What's new

A basic homebrewed bartop cab

JMCD

.
Joined
Feb 18, 2024
Messages
49
Likes
37
Location
UK
Just a few pics of a build I did as a gift for someone a few years back, this was a really fun project and I'd love to do a full size cabinet with a mini pc one day.

The build consisted of:

Stereo amp and speakers

Raspberry pi 3, running retropie, with roms on an old portable hard drive

USB hub

Marquee backlit with white LED strip

19" 4:3 panel harvested from an old monitor.

20190708_183052.jpg
20190713_125935.jpg

Joysticks, illuminated buttons, and USB controller interface from Amazon

20190710_140717.jpg

Front USB sockets for additional controllers/keyboard/thumbdrive etc.

For the cabinet I used plans purchased from Ebay and then cut/routed the panels from MDF.
(If I did this again I'd purchase the panels premade, the cost of tooling up, with the plans and materials on top worked out just as expensive)

20190710_142200.jpg
20190712_144041.jpg
20190712_205010.jpg

20190713_142850.jpg

Primed and sprayed matt black (using rattle cans)

20190715_012459.jpg
20190715_212847.jpg

Vinyls purchased from Ebay (I know the subject matter isn't strictly arcade but the recipient was a huge Mario galaxy fan)

20190716_225211.jpg
20190720_130113.jpg
20190720_130124.jpg
20190720_130058.jpg
20190717_173702.jpg
20190720_133028.jpg
20190724_072643.jpg

Red T profile from ebay, let into routed rebates.

20190726_014904.jpg
20240421_131804.jpg



As I said this build was the most fun I'd had in a long time and I was reluctant hand it over at the end :XD:

Thanks for the interest
 

Attachments

Joined
Nov 9, 2017
Messages
781
Likes
717
Location
CA
Portables
8
Great work man! It’s been a few years where I tell myself I neeed to build one but somehow I always put it to the side.

As a kid my friends and I would go to our local vhs rental store where they had so many arcade cabinets, we would be there all day just playing marvel vs capcom, Pac-Man and pinball.
 

JMCD

.
Joined
Feb 18, 2024
Messages
49
Likes
37
Location
UK
Great work man! It’s been a few years where I tell myself I neeed to build one but somehow I always put it to the side.

As a kid my friends and I would go to our local vhs rental store where they had so many arcade cabinets, we would be there all day just playing marvel vs capcom, Pac-Man and pinball.
Thank you, it really was a blast to build and test (ok by test I mean I played it over and over before passing it on to it's keeper haha)

I can highly recommend building one, you definitely should go for it, don't delay :)

They sound like very fond memories :) I can wholeheartedly get where you are coming from!! To re live and reminisce is a nice feeling.
 
Joined
Nov 9, 2017
Messages
781
Likes
717
Location
CA
Portables
8
I will put it on my list of stuff that I need to get done :D, for sure it is just being a kid with no worries and no mortgage haha.
 

JMCD

.
Joined
Feb 18, 2024
Messages
49
Likes
37
Location
UK
I will put it on my list of stuff that I need to get done :D, for sure it is just being a kid with no worries and no mortgage haha.
Nice! I look forward to seeing it someday!

Haha, absolutely! A time of long days and nights with no responsibilities, never appreciating really how good we had it!
 
Joined
Dec 11, 2022
Messages
52
Likes
78
Location
Texas
Portables
5
This looks awesome! I've always wanted to build a cabinet, really don't have the woodworking tools but I can change that after seeing this
 

JMCD

.
Joined
Feb 18, 2024
Messages
49
Likes
37
Location
UK
This looks awesome! I've always wanted to build a cabinet, really don't have the woodworking tools but I can change that after seeing this
Thank you.

Honestly, if you don't already have the tools I'm pretty sure you can buy the profiled panels cheaper than tooling up for it, I learned that the hard way lol. But go for it, you won't regret it.
 

Stitches

2 and a Half Dollarydoos
Staff member
.
.
Joined
Feb 5, 2017
Messages
4,160
Likes
3,255
Location
Banana Bender Land, Australia
Portables
6
Man that's beautiful. Excellent work!
 
Top