Extreme Noobness

katuuuz

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Hey everyone. I'm no stranger to Mame cabinets -- I built one two years ago. Thing is, I'm a self-proclaimed newb original arcade machine collector. I know everyone here, for the most part, is highly familiar with how these machines work, but I ask you all to think back when you first began, and lend a helpful hand to a beginner in this great hobby.

I currently own a Double Dragon cabinet, and will be picking up a Punch-Out! this Thursday. Both games (Punch-Out! allegedly) are(is) working. One day will come when they do not, and I plan on frequenting these forums from now on regardless, but especially while trying to troubleshoot any problems I encounter.

Something I already wonder about is PCBs. There are often PCBs for sale that I would be interested in, but wouldn't know where to begin if I did in fact buy one. As far as I know an arcade game consists of a power supply, PCB, Rom?, and of course the control panel. (Correct me if I am wrong, also is the mother board another part, or just another name for PCB?)

Research I've done shows JAMMA arcades are pretty much plug and play. So i.e. if I had my Double Dragon which is JAMMA, and bought a Ghouls n Ghosts PCB, would swapping the two turn my original DD into a Ghouls n Ghosts?

This is going to end up being one of many questions I can tell, but again, please bare with me as I try and grasp the new concept of arcade gaming.
 
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You've got the right idea. Power comes in from the plug into some transformers and filters, then runs into switching power supply to change things to DC.
Most cabs have:
Tranformers
PCB board (with some duaghter boards or sound boards)
Power supply
Control panel
Marquee light
speakers
harness (all the wiring to control panel)
monitor (and it's chassis)

"Jamma" boards are plug and play amongst most all jamma boards. There are various kinds of adapters to hook onto older games like Pacmans to run Jamma wiring.

The greatest site to learn everything arcade in my opinion is http://www.therealbobroberts.net/ .

He sells many products that eventually you'll need for upkeep on the machines. He also has lots of great articles to read thru to help understand arcade machines and they're problems.
 
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Wow, thanks for the lightning, chat-like support gozer. And I must say, that is one of the funniest avatars I've seen in a long time. Bookmarking this place now. Thanks again.

**Edit: Anyone know the stock punch buttons (not knockout button) for the Punch-Out!! game? KLOV archive's picture is too far to see, and google search returns various flavors for punch. The one I'm picking up is doubtfully stock... translucent maroon.
 
Just thought of a few more questions. (I guess I'll just log my lack of understanding in this thread and hopefully some day when I'm aware of what I'm doing I can look back at this and have a laugh over a brew, a slice of pizza, and a fist full of quarters).

Bezel installation on uprights: Tough job? My Double Dragon doesn't have one, and there is one on Ebay.

Marquee installation: Never could even understand this on my MAME cab which resulted in screwing that som'bitch in something ugly.

Producing and getting my collection of original games to accept tokens: Believe it or not, I have come in contact with a local guy who actually still has a few tokens from our former local arcade. R.I.P. These things must be over 10 years old! Is there any way I can have them duplicated, and rig my machines to accept them as credits? ((Talk about bringing the nostalgia up 1500 notches.)) Would the games still accept quarters as well?
 
Question 1.Cardboard bezels (like double dragon) are easy to change out. They simply sandwich between the top plexiglass and a wooden frame support. The support then rests above the monitor. Sometimes the arts are adhered to the glass, like donkey kong, and you won't have a wooden support.

In either case, you'll usually need to move the control panel in order to remove the bezel.

Question 2. On top of your cab should be a metal or plastic bracket held in with 3 to 5 screws. Remove the screws,then slowly lift up the skinny bracket which holds the marquee in a groove. There are lots of marquee sizes out there, so be sure to measure accurately.

Question 3. I believe to convert a quarter coin mech to a token mech, you just need to swap the two styles. Each should still have a microswitch located on it with to wires attached. These wires go thru your wiring harness to the board's correct "coin1" and "ground" pinouts.

And thanks for the love on my avatar. I made it months ago, and you're the only one to think it's cool. hahaha.
 
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I like your avatar..

did you see when they had that guy portrayed on the Adult Swim show "Boondocks" ?

classic.. you'd die laughing...
 
I like your avatar..

did you see when they had that guy portrayed on the Adult Swim show "Boondocks" ?

classic.. you'd die laughing...

naw, must have missed it. Adult swim is dah bomb. Wish they'd make some more episodes of Tom goes to the Mayor.
 
Question 3. I believe to convert a quarter coin mech to a token mech, you just need to swap the two styles. Each should still have a microswitch located on it with to wires attached. These wires go thru your wiring harness to the board's correct "coin1" and "ground" pinouts.

Sounds simple enough. How would I acquire token style mechs? I would imagine they come in different styles? (sizes, etc to be matched to the make of token?)

Not sure if you have any clue as to a token manufacturer, but if I were to send an exact token I am trying to produce, would they be able to do it? Would a picture of the token front and back be enough?

P.S. Bob Ross is an American icon, and don't forget it! :)
 
Wow, thanks for the lightning, chat-like support gozer. And I must say, that is one of the funniest avatars I've seen in a long time. Bookmarking this place now. Thanks again.

**Edit: Anyone know the stock punch buttons (not knockout button) for the Punch-Out!! game? KLOV archive's picture is too far to see, and google search returns various flavors for punch. The one I'm picking up is doubtfully stock... translucent maroon.

The punch buttons are orange nintendo buttons. You can get them at mikesarcade.com

Check out my site below for detailed pictures of my Punch-Out restore:

http://johnsarcade.com/nintendo_punch_out_arcade.php

Also, come join us at the New England Arcade Collector's Forum:

http://www.neacf.com
 
Sounds simple enough. How would I acquire token style mechs? I would imagine they come in different styles? (sizes, etc to be matched to the make of token?)

Not sure if you have any clue as to a token manufacturer, but if I were to send an exact token I am trying to produce, would they be able to do it? Would a picture of the token front and back be enough?

P.S. Bob Ross is an American icon, and don't forget it! :)

Most late 80's and 90's games seemed to be using an industry standard when it comes to coin mechs. I would have to assume that token dealers knew this and built their mechs to fit into that size. Check around on ebay.

As far as tokens, I think there is a KLOV guy here who hordes tokens, creates tokens, and quite possibly makes love to his tokens. Can't remember who it is, but this guy may know: http://forums.arcade-museum.com/member.php?u=1903
 
There are adjustable coin mechs available out there. At the CEC I work at, we have these, and I have a few on my games too. Just a quick turn of a screw and you can change the size from .984mm token/quarter to .900mm token, and so on.
 
As far as tokens, I think there is a KLOV guy here who hordes tokens, creates tokens, and quite possibly makes love to his tokens. Can't remember who it is, but this guy may know: http://forums.arcade-museum.com/member.php?u=1903

Hahaha. I actually found a site that can match my old original token but I have to buy 5,000 minimum for custom tokens. Not sure if that's going to be a go just yet.

And Cartouche and Bulkdog, I'm headed over there now. It is nice to have some local arcadians.

P.P.S.... I was PM'd the Punch-Out!! flyer.. Seems the CPO is orange instead of green as well as the punch buttons. I don't know about you guys, but my Punch-Out!! has green on the CP.
 
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Hahaha. I actually found a site that can match my old original token but I have to buy 5,000 minimum for custom tokens. Not sure if that's going to be a go just yet.

And Cartouche and Bulkdog, I'm headed over there now. It is nice to have some local arcadians.

P.P.S.... I was PM'd the Punch-Out!! flyer.. Seems the CPO is orange instead of green as well as the punch buttons. I don't know about you guys, but my Punch-Out!! has green on the CP.

The buttons are orange. The CPO is greenish and black. Check my photos, i have an original CPO.
 
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Research I've done shows JAMMA arcades are pretty much plug and play. So i.e. if I had my Double Dragon which is JAMMA, and bought a Ghouls n Ghosts PCB, would swapping the two turn my original DD into a Ghouls n Ghosts?

One thing to take note of if you are going to start buying Jamma pcb's is the monitor orientation. Some are horizontal while others are vertical. Good news though, on your Double Dragon machine, rotating the monitor is not difficult.
 
One thing to take note of if you are going to start buying Jamma pcb's is the monitor orientation. Some are horizontal while others are vertical. Good news though, on your Double Dragon machine, rotating the monitor is not difficult.

Yes, the guy I got it from told me of how great the rotatable monitors are. I'm pretty happy about it.

Great news too... I scored a Frogger at last. I locked the deal in tonight with the guy and it should be in my possession tomorrow afternoon. Again, since this is a newb thread, I have a question for the new Frogger already... See the guy said it is missing one of the joy stick's leaf switches. How easy are these things to install?
 
Yes, the guy I got it from told me of how great the rotatable monitors are. I'm pretty happy about it.

Great news too... I scored a Frogger at last. I locked the deal in tonight with the guy and it should be in my possession tomorrow afternoon. Again, since this is a newb thread, I have a question for the new Frogger already... See the guy said it is missing one of the joy stick's leaf switches. How easy are these things to install?

very easy. go on ebay, buy the new leaf switch and thread it in. I prefer the microswitch happ style buttons.
 
very easy. go on ebay, buy the new leaf switch and thread it in. I prefer the microswitch happ style buttons.

Is it a frogger-specific leaf switch? Can I have a microswitch installed where just that one leaf is missing? or do I have to convert the entire CP to micro?
 
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