Second build starting now!
I’ve decided against using an aluminium enclosure again…because that was hell. Instead I’ve gone for this, plastic ABS enclosure with metal plates at the front and back. I can get the two plates laser cut for cheap for the controller/power/AV ports. Easy!
Haven’t got it yet but should be here tomorrow. I’ll also work on a better RGB circuit and a few extras.
Got the enclosure today! Despite being plastic and only £12, it’s actually damn good. real sturdy and the colour gives a real SFC vibe. MVS cart for scale:
It’s only slightly larger than my last build, which could well be a good thing as far as building it goes. The only cutting I’ll need to do is for the cart slot - the front and back plates I’ll get ordered as laser cut ready to go for the ports/sockets.
Any ideas on any kind of layout of sockets/power switch? I’ll probably have a diffused LED shining through the grills
I don’t know but a black rocker switch on the side (on the white panel) would be super stylish imo. It can be a pain to install as a square hole needs to be drilled.
nah, that’s not what pain is. pain is what I went through when drilling/filing holes on the aluminium enclosure. literal agony. Not to mention the moment one of my titanium drillbits snapped while working on it, and flew directly into my eye - denting the protective glasses I was luckily wearing.
I think a rocker switch may look good, yeah - but I’d rather keep any switches/ports to the top cover and front/back panels. I think the unit itself could work really well with a SFC theme. I actually have a spare SFC power switch lying around I could use - and that wouldn’t take much work to mount at the top.
Ah the possibilities!
edit: oh man. I know what I’ll do for the front panel. I’ll have controller ports 1 and 2 at either side, of course - but in the middle a cut-out MVS logo. I’ll then place some plastic behind it and add the LED. That’d be fucking awesome. Power switch would have to go on the back if I do this, but that’s fine.
gotta get the cad files done and then sent over. I’ve been quoted a pretty low price so that’s good. On the back I’d have the power switch, AC In, L/R Phono and RGB Din 8.
I dig the look of the new enclosure and I’m looking forward to seeing how this turns out!
Thanks! Yeah the enclosure looks like a good choice so far. Been sizing it up and there’s a nice bit of room to work with. The board will have to be raised on some perspex or similar and then the ports will go underneath:
Mounting the board should be easy as this enclosure already has screw posts in the base!! Awesome.
edit: front and back plates designed. I’ll send the cad files off tomorrow to get them laser cut:
Nice. Could the back be symmetrical?
Could be…I’ve decided to work on it a bit more, from scratch, primarily because I’ve now got AutoCAD 2019 and I want to learn the interface. Problem is I only have five ports at the back!
From left to right, Power in, rocker switch, phono l and r and RGB din 8:
Not at home so can’t offer a better image! I may swap the power switch and DC input thoughh
Hmm.
Just ordered the front and backplates. £35 incl shipping. Not bad. They should be with me next week. I also ordered a few unibios 3.3 eeproms and they arrived today according to my tracking.
I decided against the MVS cutout in the middle, purely because I had to redo it in autocad and my drawing wouldn’t convert without issue. and redrawing that block was a nightmare - so it’s just a single hole for the LED.
Not sure whether to keep the plates as-is (silver) or spray paint them black. Hm.
They arrived!
The ports are a perfect fit. Amazing. I’ll be spray painting it black.
Can finish the build next week now.
Are you sure you want to paint it black? That finish is classy.
Well, it’s slightly scratched so would need polishing regardless, but the main reason is that it kinda clashes with the abs casing:
I guess I could spray paint the plastic black though…
Edit: yeah. I’ll do that. I’ll give the plates a polish to a near mirror finish, then paint the plastic black. Should look sexy
Booo, black is boring
Haha oh man
Well I guess the shell as is does have a nice retro look to it (it’s a match for the OG Game Boy and NES), but is that right for a Neo Geo??
I’ll polish the metal plates later with my Dremel and see what I think then.
Rich, the white/metal combo looks so good. I don’t see any clashing. I think you should leave it.
But I do agree, if you’re going to paint one part black, make it the plastic, not the metal.
I dunno dudes… of all the consoles, Neo Geo is the one that demands BLACK.
I think white/black is always the best combination and should be used at all times.
Neo Geo? You need red.
Is this gonna cause a war here
