What is cheaper?

[Zombiezilla]

Is it cheaper to just buy a emulation machine of the sort you see on eBay, or is it cheaper to build my own? I am thinking of building a game room in my basement (complete with pinball, skeeball, arcade unit, my Intellivision and possibly other systems, etc.) and am wondering what the cheapest route would be to go? I am not the handiest with a saw and materials, so that much be considered.

What is the favored whatever here? I am new to this stuff, aside from the batch of games I have gotten on my computer at home.

[Flack]

It'll be much cheaper to build your own, although if you're looking at things like a pinball table (usually over $1,000) then money might not be that big of an issue for you.

The most common route is to find a broken or empty arcade cabinet, and start from there. You'll need a computer, monitor, and controls at a minimum. Depending on how much of this stuff you have lying around your house, you might be able to get off pretty light. Check with your local arcades and see if they have any old or dead cabinets -- you shouldn't have to pay more than $50 or so for one (heck, you might get lucky and get one for free!)

[Zombiezilla]

Thanks for the tip! Money is actually a HUGE issue, and that is why I am looking for the cheapest ways with every aspect. The pinball and such will all be accumulated through the years, I am thinking. I will slowly build this thing up. I don't even plan to begin work on the basement for another year. This is all the very beginning stages.

I am going out to the mall tonight and plan to stop into the arcade there. Haven't been into it for years, since they turned it into one of those "Chuckee Cheese" type of arcades. But it has been around since the early 80's, so if they are the original owners, maybe they will have something cool.

I doubt it though, but you never know.