I want to buy a supergun

[Arrrhalomynn]

I think there was already a topic about this several weeks back, but I can't find it anywhere, so I opened a new one .

I'm interested in buying a supergun. This one: http://www.arcadeheaven.co.uk/supergun.html

I don't know much about arcade stuff so I have a lot of questions. I hope someone here can answer those.
What's a good price for a supergun? If I buy this one with all neccesary trinkets It will get at a price of about $300. I've checked google for some others and they are all about the same price, but I've heard the most expensive part is the rgb>ntsc convertor. Since the supergun I intend to buy doesn't have this convertion and only outputs rgb (via scart) it might be a ripoff.

Wouldn't it be a LOT cheaper to build one myself? I'm not a very technical/electronical person, but if I can save 150 bucks it's worth a try.

I'm mainly interested in newer games. Titan, Naomi, model 1,2,3 etc. Will these play without problems on a supergun? How expensive are these? I would love to have a naomi board, but it's still rather recent and thus expensive.

How are the games compared to the console conversions? Is virtua fighter 4 arcade a lot better than virtua fighter 4 psx? and how about crazy taxi? etc. Is it worth the extra money? Of course I love the gimmick value of a supergun, but I hope it's a bit more than just that.

Can it damage my tv? I have a 73 cm 100hz flatscreen panasonic tv. I've read about arcade kabinets having several different types of monitors (medium resolution etc), will this be of any importance when connecting the supergun to my tv?

How is the general quality of superguns? I've read some bad stories about the MAS system.What's your (supergun owner) experience with this?

A lot of questions. I hope someone here can find the time to answer some of them.

[Achika]

Well I hope I can answer a few questions. I bought a Super Gun from Kaiten Games last february (I can't find a link, I think they disbanded) Anyhow, it was high quality, durable, sturdy, and perfect for playing shooters, fighting games, and puzzles. Joysticks, psu, everything was in one unit, looks similar to a arcade machine so I don't have controllers and cords all over.

You can build one yourself, but the average price is about $150. If you're not very technically saavy, then I'd buck up and buy a pre-built one. There's pinouts you have to find, construction of the model (and joysticks if you don't buy them) wiring, etc. If you want, I'll be home in a few days and I'll pop mine open and take pictures of the inside.

As a general rule of thumb, consoles do not hold a candle to their arcade counterparts. When you get into racing, light gun games, etc. I'm not sure how they work, but as far as I know, you either need a special harness or a special version of the motherboard. Neither of which are the cheapest. You also have to keep in mind, that you will generally need boards that are JAMMA compatible. I don't think some of the early games where, and I think there is one of the Naomi boards that isn't JAMMA (or was that Hyper Neo 64? argh). The boards are powered off the supergun's psu, no need for external ones.

MAS didn't feel the need to reply to my emails or answer my phone calls, so apparently they didn't want my money. It's about 50/50 from what I've heard from other people.

I've got the sega STV, the sound is kind of junky, and I haven't really fiddled with it to fix it. Same with my CPS 2. STV boards can be had for about $50.

Another word on the CPS 2, if you choose to use this board, you will need the auxillary harness (which the site you provided mentioned a brief blip about this) I've soldered my straight onto the JAMMA fingerboard.

Sorry, I can't help you with the TV issue. But I think that the converter automatically compensates for resolution. If you do get a vertical scrolling game, you will have to put your TV on it's side to play properly.

I've set up a bit on my site, you can check it out, but by no means is it done yet. http://www.vidgame.net/arcade/arcade_home.htm Also, think about getting into Neo Geo. Until you save up for the Naomi, it's a cheaper and worthy substitute. I don't recommend the Hyper Neo, as it is somewhat of a novelty thing (but the sound is AMAZING!)

If you need feedback about different superguns and no one here gives it, browse the boards at Neo-Geo.com, as they usually are littered with supergun questions.

[Arrrhalomynn]

Thanks for the info. I checked out your site. The rajin Supergun looks really cool with the complete arcade button setup. The one I intend to order only has a genesis controller with it... (will that give me an arcade feeling? ).

You say consoles do not hold a candle to their arcade counterparts. I understand that Die Hard on the stv is a lot better than on the saturn, but will it still be cool despite owning a ps2 which is a lot more powerful than an stv? And is a neo geo mvs really better than it's dreamcast port?

I'll go check out the neo geo forum now

[maxlords]

MAS didn't feel the need to reply to my emails or answer my phone calls, so apparently they didn't want my money. It's about 50/50 from what I've heard from other people.

Do not deal with MAS systems for a supergun! I got a MAS systems supergun in a trade recently and I didn't care for it at all. The fools at MAS built a supergun with an arcade power supply in it that generates about the same about of heat as a 100 watt lightbulb and left NO ventilation in their spiffy looking unit. I got mine used and when I tried to use it the power supply had died from overexposure to heat. Not to mention that they say it has and S-Video out and it does not. It has a port on it for some sort of out, but it's not S-Video....I'm not sure what it was, never figured it out. They are false advertisers and you'll have to modify the system (I had to install a PC power supply with a fan) and probably CUT ventilation into it. It's not worth the $300 they charge. Maybe $200 if you don't mind modding it. I also didn't like the picture quality on my TV, as it didn't seem to interface well with my TV, but it might work better on other people's. I plan to get a JAMMA harness arcade machine in the future instead (not soon mind you!).

[Achika]

I understand that Die Hard on the stv is a lot better than on the saturn, but will it still be cool despite owning a ps2 which is a lot more powerful than an stv? And is a neo geo mvs really better than it's dreamcast port?

It's like compairing Atari to Genesis. There are things you find on one that you don't find on another. Yea, the PS2 might be more powerful than the STV, but does the PS2 have Radient Silvergun? YES a Neo Geo board is better than the DC ports in more ways than one.

[Kid Fenris]

As far as port quality goes, it depends on the console. Most Dreamcast conversions of Naomi games are identical to their arcade counterparts, and the same goes for titles brought to the PS2 or GameCube. In many cases, the home versions also feature extra modes, and thus they have more to offer than the original coin-ops. The only thing missing is a huge steering cabinet or light gun array.

On the other hand, arcade ports from the days of the PSX and Saturn usually pack less of a visual impact, even if they have bonus stuff. S-TV titles are often better than their Saturn equivalents, though the opposite is true for Radiant Silvergun. The arcade version will run you almost as much as the superior Saturn edition, which has a nice story mode, animated cinemas, and gameplay that's much easier to handle on a Saturn pad than an arcade layout.

Still, a Supergun's a nice investment, especially when you consider the surprisingly large number of high-quality games that never left the arcade. If you're a shooter fan, you'll want to check out ESP Ra.De., Guwange, or the Neo-Geo MVS version of Pulstar. I'm sure that others will have recommendations of their own.

[maxlords]

Speaking of which, I have a Cotton 2 ST-V cart to sell/trade if anyone is interested! It's my last ST-V cart left, as I've been trading them off since I dumped my Supernova. Also have a working Zero Wing board and an untested Dungeons and Dragons: Tower of Doom A+B board sitting here. Great starter stuff for a new supernova owner

[TheTallMan]

Sir, I do not need a supergun. Because I have balls.

[Achika]

Sir, I do not need a supergun. Because I have balls.

Well, gee thanks for sharing with the general population.

[TheTallMan]

You are most welcome, Sir. For your gratitude, I will spare you from my silver spheres.

[Achika]

You are most welcome, Sir. For your gratitude, I will spare you from my silver spheres.

Perhaps you should check into your DP History sonny, for I am a Ma'am, not a Sir.

[Arrrhalomynn]

uhm, yes Ma'am achika thanks for your replies, and all the others too. I also got some answers from the companty and it's probably best if I think a bit longer about this.