Cabinet with Playstation, access behind coin door
Previously I built a set of arcade controls for playing arcade games on my PC. I intended to use them in front of a TV and so I hooked my PC up to the TV and stereo. I quickly realized this setup was uncomfortable on the floor and on the coffee table. Next I moved everything to a folding table and used a dedicated PC monitor and speakers. That worked, sort of like a disemboweled arcade machine on a table, but I still wanted an arcade cabinet.
I bought a cabinet in a local private sale. It was a "Space Firebird" by Sega/Gremlin. I'm not sure how many original parts it had when the previous owner acquired it, but once I got it, it only had the original marquee--so I didn't feel too bad modifying it. The previous owner modified it to hold a Sony Playstation and a 19" TV. He used arcade-style sticks for the Playstation and had several classic arcade games, swappable through the coin door. It was a neat setup but it wasn't going to last long in my hands.
Cabinet with Playstation, access behind coin door
The first step was to remove the PS, TV, and associated mounts inside the cabinet. I was left with an empty cabinet riddled with screw holes.
Empty cabinet front and back, QC sticker before my cats destroyed it
Just after getting the cabinet, I found a used 21" SVGA monitor to contribute to the project. I put a shelf in the cabinet--I think I just reused the one the previous owner used for the TV. The PC sits on a shelf in the cabinet while the power strip and subwoofer sit in the lowest compartment. The satellite speakers are just mounted on screws at the top of the monitor area--I could not fit them into the marquee area without interfering with the marquee light.
PC, monitor, and speakers in cabinet
My first attempt at adding the controls was just to attach some plywood to the original control panel and rest the control boxes on it. This method put the controls too high to use comfortably and looked strange.
Poor method of attaching control boxes
My second attempt to attach the control boxes was to attach a shelf low enough that the control boxes would be at the normal control panel height for the cabinet. Since this shelf blocked access to the coin door, I put it on a hinge. Finally, since the controls are heavy, I added "outriggers" to support the weight of the shelf and control boxes.
Fancier method of attaching control boxes
I bought a "replacement power cord" that goes from the wall to some bare wires. I suppose one could cut up a regular extension cord for the same purpose but this was cheaper. This cord goes to an electrical box in the lower part of the cabinet that houses a dual outlet. However, the cord doesn't go straight to the outlet. The outlet is controlled by a switch in the upper part of the cabinet. It's a "Decora" switch housed in another electrical box. I placed it in this location to keep it out of reach of small children. The marquee light and a power strip plug into this outlet.
Bottom electrical box, top electrical box, view from outside
My speakers rely on a volume control inline between the PC and subwoofer/amp unit. I was using a Radio Shack pre-built device for this purpose but it was meant to be used for portable units and there wasn't a good way to mount it on the cabinet. So I built a new volume control using more Radio Shack parts. The volume control is "Radio Shack 100K Dual-Ganged Stereo Volume Control #271-1732" and the knob attached to it is "Radio Shack Volume Control Knob #274-424." I wired up the volume control so that an audio cable goes from the PC to a jack on the control, then another cable goes from the control to the amp. The volume control was mounted to a cable TV mounting plate (which I spraypainted black) then the mounting plate was attached to the cabinet next to the power switch (it's on the right in the above picture). I had to cut down the volume control shaft so that that knob wasn't sticking out like a lolly pop. No instructions come with the volume control, but someone named Craig has some instructions here.
Backside of the volume control attached to its mounting plate
The computer is my old "main" computer, last updated in 2001. It is a Pentium II motherboard using a "slotket" to hold at Pentium III 850 MHz (yeah it's old). It has 384MB RAM, two 60GB hard drives, 64MB GeForce2 and Voodoo2 graphics cards, Soundblaster AWE32 sound, CD writer, and 3.5" and 5.25" floppy drives. It runs Windows 2000 Pro. I occasionally get the bug to update the machine to run some of the newer games, but let's face it, this one already plays thousands. The monitor is a Viewsonic 21" SVGA monitor I found used for $40. The speakers are Cambridge Soundworks PC Works--fairly impressive for their small size. The keyboard is a low-end black keyboard (ignore the white wireless one you see in some of the pictures).
First, I painted the monitor housing and speakers black. I removed the case entirely from the monitor. On the speakers I just masked off parts I didn't want to paint. I used gloss black spray paint designed for plastic. I used a couple of different brands (on accident) and it worked equally well on the monitor housing, speaker housing, plexiglass, and volume control backing plate. No pictures specifically of the painted monitor or speakers, just see them above. For the bezel, I just masked off where I thought would be good to paint, and sprayed it.
Painted bezel, cabinet so far
I next disassembled the cabinet and painted it. Painting involved filling and sanding the holes and seams, priming, and painting. I painted with a brush (a cheap one at that) so while the finish is nice and glossy it's not especially smooth. I used Kilz2 primer and Rustleum oil-based enamel paint. It took two coats of paint to completely cover the primer.
Filling holes, priming, painting
I reassembled the components and installed yellow T-molding.
Festive isn't it?
For the marquee, I designed one in Photoshop and had it printed by Scott at mamemarquees.com. It fit very well in place of the original marquee.
Almost final cabinet
Cabinet ------- Used Arcade Cabinet $100 - TV and PSOne est. street value $-50 1 Quart Rustoleum Royal Blue Enamel $8 1 Quart Rustoleum Gloss Black Enamel $8 Brushes $10 T-Molding, 40ft, 3/4" Yellow $25 Marquee and Plexiglass $45 18" fluorescent bulb $5 Computer -------- Computer est. street value $150 P3 850, 120GB HD, 384MB RAM, GeForce2, Voodoo2, SB AWE32, CD writer Monitor $40 Speakers $50 Audio ----- Radio Shack 100K Dual-Ganged Stereo $3 Volume Control #271-1732 Radio Shack Volume Control Knob #274-424 $3 Wall plate for coax jack $2 2 6' Stereo miniplug male-male cables $10 Electrical ---------- Decora power switch, black $3 Wall plate for Decora switch $1 Electrical box for switch $2 6-outlet power strip $10 Replacement power cord $10 Electrical box for main power $2 10' 14-gauge electrical wiring $10
Total for the cabinet minus the control boxes: $447
Control boxes: $556 (I subtracted the cost of the router, which I have since used for many household projects)
Total: $1003