Computer Space Desktop Version

Good job very cool, what is the cab made of and how long did it take to build?

Thanks for your nice words.

The cab is made of plastic. It is a one piece 3D print (fairly expensive). The 3D print took 2 days or so. The 3d print was horrible - full of cracks and generally uneven. Sand papering (? is this the right word?) and filling & spraying with plastic padding took well over a month with work more or less every day after the day job and even more so during the weekends. All exterior details (control panel and ID plate at the back) and the bezel are made of plastic. I used a professional firm for 3D modelling, printing and paint-job. Don't ask me for the price tag... and add on top of that the monitor, the FPGA board and my own time (both the FPGA design/build/test and the finish)

The 5" inch monitor size was not selected by chance It is actually in original scale with the 24" height and was selected based on the fact that 24" is the perfect match for sitting by a desk and having eyes in line with the monitor. However, the arms/hands get in a tiresome position, but I also have a remote control that i can use which is more ergonomically.

Figuring out the inside was a bit of puzzle - as the monitor has a number of degrees of freedom to be adjusted towards the bezel: tilt back/forth, tilt right/left, horizontal back/forth, vertical up/down, sideways right/left. As no assembly will ever be perfect I had to figure out a way to resolve these adjustment needs. Luckily the design firm had added rails inside the cabinet that I could fasten the montior mehcanics by.

The electronics underneath the control panel is fairly simple - some buttons of the right size (finding the right button took forever to google) and some diodes to light up the panel.

I will post some interior pics in a while.

br /mattias
 
I want one :)
Very cool

Would it be possbile to install a 5" b/w tv?

5_Inch_Black_and_White_TV_With_AM_FM_Radio.gif

Yes it is possible. In the video there is a section where i show a Jensen 5" b&w TV inserted into the cab. One issue - if you want to stay true to the original scale of the cabinet - is that the TV will protrude (right word?) at the back of the cabinet due to the tube length. In the original cab this is also an issue, i have understood. You have to have a monitor with a certain tube length that doesn't violate the cabinet constraints..

I have been looking for a Sony Watchman which beams with a flat tube from underneath the TV screen - but haven't found one at 5".

Having an old CRT 5" is def much more fun than the LCD displ. I have however gotten around this by allowing for an external cable that I can wire to my old large CRT. It gives that proper glow.
 
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Let's see the interior pics - boards/wiring etc. :poke:

for sure... give me a little while to tidy up the inside first...

but just to manage expectations - it is nothing special inside really.. and FPGA board with some wires attached and some diodes and the montior.

br /mattias
 
Do you have the 3d model files if so please post. I'd like to make of these one day.

Realized you said you dont want to share the design files.
 
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Yes it is possible. In the video there is a section where i show a Jensen 5" b&w TV inserted into the cab. One issue - if you want to stay true to the original scale of the cabinet - is that the TV will protrude (right word?) at the back of the cabinet due to the tube length. In the original cab this is also an issue, i have understood. You have to have a monitor with a certain tube length that doesn't violate the cabinet constraints..

I have been looking for a Sony Watchman which beams with a flat tube from underneath the TV screen - but haven't found one at 5".

Having an old CRT 5" is def much more fun than the LCD displ. I have however gotten around this by allowing for an external cable that I can wire to my old large CRT. It gives that proper glow.

That's hard core dedication man props to you! If you don't mind me asking how much money do you have invested in this project?
 
That's hard core dedication man props to you! If you don't mind me asking how much money do you have invested in this project?

From top of mind (since 2014):

Design: ~300 USD
Print: ~700 USD
Paint, Details and Finish: ~900 USD
Screen(s): ~300 USD (testing a number of monitors)
FPGA boad(s): ~400 USD (testing a number of board)
Oscilloscope & electronics: ~200 USD
Own time (at at rate of choice): ~ 50.000 - 100.000 USD (note: sunk cost - as this primarily relates to development of the FPGA solution - not the cabinet build)

And then probably some more that I have either forgotten or underestimated...

/m
 
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Wow! Just wow! That has me wondering if it would be possible to reproduce the cabinet at full scale. Combined with the FPGA IM sure there are a bunch of us that wouldn't mind a repro if someone could duplicate the original fibreglass cab build process.
 
Wow! Just wow! That has me wondering if it would be possible to reproduce the cabinet at full scale. Combined with the FPGA IM sure there are a bunch of us that wouldn't mind a repro if someone could duplicate the original fibreglass cab build process.

Please god, no. Is this place turning into Killer List of Fake Video Games or what?
 
Let's see the interior pics - boards/wiring etc. :poke:

Here are some pics of the interior.

First a set of pictures with the GPIO Interface exposed on top of the FPGA board

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br /mattias
 

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Let's see the interior pics - boards/wiring etc. :poke:

And some pictures of the interior with the GPIO interface in its intended position, tucked away underneath the FPGA board and with the monitor connected - both ntsc video and sound

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With the remote control attached
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Close up of the monitor and diode light plate - that lights up the instruction section in the bezel
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Please god, no. Is this place turning into Killer List of Fake Video Games or what?
You do realize this whole thread is about a replica video game, right?

To be opposed to a repro cabinet you must also be against everything else
here that's a reproduction. Side art, FPGA boards, even down to repainting a cab and
replacing t molding, bezels, buttons you name it. All that 'fake' stuff.

Otherwise you'd be a bit of a hypocrite.
 
You do realize this whole thread is about a replica video game, right?

To be opposed to a repro cabinet you must also be against everything else
here that's a reproduction. Side art, FPGA boards, even down to repainting a cab and
replacing t molding, bezels, buttons you name it. All that 'fake' stuff.

Georgeglass,

This thread is about a functional scale model of a video game. Obviously not a real Computer Space. I think it is really impressive, I have done plenty of scale modeling myself, and this is better than anything I have ever done.

You took my comment out of context. I was referring to the guy who wanted to make a FULL SIZED model of Computer Space. That would be a fake, as is all the other stuff you mentioned.

I'll take an 7/10 original any day over a 10/10 fake. I only do "restorations" if the cabinet has already been ruined.
 
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