Well, an update on my NIB pin. Here's what I did:

1. I talked to Dave at API. He recommended some WD40 tech spray to "Lube" up the ball contacts on switch. I did that for the catapult switch and VUK switch. Both were sticking some. I also tried to gently bend the wires on both switches. Seem to be a little better, but catapult switch still needs a little more adjusting.
2. Ball lock switches. I took off the ramp enough to get to the switch bank. After getting ramp out of the way, I just tried to bend/move the entire bank of switches back towards the center. After that, I went to switch test to make sure all 3 ball lock switches were properly activating.
3. While taking off ramp, I noticed 2 screws holding the ramp only had one washer each. The two most visibly screws holding the ramp had 2 washers each. One washer above the ramp and one washer below. You might want to check yours to make sure all 4 screws holding down the ramp have 2 washers each. If not, it could damage and cause the ramp to break/split at these points. See pictures.

So, after doing the above, the lock switches seem to be working. I still need to adjust catapult switch. 70% time, it works perfectly, the other 30% I have to shake the machine to make the switch activate. Also, while playing one game, ball just ended and flippers stopped working ending my ball. Happened for all 3 balls. Happened once and I cleared audit. Haven't seen it happen before, but is this a power issue?

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I recall that the code was provided with the order summary. If not, you can ask for it after your order and they will send it in an email. It is easiest to apply it to subsequent orders, not the actual power supply order.

Absolutely not. My Mirco PF has been outstanding, regardless of the somewhat recent PF issues.

Hey, I call it out here prior! (LOL):

Really just yanking your chain - not everyday someone can chime in before LTG gets it right. That's a badge of honor!!

All in good humor - good for LTG and you clarifying further.

both are great playfields, just different, with the most obvious difference being the inserts. I like the opaque, so that is what I have on my game.

Not sure on the balls ending like that - maybe it's thinking you have more balls in play than you do somehow? I do recall having to bend up the catapult switch quite a bit to get it to register consistently. I just pulled it up a bit so there was more of the switch bar pulled up into the catapult scoop

My Mirco playfield is beautiful. The only one I have that is nicer is the new one I put in my FH. No manufacture mark on it though!

The Houdini pf does have one insert that has a small crack in it. They should have replaced the insert. I try to not look at it.

I want to clarify. WD40 is a brand name with multiple products under that brand.
I was recommending a contact cleaner for electronics they make: https://www.amazon.com/Company-300554-Specialist-Contact-Cleaner/dp/B084VP9JJK
NOT the original lubricant.

I’m sorry rosh and the AP family. I sold my first game because I wanted a NIB and then I apologize for almost selling my Houdini again! The master escape artist almost got away again but after I Dialed it in with the shaker and knocker upgrades, I haven’t looked back. This game is top notch and American pinball somehow is still a sleeper hit company. These guys deserve great success and rosh has programmed a beauty. Finally broke 2million lol.

Quite glad you posted this clarification. I was horrified!

Picked up Houdini today... looking forward to exploring the game!

Congrats. That will keep you busy for awhile!

bobukcat did you had some time to find out whats going on with the gamepower?

Funny you asked because I was just getting ready to post an update. I still haven't had a chance to borrow the meter from my brother but since it was rainy all day here yesterday I dug through my parts stashes and realized I had the necessary bits to cobble something together I've been thinking of trying. I wired the bank of the SDB that controls the magnets to the old ~55VDC power supply in the game. I did have to jumper the grounds together which made me a little nervous but the 5 / 12 VDC on the "old" one is already tied to the ground of the new 48VDC supply and since there was no tested AC or DC differential between them I did it and all is working well. My initial testing with getting the game into "hectic mode" (Trunk MB + Seance plus a lot of flipper flipping) shows promising results for both flipper feel and the catapults maintaining accuracy. The other unintended effect is that the scoop is now providing a wonderfully consistent delivery to the right flipper, something I've had a hard time achieving with it powered by the 48VDC. I would like to use the 55 VDC for the flippers since it's a slight bump in voltage but the same SDB bank that controls the flippers also does the catapult and that immediately started missing during heavy load like it used to before the new 48V supply was added. The bad part is while play testing I seem to be unable to put together any decent games to really test it, it may have something to do with the beer and bourbon consumption last night after I completed wiring in the old supply. I'll try again this afternoon and post an update. The good news is that this isn't too obtrusive/would be easy to remove and there's even an open side on the interlock switch I can wire-in if I decide to make it permanent. If anyone else wants to try the same PM me but if this really does help flipper performance under heavy load I'll post my full process with pictures later.

What is expected in the next software update?

Uber cheap modest mods:

Darice Assorted, Part Felties... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004N5OJLY

https://www.etsy.com/listing/715715622/50-pcs-assorted-color-curved-rectangular?ref=yr_purchases

Hope it helps!

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Not tying the grounds together would have been a bad, and potentially costly, decision.

Yes, floating ground is never a good thing but not really knowing the design of both supplies had me a little worried. Same with not having actual schematics for the P3ROC SDB so I went into this with an abundance of caution and patience. On a side note it is amazing how long the caps on the OG 55V supply hold a charge after turning off the game. Of course nothing is drawing them down but compared to the new one it's interesting.

Have a second Upgrade supply 50V and i would Set Up the Magnets to this powersupply. Your wiring would be interesting @bobukcat.

For the ground i would use a new ground line from the Line Filter If that's the better was. So that all 3 supplies (old PS for 5/12V, upgradesupply for Magnets and Upgrade PS1 for the machine) coming from one point - each with an oent Wire.

The only Thing i Need to know ist how to bring the 50v to the right Board and devices (Magnets).

I look forward to your instructions and a few pictures if possible and i Hope rosh can Chime in if needed.

Thank you

I'm on the Beta code, and in Seance I hit the ramp then scoop for the first combo and it reboot. I have noticed on earlier games after I hit a combo it was rebooting, so not sure if the seance played a part in it.

Send to Josh. I had a similar glitch and he was able to program it out of the code for the upcoming revision.

I just cant wait for the revision.

Its long overdue.

Maybe now that Hot Wheels had a revision ....

Just hoping.

It is API"s first game.

It would be good if they could finish it and sort out all the bugs.

And there are quite as few...

I love the game. Its a shame that more attention isnt given towards it.

Folks, please rest assured that American Pinball is committed to making all of our customers happy. Not gonna lie, rosh and I have been intently focused on Hot Wheels for the past few months, but we appreciate the bug reports on the active Houdini (and Oktoberfest!) betas, and will have new code updates coming soon!

What’s the most stable code revision?

In my experience it is the last released code that's posted on their website, I believe date code is April something 2019.

That sounds interesting, I have wondered if something like this was not possible.

I have it all written up with pictures, just need to go through it one more time to proof-read it. I'm also looking at a different possible "solution" to try as well. I'll be sure to post what I have in this thread when I'm done.

yes my crimpparts are here and on sunday i will try a new second powersupply and post some pictures

Took me a while to get Houdini set up... but, wow, I'm totally blown away by the game and the overall build quality. I'd played Houdini several times on location, but that example was poorly maintained. This probably help feed my impression that AP had its heart half-in pinball (perhaps aimlessly stumbling along...). I think some of that came from constant comments by Kaneda, slamming the company for just about everything.

To start, the cabinet is JJP level if not better. High-quality materials from top to bottom. The finish on the decals is beautiful. Art is beautiful. The attention to detail in the art and how it aligns with features of the cabinet... beautiful. The backglass and LCD integration are simply stunning.

The playfield is loaded... lots of fine touches. Anything but cheap.

Gameplay? Love it. Challenging. Shots are tight but findable. Unlike ACNC (which I also own and many have compared to...) you can get some really nice flow and combos going relatively easily.

I'm totally stoked to have this game in-house.

My only complaint is the sound quality of the speakers. It falls slightly short of the rest of the game.

Gotta say: Awesome job AP. What a first game. Can't believe how much hate it's received! Lame.

You have a new fan!

You can play with the settings on the amp a little for some sound adjustment.

You can add a sub via the amp.

You can add a bass speaker to the cab.

The amp its behind the monitor.

I almost have my Houdini dialed in. My only remaining issue is the seance scoop. some times, it looks like the ball hits the top of the scoop and falls back into scoop. Adjusting power doesn't seem to help.

I read old post by Rosh. What have others done to address this?

Thanks.

Its normal for the ball to barely make it out of the scoop.

It normal for it to take a couple tries once in awhile.

Sounds like it working about right.

Add a bass driver to the cab? You mean cutting into the wood?

The only physical adjustment I think I need to make are with the pops. They aren’t a sensitive as they should be

TOTALLY AGREE!
Great Pinball and so many cool Modes. Up there with JJP!!

I stuck external amplified sub on mine. Made a HUGE difference, there's actually some really good bass hiding in the sound track that you don't really experience using just the pin's speakers.

If your on Day 1 or 2 don't worry about the pops yet. I found mine to loosen up over time, kind of like a new motor, give them a 100 plays to work them selves in, then reevaluate.

Ive considered it.

Probably will do it.

Just heard that my NIB Houdini is shipping Monday.

Color me happy!

External sub under the machine is so much simpler. Although i understand you may want it all contained. I have an external sub my Deadpool shares with a couple of other machines happily and it lifts the sound package very well..

I have two active subs on 6 pins. Other than Houdini, I clip on to the other 5 pin's woofers thru a balun (balanced to unbalanced) adapter (~$8, Amazon) that converts a speaker level input to a low level output, and also provides isolation. The balun is just really for car audio so the pavement pounder guys can add extra amps, but it works equally well for my application Then those 6 lines go to a cheapie mixer that drives the active subs. The mixer is nice since you can adjust levels independently, alter the low pass freq, etc. It even has special effects, but I don't use them.

If you do add a woofing internally, make a box for it so it actually sounds good. Honestly, I would't bother, but to each his own!

Grab a cheap passiv Car Hifi Subwoofer in a Case. That works great for me and it's easy to Install. And it's about 50 bucks only.

Did you mount it to the underside?

For me, on the floor at the back of the machine.

It made a big difference and I just used a smallish sub from a cheap speaker set.

It's in a Subwoofer in a case and stands under the cabinet in the Floor. I can Post a picture tomorrow.

The Bass ist deep and fits perfect with Houdini. For me it's a Must have

Please do

This is actually a HUO machine, not NIB.

I’m sure the leaf switches need to be adjusted.

Apologies for hijacking MigthyGraves post, but here's mine. Both 8" subs. Different sizes tho. You don't need a lot of subwoofer to make a big difference. For me, two 8" woofers are fine for the six pins. Actually, really impressive for the most part. Stern Star Trek Pro is seriously fun w/a sub.

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Join the club. NIB. Got everything set up, trunk working great, havent had a miss yet. No problem hitting the shots. I am having issues with the flippers tho. Seems like they lose power randomly and at least once a game they start to go up then flop down. Machine does have the new power supply in it. I tried looking thru the pages for any kind of help but couldn’t find any. Maybe something about EOS upgrade. Game looks great and I like the layout but jeez, these flipper issues almost makes it unplayable.