(Topic ID: 223382)

American pinball and Pinballstar make pinball great

By jrio101

5 years ago


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  • 454 posts
  • 143 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 5 years ago by PtownPin
  • Topic is favorited by 6 Pinsiders

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There are 454 posts in this topic. You are on page 1 of 10.
#1 5 years ago

Just want to share this with everyone. I have a Houdini that was built 04/2018. I had an issue loading one version of code which was taken care of by @rosh. After a successful install of new code I had a flipper coil stop working. Turns out that I have lost a coil driver board and it needs to be replaced. I was told it is 6 weeks out of warranty and American pinball will not replace. They will not replace a driver board on a 4 month old huo machine?

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#2 5 years ago

How long is the written warranty, 2 months?

#3 5 years ago

The manual states the warranty is for 90 days. 1 year for monitor.

C O V E R A G E
The Limited Warranty covers defective workmanship and materials as follows:
1 All parts of the Pinball Machine, excluding standard plastic, bumper post, rubber rings
and wear & tear parts for 90 days from the date of invoice or shipment by Distributor.
2 The LCD monitor for 1 Year from the date of invoice or shipment by Distributor.

LTG : )

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#4 5 years ago

90 days on a $7K+ machine is a joke...that being said I am sure their warranty policies were front and center prior to purchase....JJP and CGC offer much better warranties. Monitors rarely fail so the one year is basically worthless.

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#5 5 years ago

Wow! Doesn’t make a person feel confident in supporting and brand new, unproven, company....

#6 5 years ago

90 days?

OK yeah, it's already past that.

Perhaps they should start selling extended warranty plans for an additional nominal fee.

#7 5 years ago

It's out of warranty. You could try the usual suspects for board repair but I suspect buying a new one is your best course of action.

#9 5 years ago

Ewwww not good. That sucks

12
#10 5 years ago

I got a feeling this one's going to be popcorn worthy.

How much is the new board?

#11 5 years ago

I understand the written warranty is only 90 days. If this game was over 6 months old it would be no problem. But on a game that is 4 months old???

#12 5 years ago
Quoted from o-din:

I got a feeling this one's going to be popcorn worthy.

I hope not.

Warranty is easily found.

And first board I've heard of going bad on a Houdini pin.

Usually if electronic stuff works for a month or two, it keeps going for a long time.

I am sorry the OP isn't able to enjoy his pin, as he should be playing it and having fun.

LTG : )

#13 5 years ago
Quoted from jrio101:

I understand the written warranty is only 90 days. If this game was over 6 months old it would be no problem. But on a game that is 4 months old???

Well the warranty is the warranty. They are standing behind the warranty you agreed to when you purchased it.

I mean does it suck though? Yup.
90 days...pretty chintzy

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#14 5 years ago

4 months is a joke clear warranty or not. I have machines from 1993 whose boards still work correctly. If its an isolated incident why not just replace it for him? They risk losing their credibility doing this and from what i'm reading here they are already shaky. Very sad.

#15 5 years ago

Can I ask how you found out its the coil driver board?
And are you sure, or American pinball is sure?
Good point from above, how much is the board?

#16 5 years ago

So if they bend the rules for you then where does it end? Five months, six months, a year...? On a ninety day warranty it is a ninety day warranty. Shouldn't matter if its HUO or not. Yes it sucks but being a new manufacture I'm not surprised. Perhaps they will change there mind but I doubt it. Good luck though.

John

#17 5 years ago

BarryJ was very helpful on troubleshooting this with me through email. Used a jumper to test coil around board. A new board costs me $95

#18 5 years ago

I hope you get your machine figured out, but your experience doesn't reflect my experience with American in the slightest. Barry and rosh have been constant in their monitoring of the Houdini thread, and have went above and beyond in my opinion to address feedback from the community.

#19 5 years ago

WoW that warranty sucks but it was listed so not much you can do.

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#20 5 years ago

It's not about the $95 for me. It's about a company taking care of customers.

#21 5 years ago

Yes rosh and BarryJ are great and do an awesome job. It's the company policy in this case.

#22 5 years ago
Quoted from jrio101:

It's not about the $95 for me. It's about a company taking care of customers.

I can see this both ways, but when it comes right down to it you agreed to buy a pinball with a 90 day warranty for a certain price and for that price they agreed to sell it to you on those terms.

If the warranty is 90 days then it is unreasonable to expect them to replace anything free of charge and claiming that they do not back their product is somewhat misleading as they would have fixed it under warranty within 90 days and will sell you a new part outside of 90 days.

Let me ask this: If the machine was better than you expected and lasted 5 years without a breakdown would you have sent them more money after that time? Just something to think about

#23 5 years ago
Quoted from glasairpilot:

I can see this both ways, but when it comes r
Let me ask this: If the machine was better than you expected and lasted 5 years without a breakdown would you have sent them more money after that time? Just something to think about

Uh, what a strange comment. This thread is about a warranty.

#24 5 years ago

How did you pay??? When I buy a high dollar item I like to use American Express, as they extend the warranty on items up to 1 year......other cards offer similar protection.

#25 5 years ago

that's terrible. i know the feeling. i had a sony 4k tv break a few years back. ...just 14 days out of warrenty and they wanted more for panel inside to fix it than the tv cost. i'll never buy a sony again.

did you contact your distributor for help?

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#26 5 years ago

I bought a new board from pinball life. I have had other pinball companies take care of things well past the stated warranty and just thought AP would do the same on a game that is not very old.

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#27 5 years ago

Terrible business decision on AP's part...I get they need to draw a line in the sand at some point, but pissing off a new customer isn't worth $100...they made a bad judgement call in my mind....that being said its not a surprise as their probably running on fumes....buying a game from a new company is always a big gamble...

#28 5 years ago

Haven’t a lot of Houdini owners sold the machine before the warranty expired

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#29 5 years ago
Quoted from PtownPin:

Terrible business decision on AP's part...I get they need to draw a line in the sand at some point, but pissing off a new customer isn't worth $100...they made a bad judgement call in my mind....that being said its not a surprise as their probably running on fumes....buying a game from a new company is always a big gamble...

I completely agree. Bad move on AP's part. This thread alone might cause one person to not buy one of their machines. If that is the case, they will lose much more than $95 (their cost was probably less than half that amount). On the flip side, if they had made a goodwill gesture and replaced the bad board, it might have been reported here and caused other Pinsiders to buy their machines. At the very least, they should have replaced the board and requested the bad board be returned so they could have figured out the cause of the failure.

13
#30 5 years ago

I’ve had lots of companies honor their product well past the written warranty. JJP is one. That goes a long way with me and builds loyalty. On the flip side, I’ve had companies be overly restrictive, and I’m hesitant to buy from those companies again.

#31 5 years ago

i find this troubling but hopefully AP will make things rights. These guys have the best presence of any pinball manufacturer on pinside.

Did you speak with your distributor?

#32 5 years ago
Quoted from Pinphila:

These guys have the best presence of any pinball manufacturer on pinside.

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#33 5 years ago

Sorry but anyone who is supporting AP on this is pathetic! They need to make this right! Nothing more foolish than a company losing hundreds of thousands of dollars for a $50 part. AP, you are not selling damn cup cakes, you are selling $7000 machines, this community sticks by its brothers and this community can crush you if we decide you don’t deserve our hard earned cash. Like Houdini, you will disappear!

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#34 5 years ago

As a comparison I bought a WOZ RR last year that had a late 2015 build date. I had an issue with fuses blowing out. JJP spent several hours on the phone diagnosing the problem. Once diagnosed they actually sent me a new part and didn't charge a dime. At that time they obtained my loyalty. Since then I've purchased all their games and have POTC LE on order....the manufacturers in this business already have a great deal in that they essentially provide zero on site support and rely on home owners to actually to the repairs....replacing a part every now and then is the cost of doing business, and smart if they want customer loyalty.

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#35 5 years ago

Another comparison: I bought a MET Pre used, and the magnet board went out. I mailed stern to confirm if that was the issue and Chas said it was and asked for my address to send me another one - even though it was over a year old and second hand. People bash Stern for quality here, but I thought they went above and beyond for me.

#36 5 years ago

If they offered to sell me a board at cost I would of been satisfied. But to offer it at the same cost as pinball life plus AP wanted to charge me $9.95 shipping.

#37 5 years ago

Curious, yes the game was Built the end of April but I suspect you didn't Receive it on the build date? Assuming shipped, registered and installed in say May seems like they are splitting hairs on the liability?? Could be wrong. With that said this is pinball and electronics, if every time a system fails in any way we are drawn to call them out in a public forum I suspect they will need to increase warranty reserves (prices) and start sternly enforcing policy on everyone uniformly no matter what the situation. Not saying you were wrong to point this out but I find it hard to believe you exhausted every opportunity to work with them directly. They have got to be the most straight lace honest and committed to Client success pinball company I have ever dealt with. Just my view anyway.

#38 5 years ago
Quoted from jrio101:

I bought a new board from pinball life. I have had other pinball companies take care of things well past the stated warranty and just thought AP would do the same on a game that is not very old.

It's like Dayhuff said, if they bend the rules for you then where does it end? If any company with a stated warranty bends the rules for you (or anybody) then I'm pretty sure that legally they have to extend the same consideration to everyone else. And then where does it stop?

I'm looking at the manual for my Data East Robocop that was built in 1989. Page iii of the manual says there is warranty for 60 days on printed circuit boards only. And, you , the buyer, have to pay for the freight to return the defective board to the seller.

You are getting 90 days. In this world of warranties we live in 90 days sounds chintzy, but in the pinball world 90 days sounds pretty generous from what it used to be.

In one post you imply if the game was 6 months old you would be cool with that. But you are not OK with 4 months? Why does the 2 extra months make a difference to you?

And if you were 7 months in and this problem cropped up would you be here saying the wty. should be for 12 months?

And yet, in another post you imply that if AP would sell you a board at cost that all would be well. What is wholesale cost on a $95.00 retail product?

So, what does AP need to do beyond its stated policy to make you satisfied? Extend your wty. or sell to you at cost?

#39 5 years ago

I was thinking about getting a Houdini at 1 point but I saw one go up in smoke at level 257 in a Tournament while Roger Sharpe was playing. It also reset on me in the middle of 2 games, that and the tight shots made my decision for me.

#40 5 years ago
Quoted from Fezmid:

Another comparison: I bought a MET Pre used, and the magnet board went out. I mailed stern to confirm if that was the issue and Chas said it was and asked for my address to send me another one - even though it was over a year old and second hand. People bash Stern for quality here, but I thought they went above and beyond for me.

Agreed. They get a lot of shit on here (some is warranted) but they’ve always taken care of me whenever I’ve had an issue regardless of the age of the machine. Chaz is the man.

#41 5 years ago

I would have to echo many of the words spoken above.
Personally I have found both JJP and Stern to offer a very high level of service; and feel they have gone over and above the warranty period in a number of cases I have experienced.
In any event, I realize AP is a much smaller organization but still hope they can be a bit more flexible in these types of situations.

#42 5 years ago

Do you know if this is an AP board? I know it's a P-ROC game, any chance they also make the coil board? If it's P-ROC, perhaps there's some troubleshooting info/parts list on their web page.

#43 5 years ago

I’ll soon have an opportunity to play a Houdini, and I’m very, VERY excited to do so, but there’s one thing that sticks out in my mind...

In my years in the buying/collecting part of this hobby, I’ve never seen a new game be bought so much and resold so quickly.

It seems like every week 2-3 used Houdini’s hit the Pinside Market. Now a game that’s upwards of a month out of warranty (perhaps less depending on build date vs setup date) is getting the shaft on a board claim? I’m sorry but that’s concerning. Not a great way to build faith in the community as a fledgling company.

#44 5 years ago

This is the reason I only buy Stern.

Do the others make good theme pinball machines - yes; but to small to stand behind in the long run.

#45 5 years ago

Did you buy the game on a credit card? They will double the manufacturer's warranty up to 1 year.

Edit. Someone else already mentioned this.

#46 5 years ago

What do you guys think is an acceptable warranty for a $7k piece of commercial equipment? I think there should be a tamper proof game counter like a cars odometer. Then set the warranty to something like 6 months or 2000 plays, whatever comes first.

#47 5 years ago
Quoted from JoinTheCirqus:

Uh, what a strange comment. This thread is about a warranty.

My point was that each party agreed to buy/sell according to the terms that were clearly spelled out. The buyer feels that they did not get what they paid for even though the machine broke after the warranty was over. How long does the machine have to perform without failure after the warranty expires to make it it worth the purchase price? At what point do you feel you paid too little because it performed better than it should?

I agree that if it truly failed after 4 months that is pretty weak; however, I would have a hard time saying that the manufacturer did not stand behind it's product. If I ran the company I would have probably fixed it for the buyer and had them sign a good-will form to stop further implied warranty liability. The company has decided not to do this and probably will pay a price for it.

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#48 5 years ago
Quoted from Yoko2una:

I’ve never seen a new game be bought so much and resold so quickly.

You didn’t watch rob zombie news then. People were dropping those like bad habits. They are still being sold for crazy losses.

For me, stern can make these deals because they have been around for forever. If I’m a brand new company, I’m doing what I can to the best of my ability to help troubleshoot, but you have to draw the line somewhere and they did.

Can’t blame em. Sucks, but technically the warranty is up.

Sorry to hear OP. At least it’s a cheap board.

#49 5 years ago
Quoted from Luckydogg420:

What do you guys think is an acceptable warranty for a $7k piece of commercial equipment?

Theirs seems in line with other manufacturers and even more than ones offered in the past. So that is fair in my eyes.

#50 5 years ago
Quoted from glasairpilot:

My point was that each party agreed to buy/sell according to the terms that were clearly spelled out. The buyer feels that they did not get what they paid for even though the machine broke after the warranty was over. How long does the machine have to perform without failure after the warranty expires to make it it worth the purchase price? At what point do you feel you paid too little because it performed better than it should?
I agree that if it truly failed after 4 months that is pretty weak; however, I would have a hard time saying that the manufacturer did not stand behind it's product. If I ran the company I would have probably fixed it for the buyer and had them sign a good-will form to stop further implied warranty liability. The company has decided not to do this and probably will pay a price for it.

Just a question as this has been brought up several times. What spelled out literature with the warranty is everyone talking about? At every show I ever attended or distributor I visited the Only literature I received to make a decision or purchase had Nothing written about warranty pre-sale or post? Was there a third page or hidden text I missed on that? Yes its in the manual but thats a bit After the sales agreement I think.

Houdini-Pinball-Flyer-2.pdfHoudini-Pinball-Flyer-2.pdf

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