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MAME emulator and virtual pinball combo cabinet


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Hi All. I've had a bit of a search but unless I'm using the wrong terminology, could not find anything relating to building a standup cabinet similar to a traditional arcade machine that can double as a virtual pinball machine?

Now I know for VP to be enjoyed properly that the playfield screen should be large and flat, with a secondary screen acting as the scoring/artwork head unit, but I also know that you can play VP games on a PC or laptop even if you really wanted.

So I just had a thought, would it be possible to build an arcade machine to run all the usual emulated arcade games but have the main screen mounted vertically so that in arcade mode the image would be in the middle as 4:3 ratio and blank above and below (side question: could this be filled with artwork in the software?) and then in VP mode it would be used full screen as the main playfield? Perhaps the marquee at the top of the cabinet could actually be some P5 or smaller panels to double as game logo in arcade mode and DMD in VP mode?

Welcome any feedback or links to similar builds others may have done already, TIA.

 

Cheers, Graham

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VPCabs have produced a cab like that called a Vertigo. See here: https://virtualpinball.com/products/vertigo?variant=19208746759 Basically an upright vertical arcade machine that doubles as a pinball cab. Never played one so not sure how playing pinball on a vertical screen feels.

 

I've never been much of a fan of trying to combine everything into one cab. Most people would probably recommend having a Virtual pinball cab and then a normal mame cab alongside it as otherwise you are compromising on one or the other or both.

 

Some have gone the other way and install joysticks and buttons onto the top front of their virtual pinball machine to play mame. Plenty examples of those online.

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You can do it but as others have said, not the best option. Each should really be dedicated but if you're tight on space or funds I'd build a standard mame cab. Run desktop mode only Virtual Pinball tables and put a button on either side of the cab.

 

Brad

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Thanks guys for the feedback.

Yes space and budget are huge influences. I have built my own retropie controller board and whilst it's portable, its kind of hard to find a suitable place to put it when using. On the floor is too uncomfortable otherwise I place it on an old keyboard stand which isn't exactly stable when the kids are smashing the buttons on Mortal Kombat :)

So I've been watching a heap of videos about building a cabinet and whilst it's not as portable (but I'm sure easy enough to mount lockable wheels on) I think it will be more stable and stronger as a stand up cab. I just also like the idea of VP as I'll never be able to afford a real one, but I like the sound of VP in desktop mode.

Will a Raspberry Pi run all of this or a dedicated PC be needed? Would the screen still need to be vertical or horizontal be sufficient? Is there a "standard" size screen for cabinets, with 2P controls width of cabinet?

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A Raspberry PI will not run Visual Pinball. For VPX you'll need a half decent pc with a good dedicated Graphics card with the graphics card being the most important part. All the newer VPX tables use nice 3D models and require more than the old VP9 tables did.

 

You're best bet is to start by building up a PC and install VPX and mame and have a play with it all on a test setup. Then after that decide what you will put it into.

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Thanks, I assumed the Pi wasn't going to be gutsy enough for 3d graphics. As I said, I still have retropie on my control board I made, perhaps I can build the arcade cab to keep me occupied and use the current buttons and pi setup for that, and then if I still want to go down the VP route, then consider if a separate build is within scope of budget and space, or upgrade to a desktop and use as desktop mode as suggested earlier.

Thanks for the feedback :)

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