(Topic ID: 333889)

Bally Paragon Switches/Coils Don't Work in Gameplay

By mrgregb123

1 year ago


Topic Heartbeat

Topic Stats

  • 12 posts
  • 5 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 12 months ago by Quench
  • No one calls this topic a favorite

You

Linked Games

#1 1 year ago

I just acquired a Paragon that seems to have an odd issue.

In test, all coils (including flippers) work properly. Some switches work (drop targets) and many do not (roll-overs, top saucer holes, start button, flippers).

In gameplay, neither switches nor coils/flippers work (including the start button, so it's not possible to add addtl players). The game does reset the drops at game start.

Rectifier board is brand new and connections are good (swapped it thinking that was the issue). MPU is the nvram.weebly.com Revision 13 from 2019. So I assume it's not any problematic male pins on the MPU as it's too new and they all look shiny. Checked all fuses with multimeter and all good.

I'm at a loss here...I'm not too well versed in these older Bally games. Any ideas?

#2 1 year ago

Stuck tilt switch maybe? Is switch test mode reporting "0" in the ball in play display or some other number in the four player displays?

#3 1 year ago

Concur, sounds like game is going into tilt. Does tilt show as closed in switch test?

#4 1 year ago

Switch test doesn't seem to work accurately. Again, I'm thinking the MPU is funky. In switch test, even the start button doesn't show when pushed (though it starts a game just fine). All of the slam tilts are not contacted, the tilt pendulum is perfect center (also doesn't show in switch test when triggered). When you start a game, it kicks up the drops and plays the little jingle and the GI is on...not sure if it would still do that if it were in tilt?

#5 1 year ago

I just started up a game and turns out.... It does show the tilt lamp lit! So perhaps that's what's going on? Now how do I unstick the tilt short(s). The bobs and slam tilts physically are not tilted.

#6 1 year ago

I’d start by cutting a leg on the tilt bob capacitor, and pull the roll tilt ball out entirely (power down first).

#7 12 months ago
Quoted from mrgregb123:

Switch test doesn't seem to work accurately.

Please elaborate. What do the displays indicate when you enter switch test mode? Note, switch test mode only reports the lowest switch number that's closed. So let's say if switch 01 was closed, all/any other switch could be closed and you won't be told until you open switch 01.

It's most likely the capacitor across the plumb-bob mechanism that's faulty/shorted (common problem). Start a game and then disconnect the J3 cabinet switch harness connector from the MPU board. If tilt releases and the ball kicks out you know the fault is on the tilt board in the cabinet.

Quoted from mrgregb123:

When you start a game, it kicks up the drops and plays the little jingle and the GI is on...not sure if it would still do that if it were in tilt?

This always happens regardless of the tilt state. However it won't kick the ball out to the shooter lane until tilt is released.

#8 12 months ago

There are 3 tilt switches in the game. The plumb bob, roll cage just above it, and a swing tilt on the bottom of the playfield. Inspect them, then as zombywoof says, cut off the cap by the bob tilt and see if that clears the problem.

You may have an MPU connector issue if you cant get the game to go into self test. You'll need to fix that ASAP or it will be difficult to work on other issues. Examine J3-1 as that is the input for the test button.

#9 12 months ago

I started game and then unplugged the lower right MPU cable which eliminated the tilt condition and the game then played as normal. There are still a bunch of insert lights out, especially towards the upper part of the pf. So my next step is to eliminate the tilt physically by following your tips here and then trying to figure out why these inserts are all out.

#10 12 months ago

After cutting a leg of the tilt bob diode, the tilt issue went away! Thanks for your help in this. So do I just need to replace the diode and solder back for tilt to again work as it should?

#11 12 months ago
Quoted from mrgregb123:

After cutting a leg of the tilt bob diode, the tilt issue went away! Thanks for your help in this. So do I just need to replace the diode and solder back for tilt to again work as it should?

Yes, appears it is shorted out (test it to see), thereby making it look like the switch is always closed.

#12 12 months ago
Quoted from mrgregb123:

After cutting a leg of the tilt bob diode

The tilt plumb-bob has a capacitor soldered to it, not a diode. Purchase a 0.047uF aka 47nF capacitor as a replacement.
The tilt plumb-bob will still work without the capacitor but will not be as sensitive to fast closures.
Circuit wise, the diode for the tilt plumb-bob in the switch matrix is actually soldered on the back end of the tilt ball roll-cage (both of the tilt mechs are wired in parallel).

Promoted items from the Pinside Marketplace
From: $ 2.99
$ 119.95
Boards
Allteksystems
Boards

Reply

Wanna join the discussion? Please sign in to reply to this topic.

Hey there! Welcome to Pinside!

Donate to Pinside

Great to see you're enjoying Pinside! Did you know Pinside is able to run without any 3rd-party banners or ads, thanks to the support from our visitors? Please consider a donation to Pinside and get anext to your username to show for it! Or better yet, subscribe to Pinside+!


This page was printed from https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/bally-paragon-switches-coils-don-t-work-in-gameplay and we tried optimising it for printing. Some page elements may have been deliberately hidden.

Scan the QR code on the left to jump to the URL this document was printed from.