The best part of this build was that the vast majority of the work was already done for, and I simply reaped the rewards of someone else's hard work :). All that was left to do was acquire an old PC and slap XP on there and MAME, find a TV, and install some controls.
Again, praise be to Goodwill! I came across an RCA Colortrak 2000, which is as cool as it sounds. This TV not only fit within 1/4" of the cabinet, but had a built in receiver, and a glass panel that protected the actual screen. Almost looks like something out of a studio of sorts?
With the TV and computer taken care of, I hopped onto my favorite website for arcade parts, happcontrols.com. I snagged a pair of joysticks and 12 pushbuttons, and after only 2 days, had the parts in hand and was ready to go. I made quick work of the previously existing front panel with some hole saws...
Then I mounted the controls...
(hah I thought I had a picture of the controls mounted, guess not :P)
And then, the worst part, I had to wire all the controls. I went with the same approach as I did on the Donkey Kong machine, strip the board from a keyboard, trace back the flex circuits to the board, and then wire the switch directly across the two points. This is the mess that ensued...
Why I bought solid wire I have no idea, didn't think that one through. Either way, after a few touch ups, the control panel was ready to go. This was as simple as plugging the usb cable back into the controller board, and then into the computer, and then...
METAL SLUG BITCHES!!!
I now have a reason to finally visit you...
ReplyDelete