johnparker007 Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 (edited) Please could folks discuss hardware and ask for hardware purchasing advice here? I'm a software guy, I'm very out of touch with what's good and what's not... so I'll be ducking out of these discussions if that's ok Edited September 15, 2021 by johnparker007 4 1 [ Arcade Simulator ] Pre-alpha installer: https://tinyurl.com/2kcrkprh | Donation info: https://tinyurl.com/yzvgl4xo [ Community Drive ] The drive: http://tinyurl.com/yckze665 [ Fruit Machine Database ] Initial google sheets (WIP): https://tinyurl.com/2c5znxzz [ Fruit Machine ROM Archive ] The archive: https://tinyurl.com/3jhzbueb [ Fruit Machine Settings/Tests Guide ] https://tinyurl.com/yuebw8b5 [ MAME (fixes/improvements) ] Commits: https://github.com/johnparker007/mame/commits/master/?author=johnparker007 [ MFME Launch ] Source code: https://github.com/johnparker007/MFMELaunch [ Oasis ] Source code: https://github.com/johnparker007/Oasis [ Sound ROM Editor ] Source code: https://github.com/johnparker007/SoundRomEditor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zippy Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 41 minutes ago, johnparker007 said: Please could folks discuss hardware and ask for hardware purchasing advice here? I'm a software guy, I'm very out of touch with what's good and what's not... so I'll be ducking out of these discussions if that's ok Nope I don't need to 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chopaholic Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 I'm a bit of a PC hardware nerd so I'm happy to help on this, I'll keep an eye on this thread and assist where I can @woodsy Happy to pick up the conversation again here. 1 1 1 Fruit machine emulation content from the artist previously known as Degsy Degworth and the odd new thing here and there too - https://www.youtube.com/c/DegsyDegworth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fits Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 I’m thinking of getting a new laptop so I can play AS Amongst other things can you help with this please price not a problem. Don’t have a clue about any hardware. Thank you for any help. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodsy Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 59 minutes ago, Chopaholic said: I'm a bit of a PC hardware nerd so I'm happy to help on this, I'll keep an eye on this thread and assist where I can @woodsy Happy to pick up the conversation again here. perfect matey, did't want to flood the other thread but definitely needed yo get something up and running, as above shows i'm not alone living the dream Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fits Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 1 hour ago, Chopaholic said: I'm a bit of a PC hardware nerd so I'm happy to help on this, I'll keep an eye on this thread and assist where I can @woodsy Happy to pick up the conversation again here. I’m just glad I can turn my pc on. lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodsy Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 10 minutes ago, fits said: I’m just glad I can turn my pc on. lol. I’m much the same!! Thought I had a good one as it had a big screen 4g ram and office (which I don’t use) haha I still thought mine was 1024 etc so for a big screen living the dream Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnparker007 Posted September 15, 2021 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 1 hour ago, Chopaholic said: I'm a bit of a PC hardware nerd so I'm happy to help on this, I'll keep an eye on this thread and assist where I can @woodsy Happy to pick up the conversation again here. Thank you very much @Chopaholic, super appreciated [ Arcade Simulator ] Pre-alpha installer: https://tinyurl.com/2kcrkprh | Donation info: https://tinyurl.com/yzvgl4xo [ Community Drive ] The drive: http://tinyurl.com/yckze665 [ Fruit Machine Database ] Initial google sheets (WIP): https://tinyurl.com/2c5znxzz [ Fruit Machine ROM Archive ] The archive: https://tinyurl.com/3jhzbueb [ Fruit Machine Settings/Tests Guide ] https://tinyurl.com/yuebw8b5 [ MAME (fixes/improvements) ] Commits: https://github.com/johnparker007/mame/commits/master/?author=johnparker007 [ MFME Launch ] Source code: https://github.com/johnparker007/MFMELaunch [ Oasis ] Source code: https://github.com/johnparker007/Oasis [ Sound ROM Editor ] Source code: https://github.com/johnparker007/SoundRomEditor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodsy Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 42 minutes ago, johnparker007 said: Thank you very much @Chopaholic, super appreciated Sorry jp much happier here discussing but didn’t mean to spam if I did 1 1 living the dream Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnparker007 Posted September 15, 2021 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 1 hour ago, woodsy said: Sorry jp much happier here discussing but didn’t mean to spam if I did No worries! It's just that I don't really know what best to advise, especially for a limited budget - I'm much happier leaving this to people who know their hardware stuff! [ Arcade Simulator ] Pre-alpha installer: https://tinyurl.com/2kcrkprh | Donation info: https://tinyurl.com/yzvgl4xo [ Community Drive ] The drive: http://tinyurl.com/yckze665 [ Fruit Machine Database ] Initial google sheets (WIP): https://tinyurl.com/2c5znxzz [ Fruit Machine ROM Archive ] The archive: https://tinyurl.com/3jhzbueb [ Fruit Machine Settings/Tests Guide ] https://tinyurl.com/yuebw8b5 [ MAME (fixes/improvements) ] Commits: https://github.com/johnparker007/mame/commits/master/?author=johnparker007 [ MFME Launch ] Source code: https://github.com/johnparker007/MFMELaunch [ Oasis ] Source code: https://github.com/johnparker007/Oasis [ Sound ROM Editor ] Source code: https://github.com/johnparker007/SoundRomEditor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chopaholic Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 3 hours ago, fits said: I’m thinking of getting a new laptop so I can play AS Amongst other things can you help with this please price not a problem. Don’t have a clue about any hardware. Thank you for any help. OK then here are three options that I'd consider to be LOW / MEDIUM / HIGH for anyone buying a new laptop, with consideration given to it running AS nicely, but also being useful for other things, because it's a lot of cash to drop on a machine that will only do one thing well! At the LOW end there's something like this, which is actually the cheapest machine in the 'gaming laptop' category on Ebuyer. This is plenty good enough to run AS lovely and smoothly, will make a very useable daily driver for everything else, and also has enough grunt to run PC games at reasonable detail settings and framerates. Limitations are (1) Not much storage space if you're planning to start installing several games on it (2) 8GB of RAM can be limiting these days when gaming (plenty for AS though) and (3) The GPU doesn't have massive reserves of horsepower or RAM, so manage your expectations if you're wanting to play modern games on it. However, if you want a 'nice laptop to use' that will also make a really good job of AS, this is a pretty good deal at the current price of £580. Medion Erazer Crawler E10 Core i5 8GB 256GB SSD GTX 1650 15.6" Win10 Home Gaming Laptop | Ebuyer.com Moving up to the MEDIUM category and you have something like this. You're not actually going to see any benefit to AS here (certainly as things currently stand with the demands AS places on your system), what you are getting is more gaming grunt and nicer specs all round, basically eliminating all the limitations with the LOW end laptop, if you're wanting to do some proper gaming on the laptop, I'd step up to this one if you can, at £1000 it's a reasonable price for what you're getting. (This has an 8 core CPU as opposed to 4 core, 16GB of RAM as opposed to 8GB, twice the SSD capacity and a substantially more powerful GPU.) Also note there is a degree of future-proofing here, maybe John will add features to AS in the future that place more demands on your machine, the ability to design your own massive arcade with loads of machines in it, more advanced lighting effects etc - you've got more room to grow, basically. Acer Nitro 5 AN515 Core i7 16GB 512GB SSD RTX 3060 15.6" Win10 Home Gaming Laptop | Ebuyer.com Finally the HIGH category and honestly the sky is the limit here, again, no direct benefits to AS in its current incarnation, and you'd really have to be a serious gamer to consider this. (And honestly, I'd be thinking about buying a normal PC with a keyboard and mouse at this point, as laptops do have their limitations when it comes to gaming, not least in terms of noise and heat output.) But still, if you've got £1600 to spend, this is a nice laptop. Gigabyte Aorus 15G Core i7 32GB 512GB SSD RTX 3070 MaxQ 15.6" Win10 Home Gaming Laptop | Ebuyer.com 4 Fruit machine emulation content from the artist previously known as Degsy Degworth and the odd new thing here and there too - https://www.youtube.com/c/DegsyDegworth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodsy Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 thats really awesome advice and i'm sure plenty of the community will appreciate it!!! i certainly do 1 living the dream Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fits Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 18 minutes ago, Chopaholic said: OK then here are three options that I'd consider to be LOW / MEDIUM / HIGH for anyone buying a new laptop, with consideration given to it running AS nicely, but also being useful for other things, because it's a lot of cash to drop on a machine that will only do one thing well! At the LOW end there's something like this, which is actually the cheapest machine in the 'gaming laptop' category on Ebuyer. This is plenty good enough to run AS lovely and smoothly, will make a very useable daily driver for everything else, and also has enough grunt to run PC games at reasonable detail settings and framerates. Limitations are (1) Not much storage space if you're planning to start installing several games on it (2) 8GB of RAM can be limiting these days when gaming (plenty for AS though) and (3) The GPU doesn't have massive reserves of horsepower or RAM, so manage your expectations if you're wanting to play modern games on it. However, if you want a 'nice laptop to use' that will also make a really good job of AS, this is a pretty good deal at the current price of £580. Medion Erazer Crawler E10 Core i5 8GB 256GB SSD GTX 1650 15.6" Win10 Home Gaming Laptop | Ebuyer.com Moving up to the MEDIUM category and you have something like this. You're not actually going to see any benefit to AS here (certainly as things currently stand with the demands AS places on your system), what you are getting is more gaming grunt and nicer specs all round, basically eliminating all the limitations with the LOW end laptop, if you're wanting to do some proper gaming on the laptop, I'd step up to this one if you can, at £1000 it's a reasonable price for what you're getting. (This has an 8 core CPU as opposed to 4 core, 16GB of RAM as opposed to 8GB, twice the SSD capacity and a substantially more powerful GPU.) Also note there is a degree of future-proofing here, maybe John will add features to AS in the future that place more demands on your machine, the ability to design your own massive arcade with loads of machines in it, more advanced lighting effects etc - you've got more room to grow, basically. Acer Nitro 5 AN515 Core i7 16GB 512GB SSD RTX 3060 15.6" Win10 Home Gaming Laptop | Ebuyer.com Finally the HIGH category and honestly the sky is the limit here, again, no direct benefits to AS in its current incarnation, and you'd really have to be a serious gamer to consider this. (And honestly, I'd be thinking about buying a normal PC with a keyboard and mouse at this point, as laptops do have their limitations when it comes to gaming, not least in terms of noise and heat output.) But still, if you've got £1600 to spend, this is a nice laptop. Gigabyte Aorus 15G Core i7 32GB 512GB SSD RTX 3070 MaxQ 15.6" Win10 Home Gaming Laptop | Ebuyer.com Thank you for your advice. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chopaholic Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 (edited) Also please note I can't personally endorse those exact machines as I haven't used any of them, so before committing funds check out user reviews on Ebuyer (if there are any), and have a Google to see if they've been reviewed elsewhere, look at picture/videos to see if you like the aesthetics, does it have the ports you need and stuff like that. There are load of alternatives in the same sort of price range at each spec level. The recommendations above are based more around the spec level and what sort of price you'd expect to pay at the moment, as Ebuyer's stock changes all the time, as does their pricing - and other online retailers are available! A key point here is spending £300-£350 on a used machine makes precious little sense when you can get a far better, brand new for one for £580, which I appreciate is a chunk more cash but you're getting a far more modern machine with a guarantee and a proper amount of horsepower to it. If anyone is seriously considering buying a specific model please do as suggested above (Google for reviews, search YouTube for reviews etc), but do feel free to give me a shout here if you still have a question. Edited September 15, 2021 by Chopaholic 1 Fruit machine emulation content from the artist previously known as Degsy Degworth and the odd new thing here and there too - https://www.youtube.com/c/DegsyDegworth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wearecity Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 Not wishing to put a downer on thing, but before spending hard earned cash remember.... AT THE MOMENT, Arcade Simulator is basically a very nice to look at visual representation of a fruit machine arcade, that is buggy, very incomplete and does not offer anywhere near the amount of options and bells and whistles that MFME does. You buying hundreds of £'s worth of kit, does not guarantee, it will not be stopped in production tomorrow or at any time and you basically end up dropping a tons of money on a device for a very nice tech demo. If you are happy with that and are not going to be sat here in the future saying, I spent xx on a decent laptop and the thing I bought it for was never finished, then go ahead. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jabbathehut Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 Different option to consider is a shadow pc .This is a cloud based pc costs 29.99 month and whilst mid range plays arcade simulator well and for that matter most games on high to ultra.It is expensive was half that price when I joined but they not surprisingly went bust and the first thing the company that bought them doubled the price.You don't need to commit to more than a month at a time though they do have waiting lists sometimes.I think for uk its 3 days at the moment. You also get super fast downloads ,it doesn't get over hot.Just a different option to consider. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chopaholic Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 46 minutes ago, wearecity said: Not wishing to put a downer on thing, but before spending hard earned cash remember.... AT THE MOMENT, Arcade Simulator is basically a very nice to look at visual representation of a fruit machine arcade, that is buggy, very incomplete and does not offer anywhere near the amount of options and bells and whistles that MFME does. You buying hundreds of £'s worth of kit, does not guarantee, it will not be stopped in production tomorrow or at any time and you basically end up dropping a tons of money on a device for a very nice tech demo. If you are happy with that and are not going to be sat here in the future saying, I spent xx on a decent laptop and the thing I bought it for was never finished, then go ahead. That's a good point wearecity, and hopefully that much is clear from the Development Updates thread and also the videos I made about it Would I recommend buying a whole new machine just for AS given where it is now? No, probably not, and I basically said as much in one of the videos. However, if you're in the market for a new machine and AS is on your 'something you'd really like to have a go of' list, then it definitely makes sense to factor in the critical difference between a nice new laptop, and a nice new laptop that has the heft to run AS properly, which is a discrete GPU. (And will give you plenty of other benefits, as listed above.) That said, I can imagine some people looking at AS and thinking, 'That is so cool, and even though I know it's the early stages I'm going into it with my eyes open, and I want a new machine that can let me experience it', and that's fine too. 1 Fruit machine emulation content from the artist previously known as Degsy Degworth and the odd new thing here and there too - https://www.youtube.com/c/DegsyDegworth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodsy Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 36 minutes ago, jabbathehut said: Different option to consider is a shadow pc .This is a cloud based pc costs 29.99 month and whilst mid range plays arcade simulator well and for that matter most games on high to ultra.It is expensive was half that price when I joined but they not surprisingly went bust and the first thing the company that bought them doubled the price.You don't need to commit to more than a month at a time though they do have waiting lists sometimes.I think for uk its 3 days at the moment. You also get super fast downloads ,it doesn't get over hot.Just a different option to consider. now that sounds of use as i'm sofa surfing etc and having flexible options is apealing living the dream Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodsy Posted September 15, 2021 Report Share Posted September 15, 2021 31 minutes ago, Chopaholic said: That's a good point wearecity, and hopefully that much is clear from the Development Updates thread and also the videos I made about it Would I recommend buying a whole new machine just for AS given where it is now? No, probably not, and I basically said as much in one of the videos. However, if you're in the market for a new machine and AS is on your 'something you'd really like to have a go of' list, then it definitely makes sense to factor in the critical difference between a nice new laptop, and a nice new laptop that has the heft to run AS properly, which is a discrete GPU. (And will give you plenty of other benefits, as listed above.) That said, I can imagine some people looking at AS and thinking, 'That is so cool, and even though I know it's the early stages I'm going into it with my eyes open, and I want a new machine that can let me experience it', and that's fine too. it's not going to be a overnight process for me or AS, however i need to upgrade and this time i wont be doing it blindly for once.. the help already recieved has been invaluable well £500+ish haha 2 living the dream Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cja272 Posted September 18, 2021 Report Share Posted September 18, 2021 I have been thinking about buying a more of a gaming laptop for a while and with the arcade simulator needing a good graphics spec ive just purchased this second hand laptop off e bay , Arcade simulator works brilliant with this spec below. Model G3 15 3500 dell Condition Seller Refurbished Grade / Comments Refurbished , Grade A , Very light marks on the bottom cover Screen Size / Type 15.6" FHD Anti-glare LED Backlit Narrow Border WVA Screen , Refresh rate : 60Hz Max Resolution 1920 x 1080 CPU Type Intel® Core™ i7-10750H Processor 6 Core CPU Speed Up to 5.00GHz, 12MB Cache Memory RAM 16GB (2 x 8GB) Up to 3200MHz DDR4 SoDIMM Non-ECC Storage 512Gb SSD Optical Drive N/A Video Memory 6Gb GDDR6 Graphics Type NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Wireless WiFi Killer® Wi-Fi 6 AX1650i 160MHz Wireless Network Adapter (201NGW) Bluetooth Yes Cellular WWAN N/A Audio On Board Ports 3 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports , Thunderbolt 3 (USB Type-C) port , HDMI port , Mini DisplayPort , Network port RJ45 , microSD-card slot , Headset port , Security-cable slot (wedge-shaped) , Power button with fingerprint reader Webcam Yes Battery Capacity 68Wh AC Adapter Included 240W Keyboard Layout UK, Backlit OS Windows 10 Home (64bit) Warranty 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodsy Posted September 18, 2021 Report Share Posted September 18, 2021 8 minutes ago, cja272 said: I have been thinking about buying a more of a gaming laptop for a while and with the arcade simulator needing a good graphics spec ive just purchased this second hand laptop off e bay , Arcade simulator works brilliant with this spec below. Model G3 15 3500 dell Condition Seller Refurbished Grade / Comments Refurbished , Grade A , Very light marks on the bottom cover Screen Size / Type 15.6" FHD Anti-glare LED Backlit Narrow Border WVA Screen , Refresh rate : 60Hz Max Resolution 1920 x 1080 CPU Type Intel® Core™ i7-10750H Processor 6 Core CPU Speed Up to 5.00GHz, 12MB Cache Memory RAM 16GB (2 x 8GB) Up to 3200MHz DDR4 SoDIMM Non-ECC Storage 512Gb SSD Optical Drive N/A Video Memory 6Gb GDDR6 Graphics Type NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Wireless WiFi Killer® Wi-Fi 6 AX1650i 160MHz Wireless Network Adapter (201NGW) Bluetooth Yes Cellular WWAN N/A Audio On Board Ports 3 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports , Thunderbolt 3 (USB Type-C) port , HDMI port , Mini DisplayPort , Network port RJ45 , microSD-card slot , Headset port , Security-cable slot (wedge-shaped) , Power button with fingerprint reader Webcam Yes Battery Capacity 68Wh AC Adapter Included 240W Keyboard Layout UK, Backlit OS Windows 10 Home (64bit) Warranty Price if you don’t mind disclosing living the dream Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cja272 Posted September 18, 2021 Report Share Posted September 18, 2021 I got it for £700 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jabbathehut Posted September 18, 2021 Report Share Posted September 18, 2021 dell outlet offers the best value as far as i can see if you don't mind the machine not being pristine. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cja272 Posted September 19, 2021 Report Share Posted September 19, 2021 Yeah this was is second hand but i cant see a scratch or mark on it , it looks new!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cja272 Posted September 20, 2021 Report Share Posted September 20, 2021 On 18/09/2021 at 21:24, cja272 said: I have been thinking about buying a more of a gaming laptop for a while and with the arcade simulator needing a good graphics spec ive just purchased this second hand laptop off e bay , Arcade simulator works brilliant with this spec below. Model G3 15 3500 dell Condition Seller Refurbished Grade / Comments Refurbished , Grade A , Very light marks on the bottom cover Screen Size / Type 15.6" FHD Anti-glare LED Backlit Narrow Border WVA Screen , Refresh rate : 60Hz Max Resolution 1920 x 1080 CPU Type Intel® Core™ i7-10750H Processor 6 Core CPU Speed Up to 5.00GHz, 12MB Cache Memory RAM 16GB (2 x 8GB) Up to 3200MHz DDR4 SoDIMM Non-ECC Storage 512Gb SSD Optical Drive N/A Video Memory 6Gb GDDR6 Graphics Type NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Wireless WiFi Killer® Wi-Fi 6 AX1650i 160MHz Wireless Network Adapter (201NGW) Bluetooth Yes Cellular WWAN N/A Audio On Board Ports 3 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports , Thunderbolt 3 (USB Type-C) port , HDMI port , Mini DisplayPort , Network port RJ45 , microSD-card slot , Headset port , Security-cable slot (wedge-shaped) , Power button with fingerprint reader Webcam Yes Battery Capacity 68Wh AC Adapter Included 240W Keyboard Layout UK, Backlit OS Windows 10 Home (64bit) Warranty 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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