First concept draft looked at a simple stand, a Laptop, and a ready made Hanaho HotRod Arcade controller. ◄ click to download schematics   Second draft was hand sketched with better ergonomics, more features, a decently sized monitor, and a desktop for easier upgradeability ~ lower costs ~ and media center capabilities. ◄ click to enlarge   Before going into too much design, a cardboard mock-up was put together, for getting a real life hands-on feel. To make the end product more friendly looking in a typical living room furniture environment, the top section was eliminated. ◄ click to enlarge   Pleased with the mock-up end result, a detailed and to-scale design was created. ◄ click to download schematics (one square = 1 inch)   The design was tweaked time and again, and the final diagram was transformed into a board-cutting map. The pieces were arranges to fit a 4 by 8 feet, 3/4" thick, Oak panel, as well as optimized for a minimal number of wood cuts. ◄ click to download schematics   Back from Home Depot, here is what the pre-cut raw material looked like. Additional Jigsaw work was then required for the angular cuts of side panels. ◄ click to enlarge   A few more careful jigsaw diagonal cuts later, all pieces were ready for assembly. All connections were done from the inside of the cabinet, with the help of 3/4 x 3/4" bars with screw holes at 90 degrees. This resulted with side panels having no marks what so ever. A 2 x 12" was placed at the very bottom and back of the cabinet, connected to the sides via diagonal cuts of 2 x 4". It formed a solid heavy basis, and allowed the cabinet to be stable on a carpet floor.     ◄ click to enlarge   Desktop Specs · ASUS K8N-E motherboard · AMD 2800+ processor · ULTRA 512MB PC3200 DDR memory · Western Digital WD200JB disk drive · nVidia GeForce FX 5200 graphics card   OS · Windows XP Pro   Music · WinAmp   Video · Media Player · DivX   Emulation · SEGA DGen ver 1.21 · ATARI 2600 StellaX version 1.1.2 · APPLE IIe version 1.10 (Michael O'Brien) · MAME version 0.89   Connections · Hanaho HotRod Arcade Controller · Mouse, Keyboard · Cable Modem for Internet connection · Router for home networking · Yamaha MIDI Keyboard · USB Ambient Light System · Internet Phone Headset · Web Camera · Palm Cradle · Headphones · Speakers L/R · Subwoofer · Neon Light · TV Out · Audio Out As you can see, this called for proper cable management within the cabinet and outside of it. Conveniently, the cabinet internal back shelf, and open front shelves conveniently accommodate all of these items.   Arcade Know How ! coming up next   Media Center Know How ! coming up next   Cost Breakdown ! coming up next