I want Candy... Candy Cabs thread

I had never seen a Candy Cab in the 'flesh' (so to speak) until the Insert Coin '09 expo. I didn't go, but I bought 3 of the little blighters. They are generally not available in the UK, Europe or USA. They tend to be specifically imported and can cost a great deal of money. There are collectors lurking on various websites and you can pick up the odd bargain here & there, such as a rather old beaten up unit simply requiring some TLC.

However, for IC09 the organizers imported 100 Candy Cabs and offered them to the gaming community on the understanding that they would be cheaper than normal, yet must be delivered after the arcade event and allowed to be used. I had no problem with that.

There are a whole host of different Candy cabs, but I went for the one basic design. I was actually very lucky because all of the units were equipped with tri-sync monitors (capable of handling Jamma and VGA signals), plus they all had the rotation mechanism inside.

Normally an Egret II is not equipped with either, however my Egret II turned out to have started it's life as an Atomiswave.

They come equipped with a 110vac PSU, so a step-down is required inside. If you wish to use them in the UK they need to be PAT tested before put out on hire and most places will NOT accept them! If you are into hiring out units, it's better to go for Naomi SD units than Candy Cabs, although we have PAT tested ours and had them passed! So, we are one of the few places in the UK you can use a Candy Cab.

The other thing to note is that they usually only accept Yen and as such the coin mechanism, chute and entry need to be replaced or converted. We are in the process of doing this and it is possible.

Believe it or not they were purchased to put Taito Type X2 motherboards into, and when they arrived we decided to use them with old arcade Jamma and an Atomiswave mbd instead. The Naomi SDs are running the Taito mbds with SF4 installed. My Egret III is used to play Jamma titles like Klax, R-Type, Bomberman etc. Loving it!

Without further ado, the Candy Cabs!

A top whack Egret III, with brand new monitor and 2p CP.


Bog standard Atomiswave. Note it is exactly the same shape as an Egret III. 1p panel, which we swapped out for a 2p panel for Dolphin Blue.


This again is the same body shape. I wanted them to match. This is a freak of a machine consisting of Atomiswave chassis, monitor, rotate mechanism for vertical & horizontal play (all are equipped with this and it literally takes 5 mins to tate one of these fellas). It has Egret II artwork and an Egret III 2p CP! It's not beautiful, but it plays well.


I've kept the Egret III at home in my kitchen, but the other two are now out are being used elsewhere. The first week they were out, someone mashed 2 of the Sanwa buttons on the E2 which is unheard of. Totally destroyed them!

I bet someone is saying "All very nice Parris, but I bet you haven't taken one of those to pieces..." No, you're right, I took all three of them to bits and have lots of sexy images.

One of the best things about Candy cabs is that they literally come apart like a Lego kit and can be stripped down to get them into the smallest of spaces or up into the highest building. So, if you wanted an arcade, but live on the 18th floor, then a Candy is just right for you.









If at all interested, feel free to meander in the Photobucket acc.

 

I'm in the market for an Egret III, I know that shipping the thing costs a fortune, but shipping aside, how much are we talking?

 

If I remember rightly the IC09 deal was set at: E2 - £350, AWSD - £480 and the E3 was about £550 - I'd need to check. However, my E3 was more expensive (about £800) as it was supplied with a brand new monitor and chassis, new artwork, step down and completely new CP with new buttons and sticks (all Sanwa).

The E2 and AWSD were relatively cheap, the E3 about the going rate. Expect to pay roughly £600+ for this style of unit in this sort of condition. I have seen them cheaper, but not in such good state of repair or so complete.

So really, in my case the E2 was a massive deal as frankly it is an E3 in all but name and artwork having been upgraded and nobody noticed!

 

Absolutely essential for Japan. Oh and, very nice Parris! :icon_bigg

 

I wish I had an Egret. The problem is that you never see them for sale in NYC, and to ship them from another state always costs a fortune. Don't get me wrong, I really like my American Dynamo 25 cabinet, but all the the Japanese Candy cabs are just cleaner and prettier to look at. Not to mention the fact that they take up less space.

 

They are really compact, yet have bags of internal space unlike some Candy cabinets. So, whether you want to fit a Naomi with GDrom system, the Capcom I/O, or perhaps a Mame board, a Taito Type X2 with HDD or simply a Jamma PCB, there is enough room, plus enough left over to swing a proverbial.

There are a few US owners on sites I frequent, you should have a look around and keep an ear to the ground. You'd be surprised what turns up!

 

Made a video of several of the cabinets running before they went out on placement.

Turbo Outrun (not mine, repairing it for someone)
Atomiswave running Dolphin Blue (thanks to UJ for locating it for me)
Egret 2 rotated monitor and running Super Space Invaders '91 jamma PCB
Naomi 1 SD running Border Down
Naomi 1 SD running Cosmic Smash

 

Some pictures of candies that have gone through my hands or that I currently own:

Super Neo 29":


Bought from Matsu, came in all busted up when Steven's Global decided to fork lift it even when they were asked specifically not to. I later sold it before I really got it running the way it should

Capcom Mini Cute:


Man, I loved this cab! Not ideal for 2 player games, but the monitor on this thing was killer and it has one of the smallest footprints of any cab I've ever seen. I really regret selling this one, but I'm picking up a yellow one next weekend

Namco Cyberlead:

Shown with 2 player J-Gen (Jamma modified Genesis)


Shown again with new sticks and buttons

Decent cab, but you can't rotate the monitor. When I think of candies, I think of obnoxiously versatile cabs, and this one just didn't do it for me. I never ended up getting the marquee to work, I sold this one too.

Taito Egret 29:

With lighted marquee holder


With New Seimitsu sticks and buttons


Now with 6 Button CP and all new sticks and buttons

Probably my favorite cab ever, I won't be selling this one anytime soon. Rotation mech for on the go hori to vert gaming, auto degauss button, giant monitor, and unique profile, this thing is amazing. If I had any real complaint, it's that the PCB compartment doesn't allow for massive boards or multi-slot MVS mobos.

Taito Egret 2:

With Mahjong panel


And now with 2 player 6 button panel

There is nothing bad I can say about this cab, definitely another one I won't be selling in a very long time. Sexy as hell and plays damn near everything.

My last cab I own and in the project phase, a rare Sega Aero Table:


Lots of work left, but it's coming together.

Nothing touches a good candy, they really are amazing machines!

 

Actually, all Egret II's have rotation mechs while Atomiswaves do not. I assume you have an Egret II where the monitor was swapped with a tri-sync. No big deal, just something to note.

 

Strangely, these were Atomiswaves turned into Egrets so, they must have swapped parts with dead units.

P.S. Some nice cabinets there, particularly the Cyberlead - not everyone's cup of tea. Does the LED work?

 

Naw, never got the LED up and running. ElectricGrave owns that one now (and my old mini-cute), I think he said it was a mess.

The Cyberlead just wasn't for me. It had a MASSIVE footprint for a Candy and couldn't be rotated. It had some good distance between players, the LED looks cool when it's running, and the monitor was super sharp, but losing the rotation ability and the gigantic footprint just turned me off. My brother and I are in a little 700 square foot condo, we have to be a little particular with our cabs. I'm super pumped about the yellow mini cute he's picking up though, I'll post pics when we get it next weekend!

 

Have to agree with Parris, cracking looking cabs you've had mrmark, never seen that Egret 29 before, the Cyber Lead is in great condition too.

 

Thanks for the comments guys, I just picked up another candy with my brother this afternoon:

Yellow Capcom Mini-Cute:




And one shot next to our Egret 29 to show how tiny this thing really is:


We have been DYING to get another Mini ever since we sold our last one, and I have to say, I think I like the yellow the best. Great condition on this cab too, and for how small it is it has a KILLER 18" monitor. We think we're going to make this our dedicated vert shooter cab as it gets a bit tight playing with 2 people. Needless to say, this made our weekend

 

cool cab, but it's a squeeze playing together on the mini, right?

 

Honestly, it looks worse than it really is. If you're playing a fighter with a buddy, you may be rubbing elbows more than you'd like, but we're thinking of making it our vert shooter cab. Back when I had the other mini, it was our only cab here. It just isn't versatile enough to be your "only" cab, so we ended up selling it for a more all in one solution cab. Now that we have the Egret brothers, we can take in some cabs that would be better for specific situations, and this thing is a great vert shmup cab. Bright 18" monitor, super small footprint, nice Sanwa buttons and joys; we're gonna have a lot of fun with this one.

 

You should retrobrite the Egret, make it look even better http://retr0bright.wikispaces.com/Retr0Bright+Gel

 

Sounds like a promising flirting tactic. "Let's play something on the MiniCute, it's gonna be fun, you'll see."
I certainly have to keep an eye open for this one.

 

Great cabs but i think the only one id be able to actually buy and have in my room is a Capcom mini cute but i dont mind that beacuse i love the look of them

 

Almost forgot about this thread, and got myself a cab in the meantime ;-)