Speakers and Hyperspin pain!

Hyperspin!! Wow, that was an effort.

So i installed Hyperspin on the pc. Could i get the joysticks and buttons to work... NO.

I was using xPadder for the keyboard controller.
I sort of worked. But i found it hard to get all the things to run together.

I cheated!

I bought a USb stick with hyperspin installed along with 800 games.
Perfect or so i thought.

I still have some issue getting xapdder to run at startup. But i think mainly due to conflicting installs on the C: drive.

After hours of pain it works!!!!

I reckon 95% of the 800 games work fine.
There are a couple that wont run, but who needs more than 700 games!

I decided the 19inch monitor was looking small. So opted for a 24 inch tv.
Stripped it down and removed the non working DVD player.
Fits perfectly.

I have decided to make a new top. And reduce the radius on the corners.

Then find somewhere to house the infra red for the tv. So i can switch it on.

I added the speakers and bought some air vent grills in chrome for them.

It sounds pretty good.

Some of the latest pics.

Chrome strips added

Started to add the chrome strips to the edges. Starting to come together.

I decided to buy a couple of LED strips for underneath.

Some chrome grills have been ordered for the speakers.

Added a speaker set and wired up.

I am having a few issues with some of the games, so i may trim the list a little.

Its starting to come together!

So after a few light weeks on the build. I have finally started the finish. Some updates pics.

I have added the chrome screw caps. Need to get some more though. Sorted the height of the monitor so it doesnt switch off. Added the LED fan and grill.
Started adding the buttons.

Buttons... 3 or 4

I finally started to add all the bits last night.
Its starting to look ok. Then i started to think about a 4th button.

Might be better for playing more games. I have posted on a forum, so i will see what the experts so.

Speakers

I decided early on that i wanted a media centre too. I have decided to install a set on speakers.
I am not going for expensive ones, but one with a sub woofer, to add a bit of bass.

I have decided on some speaker from Argos, at £32.99.

A friend at work has kindly given me some speaker covers from his new car speakers. So i think i will add the these to the side.

Painting, painting and more painting

So after 3 coats of under coat, and 5 top coats I am nearly there.

I am getting obsessed with getting the finish perfect. So another rub down and final coat and i should be done.

I took some advice from contributors on http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/ about the spacing of the buttons. So i decided to reduce the gap between them and shorten the width of the control panel.

It look fine, so I am quite happy with it.

I bought some small caster wheels for underneath, so its easier to move. Its quite heavy even without the pc and monitor in there.

Here are the latest pics. Click to view larger image.

Some updated pics.

Putting it all together was great fun.

Just need to dismantle and paint !!

Glueing and screwing

The time has come to start putting together all my cut pieces.

Lets start with the controller boxes.
Here are the cut bits.

Now for the glueing and screwing. I used contact adhesive for a bit of extra hold. And glued around the blocks. MDF isnt the best for holder small screws.

After glueing i found i needed some extra bits of wood on, so i can screw to the main box.

The bottom i will add later, so i can access the wires once i have screwed it.

Here are a few pics with the box built and some wood across to hold the monitor.

I then offered the controller box up just to see what it was like and how it would sit.

Ofcourse.... i had a quick game of Puckman, just to test it. Then tried defender and 1942. Loved it.

It worked. Only thing i have to work out is the controller. I dont want to go into every game and setup the controller buttons. 

A friend kindly downloaded the whole rom set from here : https://archive.org/details/messmame

So that should give me a lot of games : be aware, its a 42 gb download.

Next job will be the painting. I am thinking around 4 coats of undercoat, with a rub down in-between coats. Then the glossing!

I have to cut a few holes on the box. One for the LED lit fan. And a couple for the control wires to go through.

One job i need to do is extend the supplied wire set. The 2 player controller usually sits side by side, not opposite, so the wires to the controller are too short to reach both sets of controllers.

One other issue, is the monitor. The buttons are raised slightly so when i added the top, the monitor switched off, so i need to add a little packing to stop that.

The cutting begins

After getting my wood cut and a local DIY store. I started the cutting. The scary bit...

It was relatively easy with a decent Jigsaw. New blade ofcourse.

The sides were first, just a nice curve on there.

I used a piece of string and drew an arc on the edge of the sides.

The finished cut!

Next : The top and side pods for the controllers.


I bought some blocks for the controller box, the make so you dont see any screws.

It should make it look neater. 

I had a few issues with the controller. I couldnt work out, if it was the Windows updates, the Nvidia card updates. So i started a fresh install and tested every step of the way.

I contacted the place i bought it from and they suggested a new USB lead. 

Sure enough, after hours of trying to fix it. It was the cheap lead they supplied!!!