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Driving Cabinet build


Fursphere

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Totally agree with you on the real vs virtual pinball. I plan on owning at least one real pin in my lifetime because of that. :) Nice collection btw!

Yes they are GPU driven through their respective emulators. Also, the games still don't work in MAME, plus you would need one helluva powerful processor from another planet to run those, as I'm sure you can imagine. If you're curious, on my first hand me down PC (about 10 years old) with an old ATI card, Model 2 ran super slow (Model 3/supermodel was not out yet). I upgraded to a slim HP PC with the on board Intel HD4000 graphics chip. Model 2 ran better but Model 3 ran like a slug, totally unplayable. Last year I built my own PC with an i7 processor and ATI HD 8000 card (I wish I used an Nvidia card instead for other reasons) and now Model 2 and 3 run perfectly. Of course, I'm sure the i7 had something to do with that as well. Give it a shot and see how you fare, your results may vary. :)

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Make sure you get a 5.1 sound setup and install two speakers on the seat right by your head (using speaker mounts). Because if you decided to play pc games like Dirt 3 you will really feel like your in the car with gravel and sound effects coming from behind you.

I have bought 4 sets of these for 2 racing cabs and 2 other projects im working on. They sound crystal clear and the little sub actually bumps pretty good mounted under your seat in the base.

http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Surround-Sound-Speakers-980-000430/dp/B003VAK1FA

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Got the seat today. Very nice quality - now I just need to come up with a paint scheme to match. It'll need to be raised up probably two to four inches. Came with sliding rails too.

The box it came in is huge, so I'll be able to use that to mock up one of the sides for the top section.

post-25808-142870584427_thumb.jpg

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Mocked up one of the sides. I put one of my tool boxes under the set that added 4", that "loose" plans I have called for 5.5". The steering wheel needs to be moved up about 1" - 2" from where it sits right now - which is going to have automatically when I frame in the top.

The overall height of the cabinet is about 68" - Feels tall, but its probably ok. The screen is about 22" tall, and the "screen" area in the cardboard cutout is about the same, with my eye level being really close to the center of that. So I think it'll work out nicely. It needs to be tweaked a little, and I can't cut out the wood panels under I get the Daytona dash here to make sure the height it correct on the lower edges - I guessed at 10" for the cardboard. Feels right, but I want to be sure.

The dash should be here around Wednesday next week. Overall it feels like its really coming together.

post-25808-142870584429_thumb.jpg

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Great progress - a good seat makes all the difference. Re the sides- it may be a little late now but it would be good for the bottom of the screen area piece to be the same length as top of the cockpit base (i.e. where the top and bottom sections join). It would help it lo look a integrated (may have missed something regarding any constraints around this).

When building mine, I found that I spent a lot of time getting in and out to ensure the distance to the pedals, screen height and distance to/height of the wheel were comfortable and natural. So experimentation is definitely the way to go

Looking forward to seeing this one progress, particularly with the dash in :)

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What kind of dash are you putting in?

Sega Daytona Cabinet - found one on eBay for a decent price.

Great progress - a good seat makes all the difference. Re the sides- it may be a little late now but it would be good for the bottom of the screen area piece to be the same length as top of the cockpit base (i.e. where the top and bottom sections join). It would help it lo look a integrated (may have missed something regarding any constraints around this).

Have you ever seen one of these? That's loosely the concept. Sega Racing Classic Cabinet.

cab.jpg

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I was out and about today and stopped by a Scandia (arcade / miniature golf / batting cages chain) in Sacramento. They happened to have a Crazy Taxi arcade with the same dashboard I bought - and I brought my tape measure. 8" tall by 29" wide. So I'll be able to do some more work on the cabinet tomorrow I hope.

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Picked up the dashboard this morning from the post office. I didn't realize from the auction (it was vague at best) that it still has the metal bracket attached to it - so its pretty heavy for what it is. The harness for the buttons and speakers is in tact as well, so I might actually be able to use those. The "start" button's bezel is broken - but that's easy to replace.

I really like the way it looks right now - so I'm really doing to have to think about how I want to incorporate the Logitech G27 into it before I go hacking. :)

Here's a quick pic of it sitting on the lower cabinet.

post-25808-142870584821_thumb.jpg

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Progress!

Finished sanding out the sides, then glued, screwed, and biscuit'd three sides together. I didn't want to use screws, but I only have two four-foot clamps, so using screws was cheaper / faster than buying more clamps that I really don't need.

After everything dries, I might actually pull out the screws, drill out the holes a little larger and glue / hammer in dowels - they'll finish better in the end.

post-25808-142870584966_thumb.jpg

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