Some process pics added

@ReadyPlayaWon
Not "really finished", just need to to put a piece of MDF on the hole

I used these guides to decide my layout, started simple but managed to squeeze a mouse based trackball in the middle after moving things around. Still doesn't look cluttered

Standard six button layout, plus two extra per player for 'shoulder' buttons ZL/ZR so I don't also have joypads laying around so ended up with 8 buttons per player that wasn't my original plan

https://www.slagcoin.com/joystick/layout.html

https://retropie.org.uk/forum/topic/5220/arcade-buttons-how-many-layout

This was my original layout, but as I also wanted true pinball emulation (the PI simply can't handle anything like Future Pinball or Visual Pinball) I also added two buttons on the cabinet sides for pinball flipper and also load/save states for emulators that support it

Hence finally going down the IPac4 route. Worth the extra effort as its a true keyboard interface that supports multiple buttons and upto 4 players or in my bartop with lots of buttons and two players. BIG improvement over the Chinese USB interface that the kit I bought came with

https://www.arcadeworlduk.com/products/I-PAC-4-Keyboard-Encoder.html

This is basically the joystick/button set I used, but had to rewire the joysticks to fit the I-Pac interface. Not difficult

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/USB-LED-Arcade-Mame-DIY-Kit-2-Joystick-20-LED-Illuminated-Button-Encoder-Set/143568782687?hash=item216d5dc55f:g:dM8AAOSwKtVegyuu

Speakers were taken from a dead 2.1 PC speaker set and bought a cheap 2.1 amplifier that runs off 12v from China. Its rubbish and needs changing for a better quality 2.1 amplifier but it was a start

I'll post a picture of my bartop later today sometime. The vinyls and edging need adding but this is the case I used for my PI bartop, I just squeezed a PC motherboard and power supply inside when I decided I wanted pinball emulation and more intensive emulation the PI will never be able to manage such as PS2/Wii/Wii U/Xbox

This is the original layout I used, but added a trackball mouse. The PI can easily support USB hubs but make sure its a powered one and one that doesn't reverse power. A lot of cheaper ones do so send power back to the PI, Buying one from the PI HUT will guarantee it works as it should

!(https://retropie.org.uk/forum/uploads/files/1484412665733-img_2320-resized.jpg)

This is the trackball I used, but for the PI you will need a PS2 to USB adaptor. It works exactly as it should so I can also play trackball games as they should be played such as Centipede and also it functions perfectly well as a mouse, but I had to add yet two more buttons to my cabinet panel to use it as a mouse when needed. Amiga games need a mouse and this works perfectly for them such as Cannon Fodder. Amiga emulation will be no problems with a PI4 as it worked on a Pi3B easily

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mini-Illuminated-50mm-PS-2-Trackball/184018227197?hash=item2ad8574ffd:g:Ky4AAOSwqCtdwdFv

Also found a few things you might find interesting. The passive aluminium heatsink case for the PI4 looks interesting. I would consider adding a standard PC case fan on top as the guide says the casing WILL get hot and make it run even cooler with an extra fan. Should easily power the fan off the PI itself

https://thepihut.com/collections/all/products/aluminium-armour-heatsink-case-for-raspberry-pi-4

https://thepihut.com/products/usb-2-0-powered-hub-7-ports-with-5v-2a-power-supply

https://thepihut.com/products/4-port-usb-hub-usb-2-0

Son of a birch, that is a good looking cabinet!!! Love me some woodgrain, so this is glorious all around.

Please add more info about your system, as detailed in https://retropie.org.uk/forum/topic/3/read-this-first.

@MikeM68 said in Plug and play systems. Recommendations?:

Found several retailers online and my favorite so far is a bar top by https://gameroomsolutions.com/

Like so many others, they're violating Retropie's many noncommercial licenses by selling Retropie as part of their GUTS pack ("pre-flashed with attract mode/retropie").

Like @quicksilver said, you'll get only support for the original RPie image here. So, I'd recommend shunning pre-built images and building your own system. In my experience, it's much more satisfying and you'll learn much in the process.

edit: For the sake of completeness, this thread lists many legal sources for roms. Be sure to check the later posts as well as the opening post, since the latter hasn't been updated since Dec 2017.

@BuZz apologies about that, sincerely was not promoting the image its nothing to do with me at all

@darkseal

Great craftsmanship and detailed explanation.

But for those that don't have access to power tools or can borrow from a friend or nabor a pre cut DIY kit are not always expensive.

Google search: rich's bartop Arcades

Nice bartop! I love Ghosts'n Goblins! :) Not too far of my own build design-wise, even though it's themed differently. Do you have some build pictures?