Kman-Sweden - F.A.C.B.- Now with Neo-Geo hardware. Feb 2 - 2010.

[Kman-Sweden]

Enough! Enough lurking around the BYOAC forum.
I can't put this off any longer. I bought 3 sheets of 19mm MDF today....
...And it wasn't easy. The people working at the "lumber yard" was the laziest buggers I've seen in years.
I think your supposed to wait until someone asks you what you need and then they'll go and get it for you,
but I'd probably still be there if I hadn't found the MDF myself.

I live in an apartment so building at home is not possible. So I took the sheets of MDF to my parents house instead.
I started by drawing the general pattern of the sides making sure that the CRT screen I'm using fits.
Had some help from my dad.


Pulled the CRT screen apart and discharged it. I used some jumper cables and the biggest screwdriver we could find.


Then we put the monitor aside for today. I'll build somekind of frame for the screen before installing it in the cab.


Getting ready to start the cutting. I'm clamping two sheets together to make both sides in one go.


My new Bosch saw made the cutting easy.


A jigsaw came in handy as well.


Routed out the last kinks.


Dad really liked the routing. I don't think he'd ever seen the work of a flushbit.


That's the first day's work.. I'll keep the posts coming.
Cheers!
-Kman Sweden

[Epyx]

Hehe welcome to the world of "the build".   

I will keep this one on the radar and eager to see how it turns out.  Did you take into account transport up into your apartment with your dimensions?

[Kman-Sweden]

Hehe welcome to the world of "the build".   
I will keep this one on the radar and eager to see how it turns out.  Did you take into account transport up into your apartment with your dimensions?

Thanks. X- Y- and Z- have been measured, shouldn't be any problem size-wise. I just hope it won't be to heavy to move. 

[Epyx]

Lol...oh it WILL be heavy, even empty lol...MDF is heavy stuff. But with some help you should be fine

[Ond]

Hey man great to see you off and running!  Your parents place looks like a very nice spot to work in too.  Looks like nice clean cuts so far. Heh heh now I can follow your progress    Feels good to be building eh?

[Kman-Sweden]

Hey man great to see you off and running!  Your parents place looks like a very nice spot to work in too.  Looks like nice clean cuts so far. Heh heh now I can follow your progress    Feels good to be building eh?

It feels fantastic to finally be building. Yes, the scenery is nice at the building site isn't it?
Now if the rain could stay away so I could get the final cuts made...
 
Thanx for visiting Ond but you should go back to your own build now so I have something to strive for. 

[Vebbo]

Looking good Kman, keep up the good work. I'm waiting for some tools to arrive and then i'm off to my garage to start on my CP (my first build).

  from Norway

[javeryh]

Great start!  I like the profile.  I would have been scared to death messing with the monitor like that!   Any plans for artwork or controls yet? 

[dungbeetle46]

looking good, what size is your monitor, looks to be a 19" is that right

[Kman-Sweden]

Great start!  I like the profile.  I would have been scared to death messing with the monitor like that!   Any plans for artwork or controls yet? 

Thanks. It was terrifying to discharge it! That's why I used the longest screwdriver on this side of the arctic circle. I was also wearing rubber gloves and one hand in my pocket at all times. I have some loose plans for the CP but nothing worth going public with yet.

looking good, what size is your monitor, looks to be a 19" is that right

Thanks. It's actually a 21" Samsung Syncmaster. It has some weird BNC-type connections. Might it be RGB and some sync? I don't know.
Also a USB for some reason... If anyone knows please enlighten me.

[Kman-Sweden]

It rained off and on so we had to stay in the garage today.
I'll start you off with a picture of the power tools.


Base for the cab was cut, glued, clamped, drilled and then finally finished of with some 60mm torx head screws.
Planing for the wheels to go on next.


The smaller turnable wheels needed to be raised (or lowered depending on how you look at it).
All bolted down nicely.


Behold the worlds heaviest skateboard.


That's all for today.

[Kman-Sweden]

Looking good Kman, keep up the good work. I'm waiting for some tools to arrive and then i'm off to my garage to start on my CP (my first build).

  from Norway

Thanks. It's nice to see some nordic people here too. 

[Kman-Sweden]

The prograss is slow but it's still progress.
The sides, lower back and top of the cabinet are glues and screwed.


Coin door in the progress of being installed.
Got to try out my new 29mm drillbit. I'm gonna use it on the CP for all button holes and the spinner..


Coin door in place.


Front with coin door and speaker shelf installed.


Any colour suggestions out there? I have to order my t-molding soon and I can't make up my mind.
I had a plan of painting it "1943"-gray with red t-mold. And then apply 1943 side art and marquee, to make it a 1943-tribute cab. Not a "replica" of any sort just a homage to a fun game.
I'd still like to do it this way but I feel that it's a lot of $$'s.... So I'm probably go with Black sides and blue or red t-mold... Or should I paint it gray and then go for the side art at a later date? Save up some money first?..
What's the thoughts out there?

That's all for today. Thanks for watching.

[drventure]

One of the toughest parts!

If it's a "1943 style", maybe grey with a battleship plate effect, maybe some rivets, some rust effects... That sort of thing.

Yellow tmold might look good, ala various Doom and Quake level mods (think grey walls, yellow "warning" signs all over).

I'm guessing it's going in a game room of some sort? That might influence the choice as well.

[retrofuture]

Looking good

I'd go with some garishly bright colours, yellows and reds.

Please excuse my ignorance, but what orientation is the monitor?

I've got a set of casters/wheels like those for my, now defunct due to lack of space, upright. In fact I've got a load of stuff I can't use right now!

[Epyx]

Lol I would go with an Iron Maiden theme and use the Swedish flag colours like you have in your avatar...blue sides with yellow T Moulding and a cool Iron Maiden marquee (was thinking of this myself at one point)...do the lettering in the Iron Maiden font:

http://www.maiden-world.com/articles/iron-maiden-fonts-typography.html

For Side art you have to go with Eddie...I would go with an album cover that matches the colour scheme of the Blue/Yellow Swedish colours...and what better album than Powerslave? It has blue and yellow in it as well which would look awesome.

The 10 second photochop is bad but you get the idea:

http://www.solarnavigator.net/music/music_images/Iron_Maiden_Powerslave_Egyptian_pyramid_album_cover.jpg



The marquee would be blue with yellow text and another great Eddie/IM art overlay around the words.

[Vebbo]

I second K-mans choice of 1943 (i would have gone for 1942 theme but that's my personal choice in game), it's a cool shooter (love that serie, i still remember when i managed to get the score at 1942 1.4xx.xxx on one quarter, think it was 1985 ohhh the good times, no worries). Anyhow if u do need some photoshop or illustrator help, don't hesitate to ask. 

[saleem]

orange cab with red t molding.

do a wet sand finish on the cab,get it smooth as hell and then get something on it to shine it up.

put read ball top sticks on,with red/yellow and green buttons on the cp.6 buttons per player.1p/2p.a couple of other buttons for creds esc etc.

well thats how mine will be done.

oh!and an arcade spinner for arkanoid and tempest.i got my eye on an happ trackball for the right price i might have it but,depends on price,so if you can slap a trackball on the cp go for it.

but,realy its whatever tickles your fancy.

i think you done great work there,i am well struggling with mine at the mo,it just seems to be coat of paint,wet sand,coat of paint and more wet sanding.it realy is a long drawn out process is wet sanding but,i can tell you 100% sure,its smooth as glass.

[Kman-Sweden]

One of the toughest parts!
If it's a "1943 style", maybe grey with a battleship plate effect, maybe some rivets, some rust effects... That sort of thing.
Yellow tmold might look good, ala various Doom and Quake level mods (think grey walls, yellow "warning" signs all over).
I'm guessing it's going in a game room of some sort? That might influence the choice as well.

You read my mind about the rivets... I'll have it in my home office.

Looking good
Please excuse my ignorance, but what orientation is the monitor?
I've got a set of casters/wheels like those for my, now defunct due to lack of space, upright. In fact I've got a load of stuff I can't use right now!

Thanks, it's a 4:3, so that would make it horizontal?
Why can't you use all your stuff?

Lol I would go with an Iron Maiden theme and use the Swedish flag colours like you have in your avatar...blue sides with yellow T Moulding and a cool Iron Maiden marquee (was thinking of this myself at one point)...do the lettering in the Iron Maiden font:
http://www.maiden-world.com/articles/iron-maiden-fonts-typography.html
For Side art you have to go with Eddie...I would go with an album cover that matches the colour scheme of the Blue/Yellow Swedish colours...and what better album than Powerslave? It has blue and yellow in it as well which would look awesome.
The 10 second photochop is bad but you get the idea:
http://www.solarnavigator.net/music/music_images/Iron_Maiden_Powerslave_Egyptian_pyramid_album_cover.jpg
http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb312/epyx_photo/IMCAb.jpg
The marquee would be blue with yellow text and another great Eddie/IM art overlay around the words.

Interesting.... But wouldn't that mean that I could only play "Ed Hunter" on it?   http://www.amazon.ca/Ed-Hunter-Iron-Maiden/dp/B0000257HB

I second K-mans choice of 1943 (i would have gone for 1942 theme but that's my personal choice in game), it's a cool shooter (love that serie, i still remember when i managed to get the score at 1942 1.4xx.xxx on one quarter, think it was 1985 ohhh the good times, no worries). Anyhow if u do need some photoshop or illustrator help, don't hesitate to ask. 

Will do, thanks.

orange cab with red t molding.
do a wet sand finish on the cab,get it smooth as hell and then get something on it to shine it up.
put read ball top sticks on,with red/yellow and green buttons on the cp.6 buttons per player.1p/2p.a couple of other buttons for creds esc etc.
well thats how mine will be done.
oh!and an arcade spinner for arkanoid and tempest.i got my eye on an happ trackball for the right price i might have it but,depends on price,so if you can slap a trackball on the cp go for it.
but,realy its whatever tickles your fancy.
i think you done great work there,i am well struggling with mine at the mo,it just seems to be coat of paint,wet sand,coat of paint and more wet sanding.it realy is a long drawn out process is wet sanding but,i can tell you 100% sure,its smooth as glass.

I already have Electric ICE RGB pushbuttons and Trackball, two LED_Wiz's and a blue TT2 spinner.. I was going to go with a pair of Magstik+ with ball tops.. Just can make up my bloody mind about the color scheme. 

[retrofuture]

I 'can't use my stuff' because I've bought too much! I'm kind of having to build my way into the garage.

[Kman-Sweden]

Today started on a high note. The monitor shelf was installed.
here you see it with the monitor in place.


I constructed a frame for the monitor to help it stay in place.
How many of you did see the Tron shape?


Monitor mounted.


It's easy to access the back.


Well today ended on a lower note and with a big bang.
I connected the monitor to my laptop just to see it working.
When I put the power cord in the wall there was a loud, electrical POP and
then a funny smell... :-/
Found a fuse but haven't checked it yet. Luckely I know where to get 3 more of these
monitors so I'll give it another go next week.
Well well... I think it still looks good, though.

[Epyx]

Looks very good indeed. I like the monitor mounting frame. Interested to see what you finally decide on with colours. Very cool!

[javeryh]

jeez... that stinks about the monitor.  GOod thing you can get a replacement but there's nothing more frustrating than a setback.  Looks great!   

[Kman-Sweden]

jeez... that stinks about the monitor.  GOod thing you can get a replacement but there's nothing more frustrating than a setback.  Looks great!   

Thanks for the support. Yeah, having a thing like that happen really bums you out. Good thing thoug that I don't have to remake the monitor mounting frame.

[retrofuture]

The prograss is slow but it's still progress.

I wish I had that kind of progress  The cab is looking really good   

Did you have anything in mind for the other monitors (before this one blew)?

[Vebbo]

  To bad that monitor popped... Anyhow this cab looks great!

[Kman-Sweden]

The cab is looking really good   
Did you have anything in mind for the other monitors (before this one blew)?

Thank you. No I didn't. We got new monitors at work and 4 people still had these big CRT's. So now they're just piled up in a corner. 

To bad that monitor popped... Anyhow this cab looks great!

Many thanks.

[Beretta]

wow you're moving right along looks like it's coming along nicely.

to bad about the monitor, if they're all the same i'd swipe them all from work.. since you built the cab with that monitor in mind would'nt be bad to have spares for later on.

wish my project was going as quick as yours, trying to refinish a simple coin door and it's kicking ---my bottom---.

[retrofuture]

The cab is looking really good   
Did you have anything in mind for the other monitors (before this one blew)?

Thank you. No I didn't. We got new monitors at work and 4 people still had these big CRT's. So now they're just piled up in a corner. 

Cool. Reusing old stuff from work is where it's at. I only wish I'd kept hold of half the stuff I've had to discard from work over the past 10 years 

[emphatic]

Where in Sweden are you located? There's a guy in Grebo (Linköping) that has a small stock of BRAND NEW arcade monitors. Check out http://www.arcadegames.se if you haven't already. In case you feel you want a real arcade monitor that is. Free PC monitors aren't bad either.

[Kman-Sweden]

Where in Sweden are you located? There's a guy in Grebo (Linköping) that has a small stock of BRAND NEW arcade monitors. Check out http://www.arcadegames.se if you haven't already. In case you feel you want a real arcade monitor that is. Free PC monitors aren't bad either.

Damn! I actually passed Linköping today! 

[emphatic]

Also, I really hope you haven't missed http://www.arkadtorget.se which is a superb arcade forum for us swedes to hang out.

[Kman-Sweden]

Also, I really hope you haven't missed http://www.arkadtorget.se which is a superb arcade forum for us swedes to hang out.

I've been there, thanks, but it seemed to be a bit more non-mame kind of arcade forum... I think I'll give it a go again.

A small update: I'm going black and blue on this cab for now. Blue T-molding and 2 blue MagStik+'s with ball tops ordered.
F up another  one of the monitors. These monitors don't like to be naked! Im leaving the plastic on this time so I had to remove the monitor mounting and find a way to fasten it again.. The BRAND NEW arcade monitors looks even more tempting now.
... One step forward, two steps back...

[Epyx]

I think its fate telling you to go with an arcade monitor...I moved to one from a tv and its night and day...do it

[Trebeck]

Great job so far dude.
Welcome to an awesome hobby. 

[Vebbo]

F up another  one of the monitors. These monitors don't like to be naked! Im leaving the plastic on this time so I had to remove the monitor mounting and find a way to fasten it again.. The BRAND NEW arcade monitors looks even more tempting now.
... One step forward, two steps back...

Oh man, too bad... Learning the hard way

[Kman-Sweden]

Great job so far dude.
Welcome to an awesome hobby. 

Thanks Trebeck.

Edited this post to include a pic of the busted monitors.

See how I left som more metal on the second one but still it blew up on me.

[Shortbus]

Your garage is too neat, your lawn is too green, and your dad is too cool.

The cabinet looks great, can't wait to see more........


"am i the only one whose garage looks like Fred Sanfords front yard?"

[retrofuture]

"am i the only one whose garage looks like Fred Sanfords front yard?"

I don't know who Fred Sanfords is, but my garage looks like all the major conflicts of the past 200 years have occurred in it - and the garage has lost every one 

[Epyx]

"am i the only one whose garage looks like Fred Sanfords front yard?"

No, our neighbourhood is filled with these...Something I never understood...everyone's garage is filled with crap and they park their cars in the driveway...scraping off ice in the winter etc while I just turn the ignition and drive out past them in my toasty warm car.

[retrofuture]

I physically can't fit either of our cars in our garage. Thank you UK planning/builders 

[Kman-Sweden]

Oh man, too bad... Learning the hard way

Well I don't know about that. I still haven't got a clue about why the monitors failed.

[Kman-Sweden]

Got a fair amount of work done today.
I put air wents in and built a small shelf for the coin bucket and installed the speakers.

The coin bucket shelf was done in 10 minutes. No problems at all.

The air wents was also done without any major problems.

The speakers gave me TONS of problems. Me being an idiot had glued and screwed the speaker shelf to the cabinet BEFORE I cut the holes for the speakers.
I'll never do that mistake again. I've desided to go with the Logitech Z4's. Next time I'll do round speakers not square ones.
I'm not so sure there'll be a next time at this point.
I didn't whant to rip uot the shelf to cut the holes and after tiping the cab on it's face I could get access to the shelf in an ok way.
First I made a templet and then proceded in routing out holes.
I had placed the holes to close to the sides and the router couldn't finnish the outer sides of the holes.
This ment I hade to saw and sand like hell, by hand, to get the holes done. Then I realized that the holes became to big!!!
So now I had to rip out the shelf and make a new one. Well this way the speaker holes where a lot easier to do.

I forgot the camera in the garage so no pics tonight. The garage looks like ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- by the way. Brown dust EVERYWHERE... The floor looks like a sandy beach.
And I've probably inhaled a pound or so of the MDF board today.  Let's see if MDF is up there with asbestos ten years from now.
 

[Epyx]

And I've probably inhaled a pound or so of the MDF board today.   Let's see if MDF is up there with asbestos ten years from now.

Lol no kidding...ive had nights where I was sneezing the stuff out and could feel it in my lungs for days and that is "with" wearing a great mask...its the taking it off with even a bit floating around that can still get you.

Not to mention like you said my garage still has a fine layer of dust months later...

[Kman-Sweden]

So here's the latest pics.. Enjoy.

A quick tip for removing glued buttons.


The templet I made... Notice how close to the side i had to router.
It clearly didn't work and I had to remove the speaker shelf and make a new one.


New speaker shelf in place.


A pic of the coin bucket shelf.


Dusty, dusty, dusty.


Lower air vents in place.


Top air vents. These will also be painted black.


Keyboard drawer installed. This was a bit tricky to do alone. I would have liked a extra pair of hands helping out..


T-molding groove done. An extra pair of wheels makes the cab more portable. Now it can be rolled like a wheelbarrow when height might be an issue..

[Ond]

Despite some of the challenges you've had this is coming along very nicely. Good idea on the extra wheels as well.

[Epyx]

Ya, I really like the extra wheels, I also think those vents will look good once they are painted black...so used to seeing pc fan covers, I like these.

Love the dust...too bad you couldn't bring that dust back and have it reformed for extra MDF lol.

[Kman-Sweden]

Okey, so today I spackled over all the screws so hopefully I'll be painting soon.
Also made some improvements to the extra wheels... I'll post some pics of that later.

After testing some different layouts for the PC I finally decided to go with this one.
I installed and old Sound Blaster Live! sound card to run ambiance sounds on.
In-game sounds will be played with the on-board sound card.



Here's all the components. I might need to hook up the extra PSU to power some lights etc..

[Kman-Sweden]

Started painting today.

[Vebbo]

Really hope u get this baby rollin' before it gets to cold and dark outside Kman... Keep going!

[Kman-Sweden]

Really hope u get this baby rollin' before it gets to cold and dark outside Kman... Keep going!

So do I... It's still above freezing outside at night so I feel confident. 
You're from Norway, right?

[saleem]

your dad might not want to part with it,seeing as he does most of the work.
 

what colors,any artwork?
 

[Vebbo]

Really hope u get this baby rollin' before it gets to cold and dark outside Kman... Keep going!

So do I... It's still above freezing outside at night so I feel confident. 
You're from Norway, right?

Yessir, live just outside Oslo, 10 min drive. Just dont hope we get so much snow as last year... puh....

[Epyx]

your dad might not want to part with it,seeing as he does most of the work.

Lol, agreed.

But in all seriousness Kman...your Dad rocks.

[Kman-Sweden]

your dad might not want to part with it,seeing as he does most of the work.
 

Trust me, he just wants to be able to park the car in the garage before the snow comes. 
I just don't have arms long enough to get myself in all the pictures when I'm holding the camera. But you can see the top of my head in the latest pic.
I'm painting with a brush and he was going over the paint with the roller to smooth it out.

what colors,any artwork?
 

Black and blue. Still no CP art but I've done a marquee. If you'd like to see it follow my URL below and it's on top of the page. (Amazing Arcade, working title)

[Kman-Sweden]

your dad might not want to part with it,seeing as he does most of the work.

Lol, agreed.

But in all seriousness Kman...your Dad rocks.

Thanks but I don't think he adopting anyone at the moment. 

[Epyx]

Fair enough...just make sure you let him get in a round of Galaga or two when it's done

[Kman-Sweden]

Second layer of base completed. First layer of black will go on tomorrow.
Stay tuned for more.

[Kman-Sweden]

FRIDAY! Finally they let us go out from the salt mines. Just had to celebrate with a beer.   


First layer of black is done. Since I'm painting with semi-toxic paint I had to open the garage door
and every insect on this side of the arctic circle had to land on my wet paint!   
I have to sand the corpses out before applying layer two.

[saleem]

lights in the dark in summer with open doors is invitation to insects.
 

[Kman-Sweden]

The Arcade is home! Me and my sisters kid who's 18 years old carried the cab up to the third floor.
I'm still huffin' and puffin' and gasping for air. I might sell the arcade to the person who's moving in if we ever move out
just so I don't have to carry it down again.
I'll post some more pictures of my work tomorrow since I have Friday off from work.
As you can see the t-molding is on. It goes all the way around.
I've installed a on-off switch and a power strip that everyone seems to have in their cabbies.
The PC has been mounted to a piece of MDF so I'll post some better pics about that too.
Still need to get my hands on some glass and plexi.
Stay tuned for more!

Say 'ello to my little friend. The model on the right is my lovely fiancee.
Just testing with my X-Arcade on it to get the feel of the finished product. Next to be built is the control panel.
      

[emphatic]

The paint came out really nice, didn't it? How tall is your fiancée, the cab looks huge next to her. Also, is that a forced smile or is she really that excited about your cabinet?

[Kman-Sweden]

 
The cab is 1.85 meter tall... eeh that's aprox 6.07 feet i think.
About the smile.. I think it's because I said the pic's going on the internet. 

[Ond]

Lookin gorgeous, strong right hand grip oh,......oh you mean the cab?    heee  great work Kman!  T-molding has been fitted nice and tightly and sets off the black, you're up to the fun bit, the CP.  You and I both have Friday off -

[jmike]

Yeah Kman great job.
              since you an Ond have Friday off I'm guessing we'll see more progress on your cabs right  .
Hopefully she continues smiling when you tell her you have a great idea for the next cabinet.

 

[Kman-Sweden]

jmike--> I can't speak for Ond but I promised more pics before didn't I? 
Stay tuned.

[Kman-Sweden]

The paint came out really nice, didn't it?

Well here and there there are some small blobs that look like a bubble has risen to the surface and popped. It bugged me for about 5 minutes but then someone handed me a beer and now I can't be bothered by it anymore. 

[Kman-Sweden]

So here's the update pics I promised to post. I'll start off with some of the electrics.
Installed a PC type power socket. Nice and clean.


So that I don't have to fear the live wires on the inside i covered it with a box like this and then ran a cable up to a on/off button (lighted red).


The back of the on/off button is also covered with a box, and then from the button it goes to a standard 220V power outlet.


The smart strip is connected to the 220V outlet and fastened just under the keyboard shelf.


Moving on to the PC itself.. Here's my graphic card with getho-style cooling mod.
It's a ASUS v99999 (Nvidia). The fan stopped turning years ago and I replaced it with a arctic cooling fan.
The AC fan was even worse. It started making a horrible sound after aprox 9 months.
I scraped the whole PC and built a new one so the graphic card became obsolete. Then one day in the fall of 2008
I pulled out my Dremel and cut the fan out, slapped a 120mm fan on it, bent a peace of blue plastic to get a better air flow
over the card and taped it to the fan.


Right side view... Cards attached using the now standard BIC-pen solution.
Also fastened a pair of old kitchen handles to the board so that it becomes easier to lift in and out of the cab.
As you can see I have two sound cards on this bad boy. One intergrated for the ambiance sounds and one old Soundblaster Live!
for the in-game and FE sounds. This way I can adjust the sound levels separately.


Here's the back right side of the PC. Two extra USB plates.


Back left side. Hard drive is mounted using angle irons. I can use the top holes to fasten another hard drive
on top of this one if the game collection grows even more.


Okay, back to the cabbie. Mounted the sub using the same type of brackets I used on the PC.


I had these really ugly speakers laying around so I drilled two holes in the corners of them and will screw then into place so they don't fall over.
These will only play the ambiance (Arcade hall in 1981, 1983, 1986 and is it 1992?) You all know what I mean, right?


Then I finally lifted in the PC and attached everything including my ActLabs gun.
The PC is secured with a pair of screws on each side.


Instead of Windows XP logo at start-up I have this one and a ton of others arcade and gaming type bootscreens.
It's a diffrent every time I start it up.


Background pic in Windows just before my Maximus Arcade starts. Someone posted the invader and I made it blue and added the text.
Maximus is shelled so Windows (explorer.exe) will not even load. I also hacked a dll file to get rid of the white standard cursor
that otherwise is visible for aprox a second at this point.


I still have a CP to build and I need to cover the monitor with glass so come back soon.
-Kman_Sweden.

[jmike]

Thanks Kman, that was a nice amount of pics.

Computer set up looks great, you've actually given me a couple of new ideas for my next build. Are you planning on putting gun holsters for your ActLabs gun?

 

[Epyx]

Nothing finer than pc on a platter

Have you decided on the layout of your CP yet?

[Kman-Sweden]

Thanks Kman, that was a nice amount of pics.

Computer set up looks great, you've actually given me a couple of new ideas for my next build. Are you planning on putting gun holsters for your ActLabs gun?

 

Thank You and You're Welcome. What ideas came to your mind?
I'm not sure about the holsters. If I'm doing holsters they will not be bulky metal holsters, that's for sure.
I'm thinking more in the lines of holsters made out of dark leather hide. We'll see what happens.

Nothing finer than pc on a platter

Have you decided on the layout of your CP yet?

Well yes and no. I haven't drawn any button layouts yet but I do know it's going to be a two player, 7 button setup with two pinball buttons on each side, a trackball and a spinner.

[Epyx]

Well yes and no. I haven't drawn any button layouts yet but I do know it's going to be a two player, 7 button setup with two pinball buttons on each side, a trackball and a spinner.

Ah cool. Well post your plans when you have an idea. I would be interested in seeing. I will have similar setup (trackball etc) for the new project and would really like to retain my spinner, so always interested in fresh takes.

[jmike]

I like the way to stack everything up, it's looks like you saved a lot of space ( perfect for the mini DK cab I want to build). 2 questions:

1) how are you planning on keeping everything cool in there?

2) where are you putting the USB ports for easy access?

I really don't want to have too much exposed but would like to have some accesible USB ports for a keyboard, mouse or even a flash drive (you know for adding more games and stuff).

 

[Kman-Sweden]

I like the way to stack everything up, it's looks like you saved a lot of space ( perfect for the mini DK cab I want to build). 2 questions:

1) how are you planning on keeping everything cool in there?

2) where are you putting the USB ports for easy access?

I really don't want to have too much exposed but would like to have some accesible USB ports for a keyboard, mouse or even a flash drive (you know for adding more games and stuff).

 

Hi jmike.
1.) Well I hope that the whole "cool air in at the bottom, warm air out on top" will do the trick for me. I've been running the Mame PC in a wooden box before and the monitor is placed above the PC so.... fingers crossed.  To be frank I know that the temp has to be quite high for any problems to occur. I'm not even worried about it. 

2.) I found this thing...

I was going to paint it black and drill a hole just under the keyboard drawer for it, but now I don't know if I actually need it. The cab can access my home network and the internet so I don't really need USB access for file transfers. I have enough USB port INSIDE the cab for the needs I have at the moment.
Maybe I'll install it in the bottom of the keyboard drawer, so I just need to open the drawer for USB access. We'll see. Do you have any placement ideas for it?

[jmike]

Dude where did you find that usb adapter, I need to get one of those bad boys. I'm not sure what would work best for you, but for the mini DK I want it to look as authentic as possible, so I'l try to hide everything.

 

[Kman-Sweden]

I got it from a swedish store called Kjell&Company http://www.kjell.com/?item=68049&path=97000000,119000000,149500000,151000000

[Kman-Sweden]

Small update today.
I installed the marquee light. It's an old bathroom light. I pulled it appart and removed excess bits and pieces.
I used a old PC power cable to power the light. Cut off the part that normally goes in the PC, a quick, simple solution..



Finally in place.



Put the cover back. It helps to spread the light and make it nice and soft..
I have to place and order to Mamemarquees soon.


That's it for now.
Kman-Sweden

[Kman-Sweden]

What do you guys think about these?
This was my first go at a marquee.
The logos are darker so that the name would really pop out when it was back lit.



Changed the font and went with "less is more"..


Feedback would be great.

[Epyx]

I prefer the 2nd one over the 1st because it isn't as busy with all the logos but not a huge fan of the font. The font makes it a bit difficult to read when giving it a quick glance. 

[Vebbo]

Hi Kman i wont criticize your work but i had 30 min left at work so i played a little in photoshop, not sure if u like it but at least u have an alternative since u are a fan of lightning i added a blueish lightning in the background.

[Kman-Sweden]

Cool. You have some nice filters installed in Photoshop I guess.
I like the reflections in the "lenses" but I feel the text it to small.

[Epyx]

I would do your avatar justice and use the Iron Maiden font at least

[Vebbo]

Cool. You have some nice filters installed in Photoshop I guess.
I like the reflections in the "lenses" but I feel the text it to small.

Nice, but no filters etc installed in photoshop .

I would do you avatar justice and use the Iron Maiden font at least

OMG, off course, wasn't thinking about that , Anyhow here's another go, with the Iron Maiden font and also added a swedish flag in the Arcade Cab text.

[Ond]

Can I have a go at it too? 

[Kman-Sweden]

Can I have a go at it too? 

Go ahead. 

[Vebbo]

Well since im really ....slow.... here's a pure Eddie marquee

[Kman-Sweden]

Not so fond of the red...
I'll give you some color info so you people can go nutz with your designs. 

The cab is black with blue t-mold and joysticks. Buttons and trackball have RGB led's (thinking blue here as well. white when turned off)
Then there's a aluminium marquee holder and aluminium diamond plate kickplate.

[Vebbo]

Well here´s Eddie with no red 

[Kman-Sweden]

That's a lot better... 
Now take away the small 'Edd's and put "Machine" instead of "Cab" to get some balance in the picture and It'll be great.   

[Vebbo]

Here u go

[jmike]

Here u go

  That looks great vebbomania! Personally I liked the "little Edd's" but it's Kman's machine.

 

[Kman-Sweden]

Here u go

Now THAT'S cool.  Thanx. 
There's a lot of gifted people on these forums, that's for sure. 
I've been working late this week so I haven't had time to fiddle around with things like this as much as I would have liked.

[n88n]

last one is perfect.

[Vebbo]

I am just happy that u "all" liked it  and that i finally found a solution for u Kman 

I'm not sure but if u need the artwork in CMYK or maby u need the photoshop file with layers. Just pm me and I can upload it and send u a link.

[Epyx]

Ya I like it as well...I had a feeling the IM font would look good

[ammitz]

last one is perfect.

+1

Nice artwork

[Kman-Sweden]

Here's some small updates for you all..

Cut the Plexi for the Marquee..
Test with black and white marquee just to get the feel of the final product.



My second Act-Labs gun has arrived! Woohoo!.  



Plexi, thick black cardboard and the front of one of the broken CRTs.
I'll use the front as a template to cut the hole in the cardboard.



CP layout..

[Kman-Sweden]

Started routing the plexi for the CP overlay.
Worked like a charm. Just clamped it down and routed small holes with a normal bit.
Then changed bit to a flush trim and went to town.  


Now what to do with the corner of the CP? Round or more of a straight cut corner?
Any ideas?  


Bezel test mounted. Still need to fasten it properly.
It looks horrible when the flash hit it but as you all know things look better in real life.
If you wondering about the empty space under the bezel? Thats where the admin/coin/service buttons will go.

[jmike]

It's looking great Kman 
   About the CP, if I were you I'd round off the corners. you're putting t-molding on there too right?


 

[Kman-Sweden]

It's looking great Kman  
   About the CP, if I were you I'd round off the corners. you're putting t-molding on there too right?


 

Thanks Jmike. Yeah I'll put T-mold on it too. I have to order new T-mold because there isn't enough left from the cab build.
But I think I'm gonna order it from GGG since the order I did at t-molding.com increased by almost 100% due to some export/import taxes or some crap like that. I think I'll go for the lighter blue, like on my balltops.

[ammitz]

I bought mine from this guy i England:

http://ukt-molding.co.uk/

If you contact him by email instead of ebay then you get 10% discount

Keep up the good work with your cab, and I would round the corners as well.

[Kman-Sweden]

I bought mine from this guy i England:

http://ukt-molding.co.uk/

If you contact him by email instead of ebay then you get 10% discount

Keep up the good work with your cab, and I would round the corners as well.

Cool thanks. Can't see any prices exept for the router bit. Do you remember what you paid for it?

[ammitz]

20ft ½  dark red @ £0.75 = £15.00 -10%(£1.50)= £13.50 for Tmolding as none ebay.
Packing and postage to Denmark  £7.50

The good thing about this guy is that he's from England = EU = no tax or customs

[Kman-Sweden]

Thanks. 

[jmike]

Just something to think about (this question came up on another thread).

The lexan/plexi on the control panel (depending on how thick it is) will increase the size of the t-molding you'll need.

 

[emphatic]

Also, check if www.arcadegames.se has the T-Mold you want. Free shipping. In Sweden. 'Nuff said.  

[Kman-Sweden]

Just something to think about (this question came up on another thread).

The lexan/plexi on the control panel (depending on how thick it is) will increase the size of the t-molding you'll need.

 

Thanks for the warning.. I've bought a thiner piece of MDF for the top of the CP just because of this.

Also, check if www.arcadegames.se has the T-Mold you want. Free shipping. In Sweden. 'Nuff said.  

Fantastic prices! No blue though.. I might buy a arcade monitor from here later.

[Kman-Sweden]

Emphatic. I like your site... Good links on it. Thanks.

[opt2not]

whoa, check out this t-molding off that Swedish site:


You should go with this stuff! 

[emphatic]

Emphatic. I like your site... Good links on it. Thanks.

Thanks. Hopefully, none are dead.

[Kman-Sweden]

So the most of you said round.. Like the green dotted line?

[Epyx]

Kman,

Personally, I would go for the green line! 

[emphatic]

Kman,

Personally, I would go for the green line! 

+1

[Kman-Sweden]

Thank for the input Epyx and emphatic.

It's been a while since I last updated this build.
I decided to go with the edged look of the CP. It's my CP so I can do what I want. 
I started off by drawing the shape of the CP on paper and then making a template out of it.
On the templet I got all the angles figured out and then just cut all the pieces to length and glued them together.
Since i didn't have any way to clamp the angled pieces together with I invented a way that actually worked out great. 
I used a stapler gun (is that the name?) to hold the pices together.



MacGyver tape wrapped over the outside also made it hold together really good until the glue dried.



I glues and screwed the bottom to the frame. Nothing worth documenting.
I don't know if people go through the extra effort of angling the back and front pieces so they line up with the angled sides?
Well I did it with a belt sander of some sort. it was actually really fun.


It's been painted with the first coat of black paint and is drying at the moment.
Stay tuned for more... Kman.

[Kman-Sweden]

The major woodworking is finally completed. Here's a dry run of the final assembly.
Admin buttons are:
white ones = P1 & P2
Yellow ones = Coin1 & Coin2
Blue ones = Pause , Menu, Quit and Service (for now... these might change)
  


I'm currently wiring the controlpanel. First all the lights, then the daisy-chain-ground and last but not least the +5v.
More pics to come about that. Also to come, the keyboard hack for the admin buttons and the NES & SNES to USB ports need to be installed..
Stay tuned. / Kman-Sweden.

[emphatic]

It looks like you managed to get a really nice finish on that control panel, man! 

It would have been cool if you had some sort of cover in front of the middle buttons on the admin panel, like admin panels on a TV has?

[Kman-Sweden]

It looks like you managed to get a really nice finish on that control panel, man!  

It would have been cool if you had some sort of cover in front of the middle buttons on the admin panel, like admin panels on a TV has?

Thanks. I'm satisfied with it.
I don't really follow you about the cover. Any pics to illustrate?

[Kman-Sweden]

I really need to order new, lighter blue, t-mold for the cab aswell...

[emphatic]

I really need to order new, lighter blue, t-mold for the cab aswell...

Can't you just put some of the existing T-Mold onto the light blue Control Panel, so it's more of an integration?

For your previous question, I meant that if you could recess the area where your admin buttons are (not counting start or coin buttons), you could put them in a hidden panel so nobody goes "hey, what does this do?" while facing the last boss of Metal Slug 3 or something (1 + hours of playtime down the drain).

[syph007]

You did good work.  Only thing I would have done differently is used smaller and black colored marquee retainer, and used a bigger screen, but those can be upgrades for later!

Nice job, enjoy the games!

[Kman-Sweden]

You did good work.  Only thing I would have done differently is used smaller and black colored marquee retainer, and used a bigger screen, but those can be upgrades for later!

Nice job, enjoy the games!

Point taken... They might look smaler if painted black... Cheers.

[Kman-Sweden]

Hey we're on page four here, and with almost 5500 views.. Nice! 
Thanks for that y'all.

Here's a pic of the control panel in mid-wiring. I started off by wiring all the lights to the two LedWiz'es.
Then I grounded everything and when this picture was taken I had wired player ones buttons and was running out of wire... fast..
I had to change wire color a couple of times but I desided that I'd rather have this done then worry about wire-color.


Custom Cab logo in place. What do you guys think about it? 

[emphatic]

Custom Cab logo looks awesome!  Button labels... not so much. 

[Kman-Sweden]

 

[rablack97]

Nice build   , not sure what you have access too where you live, but you might check in your local hardware store and look for metal sign stakes.  I know it sounds weird, but I found some that are perferct marquee retainers, they already have screw holes precut and are l-shaped, smaller and painted black.  Just cut the pointed end off to size and your good to go.  I'm going to the hardware store today, to pick one up, I'll post a pic for ya for a visual.



Here is my build, i'm gonna post some more updates tonight as well.

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=96162.0

[Kman-Sweden]

Nice build   , not sure what you have access too where you live, but you might check in your local hardware store and look for metal sign stakes.  I know it sounds weird, but I found some that are perferct marquee retainers, they already have screw holes precut and are l-shaped, smaller and painted black.  Just cut the pointed end off to size and your good to go.  I'm going to the hardware store today, to pick one up, I'll post a pic for ya for a visual.



Here is my build, i'm gonna post some more updates tonight as well.

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=96162.0

Sure! Post a pic for me. Thanks. 

[Kman-Sweden]

Here's an update for y'all..
This is my Keyboard hack for the service buttons. I started of ripping apart a USB keyboard and soldering some wires to a nice 26-pin connector.
You can read more about how I did it on my website. I broke the cable I made for the Keyboard hack so I had to make a new one.
So I just cut one end of a floppy cable and then cut the connector down to size from 32-pins to 26-pins. It worked out really nice.
Then I just crimped quick connectors to the ends of the cables and attached them to the switches.




Then I fastened the PCB inside the cab and started the work of powering the LED's. I just daisy chained both 5v and ground to all LED's.
My player 1 and Player 2 buttons aren't lightable to date but I daisy chained enough connectors so I can light them If I replace the buttons in the future.




"Let there be light!" I fastened the "Service Panel" with magnets so that it can be removed from the front. This is vital for the removal of the CP.




Here's some closeups of the buttons labeled. I printed out the labels in 4-5 different fonts and sizes and then used the diffuser in on of the buttons
to make a nice circle around the labels. Then I just cut them out and assembled the buttons again. Easy-peasy.




Closeup 2.




That puts me at 98% done I think. -Kman

[rablack97]

Here ya go, I stopped for a sec and took a few photos of the stake I was talking about.

They come with a sharp end for sticking in the ground, I just took the dremel and shave that off to size.

[Kman-Sweden]

Thanks Rablack97.

I got a question about how my CP is attached to the Cab?
I drilled four holes and used "Wagon bolts"(?) and Wing nuts like this. Hope it helped.



Just ignore all the dust, Ok? 

[opt2not]

Looking pretty good Kman, congrats.

Though, it's too bad you don't have illuminated P1 & P2 buttons to go with the rest of that panel...

[Kman-Sweden]

Looking pretty good Kman, congrats.

Though, it's too bad you don't have illuminated P1 & P2 buttons to go with the rest of that panel...

Thanks. 
If you look close enough you can see I've made all the wiring for them to be iluminated also. just need to buy 'em. 

[Kman-Sweden]

Small (read easy) but noticeable update today. Kickplate installed.
I also changed the Marquee retainers to a smaller pair. I'm really pleased with this update..

[Kman-Sweden]

I had a pair of CD/DVD booklets (is that what they're called?) laying around my office/arcade. And suddenly it struck me.. Those would make great holsters for my ActLabs guns.
I ripped out the pages, cut the zipper away and then screwed them into place. Then I glued the open end shut making it like a triangular tube. A.k.a. a pair of holsters.
It took me about 10 minutes to do both. Here's two pictures of the result.

[emphatic]

Looking great! 

[Kman-Sweden]

Swedish 1-, 5- and 10-Krona coins.


I've bought two coin mech for Swedish coins. One for the 5-Krona and one for the 10-Krona coins.
However I've also placed an order for the BYOAC tokens and decided to modify the 10-Krona mech to accept larger coins.
The 10-Krona is 20mm (0.787401575 inch) and the 1-Krona is 25mm (0.984251969 inch)
My goal was to get it to accept the 1 Krona coin and at the same time make the tokens work..
The 5-Krona is to big (28mm, 1.1023622 inch) for the mech so I'll keep the 5-Krona mech as is.
Here's a simple picture to illustrate how I did it.



Hope it helps someone.

[drventure]

Nice job on the holsters.!

[Kman-Sweden]

They do the job. 

[painterinfo]

Just read the entire thread, you have a slick machine there. You have me seriously thinking about a gun holster for mine now.

I could not help digging out my “Independence Day” video to get this screen capture.

[Kman-Sweden]

  It's to help me figure out a nice CP overlay.

[emphatic]

It's to help me figure out a nice CP overlay.

I would do a "move strip" at the bottom of the overlay and leave the top to some nice graphics. This way you have all the info in one place and it'll look less cluttered.

[painterinfo]

I like classic designs, but a design like that alien cockpit with stick-it notes printed onto the overlay is an idea at least.

I luckily have not had to think of a design for mine as I used stainless steel.

Maybe something 1950's ish or automotive for you to match the custom cab font.

[Kman-Sweden]

I would do a "move strip" at the bottom of the overlay and leave the top to some nice graphics. This way you have all the info in one place and it'll look less cluttered.

I'm have a plan to edit my frontend in a way that it explains the controls needed to choose emulator and select a game. The idea I have for the overlay is to "halo" the player buttons and mark them with player1 and player2. I'll "arrow" the joysticks with big 4way and small 8way arrows. Finally I'll point out/"halo" the flipper buttons and put in a designated "Launch ball" button on the front-right-angeled side of the CP.

I like classic designs, but a design like that alien cockpit with stick-it notes printed onto the overlay is an idea at least.
I luckily have not had to think of a design for mine as I used stainless steel.
Maybe something 1950's ish or automotive for you to match the custom cab font.

In the begining, I actually had plans to do a checkered, yellow and black, taxicab theme. With bright yellow t-mold and a pair of orange turn indicator lights on top.
One day who knows?.... 

[painterinfo]

How about something like this, a Blue FJ Concept, trackball over the front headlight.
I have the image in 2194 x 1446 res and Photoshop format if you want it.

Here is the original
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2006/12/holdenefijy_01.jpg

[Kman-Sweden]

Thanks, I'll be sure to let you know if I need it. 

[Kman-Sweden]

I don't know if you guys have noticed my 4-way / 8-way indicator LED's?
The joysticks change from 4- to 8-way by pulling and twisting and there's no way to know in what setting they are witout opening the CP.

I made two of these.


I wired two 12V LED's to a switch, one on the NO and the other on the NC. This way one is always on.
The white arm presses or releases the switch and thereby turns one LED on and the other LED off. Easy.


I drilled holes in the CP just above the joysticks but left the LED's flush with the MDF UNDER the overlay.
They'll shine through the overlay displaying numbers that are hidden below the final overlay.

[opt2not]

I was wondering what those little lights were on your CP top.  Totally forgot to ask.

That's a great idea. I'm kinda doing the same for my CP switchbox, having LED indicators for what control input is active at a given time (PC or other).

Good stuff! 

[Silas (son of Silas)]

Nice idea with the LEDs. Bookmarked and officially 'stolen' for my cab. 

[Kman-Sweden]

You're welcome. 

[lettuce]

Kman, how did you get that lightning effect in photoshop??

[Bender]

I don't know if you guys have noticed my 4-way / 8-way indicator LED's?
The joysticks change from 4- to 8-way by pulling and twisting and there's no way to know in what setting they are witout opening the CP.

I can feel the difference in the restrictor, but love your Idea anyway,  ummm more pretty lights

[Kman-Sweden]

Kman, how did you get that lightning effect in photoshop??

There's tons of guides out there. Have a look here ---> http://www.world-of-cha0s.hostrocket.com/lightningtutorial/tutorialmain.html

[drventure]

Cool idea with the indicator lights!

[Kman-Sweden]

I can feel the difference in the restrictor, but love your Idea anyway,  ummm more pretty lights

Cool idea with the indicator lights!

thanks guys. I haven't seen it anywhere before. That always makes me happy. 

[Kman-Sweden]

Small update on the PC side.
I realized that my server is running with 2GB of RAM and the arcade with only 768Mb.
Did some quick redividing of RAM's and ended up with 1,5 GB's in the arcade cab and 1,2 in the server.

Also overclocked the P4 from 2,60 to 3.12 (+20%)  Stable with temperature at approx 42C.

[Ond]

I must see more cab update pics!!!!!

[Kman-Sweden]

I must see more cab update pics!!!!!

Ha! Right back at you, Ond!  
How bout this to prove me last post?

[Kman-Sweden]

So today I took my first step towards "real" arcade hardware.
I took a one-and-a-half hour drive to Stockholm yesterday. I went there to look at some bigger monitors.
The good new is that my cab can just fit a 29" tri-sync tube.
The bad news is that the tubes don't come cheap.

Well anyhow, this is what I DID come home with!



1.) A 4-slot Neo-Geo MB
2.) A CGA/EGA/YUV to VGA converter that features CGA/EGA signal auto scan(15K,24K,31K) and YUV signal auto scan(480i,576i,720i,1080i,480p,576p,720p,1080p).
3.) A 15 Amp Power supply.
4.) A 100-in-1 MVS cartridge.



Here's everything hooked up for testing, as always on the floor.



Success!



Game menu. Some really good games on this one.
Now I have to figure out a way to switch the controlls from the Ipac to the Jamma/Neo-Geo cables.
I think I have a old manual printer switch that might come in handy... Stay tuned.

/K-Man.

[emphatic]

Cool.  So, that 4-slot is true JAMMA then, and not "NEO GEO-JAMMA"? Didn't they have any 1-slots btw, or do you plan on getting some of the games that aren't on the 100-in-1 cart? IIRC, it's mostly fighters, the Slug series, and a couple of hacked titles?

When you were in the shop, did you get to see the Panasonic tri-syncs showing games as well? I'm curious of the picture quality...

[Kman-Sweden]

No the Neo-Geo and true Jamma has some diffrences. Jamma has the -5V and a Tilt switch that is missing from the Neo-Geo's 56 pin.
Then again Jamma is mono only while Neo-Geo is stereo. Neo-Geo has some "Select Up" and "Select Down" and Coin 3 & 4 that missing from the Jamma.
In all 7 out of 56 are in the wrong place. I dont really have to move any cables just re-label them. No problems. 

They did have two 1-slot NG's left (I think), I got the last 4-slot (again, I think).
I might (probably will) buy more games in the future so I thought I'd better get the 4 slot so I don't have to open the cab all the time to change games.
The monitors where all on the shelfs and nothing was up and runing.

From one thing to another, are you going to get in on the JP deal for another EgretII? Do they come with a actual game aswell or is it only cab and cp?

[Franco B]

Heh, I just wired up a MV-4F  like yours to a Jamma cab. I also installed the same CGA>VGA video converter as yours, I may have even bought the same Jamma PSU too  

My converter has gone faulty though and I'm going to have to buy another one  

Good work on the tri-sync. I bought myself a new 29" Sanwa PFX tri-sync for one of my cabs.

You won't need the video converter once you have your tri-sync will you?

Edit: Just for reference, all of the 1 slot MVS mobo's are Jamma compatible, its just the MV-2F, MV-4F and MV-6F (two, four and six slot mobos) that are not strictly Jamma compatible without an adapter or a little re-wiring.

[Kman-Sweden]

Franco B ---> Ah cool. Didn't know that 1-slot are copatible with jamma.
Do you know if I can run the "Speaker pos L" + Ground and "Speaker pos R" + same Ground to a 3.5 mm stereo jack and plug it into my computer speakers? (like RCA to 3,5mm)
Is it that simple? 

[emphatic]

From one thing to another, are you going to get in on the JP deal for another EgretII? Do they come with a actual game aswell or is it only cab and cp?

I don't think I'll get a cab from that deal, because I have found an EGRET II closer to home that I'm trying to buy (the owner needs to make his mind up). AFAIK, there will only be 1 cabinet with a panel (that could even be for Mahjong if you're not quick about picking it up) in the deal, with no game attached. I hope Johan will have some pictures of the cabinets up soon though, as I predict that some interested parties might drop out otherwise.

Back on topic: My NEO-GEO 1-slot is JAMMA (mono sound though). But I've come to understand that the 1-slots might be less reliable than the 4-slots, so your purchase is probably a good one. Just make sure everything is clean, or you'll might get system crashes, graphics dropping out or no sound. Nothing too serious, but annoying.

[Franco B]

As the sound from the MVS mobos is amplified you will need to make an attenuation circuit or buy a cable with one in to bring the sound back down to line level if you want to amplify it though your computer speakers.

If you search ebay for 'line level RCA' you should see a few products. You will probably need a twin male RCA>3.5mm jack cable as well to connect it to your computer speakers as the RCAs on the line level converters tend to be female.

[Kman-Sweden]

How bout the 4-pin headphone jack then? is it usable?

[emphatic]

How bout the 4-pin headphone jack then? is it usable?

Take a look here for some useful info: http://hardmvs.com/html/PCBcompare.htm

[Kman-Sweden]

Santaclaus stoped by today. 



Rock on! 

[ammitz]

Santaclaus stoped by today. 

Isn't he a little late?

Btw what is it 

[Kman-Sweden]

Neo Geo credit displays.

[ammitz]

Thanks for enlighting me.

Looking forward to the installations pics.