United3dArtists Archive

Hi guys, i been out for some time.. i was working hard at work.

I love arcades and flippers.. since here one cost over 2000$ dollars i will make one by my own..

I was thinking on create a mdf mame cabinet.. something small cos i have no much space where put it but something for 2 players..
I was thinking on create a bar cabinet like this one..



but i love this kind of cabinet.. very old school..



So will be a mix of both..
so this will most like a wiki. First at all i have to decide the CPU..
1) frist i thought to buy a broken laptop, one of those with the broken lcd.. Why? because are cheap, has no much weight, most have the power to move any mame game.. then because are small compared any desktop computer..

Option 2) Not put any computer inside the cabinet but a vga adapter and usb.. so will need a external desktop or laptop with vga output to connect the monitor and the usb for the controllers..

What do you think?

External CPU or internal one?

It all depends. I would decide to go for internal only if I really know what I'm doing (which i don't ) But if you don't, then external seems easier.

Ideas for internal...
What kind games will you play, Retro (PAC MAN)?? Or more graphically challenged (Tomb Raider level)?
If your CPU is sort of old it may not be able to handle more graphic games Intel HD isn't very good. However CPU's with Intel HD 3000 or 4000 may work fine. --- so if you find broken computer with good mother board (try for one with a graphics card... They are built in to the motherboard, so you can't add one unless you remove the CPU and to desktop motherboard)

What about Playstation 1&2... They should be dirt cheap by now... Good CPU & GPU, and should be more than enough for any of the arcade games.

I have a CD containing arcade classics such as Defender, Stargate, Joust, and Sinistar. I need to read the inside label - I think it has the ROM executable on the CD? I may have that wrong.