1 00:00:15,440 --> 00:00:21,279 Hi, I'm Lionus Sebastian. There's no 2 00:00:18,800 --> 00:00:28,560 greater source of joy in this world than a personal computer. But every day, 3 00:00:25,359 --> 00:00:31,079 elderly devices like this one find 4 00:00:28,560 --> 00:00:36,320 themselves without a home, discarded, 5 00:00:32,760 --> 00:00:39,640 abandoned, forgotten. 6 00:00:36,320 --> 00:00:42,399 So, I'm here today to ask you not for a 7 00:00:39,640 --> 00:00:48,079 donation, but just for a moment of your time to listen as we show you a path to 8 00:00:45,360 --> 00:00:54,399 a future where you and your slightly obsolete gaming PC can pone together 9 00:00:51,039 --> 00:00:57,120 once more. This is your chance to say, 10 00:00:54,399 --> 00:01:00,120 "I won't sit by while a computer suffers. 11 00:01:07,520 --> 00:01:14,720 EK Water Blocks's all aluminum fluid gaming lineup offers great water cooling 12 00:01:12,640 --> 00:01:19,200 performance for an affordable price. Learn more at the link in the video 13 00:01:16,840 --> 00:01:24,400 description. So, when Taran first came to me and proposed building a custom 14 00:01:21,119 --> 00:01:25,920 arcade box, I immediately demanded he 15 00:01:24,400 --> 00:01:31,360 get back to work and stop wasting company time. A short while later, 16 00:01:28,840 --> 00:01:37,119 coincidentally, I independently came up with a brilliant idea. Why don't we 17 00:01:33,920 --> 00:01:40,479 build our own custom arcade box? So, 18 00:01:37,119 --> 00:01:42,720 first then, we set out to construct the 19 00:01:40,479 --> 00:01:48,720 computer that we would build the arcade box around. This is Linus Tech Tips. So, 20 00:01:45,680 --> 00:01:51,119 we could have easily strapped SLI Titans 21 00:01:48,720 --> 00:01:56,640 and an 8K monitor to a piece of plywood and called it a day. But the hardware 22 00:01:53,920 --> 00:02:02,799 demands of emulating ancient software are actually very light. And besides, 23 00:01:59,439 --> 00:02:05,439 silly intro bit aside, we wanted the 24 00:02:02,799 --> 00:02:09,440 focus of this video to be on showing how you can get a little more mileage out of 25 00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:14,239 your components that are nearing the end of their useful life. So, it was 26 00:02:11,920 --> 00:02:19,280 important to us that every part of our computer was something that would be 27 00:02:16,640 --> 00:02:25,360 coming up on replacement age and readily available secondhand. In the end, for a 28 00:02:23,040 --> 00:02:30,840 really reasonable price, we were able to put together what would have been a 29 00:02:27,040 --> 00:02:34,480 respectable mid-range gaming PC, Circa 30 00:02:30,840 --> 00:02:37,280 2011, with just one unusual requirement. 31 00:02:34,480 --> 00:02:43,360 We wanted a video card with an Svideo output because we are totally going to 32 00:02:40,480 --> 00:02:47,200 rock a CRT in our finished build for authenticity. 33 00:02:45,200 --> 00:02:51,840 Once all of the hardware was in place, we were ready to set up our front end, 34 00:02:49,519 --> 00:02:58,160 the program that wraps everything together in order to use MAMEim, the 35 00:02:54,640 --> 00:03:00,239 go-to but notoriously command lineon 36 00:02:58,160 --> 00:03:06,159 arcade emulator that's been around since the mid90s. The front end allows us to 37 00:03:03,760 --> 00:03:11,519 peruse our vast collection of legally obtained software and then run it in the 38 00:03:09,280 --> 00:03:17,040 emulator. Our first pick was RetroArchch, a front end that handles a 39 00:03:14,239 --> 00:03:22,400 number of different emulators and uh has an infamously innovative menu design. 40 00:03:20,640 --> 00:03:27,200 While it took a little internet archaeology to assemble all the files we 41 00:03:24,720 --> 00:03:34,080 needed, we were actually able to get it up and running, just not quite to our 42 00:03:30,680 --> 00:03:36,720 satisfaction without endless tinkering. 43 00:03:34,080 --> 00:03:42,560 It messed with MAME's control layouts too much to try to conform them to its 44 00:03:39,680 --> 00:03:48,400 own, and a lot of our legally obtained software couldn't be detected. So, we 45 00:03:45,760 --> 00:03:52,720 had a conundrum on our hands. We wanted to stick with open-source software, but 46 00:03:50,879 --> 00:03:57,760 most of the purpose-built arcade frontends that met our standards, well, 47 00:03:55,200 --> 00:04:01,840 they're proprietary. So, we dug deeper into the depths of the internet and 48 00:03:59,599 --> 00:04:06,959 discovered a relatively new front end called Attract Mode. With a healthy 49 00:04:04,720 --> 00:04:12,239 community making skins and plugins, attract mode gave us the perfect storm 50 00:04:09,280 --> 00:04:16,799 of form and function. It even supports scripting, which will be important later 51 00:04:14,319 --> 00:04:23,040 on in our project. Well, that's all fine and good, but at this point, all you 52 00:04:19,919 --> 00:04:26,160 got, Lionus, is a geriatric PC running 53 00:04:23,040 --> 00:04:28,960 emulation software. That's a far cry 54 00:04:26,160 --> 00:04:34,120 from the full-on arcade experience that uh I was expecting. I mean, look at this 55 00:04:31,360 --> 00:04:39,840 thing. So yeah, you're right. We needed joysticks, buttons, light guns, and a 56 00:04:37,440 --> 00:04:46,560 big, beautiful monitor to show it off on. So I tasked my staff with scouring 57 00:04:43,840 --> 00:04:51,440 Craigslist and eBay for some previously loved accessories that we could dust off 58 00:04:49,040 --> 00:04:56,960 and put to use again. We were able to find multiple sources for everything we 59 00:04:54,160 --> 00:05:01,440 needed. This was actually the smoothest experience we've ever had buying guns 60 00:04:59,280 --> 00:05:06,440 off Craigslist. When it came to buttons and joysticks though, we found the 61 00:05:03,520 --> 00:05:11,280 secondary market to be basically non-existent. You can order one of the 62 00:05:09,440 --> 00:05:16,560 pre-built arcade decks that are out there, but we really wanted to customize 63 00:05:13,680 --> 00:05:21,600 our own. So, we did. After some research, we reached out to Andy over at 64 00:05:18,960 --> 00:05:26,639 Ultimark in the UK, which is one of the better known arcade part suppliers for 65 00:05:23,520 --> 00:05:29,759 enthusiasts. And after a couple minutes 66 00:05:26,639 --> 00:05:31,960 of browsing their website, found exactly 67 00:05:29,759 --> 00:05:39,520 what we wanted. RGB. Yes. So, we asked for 30 of their 68 00:05:36,400 --> 00:05:41,639 classic RGB buttons with seven Ultralux 69 00:05:39,520 --> 00:05:48,240 Chrome buttons for special functions. And yep, that's right. They even have 70 00:05:45,199 --> 00:05:50,320 RGB sticks, too. So, the two servo 71 00:05:48,240 --> 00:05:55,840 sticks we went with have interchangeable handles. And with some clever software, 72 00:05:53,039 --> 00:06:00,000 they can automatically change from 8-way to four-way, which is great when you're 73 00:05:58,080 --> 00:06:05,440 switching between your completely legitimate copy of PacMister to 74 00:06:02,400 --> 00:06:08,400 something like Street Conflict. But what 75 00:06:05,440 --> 00:06:14,319 about games that use analog controls? Haha. Well, that's where the Ultra Stick 76 00:06:10,960 --> 00:06:16,960 360 comes in. It uses a hall effect 77 00:06:14,319 --> 00:06:23,520 sensor in order to determine where the stick is, making it incredibly accurate 78 00:06:19,919 --> 00:06:26,080 and durable. Add in their RGB track ball 79 00:06:23,520 --> 00:06:32,160 and a spinner, and we are covered for all of our button and stick games. But 80 00:06:28,880 --> 00:06:35,280 what would an arcade box be without 81 00:06:32,160 --> 00:06:37,960 slick shooting games? Your House of the 82 00:06:35,280 --> 00:06:43,919 Recently deceased or time conundrum. Well, we plugged in those 83 00:06:41,280 --> 00:06:49,440 light guns that we bought, expecting to be immediately putting zombies back in 84 00:06:46,560 --> 00:06:54,800 the ground, and that's where we hit a major setback. Who could have guessed? 85 00:06:52,400 --> 00:07:00,080 While the GunCon twos that we obtained were technically functional, the drivers 86 00:06:57,120 --> 00:07:05,360 they require are ancient, and in order to install them successfully, we would 87 00:07:02,160 --> 00:07:08,120 have had to use composite video. not 88 00:07:05,360 --> 00:07:15,759 good enough for us from a retro purist standpoint. And the other set we picked 89 00:07:10,400 --> 00:07:18,080 up was a used pair of ACTL Labs uh USB 90 00:07:15,759 --> 00:07:22,639 light guns, but we ended up running into another problem with them. They were 91 00:07:20,240 --> 00:07:27,919 designed specifically for PC main cabinets. So, we would have ended up 92 00:07:24,560 --> 00:07:29,840 using janky USB to game port adapters, 93 00:07:27,919 --> 00:07:35,360 and frankly, they just felt kind of crummy anyway. So, we ended up reaching 94 00:07:31,919 --> 00:07:39,599 out to Ultimark. Hey, it's us again. And 95 00:07:35,360 --> 00:07:42,000 they sent us these bad boys. These Aim 96 00:07:39,599 --> 00:07:48,639 Track IR light guns worked perfectly with our system. And they even fire 97 00:07:45,319 --> 00:07:52,240 sideways, batches. Which brings us then 98 00:07:48,639 --> 00:07:54,720 to finding the right TV. If you want to 99 00:07:52,240 --> 00:08:01,560 use traditional light guns, you will need a CRT. You can learn more about why 100 00:07:58,000 --> 00:08:04,479 that is here. So, these ones we got 101 00:08:01,560 --> 00:08:10,400 locally work and the prices were definitely right, but Svideo ended up 102 00:08:07,680 --> 00:08:16,400 being pretty disappointing and scaling games from different eras was 103 00:08:13,240 --> 00:08:18,319 problematic. So, back to eBay we went 104 00:08:16,400 --> 00:08:25,520 and there we managed to procure a Toshiba Pure Flat CRT out of a Namco 105 00:08:21,520 --> 00:08:28,560 machine that takes both retro RGB and 106 00:08:25,520 --> 00:08:30,319 VGA. That's important because this thing 107 00:08:28,560 --> 00:08:36,000 can take signals that range from the chunky dots that pack gentleman eats all 108 00:08:33,039 --> 00:08:42,000 the way up to the super fresh sprites in Street Conflict 3 and display them as 109 00:08:39,120 --> 00:08:47,760 they were originally intended. Okay then. So, we have our hardware together. 110 00:08:44,720 --> 00:08:51,120 We have all the software set up. Now, we 111 00:08:47,760 --> 00:08:54,320 just need something to put it all into. 112 00:08:51,120 --> 00:08:57,040 Now, our original plan was to either 113 00:08:54,320 --> 00:09:02,000 find a decommissioned arcade cabinet or just build one ourselves out of scrap 114 00:08:59,160 --> 00:09:06,640 plywood. But while both of those are valid options for sure, we wanted to 115 00:09:04,560 --> 00:09:11,519 make the final product as cool as possible to show you guys just how far 116 00:09:08,959 --> 00:09:16,320 you can go. So, we reached out to Scott over at North Coast Custom Arcades, and 117 00:09:14,399 --> 00:09:21,680 this this is actually how it went down. basically begged him to let us use one 118 00:09:18,640 --> 00:09:24,080 of his Ultimate Arcade 2 cabinet kits. 119 00:09:21,680 --> 00:09:28,720 He was happy to oblige and actually for good measure even threw in the classic 120 00:09:26,480 --> 00:09:34,880 control panel kit and all the mounts we'd need to get our display in place. A 121 00:09:32,080 --> 00:09:43,120 major potential issue for these large and heavy CRT monitors. And the end 122 00:09:38,640 --> 00:09:46,959 result goes without saying is absolutely 123 00:09:43,120 --> 00:09:49,519 breathtaking. I mean, you don't need to 124 00:09:46,959 --> 00:09:54,800 go all out like we did. And with high-end CRTs no longer in production, 125 00:09:52,560 --> 00:09:59,600 some parts of the experience are going to get harder and harder to recreate as 126 00:09:57,360 --> 00:10:04,800 time goes on, even if you did want to go all out. But we're really glad that we 127 00:10:02,080 --> 00:10:08,959 took on this project. With a home arcade box, you can play your favorite games 128 00:10:06,880 --> 00:10:15,279 with your friends, just like you might have as a kid way back in the 80s, 90s, 129 00:10:12,000 --> 00:10:18,560 or 2000s. With the buttons and joysticks 130 00:10:15,279 --> 00:10:21,160 feeling exactly how you remember them, 131 00:10:18,560 --> 00:10:25,839 the screen and emulators surprising authenticity help drive that home. And 132 00:10:23,680 --> 00:10:31,920 with our custom cabinet, the whole thing just exudes quality like we just put 133 00:10:28,959 --> 00:10:36,640 together a kit from Sega or Namco themselves for our bowling alley quarter 134 00:10:34,360 --> 00:10:40,959 muncher. Not that it needs to munch quarters anymore. That's the real reason 135 00:10:39,200 --> 00:10:46,040 people invest hundreds and hundreds of dollars in these things. You just have a 136 00:10:42,920 --> 00:10:49,200 button to continue. 137 00:10:46,040 --> 00:10:51,680 Woo. But even more than that, the real 138 00:10:49,200 --> 00:10:58,600 reason we built it is that a custom cabinet like this adds a touch of retro 139 00:10:54,640 --> 00:11:02,880 gaming class to any room. No 140 00:10:58,600 --> 00:11:04,800 exceptions at all. Ting is the mobile 141 00:11:02,880 --> 00:11:10,160 carrier that's focused on customer service and customer 142 00:11:07,079 --> 00:11:12,560 satisfaction. I know, what a concept. 143 00:11:10,160 --> 00:11:18,560 When you call Ting to talk to customer support, you actually get put through 144 00:11:14,800 --> 00:11:22,000 directly to a person. And you're not 145 00:11:18,560 --> 00:11:24,240 paying extra for that level of TLC. The 146 00:11:22,000 --> 00:11:29,279 average TING bill is just 23 bucks a month per device. And if you're stuck in 147 00:11:27,279 --> 00:11:35,519 a contract and switch to TING, they'll even cover 25% of your cancellation fee 148 00:11:32,160 --> 00:11:38,000 up to 75 bucks. They have lower mobile 149 00:11:35,519 --> 00:11:43,600 data rates. Data is now just $10 a gig beyond the first gig. And every single 150 00:11:40,560 --> 00:11:45,920 TING customer gets the benefits of any 151 00:11:43,600 --> 00:11:50,000 rate changes that they make. So head over to Linus.ting.com. We've got that 152 00:11:48,160 --> 00:11:54,640 linked below and try their savings calculator to find out if you'll save 153 00:11:52,480 --> 00:11:59,880 money on TING. When you sign up at our link, you'll also get 25 bucks in 154 00:11:56,640 --> 00:12:02,079 service credit or towards a shiny new 155 00:11:59,880 --> 00:12:06,639 device. So thanks for watching, guys, and coming along on this journey of 156 00:12:04,399 --> 00:12:09,360 resurrecting retro hardware. If you disliked it, you can hit that button. 157 00:12:08,079 --> 00:12:12,560 But if you liked it, hit the like button. Get subscribed. Maybe consider 158 00:12:11,200 --> 00:12:17,680 checking out where to buy the stuff we featured. Well, most of it's views, but whatever. At the link in the video 159 00:12:15,839 --> 00:12:20,560 description. Also down there, you'll find our merch store, which has cool 160 00:12:19,040 --> 00:12:25,600 shirts like this one, as well as our community forum, which you should 161 00:12:22,160 --> 00:12:25,600 totally join.