For all you experts out there, this is a stupid statement, but I feel it has to be pointed out to people who are just setting out on a learning journey.
MAME cabinets are used to provide the arcade experience. A MAME cabinet is basically a box that houses an entire video arcade game into one console unit. It is called a MAME cabinet because the software that most of these games use is called MAME which stands for Multi Arcade Machine Emulator. There are two major styles of cabinets used; the upright machine and the cocktail machine.
You can obtain a cabinet from one of three ways;
Build one from scratch
Get a donor cabinet
Buy a kit and build one yourself
The easiest option, would be to purchase a cabinet, preferably with the hardware, and the software already fitted and pre-installed. Building a cabinet yourself is a very time consuming job, and could cost as much as purchasing a made up unit.
Finding a donor cabinet could proove a great buy, but beware as good units are hard to find, you never get anything for free. You may find an ex-arcade machine, but the more in demand it is, the more you may have to pay for it. You may find someone who will give you an honest price which may be a lot cheaper than buying a kit, or building one but the condition of the cabinet may not be great, and you may spend more money renovating it.
Building, buying or donor cabinets, no matter which way you acquire one, you will find it a pleasure playing the games. Most people who embark on these projects, do it for the love rather than worrying about the time involved or the money spent, and it will no doubt bring back memories from going to the arcades, and playing for hours standing in front of one of those cabinets.