Looking to get my first cabinet - Some questions

[Neith]

As I have recently got some money I can afford to blow, I'm seriously thinking about getting an arcade cabinet, which is something I have wanted since I was a kid. I really like the look of the Japanese candy cabs I've seen on this forum. All I know about this is what I have learned from browsing through this forum, and the neo-geo.com forums.

I live in the UK, so I assume importing the cabinet from Japan is going to cost hundreds of pounds. I've found a UK site that sells them, I've been looking at a new astro city in particular:
http://www.arcade-game-sales.com/produc ... 330-3.html

I have no idea how reputable they are, or whether their prices are fair.

So here are the questions:

Where would you recommend I buy it? From a Japanese business? A UK based importer like the site I linked to above? Or should I find an individual in the UK who is selling theirs?

Does the cabinet come with the motherboard or must I purchase that seperately? If so which would you recommend? Are there any other components required besides the game pcb?

Which model would you recommend? The new astro city looks nice and it seems like some members of this forum like them.

What game pcbs would you suggest? I want shmups obviously but I don't want to spend a huge amount on one particular game.
This question is hard to answer since you don't know what I like, but perhaps you know of a quality title that can be had relatively cheaply. I like Cave games but from what I can tell they are the most expensive.

Thanks for reading this, I hope you don't mind the newbie questions

[emphatic]

Hi, sign up at ArcadeOtaku.com as there's quite a few sellers in the UK there.

[burgerkingdiamond]

As I have recently got some money I can afford to blow, I'm seriously thinking about getting an arcade cabinet, which is something I have wanted since I was a kid. I really like the look of the Japanese candy cabs I've seen on this forum. All I know about this is what I have learned from browsing through this forum, and the neo-geo.com forums.

I live in the UK, so I assume importing the cabinet from Japan is going to cost hundreds of pounds. I've found a UK site that sells them, I've been looking at a new astro city in particular:
http://www.arcade-game-sales.com/produc ... 330-3.html

I have no idea how reputable they are, or whether their prices are fair.

So here are the questions:

Where would you recommend I buy it? From a Japanese business? A UK based importer like the site I linked to above? Or should I find an individual in the UK who is selling theirs?

Does the cabinet come with the motherboard or must I purchase that seperately? If so which would you recommend? Are there any other components required besides the game pcb?

Which model would you recommend? The new astro city looks nice and it seems like some members of this forum like them.

What game pcbs would you suggest? I want shmups obviously but I don't want to spend a huge amount on one particular game.
This question is hard to answer since you don't know what I like, but perhaps you know of a quality title that can be had relatively cheaply. I like Cave games but from what I can tell they are the most expensive.

Thanks for reading this, I hope you don't mind the newbie questions

Depending on the situation the cab may come with a game, that's just going to depend on the seller.

There are a lot of reasonably priced PCB's out there. The most expensive are the newer CAVE releases (especially full kits) and other high profile games like Garegga. Some stuff is pretty cheap. For example, you can probably get an Aero Fighters board for like $50 on ebay (maybe cheaper).

Do you want to play vert's, hori's or both? Most cabs allow the monitor to be in either position but it's usually a pain in the ass to switch because the monitors are so damn heavy. The only cab that has a built in mechanism to help rotate the monitor is the Egret II I think. So depending on what you're into you may want to look for one of those. And if you're interested in xbox 360 shmups you should check out Viletim's JAMMA adapter which will let you connect your 360's video/audio signals and controls to your cab through the JAMMA edge (I use a different setup, but the result is the same. And it's really worth it. I play 360 ports on my cab probably more than my actual PCB's)...

[grobda]

+1 for arcade otaku, your best bet if you want a white plastic cab, theres an astro city up for £400 there now

http://forum.arcadeotaku.com/viewtopic. ... 5&start=15

older 'woody' cabs come up more often on jammaplus.co.uk and ukvac.com.

for PCBs raiden2 and raiden fighters are cheapish at the moment whilst still being good, sign up for all the forums and youll find something sooner or later.

[Neith]

I appreciate the responses!

I've signed up to arcade otaku but it seems I don't have permission to view the buy/sell forum. Do you know the requirements to view this board?

[emphatic]

I appreciate the responses!

I've signed up to arcade otaku but it seems I don't have permission to view the buy/sell forum. Do you know the requirements to view this board?

You have to make some posts first. Try the introduction thread in the INSERT COIN section.

[Neith]

Thanks again for recommending arcade otaku, I have just been able to view that particular thread.
Other than the cabinet which he's selling for £400, would I just need the game pcb? I'm still a bit fuzzy regarding whether a main/mother board is required for this particular cab.

I know a huge amount about building, modifying and configuring desktop computers, which I'm hoping may extend to managing arcade hardware I just need to get my hands on some hardware.

[emphatic]

As long as a cabinet is labelled JAMMA, 95% of all PCBs made after 1986 will work, only monitor orientation should be considered. You can read up more on the different Candy cabinets at http://www.hard--candy.com/ or in the Arcade Otaku Wiki.

[grobda]

basically a Jamma cabinet is everything but the game, 'jamma' refers to an industry standard edge connector that allows for 2 player 3 button games. the edge connector is in the cabinet attached to a wire loom, and you simply plug in the game PCB and switch the machine on*. unless specifically mentioned most cabs are sold without games.

*you may have to set up the screen geometry/tweak the 5v rail/say a silent prayer to the MCP.

[Neith]

thanks for clearing that up! I should do some more reading as well as decide on a game to get.

[afoia]

Good luck Neith, reading your posts makes me want to hunt down a candy cap in the near future, but i'll just have to put up with my DC & 360 for the time being. Make sure you keep us (or me) updated on what you get and post some pictures following your purchase

[system11]

If you're looking to play lots of different games the usefulness of an easily rotating screen cannot be overstated. Ones that are bolted in and you have to lift the monitor frame out to rotate are a pain, monitors are heavy and fragile. If you have space you could just buy two of course.