What Is ArcadeCab and What Does It Offer?

Updated

ArcadeCab is a free archive of do-it-yourself MAME arcade cabinet plans and build documentation, online since 2003. It suits hobbyists who want to build a full-size cabinet, a tabletop unit, or a custom control panel and who prefer working from measurements, construction photos, and printable PDFs rather than buying a kit. The site is a personal project archive rather than a store: it documents the owner's builds and those of other hobbyists, and some of the software and hardware it covers is now dated.

The four starting points

The site points new visitors to four plan sets first:

Project What it is Best for
Original Cabinet Plans The first full-size MAME cabinet, originally designed around the X-Arcade controller, documented step by step with measurements and construction photos First-time cabinet builders who want a complete walkthrough
Cabinet Plans 2 A second full-size build with more construction detail and lessons from the first; the section was refreshed in 2026 with a rebuilt high-resolution printable PDF Builders who want a more refined full-size design
BarCade A compact tabletop arcade built from spare PC hardware and leftover materials Small spaces and builders working with parts on hand
Ultra-Trackball / Single-Player Plans Detailed plans for a trackball design and the single-player panel that grew from it Anyone wanting a smaller one-player control setup instead of a two-player panel

Each entry links to the plans and a downloadable PDF.

What else is documented

Beyond the four main builds, ArcadeCab covers custom control panels, trackballs, coin doors, cabinet modifications, and front-end software. The site notes that some of this material is historical and kept as reference rather than as current recommendations, so check dates before relying on software or hardware advice.

There is also a gallery of cabinets built by visitors using or adapting the plans. Some follow the dimensions closely; others are widened, shortened, or re-themed. For a builder, this is useful for seeing how much the designs can be stretched.

How to decide whether to use it

  • Choose ArcadeCab if you want free, measurement-level plans with photos, you are comfortable adapting designs to your own parts, and you are building a MAME-based cabinet or panel.
  • Look elsewhere if you need current hardware recommendations, a kit with parts included, or active step-by-step support. The site is an archive, and its author is modernizing the presentation while deliberately preserving the original write-ups.
  • Before committing to a plan, download the PDF for that build and skim the construction photos to confirm the tools and space it assumes match what you have.

The site accepts support through PayPal, but the plans themselves are presented as free.