitor in my cocktail cabinet plus the bezel fits it really nice (I'd have to build my own for the LCD since it's flat). 

THANKS!!!

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