Console selection advice

Myrddin

Ok dudes & dudettes (sera), the time has come to start thinking about what consoles to have on permanent display in the attic. I'm estimating I'll have room for about 6 permanent consoles, with a few spaces left to rotate different machines into.

The list to choose the 6 from is...

1) Sony PS1
2) Sony PS2
3) Sony PS3
4) Xbox
5) Xbox 360
6) NES
6) SNES
7) N64 (Both PAL & NTSC)
8) Gamecube
9) Wii
10) Mastersystem 2
11) Megadrive 1
12) Mega CD 1
13) Megadrive 2
14) Mega CD 2
15) 32X (Height becomes a consideration for positioning)
16) Saturn
17) Dreamcast
18) 3DO
19) Atari 2600 Woody
20) Atari 2600 Vader
21) Atari 2600 Junior
22) Atari Jaguar
23) Commodore 64 (both breadbin & slim)
24) Commodore Amiga 600
25) Vectrex
26) Genesis 3

(I think that's it for consoles, but I've a load of handhelds too so may as well get shelfspace recommendations for them. I've space for about 5 of these I'm estimating, for permanent shelf presence, but then I've only a small bit left for rotating)

1) Nintendo Gameboy
2) Nintendo Gameboy Colour
2) Nintendo Gameboy Pocket
3) Gameboy Advance
4) Gameboy Advance SP
5) Nintendo DS
6) Nintendo DS Lite
7) Nintendo DSi XL
8) Sega Gamegear
9) Sega Nomad

Help...I can't choose

Retr0gamer

PS3 and 360 have to stay there. You'll make space for the Wii and it can act as a Gamecube. PS2 next, it's essential. I'd personally pick the saturn. Dreamcast as well. Mega Drive and SNES. Unfortunately that leaves no space for an 8-bit machine

Optimus Prime

Holy Cr*p, I think your going to need a bigger attic!

Could you not build\Buy some sort of shelving unit to hold them all? Ikea is great for this stuff, ive seen units with about 6 wide by 6 high squares that would be perfect.

pdbhp

I shall display those for you at my house, you may visit once a month and play with 1 (one) console per visit for a period of up to 20 (twenty) minutes:P

Optimus Prime

eg this type of thing

http://www.ikea.com/ie/en/catalog/products/80071357

EDIT: This might be better as the back will hide the wires, but you can cut holes in it, its only cardboard type stuff on the back, we got two of these last week for the kids room and they are only 30 with the family card! they come in different colours plus the shelves are wider then the top thing. very sturdy and can be bolted to the wall at the top.

http://www.ikea.com/ie/en/catalog/products/80147338

Myrddin

Ok firstly I appreciate any input at all, so bare with me...

Retr0 - I need to have NES there at all times, so as you can see, this is why I've made the thread. I just cant bare to make the call without advice

Pdbhp - Lol, nice try buddy :pac:

Keith - They look ideal, perfect even. Problem is I've really no height at the sides so I'd need something that lies horizontally as opposed to vertically. I've also got that behemoth 29" Sony crt to deal with, & will need to mount a 16:9 display for the newer consoles too. It's gonna be a tough call...

o1s1n

You'd be suprised how much you can fit in a small space. I have one of those small computer tables in the spare room. You know the ones with the pull out drawer?

Here's what I have on it.

On the top - Megadrive/CD/32X combo & Neo Geo AES
Keyboard Drawer - pulls out to reveal an A1200

The bottom has a shelf thing. On the top part is my Snes with the magic drive, in the lower shelf is the Saturn.

Then to the left on the bottom shelf I had a moment of genius - three consoles piled on top of each other. Looks mental but it works!

Xbox on the bottom, NES on that and then a Megadrive on that. You can access all the game slots perfectly and it's good and solid.

Still doesn't fit nearly everything..but it sure fits more than 6!

EnterNow wrote: »

Ok dudes & dudettes (sera), the time has come to start thinking about what consoles to have on permanent display in the attic. I'm estimating I'll have room for about 6 permanent consoles, with a few spaces left to rotate different machines into.

The list to choose the 6 from is...

1) Sony PS1
2) Sony PS2
3) Sony PS3
4) Xbox
5) Xbox 360
6) NES
6) SNES
7) N64 (Both PAL & NTSC)
8) Gamecube
9) Wii
10) Mastersystem 2
11) Megadrive 1
12) Mega CD 1
13) Megadrive 2
14) Mega CD 2
15) 32X (Height becomes a consideration for positioning)
16) Saturn
17) Dreamcast
18) 3DO
19) Atari 2600 Woody
20) Atari 2600 Vader
21) Atari 2600 Junior
22) Atari Jaguar
23) Commodore 64 (both breadbin & slim)
24) Commodore Amiga 600
25) Vectrex
26) Genesis 3

(I think that's it for consoles, but I've a load of handhelds too so may as well get shelfspace recommendations for them. I've space for about 5 of these I'm estimating, for permanent shelf presence, but then I've only a small bit left for rotating)

1) Nintendo Gameboy
2) Nintendo Gameboy Colour
2) Nintendo Gameboy Pocket
3) Gameboy Advance
4) Gameboy Advance SP
5) Nintendo DS
6) Nintendo DS Lite
7) Nintendo DSi XL
8) Sega Gamegear
9) Sega Nomad

Help...I can't choose

o1s1n

What I'm on about is one of these. Should be small enough to fit in an attic.

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/6179571/Trail/searchtext%3ECOMPUTER+DESK.htm

pdbhp

1. NES
2. Megadrive + CD add on
3. Saturn or Dreamcast
4. PS2
5. Vectrex

Optimus Prime

its a pity you cant build little alcoves into the walls to house the consoles.

Andrew76

For the 6 consoles I'd go with: NES, SNES, MD1 and the 3 current gen machines, 360, PS3 (if it's backwards compatible then there's your PS2 too) and the Wii (as retr0 says this can act as your GameCube). Assuming you have a decent selection of games for all of them ofc. I'd also defo make space for the Amiga, especially if/when you get the compact flash hdd for it.

For handhelds I'd go with: Nomad, DS Lite and GameBoy original if you have the carts for it.

Have you thought about how you're going to setup the CRT and the Plasma/LCD/possible Projector?

justsomebloke

EnterNow wrote: »

Keith - They look ideal, perfect even. Problem is I've really no height at the sides so I'd need something that lies horizontally as opposed to vertically. I've also got that behemoth 29" Sony crt to deal with, & will need to mount a 16:9 display for the newer consoles too. It's gonna be a tough call...

Ok I really think you need to take measurements at this point so we have an idea of the amount of space actually available for putting in stuff, from the pics of the attic it should be possible to get some cheap enough shelves in Ikea that could be laid on there side that would also hold the weight of both TV's. Also what other equipment would you want to house in the units

Shapey Fiend

Blatant "I have a lot of consoles to brag about" thread.

I'd keep the ones downstairs that had the least dust on them.

Myrddin

Joe the Santa wrote: »

Ok I really think you need to take measurements at this point so we have an idea of the amount of space actually available for putting in stuff, from the pics of the attic it should be possible to get some cheap enough shelves in Ikea that could be laid on there side that would also hold the weight of both TV's. Also what other equipment would you want to house in the units

Don't forget the sides have those opening doors at the side of the attic which will need to be accessible, so that only really leaves the end wall which is the chimney breast wall. As high up as possible will be the lcd, under that will be that Sony tv which belive me needs proper support (it weights so much more than it looks). So either I position the tv off to one side, or leave it in the middle with two smaller spaces either side of it.

I do need to get proper measurements alright, but the dilemma just dawned on me when I started thinking about shelf space & which consoles to have out.

Shapey Fiend wrote: »

Blatant "I have a lot of consoles to brag about" thread.

I'd keep the ones downstairs that had the least dust on them.

Yeah, troll somewhere else. We done all our bragging in the pics thread :rolleyes:

CiDeRmAn

Well, what do you play the most?
The MD would seem to be a must have.
How about the Snes?
Then, then PS2 gives you two consoles in one, but do you play PS/2 games these days?
The Saturn or DC would seem important, I would lean towards the Saturn.
The Nes is great, but do you play it often? If it was out would you play with it more (thats the Nes, not your member)
I would have the 360 on permanent duty too, but have the broadband and hdmi in within easy reach for swapping out with the PS3.
To have a dedicated display for the handhelds would be tres cool, perhaps something mountable on one of the flat walls, you could built it yourself with your newfound carpentry skills!

Myrddin

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

Well, what do you play the most?
The MD would seem to be a must have.
How about the Snes?
Then, then PS2 gives you two consoles in one, but do you play PS/2 games these days?
The Saturn or DC would seem important, I would lean towards the Saturn.
The Nes is great, but do you play it often? If it was out would you play with it more (thats the Nes, not your member)
I would have the 360 on permanent duty too, but have the broadband and hdmi in within easy reach for swapping out with the PS3.
To have a dedicated display for the handhelds would be tres cool, perhaps something mountable on one of the flat walls, you could built it yourself with your newfound carpentry skills!

It's kinda hard to say man, I feel I'd play all of them if they were more accessible. I'm gonna have to have the SNES & MD on active duty at all times, prob the NES too. Regards the Playstations, I'd kinda need the PS2 there as it has most of my games on the internal hdd, but then I'd also need a PS1 seperately.

Actually I might look at mounting smaller shelves along the sides & do something like what you done with your rca's (didn't you run them the lenght of your attic & have then accessible at certain intersections?). If I can bring the consoles away from the end wall, but not block the access doors, I may get more of them on display.

Also note, there's a ton of Lego heading up there too.

Optimus Prime

You could use cable ties and strap them to the walls! or build desks from the lego :pac:

Myrddin

keithgeo wrote: »

You could use cable ties and strap them to the walls! or build desks from the lego :pac:

Cables shall be banished, it's my one goal up there. I'm gonna avoid cable hell at all costs. I want whatever's chosen to be ready for use, without having to untangle rubix type knots that appeared out of nowhere

Re the Lego...oooh cool way to free up space :pac:

Retr0gamer

There's no avoiding a cable nightmare as I found out with my old set up:

Myrddin

Retr0gamer wrote: »

There's no avoiding a cable nightmare as I found out with my old set up:

Ugh, that's the crap I'm talking about. There is a way to avoid it, but it's cable tie city & then god help if something needs to be changed etc. Having to untangle that lot would just make me not bother really, so I have to make a concerted effort to keep cabling mess to a bare minimum.

Retr0gamer

I just threw labels on the RGB cables what looked similar and it was fine. RGB cables and power plugs is all that needed to be plugged in.

pdbhp

Well in my mothers house I had a great setup going and I tried to solve the cable issue by....
A) winding or looping lenghty cables to keep them neat,
Cable tying the cables together
C) never looking behind the TV area so as not to upset myself.

None of these ideas worked at all and when I had to move all my stuff the cables were magically tangled in such a way that it took all evening to untie

Myrddin

pdbhp wrote: »

Well in my mothers house I had a great setup going and I tried to solve the cable issue by....
A) winding or looping lenghty cables to keep them neat,
Cable tying the cables together
C) never looking behind the TV area so as not to upset myself.

None of these ideas worked at all and when I had to move all my stuff the cables were magically tangled in such a way that it took all evening to untie

It really is bizarre how they manage to knot up when you move something 6 inches to one side. Sailors would be even left scratching their heads at some of the knots I've seen.

pdbhp

EnterNow wrote: »

It really is bizarre how they manage to knot up when you move something 6 inches to one side. Sailors would be even left scratching their heads at some of the knots I've seen.

Whats really crazy about it is that I constructed this behemoth of wires in a single sitting and never moved anything after that, then came the day when I moved them and good lord the wires were fouled up, I had to use all my scouting skillz to rectify it

Atavan-Halen

Retr0gamer wrote: »

There's no avoiding a cable nightmare as I found out with my old set up:

Absolutely atrocious that is. Wii sports of all things!

EnterNow whatever you do definitely put out the MD 1 + MegaCD 1. Absolute sex in console form those two are together.

CiDeRmAn

Well, a shelf running the length of the available space, deep enough to take the console, not forgetting the cables popping out the back of them could generate a lot of extra display space.
Also, given then amount of room you have, would you consider trying to go wireless?
A couple of sets of wireless Snes and MD controllers, maybe even Nes.
Pick up a Wavebird etc.
I reckon it could go a long way to make it all more usable and keep the space uncluttered.
Truly, clutter is the worst thing in a gamesroom and requires a certain amount of self discipline to maintain a tidy space.

justsomebloke

EnterNow wrote: »

Don't forget the sides have those opening doors at the side of the attic which will need to be accessible, so that only really leaves the end wall which is the chimney breast wall. As high up as possible will be the lcd, under that will be that Sony tv which belive me needs proper support (it weights so much more than it looks). So either I position the tv off to one side, or leave it in the middle with two smaller spaces either side of it.

I hadn't forgotten about the side panels however having just relooked at the progress pics it looks like the CRT is a couple of inches too deep to fit behind it. However given the size of the LCD it should be able to fit on a side bookcase that will fit behind the door when it is brought down(as an LCD isn't as heavy as the CRT weight shouldn't be a problem sitting on it.

Rather then try and describe how I would do it I just drew a picture (obviously scale is something that doesn't exist in said picture)



This sort of layout may give you more options to get more consoles then just the six in.

Myrddin

Wow, that actually looks f'ing great! Way more utilisation of the space than what I had in my mind...this could be a happy ending after all Thank you! I'll measure it up to check

Edit - If the doors drop out in front of the crt, then I'm good to go with the above.

justsomebloke

ye measurements will be the key and then trying to get units to fit those spaces maybe also an issue, but at least it gives you ideas.

Truthfully if the doors where to drop out in front of the crt meaning you could put that behind the door you may have even better options open to you

Myrddin

Ok the doors can't clear the tv (b0ll0x anyway :mad:). BUT...if in the middle of the floor, both doors can open & there's enough space for the tv. So essentially the crt has to be in the middle, or else....ugh...I move it on & get a smaller crt which is looking more likely, I simply don't have the space up there.

Retr0gamer

All you need is a PC with emulators and but the consoles into storage or sell them :P

Myrddin

Retr0gamer wrote: »

All you need is a PC with emulators and but the consoles into storage or sell them :P

Go away

o1s1n

Retr0! look out! Stone_Roses are in ur 'puter, haX0ring uR iNTernetz! :pac:

Myrddin

o1s1n wrote: »

Retr0! look out! Stone_Roses are in ur 'puter, haX0ring uR iNTernetz! :pac:

It's a feeble attempt to goad me into an emulation vs real console discussion. Little does he know I've a Mamecab in the shed :rolleyes::D

Myrddin

Ok the more I think of it, I'm gonna have to be realistic here. I think that tv has to go I've a spare 21" crt that I can use, & for all intents & purposes, it makes things much easier for me by using it up there. I'll have much more space, and better options for the layout.

Yes it was a titanic battle lifting it up to the attic, but gravity is on my side taking it down. Damn it anyway.

o1s1n

Not the Trinitron?!

Myrddin

o1s1n wrote: »

Not the Trinitron?!

Yep, it's limiting too much up there. I don't want to end up designing the storage/shelving around a tv, so it's days are numbered man

o1s1n

Do you mean just out of the attic or gone completely?

If you ever want rid of it completely, give me a shout and I'd be happy to buy it from you!

Myrddin

o1s1n wrote: »

Do you mean just out of the attic or gone completely?

If you ever want rid of it completely, give me a shout and I'd be happy to buy it from you!

Gone completely, every other room is 16:9ified

Are you sure? I'll mark you down for it if so...

o1s1n

Definitely. As much as I love my Black Diamond, the perfection of a 'tron is to hard to pass up.

I definitely got Cidered on that one

Myrddin

o1s1n wrote: »

Definitely. As much as I love my Black Diamond, the perfection of a 'tron is to hard to pass up.

I definitely got Cidered on that one

Cool its your so. I got Cider'd big time out there, I came away with the medical need to own a 29" Trinitron, a Vectrex, & huge coverage of wooden cladding.

o1s1n

'Go to Cider's attic - come home with wood'

Sounds about right.

CiDeRmAn

In my space I ran three phono cables the length of the room on one side and put in junction boxes every now and then with 6 phono in sockets in them, room enough to plug in two consoles. Now the end connector can be composite, RGB, whatever, if the socket is capable of taking either signal it won't matter. Only thing is there will be some degradation of signal along the way, but it is mighty convenient and mean you can leave everything wired in, awaiting merely to be turned on to work.

Which is nice..

Myrddin

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

In my space I ran three phono cables the length of the room on one side and put in junction boxes every now and then with 6 phono in sockets in them, room enough to plug in two consoles. Now the end connector can be composite, RGB, whatever, if the socket is capable of taking either signal it won't matter. Only thing is there will be some degradation of signal along the way, but it is mighty convenient and mean you can leave everything wired in, awaiting merely to be turned on to work.

Which is nice..

You had a few pics of this setup before I remember, ay chance you've a pic of that rca wiring?

justsomebloke

EnterNow wrote: »

Ok the doors can't clear the tv (b0ll0x anyway :mad:).

just so you know in my drawing the door wasn't meant to be able to clear the TV unit. It was just moved as far left as possible so the door could just open. This may give you just enough space on the right to fit the LCD in right

Based on this image


you seem to have approx 4-5 inches to the left on the TV unit where it would still be possible to open the door.

Then based on this photo


if there was another 4-5 inches on the right you may be able to get an LCD there (well depends on the size of the LCD and that is one of the things I don't know). Cause on the right you should be able to get a stand bookacse that will support the TV and actually fit behind where the door would open

Myrddin

Joe the Santa wrote: »

just so you know in my drawing the door wasn't meant to be able to clear the TV unit. It was just moved as far left as possible so the door could just open. This may give you just enough space on the right to fit the LCD in right

Based on this image


you seem to have approx 4-5 inches to the left on the TV unit where it would still be possible to open the door.

Then based on this photo


if there was another 4-5 inches on the right you may be able to get an LCD there (well depends on the size of the LCD and that is one of the things I don't know). Cause on the right you should be able to get a stand bookacse that will support the TV and actually fit behind where the door would open

Yep both doors open only if the crt is spot bang in the middle. The pics make it look bigger than it is (the availbale space), and any lcd to the side of the tv would be tiny & look ridicuous. If I use my spare 21" crt I can position it anywhere I want & the doors won't be a problem, & seeing as I don't have an lcd yet, I don't want to be limited on size for one.

I'll take measurements today & put them up, with the tv downsized, it should allow a lot more utilisation, & that means more consoles :cool:

CiDeRmAn

Regarding an LCD, couldn't get one on an articulated arm?
I have seen such things somewhere, not sure where, but it could be mounted to the wall above the CRT and the screen flat against the sloped wall to the side, then pulled out, into position when required.
Then you wouldn't have quite the problem with space, it wouldn't matter if it was bigger than the crt, heck it could be at a slight angle, I'm probably not being terribly clear.
It's important not to see an LCD screen as a bug heavy unwieldy thing, as they are actually relatively light and so "manipulatable" if you know what I mean...

Here's one...
/Designer-Habitat-CANTILEVER-BRACKET

o1s1n

How cool would it be to have a giant LCD on a wall mounted arm like that...but one that rotates vertically :eek:

You'd have a big vertical screen down that whole chimney stack.

Okay I don't (think) you're into shmups, but still, that would be awesome!

Myrddin

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

Regarding an LCD, couldn't get one on an articulated arm?
I have seen such things somewhere, not sure where, but it could be mounted to the wall above the CRT and the screen flat against the sloped wall to the side, then pulled out, into position when required.
Then you wouldn't have quite the problem with space, it wouldn't matter if it was bigger than the crt, heck it could be at a slight angle, I'm probably not being terribly clear.
It's important not to see an LCD screen as a bug heavy unwieldy thing, as they are actually relatively light and so "manipulatable" if you know what I mean...

Here's one...
/Designer-Habitat-CANTILEVER-BRACKET

Yeah I get what your saying, but even up high it'd still need to clear the top of that crt...and not much will in terms of tv's in that space. Plus, I'd have to leave feet of slack on all the cables going into the tv to allow for orientation...good idea, but again all that just because my crt is too big? Nah, it's gone. Putting a smaller crt up there makes the whole thing much easier.

Whatever I got it for on adverts o1s1n is that ok?

CiDeRmAn

No, wouldnt have to clear the top of the crt, it could be folded against the wall to the side, pulled out in front of the crt, then folded back again when the crt is needed.
The cabling would be the biggest challenge but they could be placed along the body of the mount, using the miracle of cable ties!

Myrddin

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

No, wouldnt have to clear the top of the crt, it could be folded against the wall to the side, pulled out in front of the crt, then folded back again when the crt is needed.
The cabling would be the biggest challenge but they could be placed along the body of the mount, using the miracle of cable ties!

I don't get how it's meant to sit flush to the side wall (apex) & then swing out to a center position without clipping the top of the crt?