@thewillrussell Then the samples you are using are wrong.
As for romsets, make sure the samples you are using are meant for the arcade emulator you are using.
Read the installation instructions for the MAME version you want to install - if you don't find it in the the software center, then you'll probably have to compile it or download a pre-compiled version.
Once you get it installed and running, then you can probably modify the Emulationstation configuration to add a new system for this new MAME version - something similar to https://retropie.org.uk/docs/Add-a-New-System-in-EmulationStation/.