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    First bartop arcade project - finished

    Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved Projects and Themes
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    • SteffenMBS
      SteffenMB
      last edited by SteffenMB

      I just finished my first arcade project. It was a bit of a struggle since every part of the proces was new to me, but with the help of youtube, guides on the internet and searching forums it all came together in the end :-)

      Here is the finished bartop arcade:

      The last two pictures shows a stand I made for it (when it just sits at home), which hides a lille refrigetator (for beer) and a shelf for glasses and other stuff.

      EDIT: By the way, the speaker on the back is the subwoofer. It was a tight fit in such a compact cabinet like this, put I found the space :-) On one of the sides you see two buttons, which are 'normal volume' and 'bass/subwoofer' volume'. There is also a little hole for a minijack, which mostly is the sound input for the arcade system, but I made it like this so you can also hook it up to you smartphone/tablet if you want to use the system as external speakers for music (since the bartop is made to take with me).

      I you want to see more pictures of the process, I have made an album with lots of pictures, which you can se here. The desciptions are in Danish, but it pretty much explains itself.

      dankcushionsD caver01C rbakerR HOWH 4 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 9
      • whsiungW
        whsiung
        last edited by

        Wow. A nice piece of art!

        Cheers.

        WH

        SteffenMBS 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • SteffenMBS
          SteffenMB @whsiung
          last edited by

          @whsiung Thanks! :-)

          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • dankcushionsD
            dankcushions Global Moderator @SteffenMB
            last edited by

            i can totally get behind a beer fridge arcade. great job! :)

            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • caver01C
              caver01 @SteffenMB
              last edited by

              @SteffenMB Nicely done!

              My 4-player cocktail style cabinet built as a custom "roadcase"

              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • meleuM
                meleu
                last edited by

                alt text

                • Useful topics
                • joystick-selection tool
                • rpie-art tool
                • achievements I made
                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • SteffenMBS
                  SteffenMB
                  last edited by

                  Ha, ha, thanks :-)

                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                  • BriganeB
                    Brigane
                    last edited by

                    What a beauty. I wish that I could create something similar in the near future.
                    Since we're both danish I would like to know where you purchased your T-molding?
                    Also if you used 12mm MDF wood how did you managed to put the t-molding on the machine?
                    I'd also like to know where you got the Marquee from?

                    Thanks

                    Systems: Raspberry Pi 0/2/3 Model B+
                    Os: RetroPie 4.5
                    Frontend: Emulationstation & Attract Mode

                    SteffenMBS 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                    • SteffenMBS
                      SteffenMB @Brigane
                      last edited by SteffenMB

                      @Brigane said in First bartop arcade project - finished:

                      What a beauty. I wish that I could create something similar in the near future.
                      Since we're both danish I would like to know where you purchased your T-molding?
                      Also if you used 12mm MDF wood how did you managed to put the t-molding on the machine?
                      I'd also like to know where you got the Marquee from?

                      Thanks

                      Hi Brigane

                      The cabinet didn't have slots for T-molding, so instead I glued on some chrome strips that are normally used for cars :-) I just found a size that matched the edges of my cabinet :-)

                      I designed the marquee using an online design tool at arcade4you.de, where I also bought the cabinet kit. You can actually also design other parts (like the control panel and the sides) with that tool if you want to. They also have some designs to choose from, if you don't want to do that yourself. They then print the design you have made/chosen and and send it to you.

                      BriganeB 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                      • Meneer JansenM
                        Meneer Jansen
                        last edited by

                        I see that it's not a Picade. How did you manage power? Do you have an adapter lying on the floor for the large LCD screen? Because the Picade gets its power from USB for the Pi, the audio and the LCD screen. If you want a larger screen then you run into troubles: they ofte do not work w/ the hardware that comes w/ the Picade and a larger LCD screen takes more power.

                        I almost bought me a Picade a few weeks ago when it was in stock again. But I like to play classic Arcade games (Mame) and those are 3:4 and not 4:3 which make them not occupy the whole screen. Classic games like Pac-Man look way to small on Picade's 8 inch screen.

                        Your cabinet, however, looks like something from 80's Arcade heaven! Especially on the beer fridge. My circle of friends is gonna be much bigger if I were to have this thing in my house!

                        Are you considering selling a kit on-line? Dunno if you'll even break even on that, but you will make some 40+ men very, very happy, ha ha.

                        Avid Linux user.

                        SteffenMBS 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                        • BriganeB
                          Brigane @SteffenMB
                          last edited by Brigane

                          @SteffenMB Thanks for the quick respond. This website is gold worthy, with many functions that seems quite useful. I didn't know such a useful website existed at all. Thanks a bunch!

                          Systems: Raspberry Pi 0/2/3 Model B+
                          Os: RetroPie 4.5
                          Frontend: Emulationstation & Attract Mode

                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                          • ArrakisA
                            Arrakis
                            last edited by

                            Looks killer! The chrome edging makes it stand out! Very nice

                            SteffenMBS 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                            • SteffenMBS
                              SteffenMB @Arrakis
                              last edited by

                              @Arrakis Thanks :-)

                              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                              • SteffenMBS
                                SteffenMB @Meneer Jansen
                                last edited by SteffenMB

                                @Meneer-Jansen said in First bartop arcade project - finished:

                                I see that it's not a Picade. How did you manage power? Do you have an adapter lying on the floor for the large LCD screen? Because the Picade gets its power from USB for the Pi, the audio and the LCD screen. If you want a larger screen then you run into troubles: they ofte do not work w/ the hardware that comes w/ the Picade and a larger LCD screen takes more power.

                                I almost bought me a Picade a few weeks ago when it was in stock again. But I like to play classic Arcade games (Mame) and those are 3:4 and not 4:3 which make them not occupy the whole screen. Classic games like Pac-Man look way to small on Picade's 8 inch screen.

                                Your cabinet, however, looks like something from 80's Arcade heaven! Especially on the beer fridge. My circle of friends is gonna be much bigger if I were to have this thing in my house!

                                Are you considering selling a kit on-line? Dunno if you'll even break even on that, but you will make some 40+ men very, very happy, ha ha.

                                Hi Maneer

                                About the power, I have a power strip inside with 5 things plugged into it:

                                • Raspberry Pi 3
                                • the amplifier (whichs runs 2x15W speakers and a 30W subwoofer)
                                • the LED-buttons
                                • the marquee light (a LED-strip)
                                • and, as you guessed, an old 19" monitor.

                                He, he, thanks for wanting to buy a kit :-) I'm afraid I haven't got plans on doing that, because I think the thing would become too expensive to make a profit (also just the time to make instructions etc.) - and I have bought pieces and bits from a lot of places like Denmark, England, France, Germany, China and Bulgaria.

                                But there are places, whichs sell kits like that - or almost. I've come across places like https://gameroomsolutions.com/ in the US and https://arcade4you.de/ in Germany. But there is also great pleasure in putting it together yourself the way you want it - searching Ebay or finding cheap, second hand stuff (I found and bought the 19" monitor for only £5).

                                Meneer JansenM 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                • Meneer JansenM
                                  Meneer Jansen @SteffenMB
                                  last edited by

                                  @SteffenMB said in First bartop arcade project - finished:

                                  Hi Maneer

                                  About the power, I have a power strip inside with 5 things plugged into it:

                                  • Raspberry Pi 3
                                  • the amplifier (whichs runs 2x15W speakers and a 30W subwoofer)
                                  • the LED-buttons
                                  • the marquee light (a LED-strip)
                                  • and, as you guessed, an old 19" monitor.

                                  He, he, thanks for wanting to buy a kit :-) I'm afraid I haven't got plans on doing that, because I think the thing would become too expensive to make a profit (also just the time to make instructions etc.) - and I have bought pieces and bits from a lot of places like Denmark, England, France, Germany, China and Bulgaria.

                                  But there are places, whichs sell kits like that - or almost. I've come across places like https://gameroomsolutions.com/ in the US and https://arcade4you.de/ in Germany. But there is also great pleasure in putting it together yourself the way you want it - searching Ebay or finding cheap, second hand stuff (I found and bought the 19" monitor for only £5).

                                  Hello Steffen,

                                  I see now where one can order the kit that you built. It looks great. But wasn't it difficult to get the 19" monitor in?

                                  Avid Linux user.

                                  SteffenMBS 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                  • SteffenMBS
                                    SteffenMB @Meneer Jansen
                                    last edited by

                                    @Meneer-Jansen Well, pretty much everything in this one was a tight fit, but the monitor wasn't a big problem. It could have been if it was bigger, though. 19" is maximum in this cabinet kit.

                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                    • PingSpikeP
                                      PingSpike
                                      last edited by

                                      Props for the beer fridge mate :)

                                      Here's my RetroStation project - http://www.pingspike.com/retrostation-part-4/

                                      :D

                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                      • rbakerR
                                        rbaker @SteffenMB
                                        last edited by

                                        @SteffenMB Did you paint the case? It looks amazing!

                                        SteffenMBS 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                        • SteffenMBS
                                          SteffenMB @rbaker
                                          last edited by

                                          @rbaker Thanks! Yes, I gave it some layers of black spray paint (satin finish). It was originally white, which could have looked cool (and modern) too, but I wanted it to be a bit more 'retro black' :-)

                                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                          • HOWH
                                            HOW @SteffenMB
                                            last edited by

                                            @SteffenMB Really like the Bartop on top of Beer Fridge solution.....Excellent idea!

                                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
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