Arcade1up better than real cabs?

[neo_mao]

I have 2 arcade1ups that have gotten regular play with a 5 year old, 9 year old and myself for more than a year...no issues so far. Maybe I’m lucky?

I know these aren’t real arcade machines - God help someone who thinks they are...but I have no desire to have a real machine in my home. I don’t even want a crt in my home. At around the $300 i am comfortable buying these and tossing them out if they break down. After a year of regular play I think already got my money’s worth out of them. I’m happy so far and plan to get a couple more this year.

 

[Mr.Bojangles]

The problem isn't the cabinets are made cheap.

The problem is actually trying to use them as if they were made to be played, when they are just made to be a prop in the background for YouTube videos.

Silly gamer, games are for displaying, not playing.

Well yeah that's the thing, if they at the very least had arcade quality controls, they'd be perfect for constant play, but with the way they're made they sustain quite a bit of wear and tear in just one gaming session and depending on how often you use these "cabinets", you'll find yourself replacing the controls anywhere from 2 - 4 times a year, depending on use. I guess you get what you pay for.

 

[100proof]

I guess you get what you pay for.

/thread

 

[Lastblade]

I like the idea of them but they are so cheaply made, you have to invest more money to make them worthwhile. At that point, you might as well just get an arcade stick + Pi/Mister dedicated emulation machine and hook it up to your TV. I know it won't have the arcade feel, but I would argue a 4ft machine never did to begin with.

 

[RAZO]

The problem isn't the cabinets are made cheap.

The problem is actually trying to use them as if they were made to be played, when they are just made to be a prop in the background for YouTube videos.

Silly gamer, games are for displaying, not playing.

I wouldn't put one of these in my home if it was free. I would leave it in my garage and offer free local pick up on fb.I rather pay more for something that is quality. Same goes for that mvs bartop thing.To be fair though, that mvs bartop cab seems to be better quality.

 

[neo_mao]

 

[HornheaDD]

They are re-re-re-releasing a SFII cab, but with 12 games, and in a "Big Blue" edition. I dont want one, my Marvel Superheroes one is fine, espeically with the Pi I put in it, but I have to admit - this one is pretty cool to see in the BB edition.

Arcade1Up announces Street Fighter II Big Blue Edition, Ms. Pac Man/Galaga Class of '81, and Turtles in Time arcade machines!

Today is a big day for fans of Arcade1Up’s 3/4th size arcade machines! Details on three upcoming machines have been released. While yes, most of these games have been released in some form in the past, there are enough improvements and new games added to the line-up to make it worth while to...

gamingtrend.com

 

[prof]

There's a youtube guy who has a room full of these things. Probably at least a dozen. I made a post in the comments that these things are cool for the average joe wanting to get a little nostalgia arcade experience, but when you've got that many, you're pretty much an arcade enthusiast, and should get some actual cabs instead of these cheap emulators. Naturally I was told off by a few guys. I tried to say it politely because the youtube fella seems like a nice guy. But dang, why someone would pump so much money and space into these things is beyond me.

Also, people seem to be realizing these things are junk, or at least the novelty is wearing off. I check Facebook marketplace on occasion for "arcade" in the search, and the majority of what comes up is these things, and they're usually dirt cheap.

 

[Ajax]

Well look at that... They are doing the little blue. Looks like I will have to stop clowning them and get one.

 

[HornheaDD]

There's a youtube guy who has a room full of these things. Probably at least a dozen. I made a post in the comments that these things are cool for the average joe wanting to get a little nostalgia arcade experience, but when you've got that many, you're pretty much an arcade enthusiast, and should get some actual cabs instead of these cheap emulators. Naturally I was told off by a few guys. I tried to say it politely because the youtube fella seems like a nice guy. But dang, why someone would pump so much money and space into these things is beyond me.

Also, people seem to be realizing these things are junk, or at least the novelty is wearing off. I check Facebook marketplace on occasion for "arcade" in the search, and the majority of what comes up is these things, and they're usually dirt cheap.

Its the opposite in my neck of the woods. Any time I see an A1Up for sale on the fb market, its usually for full price, and they are beat to shit.

I liked the Marvel one I got because it looks cool, and I immediately planned to put a Pi in there. Since I'm limited on space in my office, I just need/want one, and I have my Neo25, so I'm good. Although I will get the Killer Instinct one, because... I love KI and will never have room for a full size KI cab in my place. Plus Im not going to spend the stupid price that they are selling for now.

But I agree, build quality is shit, and the people who have entire arcades full of these things in their homes are the same dipsticks that go out and spend 3k on a PacMan they saw on craigslist. If they took some of that money they have spent on A1Ups and the UNGODLY amount of LED mods they add to them, not to mention tricking out the rooms they keep them in, they could have gotten a real cab.

 

[Gremlin]

Anyone with opinions on the pinball cabs? I'd never buy one of the mini cabs since I have the real thing and value the authenticity there, but I've been itching to play pinball since my usual spots have been closed indefinitely and real machines cost more than my car. The idea of a small cabinet appeals to me as someone who'd play it on and off occasionally, as long as it gets halfway there to the real thing. It's fun enough on PC but was wondering if the form factor and haptic feedback are worth it or should I not even bother

 

[Ajax]

A friend of mine has researched the pinball machine. He makes it sound like it's pretty decent. If the actual play quality is there, I kinda see that being more of a viable experience than most of their other offerings.

I might have mentioned this before, but lord knows I'm not going back through this thread to find a definitive answer on it - My sister has the Pac Man one, which I think was one of the first ones. It's pretty hilarious. It has three volume settings - off, whisper, and blow the fucking house down. The joystick also seems to only work some of the time. I opened it up and the controls were all in this little black plastic case, which seemed to require other tools to open. Funny that they literally tried to black box the controls. That thoroughly turned me off to the thought of ever owning anything A1U.

The Big Blue though, I'm sorry... I gotta pull the trigger on it. I've always wanted a Big Blue. An arcade I worked at many years ago had 4 or 5 of them (they had a couple of the other BB design with the weird speakers in their own housings on top also), and the owner said I could buy one. I eventually came to my senses and realized that the sheer massive size of the machine would prevent it from ever being a realistic thing to own, and kinda let that dream go.

But this... I'm sure it's crap and all that, but I'm confident that I can make it decent. Tear out whatever bullshit controls undoubtedly come with it and replace them with proper ones. Maybe even find a way to connect a real CPS2 setup. I'm fully into it, it looks dope.

 

[HornheaDD]

A friend of mine has researched the pinball machine. He makes it sound like it's pretty decent. If the actual play quality is there, I kinda see that being more of a viable experience than most of their other offerings.

I might have mentioned this before, but lord knows I'm not going back through this thread to find a definitive answer on it - My sister has the Pac Man one, which I think was one of the first ones. It's pretty hilarious. It has three volume settings - off, whisper, and blow the fucking house down. The joystick also seems to only work some of the time. I opened it up and the controls were all in this little black plastic case, which seemed to require other tools to open. Funny that they literally tried to black box the controls. That thoroughly turned me off to the thought of ever owning anything A1U.

The Big Blue though, I'm sorry... I gotta pull the trigger on it. I've always wanted a Big Blue. An arcade I worked at many years ago had 4 or 5 of them (they had a couple of the other BB design with the weird speakers in their own housings on top also), and the owner said I could buy one. I eventually came to my senses and realized that the sheer massive size of the machine would prevent it from ever being a realistic thing to own, and kinda let that dream go.

But this... I'm sure it's crap and all that, but I'm confident that I can make it decent. Tear out whatever bullshit controls undoubtedly come with it and replace them with proper ones. Maybe even find a way to connect a real CPS2 setup. I'm fully into it, it looks dope.

RE: Big Blue - I agree. And you can definitely modify them into a real JAMMA cab. There are youtube videos out there.

As far as the Pac-Man you mentioned with the sound, I think the first gen cabs were all like that. Inaudible, Inaudible + 2db, and shake the earth to it's core. The later ones have a switch that isn't a notch switch. Its one of those sort of momentary ones, where it increases/decreases the volume by x amount each press left or right.

For the black box, I think that was just A1UP trying to church up their set up so wires don't go all wangly-dangly when they are in the box. It's mainly just 'cable management' to keep the CP as one-piece as possible. The cover comes off with a standard screw driver.

 

[HDRchampion]

I got rid of 3 of my arcade1ups already. I still have 4 left to give away.

I still want to pick up the Marvel vs Capcom one and now the Big Blue. Has SF2 Hyper fighting, Super Turbo, Puzzle Fighter, Slam Master, Knights of the Round & Vampire Saviors wifi.

At first they were just cute decorations but w/ the added Wifi its a gamechanger for these 1up cabs.

 

[Ajax]

Ah, gotcha. That makes sense about the wires for the controls being tidy in the little box dealy. I didn't look too far into it, as you could probably tell.

The way I see it, if you put in the work to bring the feel and functionality up to par with a real cab, it's not really any different than a Mini Cute. I did decide to pull the trigger on a reproduction Mini Cute, so I feel like the Big Blue will be pretty slick next to that.

 

[prof]

Its the opposite in my neck of the woods. Any time I see an A1Up for sale on the fb market, its usually for full price, and they are beat to shit.

You got me curious, so I just check for the first time in quite a while, and you're not wrong. Other than a couple for 200, most were asking like 500-700 for them. The older ones too, like SF. That wasn't the case at all about a year ago. Chock it up to the overall rise in games and collectibles we've seen since the pandemic I guess.

 

[HornheaDD]

Ah, gotcha. That makes sense about the wires for the controls being tidy in the little box dealy. I didn't look too far into it, as you could probably tell.

The way I see it, if you put in the work to bring the feel and functionality up to par with a real cab, it's not really any different than a Mini Cute. I did decide to pull the trigger on a reproduction Mini Cute, so I feel like the Big Blue will be pretty slick next to that.

Curious, where can you get one of those, and how much are they?

 

[Ajax]

A person called Hursit (based in Turkey, he runs TRFightstick) made them, and a person called Cereth (this is also the person who runs Gamesaru.net) on arcade-projects is importing them. The order was opened a good while ago. Like maybe almost two years ago. I'm not sure if you can still buy, but maybe!

The cabs are $1,600. They don't come with monitors (the makers obviously don't have a good source for new CRT monitors), so you gotta handle that part of it too, which is kind of a pain in the butt (not to mention at least a few hundred more dollars). Once it's all taken care of though, hard to argue against the dopeness of a Mini Cute.

 

[HornheaDD]

Ah ok, someone posted a "how to build a candy cab" video from youtube in one of the Arcade groups on facebook, and I was like... this guy isnt building a candy cab.. hes putting a kit together, and it was one of those from TRFightstick.

Ah, still too much man. I just gotta resign myself to the fact that I'm just not gonna get another candy for a *very* long time, if at all.

 

[hyper]

Got it at Walmart for $99 each...Most Walmarts dont have them on sale but there was a hick town nearby Walmart that had them cheap. You would need to use brickseek and type your zipcode to see the prices.

Go to google & type brickseek arcade1up. Then just click whichever game you're interested in checking out. Then enter your zipcode to search the inventory.

I got Pac Man, Galaga, Final Fightx2, Street Fighter2, & Mortal Kombat.

There are some Asteroid machines going fo $75 but i passed on those.

View attachment 42611

MVP post

 

[hyper]

These are 400 delivered all the $50 are sold out
;<

 

[NeoCverA]

WIFI = actually playing with others or is it all just leaderboard highscore bullshit?

 

[HornheaDD]

WIFI = actually playing with others or is it all just leaderboard highscore bullshit?

Fairly certain it means actual online play.

 

[HDRchampion]

Yeah online play w no subscription. Heard nba jam and vs games were pretty decent.

 

[hyper]

Yeah online play w no subscription. Heard nba jam and vs games were pretty decent.

That's cool I wonder if the lobbies are busy