It all depends if you want to display the games on a real CRT in the original video modes. If no, don't bother since LCDs are rubbish themselves so no need to go any furher than PC, Windows and MAME.
Using MAME on a real 15 kHz CRT is a totally different story and the only correct approach. Now there is a problem with consoles: there is currently no console that would run most 80s games and provide authentic video modes. There are at least 2 serious candidates: the original Xbox and Wii. The problem with Xbox is pretty straightforward: emulators do not output anything else than 60 Hz 480i or 50 Hz 576i. This is because the Microsoft SDK does not support anything else. To be able to output authentic video modes, someone needs to investigate how to enable custom video modes on the TV encoders inside Xbox meaning new SDK, probably new video BIOS etc. So far, noone with the knowledge has cared, and because it has been a lot of years since 2001, it is very unlikely that someone ever will.
Wii can provide better video modes but still not fully custom and the emulators are mostly outputting interlaced modes anyway. But Wii is probably a better choice than Xbox for at least some emulators but definitely not MAME because it does not support those authentic video modes.
I would say the only option is a PC with approprite VGA card and OS that provides "ring 0" environment to give you perfect VSYNC (definitely not Windows and Direct X). Currently I think it is GroovyMAME and AdvanceMAME (perhaps better but without important updates since 2006).
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Re: MAME for video game consoles
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