Im not Barry or Josh...but try reseating or make sure all your hdmi cables are plugged in and not loose from shipping. Double check backbox and under playfield left side.

Check the spring on coil into shooter lane. They can get bent and off to one side causing it to jam a little and not react correctly. Another theory, ive seen a loose nut or bolt get down there and block exit. Eject all 6 balls and inspect with flashlight and magnet extender.

does the machine jmmeadiately start reloading game or does it seem more like a full reboot of computer, eg you see messages in screens about “no signal”

If the latter, humor me and remove backglass and shut off amp, switch on top, then play a game and let’s see what happens.

If the former send me logs.

Is it hitting rail and falling back or not making it out?

It is more the latter. Turned off the amp and tried to play a game. Hit the start button and it immediately shut off and completely rebooted. I see no message about "no signal", however.

Hmm, so rebooted even quicker? Not what I was expecting. Expected same or better not worse.

Send me the logs, not sure they will show much, but let’s start there

Does the ball come out and bounce back, or just never comes out? Have you tried moving the coil plunger manually to make sure it's not binding? What's the resistance on the coil? Maybe it's bad and just weak.

Is the plug to the machine in back nice and tight? Sounds like an intermittent connection to the machine.

Is it something as simple as a loose power cord? They should fit snugly.

Same trough used by many manufacturers. If coil settings don't help. Watch the ball coming up. If it hits the flap that should divert it to the shooter lane and go back down. This WOZ fix will help. You need to bend the flap out a tiny bit.

http://www.pinplay.com/5/adjusting_the_ball_trough_on_woz.html

LTG : )

Will double check that when I get home. Game was fine and then all of a sudden it's not. But, that doesn't mean the cord's not the issue. If it turns out to be the problem, I'm blaming the cats!

I do, they're just a bunch of thugs

But it could also be an internal loose power connection.

once the coil strength is higher it does,cant seem to find a happy medium.

The plunger moves freely and sometimes the trough works 100%

Thank you...I will check this out and see if it helps.

It has always done this...now it keeps getting worse...to the point that it is annoying
Thanks

If you bend the rail, how does it screw back into the same holes?

It will still fit, you are just making slight change.

How many Houdini's are they making? Are they making for a few years as long as they sell, or is it a limited run?

Open run, no license.
As long as there is interest they can produce machines.

Just wanted to let everyone know that I just got pinstadium working on Houdini perfectly including the flashers for Ivan glow. Pictures before and after and us glow attaches.

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It may just be me.

But I like the before picture the best.

This title doesnt need pinstadium IMO...
Already comes with nice GI, and a pinstadium style strip on backboard.

You like the first picture better then the 3rd?

Also I agree it’s one of the least needy games out there but in a dark room makes it better. Especially if you do colored lighting and the theme and play field colors are perfect for uv glow effects.

Meh...

I guess it's not for me.

Please share your connection points / methods for GI and Flasher integration, I'm sure it will be helpful to someone else at some point. I thought about putting a set on mine but in my environment I don't think it necessarily needs them though it may still be cool and especially if anyone wants to do streaming they really help.

Hi point is on lower right play field pics attached

Flasher is connected to shaker connector.

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I installed pin stadium on my Houdini a few days ago as well. I didn’t wire the UV or the flashers. Wiring it to the shaker is an interesting idea. I may try that.

My mini review on the Pinstadium system for Houdini. I was a little underwhelmed especially given the price and the hype. If this was a $100 system it would be a no-brainer... $150 maybe... at $240 and not being able to use the $60 UV glow, I was not thrilled.

It was not obvious how to connect the flasher which was very disappointing. It does look like some people are finally getting it figured out. I was hesitant to experiment myself and damage the machine. I did try to slide the pins into the theater flasher but it wasn't a great solution and didn't look very good. I'll have to try this new approach from Ilushka85. It would be better if the Pinstadium guy would come up with a more integrated approach that shoving some cheap wires into an existing connector.

On the plus side it does looks great. The playfield is more vivid and bright. I add a little yellow/red color and it really gives Houdini that gas-light turn of the century feel. Again, it's a great product. Just overpriced and poorly integrates with Houdini.

I got my shaker motor installed this weekend and I really like the way it is incorporated into the game. The pop bumpers were already dramatic looking but this now puts them over the top. When installing the Shaker Motor, I found it a bit tough to mount the two screws that are located right against the left side of the cabinet until I remembered an old trick, put a tiny drop of super glue on the socket and lightly glue the fastener to it. This will keep the screw attached to the socket while you get it threaded. Afterwards, you just break it free (hence the TINY drop of super glue). Worked great for getting the two inside screws installed.

A suggestion for American Pinball would be to add a more detailed view in the installation instructions of the exact connection on the board where the Shaker Motor wiring harness plugs into. The view in the instructions was a photo taken from several feet away and wasn’t too clear. I was able to figure it out but it could have been a bit more detailed.

One additional idea for integrating the Shaker Motor into the game would be to tie it to the spinner shots (similar to how it is done with AC/DC). Maybe just during the waterwheel film mode if shaking for every spinner shot is too much.

These are just minor, nit-picky details and I really appreciate how hard the folks at American Pinball are working to sort out any small manufacturing and code adjustments. Keep up the great work.

Also received my shaker this weekend, and love it! It’s integrated in as well as the Dialed In shaker (maybe better!), which IMO is an exceptionally tasteful implementation.

I write these installation instructions occasionally as well (not for AP and I found these to be very well written - my only suggestion would be to include a flat diagram of the control board on the last page, so you can orient where the connector is supposed to go.

This is because even though the connectors are clearly marked on the board, they are a) written in very small print, and b) really tough to see inside the cabinet

Curious, what number machines guys are getting these past couple weeks? Are we to 300 yet?

Try the suggested fix first, but if that doesn't work, try changing out the balls. I had one that gave me fits in the scoop eject, and once I replaced it, all is fine. May not work, but an easy try to just swap them out from a different game.

I just got mine last week and I'm serial number 1245 (game #245).

Was just in the factory, saw 1304 in the shipping area.

I thought this was a couple good shots of the board and connections. Am I wrong? Let me know and I will get some better pictures.

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Barry,
My instructions that came with the motor were in black and white but the color pictures in your post are definitely easier to make out the details. I was thinking a straight shot directly looking at the board or a line drawing (similar to what Rdoyle1978 was talking about) would have been handy to have. Between my old eyes, bad lighting and getting access to the inside of the cabinet, I was fighting an uphill battle

I meant no offense, Barry - let me say again you guys are doing such a phenomenal job!

Maybe the black & white made it a touch harder to make out (although I think it’s actually fine, as there was enough contrast in the pictures)

I was suggesting a photo like this, or better yet, the line drawing from the manual (or both!). Replace your top photo with this one, keep your second photo, and voila! Houdini does it again!

... by the way I probably shouldn’t admit to this in an online forum but I thought I had plugged into the right connector at first, turned on the game - the shaker went CRAZY!! I turned it off and re-checked my work and what I thought had said “DRV-2” was actually “DRV-3”!

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Ok...you guys talked me into ordering the shaker motor - done.

Can someone from AP throw in the 3/16 rubber so I can fix the shooter lane? I only have a 5/16 laying around and didn't know if that would work.

Thanks.

Congratulations on moving a lot of games in a short amount of time. Any sign of sales slowing down? How would you describe the mood around the API offices?

That's amazing American Pinball!
300 machine's in 5 months.

Well if the next theme rumor is correct, I bet they are partying away! Lol

No worries.. What is clear to me might not be to someone else, just looking for feedback. Maybe with the black and white pictures I will add a close up...OR would you rather be able to pull the color version off the web??? LMK

Line drawings of the board and connectors would be the best, if that's an option. No problems with visibility then.

I’d package the b&w with the kit, but add the color version on the site also. It makes sense to put in the support section anyway IMO.

Yes, all updates, revisions, installation instructions, tweaks, should go up on webpage under support page. Big clear color pics for all with bad vision.
Thanks Barry.

I don't really monitor sales activity, I get a weekly heads-up on what production was for the week, otherwise I am focused on Houdini code, service issues and some game 2 rules development sprinkled in. As far as the mood, I think the folks on the line are usually pretty positive. Jim, Joe, Barry and I are always a little stressed and on edge, since we tend to get worked up over even the little stuff and we all wear multiple hats.

Given the odd numbering of the jacks on that board (which I continue to give the guy who designed it shit about), I agree a line drawing would be helpful. We are working on getting Barry better tools for the support section of the website so he can get docs up there quicker.

And for future runs of that board, connector labels at least 2x as big would be helpful. They're just too small to be much help as they are now, considering the dark area of the cab they inhabit.

If this is Service Bulletin #3 - what was #1 + #2?

3 is number 1, I never start anything with 1! We all have our little idiosyncrasies, especially in pinball!
;-/

Will a 5/16 rubber work for the shooter lane fix or must it be a 3/16?

Try it and report. That's only 1/16" smaller.

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Magic glass is on its way! Thanks Joe.

I dont have the shaker motor yet, but can someone post a picture of the shaker motor connection point from a wide angle so i can hook up the uv portion of my pinstadium lights? Also, anyone know the voltage going through that? 24v is the max according to pinstadium.

Thanks!