Hey everyone. =) I'm sure you've figured out by now that I'm new here-- well, in all honesty I'm new to the arcadescene in general. I'm 22 years old, and while I have fond memories of dumping my quarters into the big red MVS cabinets as a kid, arcades are nearly extinct here now, and I was never able to afford to bring my love of arcade games into my home. Thus, my gaming career consists primarily of PC/console/handheld games.
I'm still not able to afford it, but rather than sitting around and dwelling on how I wish I had an AES system, or how I wish I had a cabinet or two, I'd like to start making steps towards achieving these things. They might be babysteps for the time being, but so be it. I'll do what I can.
The first step I think that I need to take is acquainting myself with the hardware end of things. I've been lurking here off and on for the last month or so-- all of this arcade love absolutely fascinates me. I often find myself confused, though, when I see people talking about arcade hardware. Maybe some of you can help clear things up for me? I know that each platform is going to be different, but there seem to be similar concepts and mechanisms that they have in common. I know it's a tall order, but at this point I really need the whole thing spelled out for me. What all do I need to know about different components? If nobody feels like discussing it with me firsthand, links to places where I can learn these things would still be appreciated. =)
For the future.. what route should I be looking into for my first setup? I know you can't decide that for me, as it would depend on my tastes, but I'm sure some of you guys have great recommendations-- I'm a broke college student, so price is obviously a significant factor.. one way or another, though, I will make it happen. I do realize that this is a very expensive hobby. For my first foray, cheaper will be better. Should I expect to have to do a lot of wood/electrical work? What sort of skills/tools are commonly needed? Is there a huge price difference between cabinet styles, and what about compatibility between them? The smaller 'Astro City' (?) style Japanese cabinets are more appealing to me than the larger standup cabinets seen more commonly here in the west.
Is an MVS setup going to be the best route, maybe? While I would eventually love to own arcade hardware such as the NAOMI and the Atomiswave (they are both home to many games that I adore), I am also a big fan of SNK games and I would get so much enjoyment out of an MVS cabinet. The MVS has the potential to have several games installed at once. How do games work with other arcade hardware? I've seen arcade 'cartridges' pictured as gigantic boards, etc.. in these instances, is there even a common unit that they all plug into? Or is the 'cartridge' the full and complete hardware in of itself? It seems to appear that way, sometimes.
Is an MVS setup going to be cheaper than an AES setup? What sort of advantages/disadvantages am I going to be looking at either either of these?
Meh.. this post was certainly a mouthful. Huge thanks to anyone who stuck it out, and even huger thanks to anyone who takes the time out of their day to respond. I realize that it can be difficult to put up with new users who don't know what they're doing or talking about-- hopefully I will be enlightened as to avoid slopping this place up with my noobness. =)
- koda
I'm still not able to afford it, but rather than sitting around and dwelling on how I wish I had an AES system, or how I wish I had a cabinet or two, I'd like to start making steps towards achieving these things. They might be babysteps for the time being, but so be it. I'll do what I can.
The first step I think that I need to take is acquainting myself with the hardware end of things. I've been lurking here off and on for the last month or so-- all of this arcade love absolutely fascinates me. I often find myself confused, though, when I see people talking about arcade hardware. Maybe some of you can help clear things up for me? I know that each platform is going to be different, but there seem to be similar concepts and mechanisms that they have in common. I know it's a tall order, but at this point I really need the whole thing spelled out for me. What all do I need to know about different components? If nobody feels like discussing it with me firsthand, links to places where I can learn these things would still be appreciated. =)
For the future.. what route should I be looking into for my first setup? I know you can't decide that for me, as it would depend on my tastes, but I'm sure some of you guys have great recommendations-- I'm a broke college student, so price is obviously a significant factor.. one way or another, though, I will make it happen. I do realize that this is a very expensive hobby. For my first foray, cheaper will be better. Should I expect to have to do a lot of wood/electrical work? What sort of skills/tools are commonly needed? Is there a huge price difference between cabinet styles, and what about compatibility between them? The smaller 'Astro City' (?) style Japanese cabinets are more appealing to me than the larger standup cabinets seen more commonly here in the west.
Is an MVS setup going to be the best route, maybe? While I would eventually love to own arcade hardware such as the NAOMI and the Atomiswave (they are both home to many games that I adore), I am also a big fan of SNK games and I would get so much enjoyment out of an MVS cabinet. The MVS has the potential to have several games installed at once. How do games work with other arcade hardware? I've seen arcade 'cartridges' pictured as gigantic boards, etc.. in these instances, is there even a common unit that they all plug into? Or is the 'cartridge' the full and complete hardware in of itself? It seems to appear that way, sometimes.
Is an MVS setup going to be cheaper than an AES setup? What sort of advantages/disadvantages am I going to be looking at either either of these?
Meh.. this post was certainly a mouthful. Huge thanks to anyone who stuck it out, and even huger thanks to anyone who takes the time out of their day to respond. I realize that it can be difficult to put up with new users who don't know what they're doing or talking about-- hopefully I will be enlightened as to avoid slopping this place up with my noobness. =)
- koda