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Supergun: 3D Printed Enclosure for Home Arcade System + Mean Well PSU

Srayer

Srayer

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UPDATE: A redesigned version is shown below: https://www.arcade-projects.com/thr...arcade-system-mean-well-psu.32693/post-453328

I got a 3D printer for Christmas, and I was looking for a meaty project to help me learn CAD. So, I decided to design and print an enclosure for my HAS with a JAMMA extension cable and MeanWell RT-125A PSU. I wanted a small, clean enclosure with controller ports on the front, and all of the other I/O on the back. I also wanted it to be both a supergun and a bench test box that I could hook up to an arcade monitor and speakers. So, in addition to line-level audio and consumer RGB out, I wanted dedicated connectors for JAMMA video and audio, as well as a 120v socket for powering a monitor. Here's what I ended up making:

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This design directly uses the JAMMA connector from the HAS, but uses panel-mount components and cables to connect everything else. There's also a window to view the HAS OLED. Is this a cost effective solution? No, but I like it and had fun building it. Is this something you should build? If you don't already have a HAS and Mean Well RT-125A, then almost certainly not; there's probably a cheaper pre-built solution for you. If you already have those, then maybe? Depends on whether you want to spend a bunch of time and some money to build it. I think it's neat; maybe you do, too.

I won't be providing a print profile for this enclosure, since I've redesigned it and made it simpler thanks to the great feedback in this thread. See: https://www.arcade-projects.com/thr...arcade-system-mean-well-psu.32693/post-453328

And here's the BoM. Note that many of these things can be bought from AliExpress for less than I paid on Amazon:
Assembly is pretty straightforward; you can probably glean what needs to be done from the pictures. The only tricky part is you need to remove one connector from end of each of the DB15 cables to thread them through the front holes. After that, you need to cut the cables to length and reattach the connectors. You also have to solder wires directly to the HAS for audio, video, and for the buttons next to the HAS OLED. I won't do a full write-up since this is a pretty niche project, but I'm happy to answer any questions anyone might have.
 
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Dude, that is VERY awesome, great job!

I would say, the only two things I would say:

1. For the fan, do it have an exit vent? If not, it should! Also, another idea is to reverse the fan, so it sucks, put the entry hole somewhere with a filter you can easily change.

2. On the other item, if you went with a MW 85, you can shrink the footprint a tad!

These are very minor points, I mainly wanted to post to say great job, looks fantastic!
 
This is very cool, thank you for sharing it!
Srayer said:
You also have to solder wires directly to the HAS for audio, video, and for the buttons next to the HAS OLED.
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You can control the HAS with the Player 1 controller instead of the buttons, by enabling the DB15 Navigation option in the Device Menu. The direct-JAMMA A/V is also optional, for most people the 75R video is the preferred choice. This means that you can complete this project without soldering anything to the HAS :)

PS Test, Service and Coin can be mapped to the controller, too.
 
XtraSmiley said:
1. For the fan, do it have an exit vent? If not, it should! Also, another idea is to reverse the fan, so it sucks, put the entry hole somewhere with a filter you can easily change.
Click to expand...
Yes, you are completely right. I intended to put exit vents on the sides, but kinda forgot about them 😅. I realized that when installing the fan, so I installed it in reverse and hoped for the best. I should definitely do a revision that has those vents, though!

XtraSmiley said:
2. On the other item, if you went with a MW 85, you can shrink the footprint a tad!
Click to expand...
Again, you're right! But I was just working with what I already had, and didn't wan't to buy a new PSU. It was already not a cost effective project, haha.

RGB said:
You can control the HAS with the Player 1 controller instead of the buttons, by enabling the DB15 Navigation option in the Device Menu. The direct-JAMMA A/V is also optional, for most people the 75R video is the preferred choice. This means that you can complete this project without soldering anything to the HAS :)

PS Test, Service and Coin can be mapped to the controller, too.
Click to expand...
Ah, nice, I didn't realize there was an option to control the HAS with a controller. I was aware of the direct-JAMMA A/V, but I wanted to be able to use either video type without fiddling with any settings. The idea was to reduce friction when switching between using it as a supergun on my PVM and on my test bench where it's connected to an arcade monitor. Similar thing with the buttons; a lot of times I want to just hook up a PCB and coin up to see if audio and video is working, and not have to fuss with connecting a controller. But I guess I could accomplish the same thing by adding a pass-through hole for the HAS buttons, which would allow me to remove the external pushbuttons, which would simplify installation and allow me to reduce the width a bit. Hmm, I like that.

Thanks to both of you for the constructive feedback; I definitely appreciate it! I thought I was done, but I like your ideas... I just might have to do another revision 😁.
 
Man, the whole thing looks great IMO!

I don't know how hard or expensive it is, but... a bigger OLED screen would look fantastic on it! Maybe @RGB can link to a suitable swap?

I really like it man, great work!
 
Learning CAD really opens up a whole new world when you have a 3D printer. I'd say at least 80% or more of what I print is custom instead of things I download, though that can be super useful too. Tons of great models out there. But having some plastic that's exactly what you need? Wow. I'm still not over how cool it is, and I've been printing things for six or seven years.

What CAD software did you decide to dive into?
 
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Aurich said:
Learning CAD really opens up a whole new world when you have a 3D printer. I'd say at least 80% or more of what I print is custom instead of things I download, though that can be super useful too. Tons of great models out there. But having some plastic that's exactly what you need? Wow. I'm still not over how cool it is, and I've been printing things for six or seven years.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I totally agree. Being able to design and print your own plastic parts is like a super power. I did a couple small designs before this one for some functional objects (brackets, mounts, etc.) and it opened my eyes to how magical and powerful the whole thing is.

Aurich said:
What CAD software did you decide to dive into?
Click to expand...
I went with Fusion360. The free version does what I need, and it seems pretty user friendly for the most part. I have some background in 3D graphics and did some CSG stuff in college ages ago, so it felt pretty natural getting into it. I learned a lot from this project, and while I still have a lot to learn, I'm starting to get pretty comfortable with the software. And, I really enjoy the process! So it's both functional and a fun hobby at the same time. I'm really loving it.
 
XtraSmiley said:
Man, the whole thing looks great IMO!

I don't know how hard or expensive it is, but... a bigger OLED screen would look fantastic on it! Maybe @RGB can link to a suitable swap?

I really like it man, great work!
Click to expand...
This one will work, it's a bit larger, but it's probably not worth it to upgrade if you're going to order just one OLED panel -> https://www.buydisplay.com/white-1-3-inch-oled-i2c-arduino-ssd1306-display-module-connector-fpc

Now that I think of it, maybe there's a way to utilize the buttons on the HAS? In case you want to design an alternative version:
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Srayer said:
I went with Fusion360. The free version does what I need, and it seems pretty user friendly for the most part. I have some background in 3D graphics and did some CSG stuff in college ages ago, so it felt pretty natural getting into it. I learned a lot from this project, and while I still have a lot to learn, I'm starting to get pretty comfortable with the software. And, I really enjoy the process! So it's both functional and a fun hobby at the same time. I'm really loving it.
Click to expand...
Nice, that's what I use. I don't love everything about it, but I can navigate it well enough to do what I need. I know for a fact my approach isn't always optimal, but always learning to do better.

Glad you're enjoying it, I'm super big on preaching the joy of owning a 3D printer for everyone, but it's a legit superpower if you can do CAD too.

My current project is building a custom gridfinity-ish system for my workshop, but based on a 50mm grid that I'm laser cutting. I find it a much friendlier size than the meme-tastic 42mm.

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(not so) OT, but : what is this adapter you're using to connect your USB controller to the DB15 Neo-Geo-Style connector on the Supergun ? does it work for all 6-buttons for street fighter games ? Is there a list of compatibility for controllers ?
 
Rafo said:
(not so) OT, but : what is this adapter you're using to connect your USB controller to the DB15 Neo-Geo-Style connector on the Supergun ? does it work for all 6-buttons for street fighter games ? Is there a list of compatibility for controllers ?
Click to expand...

Just some adapter I picked up on AliExpress: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256802864487373.html

It was $25 when I bought it; looks to be $30 now. It works on HAS with my MadCatz TES+, 6 buttons + start and select. I don't know if there's a compatibility list, and I haven't used it enough to judge if it's any good. I wouldn't put too much faith in it without further testing, but it's good enough for my test bench!
 
All right, here's version 2.0! The print profile is available here: https://makerworld.com/en/models/1063485

My goals for this version were:
  • Make the enclosure as small as possible
  • No modifications to the HAS
  • Use as few extra components as possible, while keeping controllers on the front side and all other I/O on the back
  • Simplify installation as much as possible
  • Make something that does what I want, but is simplified enough that someone else could conceivably make one as well
Here's what I came up with:
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Compared to v1.0, this one is about 40% smaller by volume (154 x 230 x 74cm vs 140 x 174 x 66cm). The biggest gains were from switching to a Mean Well RT-85A like @XtraSmiley suggested, but I also found smaller components and eliminated as much empty space inside as possible. Here's a comparison:
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Some notable changes:
  • Changed Mean Well RT-125A PSU to a MW RT-85A
  • Removed all A/V outputs except for the two present on the HAS; the 3.5mm TRS for audio and the 8 pin mini-DIN for video. As @RGB mentioned, the other audio and video options are available through those outputs via the HAS settings.
  • Added vents to both sides. I originally had vents only on the side opposite the fan, but the fan is too small to move a serious amount of air. So, I opened up the other side for more passive cooling.
  • Removed the large pushbuttons. Instead, I printed buttons that mount over the built-in buttons on the HAS.
  • Added a shield to the bottom of the HAS to avoid shorting against the PSU case
  • PSU is mounted from the underside with countersunk screws. This frees up some space inside, but more importantly eliminates the nightmare from v1.0 of screwing the PSU to the inside front wall with very little space to turn a hex key.
During installation, I found the side vents were pretty fragile. So I made them wider, and added a horizontal support through the middle. I didn't bother printing one for myself, but the files I ultimately put up will have that version of the vents:
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Finally, here's the BOM. I've changed some of the parts compared to v1.0, and have eliminated a number of others. Again, some of these things can be bought from AliExpress for less than the stores listed here:
The print includes an optional blank to replace the 120V AC socket, since not everyone needs one.

Thanks for the feedback and for the inspiration, everyone! I like this a lot more than v1.0. It's very compact and convenient; it's much closer in size to what I originally envisioned. If there's any interest, I can post more detailed installation instructions here.
 
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Looks great man! The only thing I'd want at this point is the bigger screen and for RGB to make a setting where I control how long it's on, too short right now!
 
Well done, looks very cool! I have this enclosure and all the parts for it for years but could never bring myself to assemble it lol. I have got to get this printed, looks awesome :)
 
Very nice work, I’ve been thinking about making something similar - kudos to you for making it happen and in an elegant way!
 
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