Yo, yo, I got it into my head a couple of weeks back that I'd sort through all the stuff I don't use in my house, and sell it. So, I put a bunch of stuff on eBay. Very luckily, I got way more than I expected to for it all, so I've decided to dive headfirst into a longstanding dream of mine. I'm going to build a PC-based arcade machine!
I'm thinking that I don't really have the room to have a full standing cabinet in my house though, so I've decided to build a "bartop" style cabinet. Ordered all the PC bits that I'd need, and realised that the PC I've built is more powerful than the PC that I currently use for work/gaming. So, looks like this arcade machine is going to be a hybrid arcade machine/Steam box.
Thought it'd be a bit of fun to document it all here. I have no idea what I'm doing and it's been an AGE since I've built a PC - I've been using laptops for years now - but I've done a bit of research online and think I've come up with the goods.
The case will be a slightly modified one of these:-
Mods: Two extra button holes on the back for power/reset. Extra button hole on left side for saving games. Extra button hole on the right for loading games.
Buttons/Sticks/USB Encoder/Button Wiring
And for the internals, I've gone with...
PCI 300MBps Wireless Card HDMI Male-Female extension cable (so there will be an HDMI port on the case) Quiet Ace 500W PSU AMD Bulldozer FX-4130 3.8GHz Quad Core 8GB DDR3 RAM (Board will take 32GB, but 8 is a good start!) Gigabyte 78LMT-USB3 AM3+ Motherboard Modular Keystone Stub Single-Gang Surround Modular Keystone Stub Cable USB Plate x2 (so 2 USB ports will be mounted on the case) Asus Radeon HD 5450 Silent PCI-Express 16x 2GB graphics card Kingston 120GB SSDNow V300 SATA SSD drive Motherboard Mounting Feet 3x60mm Case Fans 3x60mm Fan Grills Fan Splitter Cable Arcade Stereo Sound Speaker Amplifier/Grills/Speakers
...and that's about it! Might need to add a keyboard/mouse later, but I have wireless ones here that I can substitute in for now.
Now I just have to wait...
Will post more as it arrives and I get chance to work on it all!
(Note: At some point, this will all go wrong. And I'll end up having to spend money to correct errors that are purely my own. It always happens. I'm rubbish at DIY. )
Mistake 1: I have not bought a screen for it. Oops.
Made out a list of things I needed. Wrote "monitor" next to "motherboard" for some reason. Crossed both out when I ordered the motherboard. Idiot alert.
Changed my idea up a little bit for the backplate. Instead of having separate holes for HDMI out, 2xUSB, and audio in, I've ordered up a 4-gang backplate surround with four stubs. They should all frame off nicely.
Bought a nice Dell 19" 4:3 monitor for it, too.
Waiting for the postman with the first round of pieces!
Well, all the parts have arrived, and now I'm building! The motherboard, CPU, and RAM combo were sent back as there was a fault with the mobo's on-board display. Replacement should be here tomorrow.
As it stands though, I've got the case structure in place, mounted the backplate with a HDMI out, 2xUSB 2.0 ports, and an 3.5mm audio jack, and put two buttons in place for power and reset. The power button has been soldered and insulated (and tested!) so the PC actually powers on via an arcade button (which I'm super-proud of, because I generally set fire to things if I have to use a soldering iron.)
Over the weekend, I got the case to the point where it looks like a case, too! I've turned a random offcut into a hybrid VESA monitor mount/SSD/HDD mount as well. Was originally going to just stand the monitor in the case, but figured I'd go the whole hog. The monitor bar in the picture has an SSD and a standard 3.5" HDD mounted on the back of it, out of view.
Next up is drilling fan holes in the back of the case, securing the 1/2-player start button panel to the front, and building a speaker enclosure for the top. Planning on doing that tomorrow!
It has taken a while due to work and other things, but this project is finally getting there.
Not in shot are the speaker assembly, which is done and just needs to be put in place, and the monitor mount and assembly, which is also done and needs to be slotted into place.
Unfortunately though, I screwed up the control panel (the button orientation is upside down!) and the front panel that houses the 1/2 player start buttons had an unfortunate accident involving a garage door. So, I'm waiting for replacement pieces for those.
The pinball buttons are in place on either side, along with buttons for saving and loading games.
The back is a bit rough due to me having to use a different grade of wood for it (ran out of the good stuff!) which unfortunately splits. You can see the damage around the orange power button where boring a straight hole through caused it to rip the finish. The chrome edging around the PSU has been re-done since this picture too, and looks a lot better.
Still, I've got a big wad of game-related stickers that will cover up any imperfections, hopefully. It'll be the best SNK/Sega/Capcom/Nintendo/Steam/Insert Coin/AMD/Dell-branded cabinet that anyone's ever seen.
Almost...ALMOST finished the actual construction of this now. Just adding a final layer of paint to the control panel, then some lacquer, then I can start playing games.
Trying to work out how to fit a Dreamcast into it, too. My TV doesn't have a VGA port, but the screen on this cab does. Hmmmmm!
(I've called her "Fullmetal" since I love Fullmetal Alchemist and I was watching FMA: Brotherhood at the time. And I'm a bit simple.)
I finally applied the last piece of chrome (which are just strips of plastic, really, but they're cheap, easy to apply, and look nice!) and finished setting up the software today, so I think I can deem it to be complete!
I had to cut back in some places and in others, my DIY skills weren't up to much. It isn't perfect by any means, but it plays games really nicely and looks presentable enough, so I'm totally happy with it. There were challenges to overcome here and there, but the build wasn't all that tough really.
As it stands, the machine plays arcade games via MAME incredibly well, and the pinball flippers on the side are great for Pinball FX 2 via Steam. Also, I've got ports in there for original controllers for a couple of old-school consoles, but I won't go into too much detail about that here. *whistles*
The yellow side buttons are used for saving (left) and loading (right) games, and the entire thing runs without needing a mouse or keyboard. Running on Windows 7, I've customised the system and used JoyToKey to emulate keystrokes so that once the machine loads, pressing the red button on the right loads the arcade/console menu, while pressing the red button on the left signs me into Steam and runs Pinball FX2.
I'm really happy with it...but I kinda sorta want to use what I learned from this build to break it all down and put it inside a full-sized cabinet now...hmm...
Maybe I'll like...actually play some games first, though...
Wow that is freakin sweet man. How much did it all cost you if you dont mind me asking.
Thanks! I think all-in, it set me back about £600, so about $1000. It sounds a lot, but with experience it would have been cheaper, as I wouldn't have had to re-purchase a couple of bits that I screwed up
Plus I figure it's justified, given that it's technically a gaming PC as well as an arcade cabinet. That's how I'm presenting it to the bank manager, anyway...
I didn't Know you were a Full Metal Fan. This makes both you and the cabinet 100 X cooler in my eyes hahah. It is cramped playing with a friend or are the pictures not giving the scale of it justice?
I didn't Know you were a Full Metal Fan. This makes both you and the cabinet 100 X cooler in my eyes hahah. It is cramped playing with a friend or are the pictures not giving the scale of it justice?
It isn't the biggest cab in the world, it has to be said. The monitor is 19", if that helps with scaling. It's certainly playable by two people, but it does get a bit cramped. Fortunately, the controller ports help with that a little.
Thinking I might build one in a full-size cabinet later this year, if I get a chance.
Dude, that thing is pretty friggin cool! I have a friend who built a PC-based arcade, but it was all rigged together and very amateur. It served its purpose, but wasn't nearly as nice as the one you have pictured above.
I wonder how much it would cost to integrate a hard, flat HD clear glass screen like real arcades have, instead using an LCD monitor?
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I wonder how much it would cost to integrate a hard, flat HD clear glass screen like real arcades have, instead using an LCD monitor?
I did look at that and the only real thing I could find that would have even been close to viable in terms of money would have been to buy a larger monitor, remove the plastic bezel off it, and then stick a sheet of glass in front of it! A proper arcade screen would have cost more than the entire unit, plus it seems that you need a special graphics card to make them display anything, as arcade screens run at different refresh rates.
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Topic: FINISHED! Hybrid Bartop Arcade Cabinet/Steam box
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