Jump to content
Due to a large amount of spamers, accounts will now have to be approved by the Admins so please be patient. ×
IGNORED

Been paddling in the shallow end, now it's time to swim....


Recommended Posts

Gudday lads and laddette's, (cripes, what IS the female version of lads? :D )

 

Yes, another newbie here for you all to spit on and poke with sharp sticks. After all, we all love to torment dumb animals, don't we? Or maybe it's just me.... :p

 

Anyhow, I found my way here when looking around for a new controller to use with my arcade emulation. I found and promptly fell in love with the X-Arcade tankstick, then stumbled upon the Arcade Gaming Australia site, which then had a link to these forums here. And thus, in my never-ending desire to learn more about subjects that nobody I know has any interest in, I signed up here.

 

So.... Hi!

 

I'm a 34 year old computer operator/pc tech/gaming afficionado and father of two. Happily married too, mind you..... by all reports anyhow. ;) I have been gaming since I could walk, and started out in the halcyon days when gaming was just starting to invade the home, with my wonderful Atari games console (it wasn't called the Atari 2400 when i bought it). Then it was the C64, then the C128, and then the PC..... and it all went downhill from there. :(

 

Nevertheless I have persisted, and gaming is still my passion. I have been dabbling in emulation for the last ten years or so but besides gathering collections of all the Mame, Atari, C64 and Amiga roms I could, I've not gone into it that much. As long as I had collections of the games set up so I can introduce my kids to what the word 'gameplay' really means, I was happy.

 

But now, I want to be able to play against them! I'm getting sick of my nine year old beating me on his playstation games, so I need some games where I can whoop him! :)

 

So now I'm debating.... do I build myself an arcade cabinet? Or do I just stick with the tankstick with the normal PC and do our gaming on that? I'd LOVE to have an upright cabinet for Mame emulation, and anything else I throw in, but I just don't think I can find the space for it, (read : the wife thinks there's not enough room in the house.)

 

But I'm still researching/investigating/designing/hoping..... ;)

 

Thanks for having me here.

 

Colt.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome to the forum Colt, thats one of the best intro's I've seen from a new member in 2 years.

 

I think you've discovered a site with more options and information than you'll know what to do with :)

 

Your internal debate debate is a typical one, the balance between 'authenticity, versatility, cost and space' is different for every person.

 

Having said that, here's some ideas:

Consider a BARTOP which will give you a 'dedicated arcade machine' without the floor space.

 

or

 

Consider either a 'cocktail' (sit down) cabinet, or a 'coffee table cabinet' (ie literally a coffee table with a screen in it)... controllers either attached or use your tankstick. These present a more wife friendly option.

 

or

 

Build or buy a 'lowboy' which is a nice 'original Aussie style' upright cabinet without looking so large and imposing as a full size cabinet.

 

or

 

All of the above.

 

 

Ok the last one might be an option for you, but stick around a few more months and you'll have somehow managed to get that addicted... its happened to most of us.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well thanks everyone... hell of a nice welcome. And thanks Yellow Dart.... a work colleague pointed the lass thing out about ten minutes afterward. I should've known that too..... :p

 

Anyhow, I'm starting to suspect my wife is going to hate my finding these forums. I just stopped doing the online clan gaming thing with FPS' so haven't been doing the forum thing much of late. Trying to find a home, you know? And now I've started messing with the idea of building a cabinet, so finding these forums is a godsend for me and just another step in my latest spare-time absorbing obsession to her.... :D :rolleyes

 

But oh gawd I really want myself a cabinet.

 

It's funny actually.... three days ago, while simultaneously lamenting the lack of funds to purchase a pre-made X-arcade cabinet to my wife, I started espousing the benefits of building a proper arcade cabinet for the house. My wife kindly pointed out that while it would indeed be nice, (I suspect she's just indulging me,) we just do not have the room to put it. "Go ahead and think about it... where would we put it?" And she was right... we just didn't have anywhere for it to go.

Cue furious thinking.... The next morning I was in my home office/gaming room moving furniture, desks, filing cabinets, bookshelves, by myself trying to find that perfect extra space that would just NEED an arcade cabinet there.

 

And I bloody well found it, too.

 

But for some reason, my wife wasn't as pleased as I was when I pointed out how a slim arcade cabinet right there would so go with the whole theme of the room..... :unsure

 

Now it's just a matter of learning, and seeing what I can do within the bounds of my skill, and the tools I own. I'm not one to jump into projects... it'll take awhile before I can be sure I can do this properly (i.e. the way it deserves).

 

Colt.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Colt,

g'day mate and weclome aboard.

 

you do not have to be an expert with tools to make a cabinet of any kind

 

so long as you can find the plans to what you would like you can get it cut locally.

 

there is a great place i suggest, depending on where you live called readycut

they laser cut everything, oyu tell then what wood you would like and they wil do it. i got a low boy qouted for about $150 forthere abouts, in think it was less actually

 

http://www.sizewise.com.au/contactus.html

 

its up to you if you want to add t-moulding to it or not, or run a router over the edges to smooth them off. hire a router from bunnings for the weekend to do the job.

 

easy peasy

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm actually in the middle of reading John St Clairs' Project Arcade book.... and it's giving me a pretty complete education so far. A pretty good book. Anyway, it looks like I will be going ahead and building a cabinet, and I plan to do the one in the book (which is basically a Lusid cabinet) with a few modifications to suit my purposes. Changes I've come up with so far (remember I'm only half way into the book) are:

 

* Two or three piece front door section, rather than the single hinged piece in the book. Only one of the pieces will be hinged, the other will provide extra strength.

* Three or four player setup on the control board. Taking my time figuring out the layout for that.

*Detachable control panel, so I can take it off when I have to get the cabinet through the doorway. :) I measured it up, and while the cabinet itself has enough clearance, adding the CP makes it too wide. Especially if I end up making it big enough for a four player setup.

 

I even sat down this morning and went through a Bunnings catalogue to get an approximate cost for the tools I'll need to buy. $650..... Ouch, but not too bad. Anyway, I'll be able to use them on more than just this.

And they have sheets of MDF for $32, and I'll be using three of them.... So not too bad price wise. I can't use that readycut place either... I'm a New South Welshman.... :D

 

Colt.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Im sure you can get away with it a little cheaper than that. Besides, dont you have a brother-in-law/neighbour/friend/whoever that you can borrow from?. Before outlaying all that cash it might pay to borrow first and see if its "your thing". If its a one off project its not worth the outlay.

 

Just my opinion

Link to comment
Share on other sites

cabinet mame. build you must

 

http://www.zeek.net/i/yoda.jpg

 

ford is right. you wont have to spend that much on tools. jig saw and drill, i got bosch which isnt too bad quality. router, i winged it with an ozito. you get what you pay for, but all i needed was to make the t-molding slot. it survived that and could probably go another cab or two before it dies :D

 

you can get away without a circular saw by g-clamping guides to the mdf and using a jigsaw. for the one cab, its not much hassle. if you were doing a lot more work, then the saw would come into its own...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Actually I did go cheaper....all the tools except the router for approx. $400. But I went the ozito route..... still not sure, but I got the better models and they have a three year guarantee with a return to bunnings, so for the amount of work I'll be using them for they should be fine.

 

Plans are nearing fruition... Have done a full plan layout using Google Sketchup, and just finished doing a carboard mockup of the CP, so I'll probably start a new thread in the hardware forums to get some opinions.

 

And the best thing so far? My wife even spent two hours shopping in Bunnings with me. Wonders will never cease..... :o :D

 

Colt

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...