I need your advice on a purchase

[cholkavich]

Ive been in talks with a guy on craigslist in purchasing a Candy Cab off him. This will be my first Arcade Cabinet purchase. Right now the system has a MAME hyperspin set up but i want to return it to its origional form. Im supposed to go look at it sometime this week or next and Im wondering if theres any pointers i can get from you guys! Anything I should look for or ask about before purchasing.

http://elpaso.en.craigslist.org/vgm/3084557213.html

Also is 450 a decent price?

Like I said this is going to be my first puchase! Help Me OUT!

[cyberfluxor]

I will give my 2¢

Judging by the pictures they have likely purchased these machines in bulk which can typically be anywhere from free (come haul these away!) to a few hundred bucks each. If the others are working originals this machine could have been gutted for parts and turned into a MAME project. From my experience candies range from $300 to $1200 and would take a guess $500 approaches average in working condition. If you plan to revert the machine back to its original glory it will cost a few hundred dollars and some effort, so I wouldn't touch it unless they can provide the original boards and other goodies. Provided they are not in an inconvenient place to check out give it a shot and test the machine for operational status, physical condition, and inspect the innards. If it completely works and you can be satisfied with the MAME setup until you've found replacement hardware $450 might be a deal in your case.

[cholkavich]

thanks for your advice. The machines all work as ive seen he posted pictures of each one working and running different neo geo titles. The 6 button cab was running a game before he turned it into a MAME cabinet.
5487
Thats an image of the cab before it was modified. I also asked if still had the origional parts and the pcb before he modified it and he said he did. So do you think i should bite and try to bring down the price? Maybe try and shoot for 350 or 400?

[cyberfluxor]

The MAME setup appears to be struggling with the emulation at times, so that's a bit of concern for gameplay experience. You should ask for a price to purchase the machine and original hardware (if it can be tested to work), but I would not go beyond $500. It can be tough in different markets to get money back if you had to sell down the road. At least around here the multi-board machines are sought after along with true classic, dedicated machines like Pac-Man or Donkey Kong. Candies tend to appeal towards the younger arcade gamers (which is a small enough market) and they don't always have the deepest pockets.