RetroPie Arcade
I built a RetroPie arcade machine. I didn't record video, but I did take a few pictures along the way.
For most of the wood to wood attaching I used Titebond glue and an 18 gauge brad nailer.
Deciding where to put the joystick and button holes was not easy and I did not end up with something I was totally happy with. Maybe I was over-thinking it.
Some of the angles were fun to figure out. Having a compound miter saw helped a lot.
Inside the back you can see the 19" Dell monitor I stripped down and mounted with wood blocking. This particular monitor had a 5:4 ratio, which works great for older console games. I used a hot glue gun to attach the monitor controls to the back of the monitor.
There's also the not yet mounted sound board dangling.
Everything is wired up and mostly working. No paint yet. I wasn't sure if I would get this far.
Here is an inside view of the joystick box. Each button and joystick attach to a control module that connects to the Raspberry Pi via USB. The second joystick has to be mounted upside down. I don't recall why.
I moved the joysticks and some of the buttons. I refilled the old holes with scrap wood and epoxy.
I hate painting. I hate taping things up before painting even more. It's just boring.
The black paint is done and it's time to tape things up in preparation for the red paint.
More red paint prep work.
Red paint in progress.
Red paint is done on the main cabinet piece.
The joystick box is ready for a clear coat, to lock in the button labels.
The 4" speakers are pretty loud for their size. I usually have the volume knob on "3" when I'm playing.
Marquee is installed and it's pretty much complete.
Side view.
Up top, where the exhaust fan lives.
I wish that gap was smaller.
"Guitar" volume knob. It goes to "11".
Inside the back, everything is cleaned up and properly mounted.
Power bus and switch wiring. 20 gauge wire. Lots of hot glue gun.
The Raspberry Pi is mounted with Velcro®.
The volume knob outside connects to a 12" extension inside that connects to the potentiometer on the sound board.
The power strip is also mounted with Velcro®.
USB ports for keyboard and mouse. Makes setup much easier being able to open a browser and Google problems. Switches for the fan and marquee lighting.
Main power. Inside I soldered all the switch terminals for safety.
Do you know what game this is? 😃