The best

Thank You, I will keep checking back!

Just ordered two of these badboys. Can't wait to get them installed.

My new USB cables are arriving any day. I can't get over this pin! Such an amazing pin. Really excited to get it dialed in and using y'all's tips to make it more reliable.

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Not necessary at all if you swap the 12 volt power supply and change the wiring.

Same here. Mine has been down for 2 years now with the same issue and nobody has been able to help besides "could be board". But noone offers the boards or anything. I will be getting mine on the bench and I am going to start shotgunning the parts on it that I can. Worked fine for like a month, then just stopped but like yours, itll move slightly when I disconnect then reconnect it but thats it. I replaced the stepper motor driver and nothing.

Guys....slacking on my responses, messing w some other games...definitely stepper board, pretty much plug and play, just a dab of hot glue on the connector so it doesn't vibrate loose, and ensure good heat sink bond. Small and inexpensive...will dig up a pic and source tomorrow...very solid after..

Certain @ Averell has the info and up in here somewhere...alot to digest though...

Here's the PCB.....https://www.free-play.se/en/electronics/circuit-boards/alien-stepper-pcb.html Grab this, as they tend to come and go (w Heighway printed on it)

Driver = A4988 Stepper Motor Drive...all over ebay...cheap.

Be certain your actual stepper motor (the small one operating the jaw) is not binding...even a new one. There's a bullet proof version, metal gears and metal case, that I installed in mine (thank you RC helicopter industry)......I'll shoot a pic of that tomorrow (fading here)...again, none of these are pricey or hard to get.

Most of the problems fell back to loose wiring, but some posted of the plastic gears stripping in the small stepper....

If you google "Alien Pinball stepper motor" it brings you to a great place in the thread when it was being sorted out.....truthfully, most every repair ever required, regardless of build date is in the thread as there was never any factory support. Google search is your friend......

MK6PIN
Thank you ... not for solving this problem, but to show that this was more than one time toppic in this thread.
I can remember that I also linked to a ebay sell some days ago. All information is in this thread.
It is hard to believe that people owe a Alien, the greates pin ever, and can not play it for 2 years due they have no time or intrest to read in the internet and find a solution for THEIR problem.

If we really get a last update from Brian sometimes, I will update the rulesheets, too.
Maybe I put in a section for troubleshooting with descriptions and advices how to fix the known issues and what needed parts?

Practice what you preach there bud. I already replaced it and stated I did back in 2020 and it did not fix it. So MY problem is not resolved, but thanks for the passive aggressive attitude and saying I have no interest to read when I have been on this thread and an Alien owner WAY LONGER than you ever have been.

There's very little to that board, just some passive components. I don't think there's much to go wrong except cold solder joints.

Agreed, but recall some having an issue w that switch on the back way back when...just trying to cover the bases...

If voltage there, board and driver checkout, my only guess the the stepper itself binding...remember fiddling with mine when I replaced w the metal version to get it just right ( which hole in the movement arm, bending actuator arm wire slightly, etc.

Got good at it after awhile....easiest for me was to unbolt entire Xeno, place on top of backboard ( braced) so I could put it through the paces while game was energized.

If the jaw is dead...you can trace the wires back to the main. Pcb and look for a loose or broken connection...remember helping someone else way back, and the blue wire had become loose in the connector.

Just throwing darts here...

Yeah, checked continuity and it was all good there. But at this point as I have tried what others have done, I will go back over all of it again as it has happened before where even buying brand new didnt mean that part worked.

Agreed.....we've been dealing w NOS for some time ( as you know)....hit or miss w some of these items, hence my PCB comment....best of luck hunting!!!

( the only part I'm aware of that's unobtanium currently are the black pcb's...

A complete blade lighting kit will soon be available. For those who would be interested contact me by PM

2 blades
1 backboard
1 inverter
1 connector for three element.

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I must have missed it but can post more pictures of what they look like when lit?

You will still miss the printed sideart.

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Thank you domDK for your photos. I had modifications made to the blades (see photo) the backboard is new, I am waiting for receipt within 1 week to test the complete kit that I had produced.

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Here is the pack is available. On the 1st photo all that will be in the pack. And what its gives once in the pinball machine. As you could see on the photos of domDK. PM

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Very good

Price for the whole set ?
Including sideart and backboard in PET-G ?

Very good !

Does anyone have dimensions for the black plastic piece in the airlock scoop?

This guy:
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/alien-pinball-official-game-thread/page/572#post-6264109

Mine doesn’t have that piece but, I have a chunk of delrin that I can cut to size. Similar to what people are adding to the channel that moves the ball from the alien magnet into the scoop.

Thanks!

Well done!!!! This game is so damn beautiful!!!!!!

Damn that looks amazing, and Averall approves lol

I still cry, I've never seen, much played Alien

You can download all parts here:

https://www.flippermarkt.de/community/howto/cms/pages/restauration/alien.php

https://www.flippermarkt.de/community/howto/cms/pages/bauanleitungen/alien---div.-ergaenzungen.php

Thanks averell. I only have one kit left. I didn't think there would be so much demand. But it's true that it gives life even more to this superb pinball machine

Small problem of freeze when ambush it launches as if I opened the door to force a reboot. Who has had this problem before?

Sound like weak power supply for the PC mainboard.

Are you talking about the 230v power supply? I have already changed the 12v power supply for a more powerful one.

Ok, if you have already swapped the 12 volt power supply this shouldn't be the reason.
Next you can check the SD on the mainboard, sometimes they have a bad connection or malfunctional data structure caused by unfinished or bad updates.
I had two machines with these issues and after a recovery of the SD and new updates everything was fine again.
And of course, check the wiring and keep the usb-data stream away from the coils.
Another idea is to use USB-Header on the mainboard to interrupt shared USB connection.
In fact you will have one USB port for each IO-Board.
On factory side they use shared USB ports and in my opinion this is one of the main reasons, that the game is not working properly.

A little lost. I will check my usb. I don't really understand what a usb-header is and which one do I need? I never looked, I didn't think it was an SD card.

Here you can see the blue USB-Header on the mainboard.
If you use two of these parts you can use only one USB-Port for each IO-Board without possible interferrance of data support.
But you have to use longer HEX-Posts between mainboard and protector.
I only use shared USB for USB-Dongle (Keyboard and Mouse) and Update Interface.

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On the photo you have connected the usb of the IO board?

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Yes, you can use one USB port for each IO-Board.
The cabinet IO-Board should be connected to the USB3.0 port.

I checked it's the usb ports that shit it moves a lot. I blocked as best I could and I had no problem. Can you confirm that with a usb-header its little help? I'm going to see to change the usb cords too. Does anyone have a 3D file to create cable holders to hold the usb cables apart from the reels, thank you

Hi there,
Not for the first time a Mosfet on the IO-board smokes off. What could be the reasons for this?I have already adjusted the coil force, but now it has happened again.
Thanks in advance

Hi there,
Not for the first time a Mosfet on the IO-board smokes off. What could be the reasons for this? I have already adjusted the coil force, but now it has happened again..
Thanks in advance

your mosfet smoked straight away? if yes, it may be too much voltage passing through, it may be a problem upstream

Not straight away, during Gameplay.

What version of boards? What software?

Same board, same failure point? Upstream might be the correct path to check....board just taking the brunt of what's going on...

board v. 1.4B, software 1.4
i´m no professional, where should i check "upstream"?

Is it the same board that's failing? " upstream" just encompasses anything in front ( electronically) that could cause a subsequent device to fail ( coil, transistor, wire short, etc.).
Not unique to Alien btw....

Example....your breaker in the main panel trips ( or worse) you start smelling smoke. Not the breaker or insulation fault, but " upstream" you followed a geniuses direction to color code LINE voltage ( 115v AC) with white as line, and black as neutral.

This is reversed and causing the real problem ( potentially lethal in this case) and " upstream" of the seen failure....

Air Lock question

During multiball ( I avoid the airlock best I can) however if 2-3 balls go in there the coil has a hard time getting one out. Then it stops, ball search will do it's thing but no luck. Out comes the magnet.

Does anyone else have this issue? Any fixes?

If two balls goes to the airlock mine have not problems, the two goes out at the same Time . With 3 i dont know...

I confirm that with 3 it's shit I had to stop the pinball machine to recover the balls

Ok perfect. Was hoping it was just mine but also glad to know it's not.

Thank you for the responses.