MAME

This may not interest you, but I am putting together an arcade system called a "MAME cabinet." MAME (google it) is a piece of software that runs on your computer and emulates different video game systems, including the arcade systems of the past few dacades. It runs the actual game software from chips that were on the original equipment. So PacMan "IS" PacMan, not some clone of PacMan. etc.

I currently have MAME and about 28 old arcade games on my PC but they don't quite have the same arcade "feel." My son loves the games too and I have found that I can bargain with him for play time. So I did some research and found that there is a whole "slew" of people who either build or renovate their own home arcade system.

There are two ways to do it. Start from scratch, or start with an existing system. I chose the latter.

I got a used, non-working arcade machine, and the fellow that I bought it from delivered it. Too heavy to move around I laid it down and modified the bottom to have recessed casters. Now it looks the same but rolls nicely.

I removed a good deal of the guts and control panel. I got an older computer from a friend. That PC needed a new power supply, but it is now working and running the same games as my normal home PC. It will be dedicated to the MAME cabinet.

I designed a new control panel that is flexible enough to play dozens, if not hundreds of games. This is important because a game like PacMan only had a joystick, Donkey Kong had a joystick and a "jump" button, and Missile Command had a trackball and 3 "base fire" buttons. Most games are a joystick and one button, but I wanted to provide for more. The plan is complete, but I needed to figure out the spacing. When all the controls arrived, my son and I built a "mockup" of the panel using a drill and a piece of thin plywood. It looks neat, but pointed out that the spacing needs work. So we will soon make mockup 2. When that is all figured out we can make the real panel and do the wiring.

Now, that wiring thing may sound difficult, but I am standing on the shoulders of giants. I am not the first person to do this, and there is a ton of reference information on the web. I actually bought a kit and a little circuit board that will make it all simple.

I need to adjust the video output of the PC to sync with the monitor in the arcade cabinet. It is not your typical VGA monitor. I modified a VGA cable so that I can plug it into the PC and the monitor, but I need to make sure that the video output of the PC graphics card syncs up correctly. Again, lots of information on the internet.

The machine will actually be coin operated. This is where the motivation comes in with my son. Like I said, I have already determined that I can bargain with him for behavior when it comes to games. He will earn tokens to use in the arcade machine. I currently have 14 tokens (they were actually in the cabinet on the floor) and can easily go exchange some dollars at a game room to get some more. When my son does something good he'll get a token. After he uses it, I can reclaim it from inside the machine. In that way we both get what we want.

I figure this will take a few more weeks and will be done. Nothing is particularly difficult and I have experience with PCs, soldering, woodworking, and a little bit of metal working. I'm keeping a journal on this, rather than blogging all the little details. Later on I will copy the journal into blogs.

The original non-working game machine.


Modification to the bottom for recessed casters.


Gutted machine with mockup of new control panel.