Which cab is better/preferred?

Which cab is better/preferred?


  • Total voters
    18

Atro

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I prefer the Astro. But I voted Blast City because of the monitor. Nothing beats fatass scanlines.
 

Ajax

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Blast is so versatile. Does 15/24/31khz. The cabinet I/O is what makes the Blast, in my opinion. It can do a lot of cool things - you can basically create a power outlet out of it, it can do JVS, it can do Model 3, of course it can do straight Jamma, and it can also pass kick buttons.

The monitor does leak that black shit all over the chassis, so there is that. I don't think the Astro does that. Also, monitor adjustments on the MS2930 are a little overwhelming to me, admittedly. I don't have any experience with the stock monitor in the Astro, so can't compare.

If I had a chance at both, it would be tough for me to choose. I always wanted an Astro City. I got two Blast City cabs last summer. The Blast makes a lot of sense because it can do so many things. The Astro is more iconic though, of course. So yeah, if you're trying to get people to like and subscribe, probably Astro. If you're trying to actually play games, and a wide variety of them beyond just Jamma, Blast.
 

HornheaDD

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Ive got a guy that's got a Blast city near me, I'm going to go check it out tomorrow. I dont know if it comes with a board (I doubt it). Thing is, the pics he sent me, the monitor is completely green :( And the CP is currently 4 button per player, but I do see the button stops for the two extra.

He said it was "fine yesterday." And hes gonna have his monitor guy check it out this week, and if we make a deal, he'll have it fixed as a condition of the deal. So there's that.

He also wants more than I want to pay. He did say its in 'average' condition, and that the front doors are quite discolored. I mean those can always be repainted, so whatever. Im thinking I may be able to talk him down a bit, but I'm not certain. I wasn't aware a Blast City was a tri-sync... Thats a plus.
 

HDRchampion

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If you want to go by looks and plan to only play 15k, go with Astro

If you want a fat ugly bitch that can do everything, go with the Blast. Just make sure it has a 001 loom for JVS/Jamma
 

egg_sanwich

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As other have said, the blast city is so versatile. Jamma, Naomi, ttx2, it happily takes anything I throw at it.

definitely get the monitor sorted out before handing over cash, or get a serious discount. Replacement chassis for the 2930 are getting harder and harder to come by.

the blast also fits into doorways and smaller spaces more easily with the removable control panel area. The Astro sometimes needs to be fully broken down to fit into certain doorways.
 

Chempop

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I have two blasts and one astro.
General consensus is that the MS8/9 is a little brighter and more crisp for low res than a trisync.
If you have any inclination of using JVS or even throwing a dreamcast or 360 in the thing, Blast City all the way.
If you are just playing MVS, CPS2, and other standard JAMMA, I'd probably go with the Astro.
 

Heinz

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I've owned both over the years and thoroughly enjoyed the Blast over the Astro mostly for it's extended capabilities. However... The Blast is a fat fuckin whale of a cab.
 

HornheaDD

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This is the cab I'm lookin' at this afternoon.

1626622108367.png

That green monitor concerns me. I've had cabs in the past, but repair work hasn't ever gone further than swapping out buttons, lol.

Also, @Ajax what do you mean black goo?

edit: looked it up, eech. that looks gross, but apparently its not *that harmful? At least thats what the Scarlet Sprites dude said in one of his vids.
 
Last edited:

Ajax

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The black shit isn’t a problem in that it fries/shorts components, etc., but as I understand, it dries hard, like tree sap in Jurassic Park, encasing the components in the black shit like mosquitoes, also from Jurassic Park. Getting the stuff off to get to busted components seems to be a whole other task. Full disclosure that I haven’t worked with said black shit at all, though it is present on both of my Blasts. Maybe somebody with some firsthand knowledge can chime in on this point.

Can I ask what the person is asking for the cab? For whatever it’s worth, I dare say that’s in better physical condition than either of mine.
 

SignOfGoob

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This is very educational. All the Sega cabs I’ve seen have been rewired so many times that I’m not sure any of this was true with those but it will be great to know if I ever find an unmolested one.

I agree that the monitor should be considered junk in your negotiations. It’s probably fixable but who knows how easily and if all?
 

HornheaDD

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I just got back from checking it out and it's actually cleaner than it looks. It doesn't have any locks on it what-so-ever, so I'll have to get a set to keep the doors closed, and its missing the back panel that grants access to the back of the mon/chassis. @Ajax he's asking $1700, and we're still negotiating but I dont think he's too interested in taking less.

Even so, I have to admit I was surprised. He described it a little worse than it really was. It's got the standard scuffs here and there, but no scratches on the bezel/glass, both speakers work, it powers up just fine without any issue, etc. The monitor is actually pretty crisp, no burn-in that I could spot, it was just all green lol. I thought it might be a board issue and asked to put another board in there, and it did the same thing. Though tapping the cab on the side made the colors come back for a second, so he said its probably quick fix like a solder joint, or capacitor etc. So part of our deal is on the condition that the mon is fixed by his monitor guy.

Should be ready to pick up in a week or so.
 

Neo_Mike_81

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I chose Blast City because that's the way I prefer playing 3rd Strike and what HDR said about it.
 

HornheaDD

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I guess prices have gone up.
For real man.

A friend of mine bought an Astro from this same dude for 2200. Thats insane.

I bought a cab from him several years ago with 2 CPS2 games in it - for $450. One of the games? Alien Vs Predator. The other was Battle Circuit. I sold them and basically made my money back. My Neo25 I got for $250 with a 4 slot and 11 games in it.

I don't want to pay this, but its "too good" of a deal right now, considering prices being stupid. One thing I can at least be thankful about is that I'll probably make about $500+ of it back from selling my A1Up with a Raspi and stool.

Its ricockulous. I'm definitely not going to be selling this Blast anytime soon. Unless prices get REEEEAL stupid and I wanna pay off my car lol
 

Ajax

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That missing back door is a big deal. It’s not the end of the world, but it’s not likely that you’ll find another, and it’s even less likely that you’ll find one for less than a couple hundred before shipping from Asia.

I would take $1,400 in cash and wave it in the guys face. Is this guy an op? Ops can never refuse cash in hand. Point out some scuffs, say that you’re concerned that the monitor is on the way out, etc.

But yes, times have changed. The days of getting any candy cab for less than $1k are long gone. The Blast is probably the most common and least expensive one, too.
 

HornheaDD

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That missing back door is a big deal. It’s not the end of the world, but it’s not likely that you’ll find another, and it’s even less likely that you’ll find one for less than a couple hundred before shipping from Asia.

I would take $1,400 in cash and wave it in the guys face. Is this guy an op? Ops can never refuse cash in hand. Point out some scuffs, say that you’re concerned that the monitor is on the way out, etc.

But yes, times have changed. The days of getting any candy cab for less than $1k are long gone. The Blast is probably the most common and least expensive one, too.
I figure I could just make one or something lol. Need to keep my damn cats outta there
 

Heinz

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The 'black shit' is the epoxy compound filler used to seal a rather large component on the chassis. From memory it's marking was 'A1'. Looks like a coil of sorts inside.

You can clean it off fairly easily but it gets messy as you disolve it. I cleaned an ms2930 or 31 I forget, with this stuff leaked all over it, removed the component at fault and resealed it with fresh epoxy. It didn't operate any differently but that component is meant to be sealed for whatever reason.

If it's leaked badly it will be under the flyback for sure. Seeing as it operates normally despite this I would say the compound is not conductive (thank fuck!)

The black shit isn’t a problem in that it fries/shorts components, etc., but as I understand, it dries hard, like tree sap in Jurassic Park, encasing the components in the black shit like mosquitoes, also from Jurassic Park. Getting the stuff off to get to busted components seems to be a whole other task. Full disclosure that I haven’t worked with said black shit at all, though it is present on both of my Blasts. Maybe somebody with some firsthand knowledge can chime in on this point.

Can I ask what the person is asking for the cab? For whatever it’s worth, I dare say that’s in better physical condition than either of mine.
 

HornheaDD

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I talked the guy down a bit. We settled on 1400 with a monitor repair.

Still about 900 more than I should have paid, but again - thats the time we're living in. I wonder if Alberto on arcade-projects can repro the back door...
 

SignOfGoob

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That might be more than they cost new. With no locks or back door or game or working monitor, that is. :)

Does anyone know the original price? Certainly Frank Cifaldi must have scanned the brochure by now.
 

HornheaDD

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I subsidized the purchase by selling my Arcade1Up on craigslist to some schlub. Bought it for $300, bought a $50 stool and put a Raspberry Pi I already had in it. Only other thing I bought was the monitor adapter. All in I was probably 375 in. Sold it for $700.

Sold a Phoebe on ebay for $350.

This thing is almost paid for.
 

Ajax

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Right now, $1,400 is a good deal. It's expensive, yes, but this is the cheapest you're going to find until noobs begin to nope out of the hobby.

Also, Astros were around $2,000 new. I would be really surprised if Blasts were cheaper than that when they came out.
 

SignOfGoob

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I subsidized the purchase by selling my Arcade1Up on craigslist to some schlub. Bought it for $300, bought a $50 stool and put a Raspberry Pi I already had in it. Only other thing I bought was the monitor adapter. All in I was probably 375 in. Sold it for $700.

Sold a Phoebe on ebay for $350.

This thing is almost paid for.

Oohhhh…so there are ways to make the “everyone is an idiot” thing work FOR you as well, interesting.

When my Saturn collection hits $50,000 I’m selling. I can only hold the torch one way or another for so long. I may as well cash out and take that month long Siberian Express vacation I’ve always wanted before I croak.
 

HornheaDD

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Oohhhh…so there are ways to make the “everyone is an idiot” thing work FOR you as well, interesting.

When my Saturn collection hits $50,000 I’m selling. I can only hold the torch one way or another for so long. I may as well cash out and take that month long Siberian Express vacation I’ve always wanted before I croak.
Irony is a funny thing lol
 

egg_sanwich

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Hit up Yaton for that back door, he’s always parting out cabs. He can ship it slow ass boat for cheaper too.

definitely make sure that monitor is sorted out before handing over the money.
 
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