Anyone else wish A1U would sell a "wood kit" cabinet? Just a blank with no electronics, except the LCD, and no graphics as a cheaper donor option? Cause I sure do. Maybe even no holes cut into the control deck. Would be super nice, especially since that would be a super affordable way to make our own custom cabinets.
Posted Apr 10, 2020, 5:37 PM UTC
Is it legal to trace their cabinets on wood and sell them? Because sounds like anyone could do that with mdf.
True. But to actually mass produce them it would not be an easy task.
Pretty easy for anyone to do with a saw as long as their local home improvement store kept the mdf in stock :)
I did this before at home depot with a trace of a full size arcade
I build them exactly like that. The inside sections arent the issue. It's the two side sections. I have a stack of those if anyone is interested. I cut 10x using my SF2 as a template.
I would say most likely not. But there's all sorts of channels in the wood that require a CNC machine or something of the like for precision.
I will admit, I had already considered doing this, but just duplicating them for my own use. Problem is all the alignment holes and channels.
In case you were not aware - A1U already sells the replacement side panels with art for about $100 shipped in US ) for the pair ( https://arcade1up.com/collections/side-panels ) -- With that all you need is a sheet of MDF cut to the proper dimensions for all the inner pieces ( no channels etc. since those are all in the side panels ! ) - So making your own cabinet is just a matter of buying the 2 side panels and then making the inner pieces (all straight cuts easily done with a jigsaw/table saw )
Ah, this is a good point I hadn't thought of. Every time I go to their website I cant find how to add products to a cart though. Some items say "out of stock," but others don't and there is nothing to indicate how to buy them. EDIT: Desktop site. Mobile site lets me buy them, for some reason.
OP said maybe not even with any holes cut. That just requires a saw then for cutting pieces.
I am OP.
I meant holes cut for the buttons in the control deck.
X Carve wood CNC. Sell them.
there are online outlets that sell mame cabinet blanks, people just like to use a1up cabs because they already work. most people end up swap everything out anyways so might as well just buy a blank from ebay or amazon.
I like using a1u cabs due to low cost and small footprint.
The blanks for sale are generally more expensive than a1u cabs and are larger. Not practical for me.
I would love this! Exactly what I need
Check out microcenter or microcenter.com they have an arcade builders section with small cabinet options, and everything you need to do an emulator build
DOubt A1U is going to go that route since it would hurt them in negotiations with the license holders to get rights to specific games ( if they are selling methods of making illegal multi game systems then doubt license holders would be likely to give them rights to distribute their licensed games.) Also the DIY community is not really their target market - they are more building for those that want to buy a machine that is pplug and play with specific games they remember playing.
It could but I don't think it would. Even if someone made their own Ms PacMan, I doubt it would hurt sales if A1U came out with an officially licensed Ms PacMan cabinet.
Selling a kit is not selling a "method of making illegal multi game systems." Emulation isn't illegal, and I have had ideas for cabinets that were never even real arcade cabinets (such as games like Counterstrike). If someone is re-selling them without the developers permission, different story. But these would be for personal use.
Take the whole illegality argument out. It would hurt sales. The profits are in licensing and selling the intellectual property. The reason the brand exists, is all the custom arcade makers for the last 20 years charging hundreds and even thousands for some of these machines. Arcade 1up found a market to slide into thanks to years of greed by the X Arcades and Rec Room Masters out there in the market place, not to mention your local guys in every part of the country.
It is interesting though, that the easy modding is probably the only reason this company hasn't gone under.
Again, I don't think it would hurt sales. If A1U didn't have a cabinet and I didn't suspect them to make one (like a cabinet for Guitar Hero 3, for instance), I could buy a blank kit and make my own. If A1U later made one, mine would have almost no resale value because it's not officially licensed. So it would only hurt the sales of existing cabinets, which I can't even find most in stock or for a reasonable price anyways.
The quality of the electronics isn't great to begin with. But the quality of the wood is hard to argue with. If A1U sold blank it's, I'm sure they'd probably sell those the most.
There is no money in selling cheap MDF, unless you are Ikea and do it at that scale. I am not trying to argue. It's like the blank car argument. Sell me a stripped down, safe car for a few grand instead of 30.