I have decided to build a MAME machine, any good "how to" links?

[Crazy Climber]

Hello

I recently scored a Williams Duramold cabinet with a working monitor and would like to make it in to a MAME cabinet for my daughters play room, well, okay for me too Normally I would leave a rarer cabinet like this alone but it has already been converted to a generic jamma shooter and sadly does not have a single shred of evidence left to its original game (either a sinistar or a Blaster probably guessing by the button formation) The cost and time of completely re wiring this back to Williams and purchasing all the art, pcb, etc.. would end up costing me way more than I think it's worth so I think it would make a sweet MAME cabinet. I really don't know anything about MAME. I did a quick "how to" search on the web and was flooded with garbage so I was wondering if anyone could recommend a good step by step website or even a book on how to make a MAME machine. I would like to keep the original monitor if possible to give it that original look but I am not hellbent on it if that is not a possibility? I really don't know where to start so if anyone has any advice that would be awesome!! Thanks!

[dendawg]

www.arcadecontrols.com

[jahfish]

a cheap and easy to use usb interface that i used for my table: ArcadeMVS

 

i ordered mine (the grey box with the green cables) for 50$ inclusing shipping as far as i remember .... u just need to connect buttons and sticks and you're done ...

 

while that is a really cheap alternative, i recommend buying happ buttons and sticks in the US to make sure those are working fine.

Edited May 29, 2010 by jahfish

[VectorGamer]

I recommend the book Project Arcade, although I am also critical of it for not being more detailed on the issue of installing monitors.

 

Here's some things I learned:

 

Some people like to tear apart a computer and mount all the boards onto a piece of plywood and screw it to the wall of the cabinet. Take this into consideration: nobody is going to give a crap what the inside of your arcade cabinet looks like. Just mount the entire PC to the inside and make sure that you have access to it through the coin door.

 

I use Hagstrom Electronics KE-18 keyboard encoders for simple setups. Do yourself a favor and buy the wiring accessories for any board you buy.

 

A lot of parts I've bought are from MikesArcadeShop.com. Quarterarcade.com is a good source for CPOs, monitor glass, marquees etc along with eBay.

 

From experience, the easiest and fastest way to setup your machine is to load WinXP with MAME32 and Kymaera as your front end. Every other front end I've checked out requires editing this conf file and that conf file - what a waste of time!

 

SuzoHapp is also a good source for monitors and other gaming parts.

[Crazy Climber]

I recommend the book Project Arcade, although I am also critical of it for not being more detailed on the issue of installing monitors.

 

Here's some things I learned:

 

Some people like to tear apart a computer and mount all the boards onto a piece of plywood and screw it to the wall of the cabinet. Take this into consideration: nobody is going to give a crap what the inside of your arcade cabinet looks like. Just mount the entire PC to the inside and make sure that you have access to it through the coin door.

 

I use Hagstrom Electronics KE-18 keyboard encoders for simple setups. Do yourself a favor and buy the wiring accessories for any board you buy.

 

A lot of parts I've bought are from MikesArcadeShop.com. Quarterarcade.com is a good source for CPOs, monitor glass, marquees etc along with eBay.

 

From experience, the easiest and fastest way to setup your machine is to load WinXP with MAME32 and Kymaera as your front end. Every other front end I've checked out requires editing this conf file and that conf file - what a waste of time!

 

SuzoHapp is also a good source for monitors and other gaming parts.

Awesome! Books seem to work best for me personally so I am going to pick this up. Quick question for you, my game already has a working arcade monitor in it. Can I just use the arcade monitor that is in it right now with some sort of arcade to PC adaptor or do I have to switch it out to a different kind/style? I would love to just use the one that is in it now and keep the classic look, plus it would be a huge time/money saver since it is already installed and ready to go.

[VectorGamer]

 

Awesome! Books seem to work best for me personally so I am going to pick this up. Quick question for you, my game already has a working arcade monitor in it. Can I just use the arcade monitor that is in it right now with some sort of arcade to PC adaptor or do I have to switch it out to a different kind/style? I would love to just use the one that is in it now and keep the classic look, plus it would be a huge time/money saver since it is already installed and ready to go.

 

Ultimarc makes an Arcade VGA card. It can interface with either your standard computer monitor or an arcade monitor (it has connectors for both on the card).

[keilbaca]

If the arcade is already JAMMA converted, why not just get one of the 60 in 1 arcade boards?

 

eBay Auction -- Item Number: 260613778741

[stones]

If it already is Jamma and you want Williams games be cheaper to buy the mutliwilliams pcb

http://www.arcadeshop.com/multi-pcb/multi-pcb.htm

or as the previous post said the 60 in 1 depending on the online shop those are between 99 and 139 shipped

[user42]

www.arcadecontrols.com

 

I second this, with the addition that you really should spend some time in the forums there before starting your project. You will be glad you did...

 

 

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/