Buying My Old Big Red Back 19 Years Later

[Neo Alec]

Great story. So happy for you. I love this version big red cab. It's the same one I have, which I did a lot of restoration work on.

I think black bat top sticks are what most of these cabs originally came with from the factory, so I ended up getting new Sanwa sticks with adapters for bat tops.

I still haven't installed any metal corner guards on the bottom of mine. If anyone knows where to get credible replacements, I might be interested.

I also wish I had fixed my EL panels instead of replacing them with the LED repro. The previous owner had taken the time to collect everything I needed for the original EL install, but I'd forgotten how to fix them at the time.

 

[lithy]

Great story. So happy for you. I love this version big red cab. It's the same one I have, which I did a lot of restoration work on.

I think black bat top sticks are what most of these cabs originally came with from the factory, so I ended up getting new Sanwa sticks with adapters for bat tops.

I still haven't installed any metal corner guards on the bottom of mine. If anyone knows where to get credible replacements, I might be interested.

I also wish I had fixed my EL panels instead of replacing them with the LED repro. The previous owner had taken the time to collect everything I needed for the original EL install, but I'd forgotten how to fix them at the time.

I watched your video while scouring for restoration info. Your cab looks great. Obviously there is a lot more replacement art stuff out there now which is great, but leaves me a little torn on if I would ever want to redo the vinyl side art at any point on mine.

Like the broken corner on the memory card thing, on one hand, it has yellowed some over the years, a reproduction is available now, but on the other hand it's literally the thing that let me find it again. So for now, I'll generally leave things as is, refurbish and clean where possible. I may pick up some actual restoration parts here and there while they're available just in case they ever go away.

The metal corner guards looks pretty good on mine, I haven't seen anything about replacements although some of the screws are a little rusty. I'd replace them but I'm a little hesitant to pull them out. If they're tiny little screws sunk into that particle board in an unknown 30 year old condition, I feel like there's a decent chance they wouldn't go back in and I'd end up with more work on my hands than just leaving them alone.

I also browsed this guy's more recent thread, he did a dang nice job.

Neo Geo MVS-4-25 v3 Restoration

I recently picked up a Neo Geo MVS-4-25 v3 from a local collector looking to free up some space in his garage. I've always wanted a Neo Geo cabinet, and this has always been my favorite model. This cabinet and the sound of the Neo Geo splash screen during attract mode are core parts of the...

www.arcade-projects.com

Thanks to you and everyone leaving comments in this thread. Been fun, not much major left to add I don't think, but I'll continue to update some pictures of anything I do.

 

[Neo Alec]

Like the broken corner on the memory card thing, on one hand, it has yellowed some over the years, a reproduction is available now, but on the other hand it's literally the thing that let me find it again. So for now, I'll generally leave things as is, refurbish and clean where possible. I may pick up some actual restoration parts here and there while they're available just in case they ever go away.

My brother came over to play the cab for the first time after I finished restoring it, and he is a purist when it comes to original hardware. He basically brought up the classic Ship of Theseus paradox, saying it's not really the real thing anymore once enough of the parts have been replaced with reproductions.

To me the results speak for themselves, but he has a point. So I totally agree with you, that I would keep the original parts that still look decent, and keep some minor imperfections that show the cab's history and character. Unfortunately the cab I bought was too far gone and needed some serious rehab. I probably overpaid just based on it being the right style of cab in the right place at the right time. I'm jealous of yours.

 

[lithy]

I didn't do before pictures, it wasn't horribly dirty like the top panel, mostly just dusty, but I finished cleaning the back panels today and put everything back on. While it was open, I vacuumed out anything loose inside and cleaned up the outside of the power supply (inside is pretty dirty, blew out what I could but didn't go nuts.)



My cab serial sticker is scratched up and no longer even partially readable like to was 20 years ago when I made this thread. Scratched out serials were something ops really took seriously I guess. Small bummer, but really no big deal.

Calling deluxe 4 slot owners

Well my sticker is all scratched out so I'm trying to determine the first 2 of my 5 number serial. I've already gotten chris1 to help he got 09591. My number is --148 the first number can only really be a 1, I have a vertical line in the middle started at the bottom. The second is either a 0...

neo-geo.com

Pulled the board in preparation for installing the Unibios 4.0 for the multicart I bought.

Looks alright on the outside.



Top board even looks reasonably clean



Bottom board is pretty filthy



I don't see anything glaring around the cap area, although admittedly I hardly know what I'm looking for.



As for the battery...

In this thread, I thought I wasn't getting high scores saved and asked for details on replacing the battery. However I never recall actually doing it.

MVS Board Battery?

So I thought it was normal and now I'm not so sure, if I have my cab turned off for the night and turn it on again the next day any high scores are always gone, should this happen? Is there a battery on the board I should be looking to replace?

neo-geo.com

It sure looks like it might be original to me. Fortunately I believe whatever that white stuff is seems to be some sort of adhesive/putty just to keep it in place. It doesn't otherwise seem to have leaked. EDIT: I put the multimeter on it today, granted it hasn't been plugged in for a few days, but I was only getting 0.65ish volts.



So, to do list: remove the battery, clean up the board, reinstall battery, install new bios. Then reinstall the board and actually play some games.

Off to find out battery info.

 

[wyo]

Replace battery with coin cell battery holder and ML2032 rechargeable battery.

 

[lithy]

Battery removed, cover and boards cleaned up.





On the upper left of the top cart slot board you can see what I believe is a serialized number, the number matches what I posted 20 years ago for the board in my cab.

Where's the Serial # on your Cab located?

i was looking for the Serial # on my MVS-4-25 Cabinet and wasn't sure if i had actually located it. What i mean is..the only # i found was on the back board and it was a 4 digit # >> KC 7889

www.neo-geo.com

 

[neo.kobe.city]

Pretty cool you were able to get the same cab you sold. Your work is coming along nicely too. Good shit man.

 

[LoneSage]

@lithy I have the newspaper clipping of when you were in college playing your big red in your dorm room. Lemme know if you'd like me to share it in this thread or not for posterity.

 

[kernow]

@lithy I have the newspaper clipping of when you were in college playing your big red in your dorm room. Lemme know if you'd like me to share it in this thread or not for posterity.

Don't anyone question how weird it is him having this, or anything. Y'know

 

[The Chief]

@lithy I have the newspaper clipping of when you were in college playing your big red in your dorm room. Lemme know if you'd like me to share it in this thread or not for posterity.

Bro you kept this newspaper clipping of lithy but didn’t save the epic pic of you on the roller coaster? pls

 

[lithy]

lol, if LoneSage has the actual clipping, I would be stunned. But I believe he just has the scanned copy which is still hosted on this website under the Member Photos section and contains my full name.

Not that it bothers me, my name is easy to find with a little motivation, but I'll just have people go there instead of reposting it here.

I did ask my mom to look for a photo I was pretty sure she had of the cab in the corner of the living room when a handful of high school friends were over after I took it home over the summer after the first year of college. The second year of college I was in a different dorm and I left it in the dorm room over the summer after that year because I came back to the same room for my third year. I sold it before moving out of the dorm in December 2005.

 

[lithy]

Just adding an old post I found detailing the four games my cab came with when I initially bought it.

Baseball Stars 2, King of the Monsters, Alpha Mission 2, and a bootleg Bust a Move.

Last Resort box in the bottom of the cab would have rounded out a 1991/1992 lineup that never really changed after that.

Boot identifying

Ok guys after some problems hooking my new camera up I finally got it working, so I've got pics of this Puzzle Bobble that came with my cab and I'd like a few expert opinions on how legit it is. Does anyone have some webspace I could use temporarily for 2 pics about 700kb each? Also I'm...

www.neo-geo.com

Nah the slug was mine already here's the story

Bought the cab with Baseball Stars 2, King of the Monsters, and Alpha Mission II, and this Bust a Move

At the bottom of the cab was a Last Resort box, so I assume that got pulled for BAM, meaning that none of the games had been changed since 1990.

Bummer about this boot though. I'm thinking about hanging onto it since the boards are legit and maybe I'll need some EPROMs when the Ghostlop roms get leaked

PS the solid state chips say 057 so those are from a World Heroes 2 cart.

Another old thread hunted down, unfortunately not much useful, all the photobucket pics are obviously gone, but did confirm that I bought my replacement control panel overlay off eBay. Also says that it wasn't actually NOS like I remember, but if it wasn't, it must have been very light wear because I remember it being basically flawless.

Control Panel fixin'

So I did this today http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v179/metalslugnut/cpo.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v179/metalslugnut/cpo1.jpg now I want to make it look lots nicer, I know I can sand it down, then repaint it black, and find a replacement CPO. Anything else? I found this one...

www.neo-geo.com

And follow up thread once it was done, but again, not much useful info.

Pics of my finished Control Panel

Now, umm...how were the screws setup to hold down the memory card/headphone jack board...heh my bad. If someone with a 4 slot can get me a pic or description that'd help. More pics as I keep going.

www.neo-geo.com

Another essentially useless thread where I once posted photos of my cab, but it does contain the post where I took cotton balls and nail polish remover to the black paint that was covering the memory card sticker to reveal it after thinking it was missing when I bought the cab.

My New Cab

Well not new, I picked it up a month ago, but since I got a digital camera for Christmas I thought I'd show you guys angelfire.com/ms3/metalslug/PICT0027.JPG angelfire.com/ms3/metalslug/PICT0028.JPG Copy paste to browser and enjoy :D

www.neo-geo.com

Adding two more old threads

First, where I posted that I had a noisy power supply fan

Power Supply Help

So since I've had my cab, the fan in the power supply has always made quite a bit of noise. So the other day I felt brave enough to mess with it. Went and got some electronics cleaner, took off the shell, and the fan was CAKED with dust. So I thought that the fan wasn't spinning at normal...

www.neo-geo.com

Second, the post where I 'fixed' it with a bit of valve oil from my Trumpet case

Got my cab today but noticed one prob

I just picked up my 4 slot cab and i really like it, it works great but i noticed the power supply makes a huming noise which i think is coming from the fan cause its spins pretty slow. The huming noise does go away after it warms up but i think the fan still spins slow.Is this a minor prob...

www.neo-geo.com

And an archive.org link of the guide I used. Photos are no longer visible

Quiet noisy computer fans with a drop of oil

Don't let a poorly performing fan overheat your PC. Learn how to safely silence a noisy cooling fan and extend its life with a drop of oil.

web.archive.org

 

[GutsDozer]

Super awesome! Big Red 4-Lyfe!

 

[lithy]

Definitely not me searching through cart pics trying to figure out what the mini marquees in 1 and 4 are...

2 is Super Sidekicks 2 and 3 is KOF 99

Ok found the original YouTube video for some higher quality and figured out 1 is a very faded Art of Fighting 2.

4 seems to say Metal Slug on it...which would make sense given that's what they put on the screen for the whole video, but it definitely isn't an original mini marquee. Edit: Yeah it's a Metal Slug 5 mini, the controls part matches up with the one on the art flyer in the kit.

Mystery solved, now I can sleep.

 

[Gentlegamer]

Super awesome! Big Red 4-Lyfe!
View attachment 80154

 

[lithy]

Maybe last update in here for a little while, time to play some games.

Battery holder, decided to go with a modified Keystone 106. The cheap Chinese one fit nicely but the contacts are small, I liked the heavy duty one better and with a small chunk of plastic hacked off the side it fits nicely too. It also has little plastic feet on the bottom to keep it up off the board which I liked. In any case, the new Maxell ML2032 was reading 3.08V on installation.

Chinese one top and bottom



Keystone 106 top and bottom



Keystone 106 modified



Both holders set in place. The legs of the Chinese one are small and dropped through easily and was removed easily. The Keystone one has larger legs and needed a little push to get the legs through, I didn't attempt to remove it once it was set in place, I imagine it might need a little help. The Keystone one is larger in every dimension overall but with the modification still fits neatly in the battery area and doesn't interfere with anything.



Pre check battery voltage and battery installed after soldering.

 

[lithy]

The Unibios 2.0 I put in 20 years ago was wiggled out of its socket and a Modified Unibios 4.0 to allow soft reset back to the menu of the hacked 161 Multicart was installed. Vintage Unibios 2.0 bios available, taking offers, I know what I got.

Reassembled the board, plugged everything back in, crossed my fingers and powered the cab up. Some initial audio issues that sounded like blown speakers freaked me out but reseating the cartridge sorted that out. After adjusting the volume back down (had it set to max after cleaning the board and moving the sliders around), I tested out the reset method and played a few games. Everything seems to be working like it is supposed to, I should have plenty to keep me busy now.

 

[lithy]

Just a small detail to add, I have searched but can't find that I ever posted this date on the first go around with my cab. 5/19/91 would seem to be when my cab was built, although whether it was when the shell was built or when it was outfitted isn't clear to me.

Edit: Found the old thread where I posted my cab's 'birthday' so, just another item to match up from when I first had the cab.

Where's the Serial # on your Cab located?

i was looking for the Serial # on my MVS-4-25 Cabinet and wasn't sure if i had actually located it. What i mean is..the only # i found was on the back board and it was a 4 digit # >> KC 7889

www.neo-geo.com

WSI seemed to be some sort of cab manufacturer rather than an individual's initials because it seems all cabs say the same thing and I found a manual for a pre-Neo SNK game, Street Smart referencing a "Cabinet assembly, empty, WSI 102S"



Edit: Found some additional info at least according to my old post under wasabi's name and according to Nightmare Tony, WSI was Wood Systems, Inc. Seems likely that they were responsible for the cab shell, but then how does 3-Koam fit into that? Unfortunately with such a generic name for WSI, I might need a location to get any further. Looks like at one point they filed suit for breach of contract (payment probably?).

Found a Sticker on my Cab.

I just recently noticed a sticker on the inside of my MVS-4-25 stand-up cab. Its a Amusement License sticker for 96/97 for the state of Nebraska(was on the inside of the glass). Considering my cab was made in Cali and im in Colorado, that means my cabs been to 3 different states. Kinda like a...

www.neo-geo.com

WOOD SYSTEMS INC -VS-3-KOAM COMPANY, 1994-1-CV-738203 (California State, Santa Clara County, Superior Court)

Case docket: WOOD SYSTEMS INC -VS-3-KOAM COMPANY, 1994-1-CV-738203 in California State, Santa Clara County, Superior Court, last filing 02/08/1994, filed 02/08/1994.

www.docketalarm.com

You can see a similar date and WSI on this guy's 3-Koam Z-Back Street Fighter cabinet. Big Red 4 slot v3 reflected in the glass.



Investigating 3-Koam led me to find this photo over at AtariAge, maybe my cab is in this shot, so 3-Koam may have handled final assembly for SNK while WSI built the cabinet, guess the open question would be who did the vinyl application.



Also mentioned in the same thread that my cab had an operator's license from Georgia before I bought it.

Found a Sticker on my Cab.

I just recently noticed a sticker on the inside of my MVS-4-25 stand-up cab. Its a Amusement License sticker for 96/97 for the state of Nebraska(was on the inside of the glass). Considering my cab was made in Cali and im in Colorado, that means my cabs been to 3 different states. Kinda like a...

www.neo-geo.com

 

[Lagduf]

This thread is 11/10.

I need to get an MVS setup again.

 

[lithy]

Ok a little bit of story/lore update/correction.

I was able to get a hold of the seller's son who let me know he didn't get it until 2007 which meant someone owned it between me and him. After a little more searching I turned up this thread. I have no memory of these interactions, lol.

For Sale Neo Geo 4 Slot Arcade Machine MVS-4-25 ver 3 *North Georgia*

I am selling my Neo. I just don't have time to play anymore. Its an MVS-4-25 version 3. Its in great shape. The control panel is shinny and new looking. I have replaced the joy sicks with Sanwas with the octangle restrictor. They where mounted using custom made adapters. In no way was the...

www.neo-geo.com

So zer010gic (Corey) was who bought it from me through eBay but then he made it to the forum and then he sold it to drummerbooker14 (post #5) in August 2007. This did allow me to narrow down a couple changes though from zer010gic's post history. A few months after zer010gic sold the cab he stopped coming here.

First, about a month after I sold it, he posted that he was looking to touch up the bare wood putty I never got around to painting red from filling a few miscellaneous holes in the front and sides.

Touchup Painting My New MVS Cab

I just purchased a MVS 4-Slot Cab off ebay. Its in good condition other then the side has a few drill holes. The previous owner filled them in with wood putty and it still needs to be painted. I was wondering if any one had any recomendations on paint or methods to fully restore this cabinet...

www.neo-geo.com

Also here after applying paint.

"Neo Cabinet Red" paint codes

a la Home Depot. I took a chunk of my 6-slot's front panel in (it had chipped off anyway). Colorant OZ 48 96 KX White 0 2 0 R Exterior RE 3 36 1 U Magenta 0 8 1 It looks pink going on, but dries the correct...

www.neo-geo.com

But maybe more interesting to me is that he notes he got Metal Slug 1, Metal Slug 4, Bust-a-Move, and Nam-1975 carts from me. Dang that's still a good lineup, 3 of those 4 are on my 'Definitely Want Again' list.

And then I apparently sold him a MOTW a short time later, probably for like $100. I had a habit of deleting things from sales posts once sold, bad for history, probably good for my current sanity.

What MVS Game Should I Buy Next

Garou and RoTD (It really is a good game Gummy :tickled: ) I think I must be poo at games. I just can't get on with RotD. :lolz:

www.neo-geo.com

So when he sold the cab, it went with KOF98 and SamSho, the new owner added Windjammers and Metal Slug X. And that was the 4 carts I got with it when I picked it up.

So then, here is a thread where zer010gic is asking about the Happ Supers the cab came with (which was my memory but I didn't have that confirmed anywhere). It also says he has some Competitions and an Ultimate. It seems like those might have come with the cab from me but I don't recall if those were the old joysticks in the cab when I got it or if I bought others for some reason at any point.

Difference between Happ Joysticks

I have a cab that I precured through lithy. In this cab the two joysticks appear to be Happ "Super Joysticks" I also have 2 "Competition Joysticks" and one "Ultimate Joystick" as well. I would like to know what is the best Joystick to have in my cab? I play mostly fighters like MOTW and Last...

www.neo-geo.com

At any rate, he decides he wants to put Sanwa JLFs in but they don't mount directly

Mounting Sanwa JLF-TP-8Y in a BigRed MVS

I am wanting to swap my joysticks in my 4 Slot Big Red MVS for some Sanwa JLF-TP-8Y and was curious how I would go about mounting them? Would I need any kind of mounting plate or can I use the 4 screw holes on the plastic part of the stick and will they line up correctly with the holes in my...

www.neo-geo.com

A couple months later he mounted them with octagonal gates and two custom adapters which didn't modify the control panel at all. Awesome stuff. Those are the sticks and adapter that are on the cab today. I might be looking to put some IL Eurosticks in, but will definitely hang on to the Sanwas and adapater plate.

Sanwa Joysticks in My BigRed 4 Slot

Well I did it I put 2 Sanwa JLF in my Big Red 4 slot. These are the ones that normally don’t fit. I fabricated two adapters to get them to fit without any modifications to the CP and I think they look damn sexy. Figured I would show them off and see what people think.

www.neo-geo.com

I realize no one really cares about this stuff but me, but I'm putting it all in one place so I know where to go looking for the info later.

 

[JoeAwesome]

You lived like a cheap motherfucker just to buy a cab?

 

[JoeAwesome]

BTW that's not aimed at you @lithy, lol

 

[lithy]

 

[Lagduf]

I think you sent me Aerofighters 2 after you sold your cab. Could be wrong on the timing. Maybe it was before?

 

[lithy]

I think you sent me Aerofighters 2 after you sold your cab. Could be wrong on the timing. Maybe it was before?

I think it was right before I sold the cab. Here is a thread where I was doing some clear out in October 2005 and I listed the cab for sale in December 2005. I marked a copy of AF2 as 'probably not for sale'.

I don't really remember my thought process on what I was selling, why, and when, but when I look back through old selling posts I was buying and selling a lot in just the two years I had the cab.

English MVS carts

Ok, no prices on stuff right now, will listen to all offers, buy a bunch of stuff at once and I'll cut you a nice break. All legit Bust a Move Metal Slug Garou Mark of the Wolves Strikers 1945 Plus Aero Fighters 2 Magical Drop 2 Magical Drop 3 League Bowling Alpha Mission II Neo Bomberman...

neo-geo.com