Where can I buy a Neo-Geo MVS cabinet in Japan?

Hey guys! I had been thinking about buying a Neo-Geo AES, but the consoles are damned expensive, not to mention the games themselves which are even more so. I'm thinking that collecting MVS instead would make far greater financial sense. Of course, if I wanted to go this route, I'd need to either look for an adapter to play MVS carts on a AES console or consolize a MVS board.

But then I was thinking, why not get a cabinet? I've always wanted to own an arcade cabinet, and Neo-Geo games were originally arcade games, so why not roll with it? I've checked Yahoo! Auctions and while I can get MVS motherboards for a good price, I'm kinda short a few of the other parts. Can anyone give me any recommendations on where I could get a complete Neo-Geo MVS cabinet? I'm in Saitama if that helps.

 

The console is called AES, not AVS.

 

Whoops! My bad!

 

I don't have advice specific to Japan, but check craigslist, game centers and specialty message boards (n-g, shmups, etc).

If you're handy, restoring a beat-up cab can be satisfying.

 

Hardly anywhere, if you want an old wooden one. You might well get a candy cab, but they're not cheap. Try Mak or G-Front.

 

Ah, you're saying I can use a MVS motherboard in a modern cabinet? Candy cabs, they're those sit-down machines that Sega makes, right? Ones that look like this?


That actually sounds nicer than having to stand and they can probably take more of a hit than a wooden cabinet. So, basically, I'd get one of those cabinets and plug an MVS board into it?

 

OK, I'll try to make this as non-confusing as possible.

There was a device called Super Gun that allowed you to play JAMMA games on your television. It was essentially an arcade cabinet's guts, with an AV interface and joystick ports. People then made similar devices and, for some reason, they all got labelled with the name "supergun." It's like people calling a cola drink Coke regardless of who made it.


This is an SNK MVS-U4. It's part of the family of SNK arcade machines built of metal, including...


Neo Candy 25


Super Neo 29 Candy

Those metal cabinets have become known as "candy cabs" in exactly the same way as "superguns."

So you answer your question... yes and no. No, what I meant was buy an SNK cabinet, because they should be wired up for, and contain, an MVS board. However, most Japanese metal cabinets should be wired for JAMMA, so you COULD buy one, buy an MVS board and put it in with a MVS harness. You'd need to wire the fourth button - make sure it's a 6 button cabinet! If you want less hassle, get a proper SNK machine.

I should really clarify - the first SNK Candy cabs were in fact 3 button, and perhaps not made for MVS. You want one with MVS or Neo in its name, probabaly.

*EDIT*

Here's a list of metal "candy cabs" that have been made, including Candy cabs!

 

Ah, I think I get it now! Thanks!

Yes, it would make far more sense to get a proper SNK MVS cabinet, but are they hard to find? I've been able to find motherboards, but not any full cabinets on Yahoo! Auctions, is there somewhere else I should be looking? When you say "make sure it's a 6 button cabinet!" you're talking about if I went the JAMMA route, right? If I managed to find an SNK Neo-Geo cabinet, I just need to make sure it isn't a 3 button one, right?

In terms of refurbishment, how hard is it to find replacement parts for an SNK candy cab? Like, if the decal on the control panel was mangled, can I get a new one? And in terms of customization, are there website where you can buy different signs for the hood of the machine?

 

Yeah, 6 button generic, although the Astro City you pictured has a Neo Geo-style 4 button panel.

They used to be fairly common, certainly. The Super Neo probably goes for more than the older Candy cabs. There are hardly any decals to wear, really. Again, try Mak or G-Front. Or should that be - Try, Mak or G-Front? (are Try still going?)

 

None of the board shops in Akiba are going to be able to help you with cab purchases. Try rarely offs their shitty condition cabs.

There is a cab section on Yahoo so have a look there. Neo cabinets are older and have already gone through the sell off phase ages ago. I recommend doing more research into what exactly you need and then find a good fit.

I originally had the old Western style cabs -> US style Supergun -> Japanese cab -> no cabs as I found that cabs are just not versatile enough. Instead, I have 3 CRTs with 3 control boxes (the Japanese term for supergun) and a bunch of custom controllers.

 

OMG... that 3 screen darius set up :applause:

 

I had no idea arcade machines could do that! Must have taken a bit of processing power at the time!

Snagged this bad-boy just now:

http://page2.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/b156204940

Pretty damned good price I'd say! In full working order, comes with 4 games and is in very good condition (save for some marker). It looks to be a MVS-U4 from my research, there's a few things about it's appearance I'm not too sure about though:
1) It doesn't have the blue stripes down the side, but it doesn't look like this is due to wear. Did SNK forget to put them on a few machines?
2) What's up with the chrome trim on the control panel? It looks sweet, but most of the ones I've seen in white.

 

Pretty nice! I never thought about getting a cab while I was living in Japan because space was too precious.

How are you going to get this to Saitama though? The seller is based in Sapporo and the auction says it's for local pick-up or delivery in and around Sapporo.

 

I've called Kuroneko and they can deliver it for 16578 yen.

The poor seller is rather confused! He says he's tried to call Kuroneko and they said they can't ship it! Meanwhile, I've got someone at Kuroneko who's all "we totally can!" It seems like the confusion is coming from the fact that I'm not actually using Kuroneko, I'll be using Yamato Home Delivery, which can take bigger items. I'm being told "get a pick up time from him!" and I ask him, but he's all "but Yamato say they can't ship this!" :\

 

Look at the poster I posted. Clearly chrome on the U4. It's an ooooold machine! Seems like a nice price, though - and they're easier to just give a paint job if necessary.

The blue is a sticker, isn't it? Probably been peeled off.

 

Yeah, being painted means less chance of being yellowed, like a lot of the Sega machines. Hmmm, there probably was the blue stripe, but it was probably worn so they removed it. It looks very clean though, I figured it might not have been on there to begin with!

 

Well, the machine arrived today! It's in rather good condition, working fine and no major damage. It's got a number of scratches in the paint, but I figure this could be easily solved with a body touch up kit from an auto shop. It's INCREDIBLY dusty though! And yes, the previous owner did peel of the blue stickers, I found chunks of it down in between some of the panels. From the looks of things, the coin type is controlled by a metal panel in the coin mechanism. Assumingly, you can get different panels for different coins. Speaking of coins, there was a 1 yen coin in the marquee for some reason.

Here's the stage it's at now:


It also came with it's manual surprisingly! And also this plastic doohicky, anyone know what it is?


I picked up some metal polish from an auto shop and it's done a GREAT job at polishing up the chrome parts of the machine:


Aside from that, sticker remover to get rid of any sticker residue and magic erasor to remove any scuffs and marks. It's coming up rather nice so far!

 

The plastic tool is a trim pot tool, for adjusting potentiometers in live circuits without damaging anything. DON'T use a metal screwdriver!

Car touch-up paint is horrible stuff on cars with the right colour. It would be terrible on this. If it really bothers you, respray the cabinet.

 

Ah, so that's what that is! Will probably be handy at some point, thanks!

That's true about the touch up kits, you'd probably have a hard time getting the exact same color and finish as the original paint, but I figure it would at least cover up the bare metal and mask the scratch a bit. The scratches are mostly small and hard to notice, this would make them even less noticeable.

 

Damn! I wish I had a Candy cab but my room has no wall space unless I take off my door!