BOTH BOTH BOTH BOTH BOTH

I'm pretty sure Stern ColorDMDs come with everything you need for either SAM or Whitestar.

I have one in my LOTR. It looks sick. They did an outstanding job on it. So much so that, 10 min ago, I just ordered one for Xmen...

So I guess I am with Rarehero. BOTH!

Both for sure, but if I had to pick one or the other, I'd probably actually go with XM just because of the sheer volume of animations, of course it does look awesome in LOTR as well.

Yeah, both.

Lotr looks amazing. makes destroying the ring that much cooler. Xmen looks ok I guess

No additional parts are required for mounting in LOTR or XMEN. Everything is included, and the same display works in both games.

Only new Stern games that shipped with metal speaker panels (ST, IM, MET PRO LED, etc) require the extra parts (clear display shield and hex standoffs).

I don't own XMEN but I just played an Xmen LE and the animations would look spectacular in color. I have a LOTR with color DMD and its crazy how great it is. I say go both. But if you had to choose, I would go with whatever game you play the most. Good luck!

That's correct. The same display works in any supported Stern game. Games with metal speaker panels require the clear shield and standoffs (sold separately).

The same display will also work in supported WPC games with the addition of a WPC installation kit.

LOTR

They do. I have a Color DMD in my ACDC which im pretty sure is Sam. Whereas LOTR is Whitestar, which was more work for the installation but the directions were great and came with all parts necessary for install on either system.

I have not seen it in XM yet, but I have one in my LOTR and absolutely LOVE it. In fact I think I have liked ColorDMD a lot in every game I've seen it in.

For me, upscaling. The problem for me with the dots is that because fewer pixels are lit on the LCD, the display just looks dimmer when next to other displays. The good news is it is very easy to cycle through the different modes and see what you like best.

Be very careful with the ColorDMDs. You put one in one machine then you start thinking about how nice all your machines would look if you got rid of all the orange and red monochrome displays. Starts to hurt the wallet.

So far every ColorDMD machine I've seen has looked amazing. LOTR is no exception.

while both look better in color, I think that you're going to be more impressed with it in x-men. the reason being is that LotR is a whitestar title, and like the b/w titles, there were a limited number of colors that could be applied per frame (9 or 12 max, I believe).

with the SAM titles (ad/dc, metallica and now x-men), the 15 levels of luminosity is preserved in the frames including the addition of color, giving each frame up to 193 unique colors (or much more depth to the colorizing). just my opinion

Dots XL. Smoothing looks like weird bad graphics....Dots XL looks like awesome retro pixel art.

Dots XL pretty much solves this...but yeah, it's easy enough to scroll through the different options (there's also Tile and 8-bit) ...see which you like best.

Wow! When did the color DMD come out for X-Men?

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That modded Wolverine looks like he's reacting to getting hit in the balls lol

Where is the firmware update link for Xmen? I am not seeing it on their website.

http://www.colordmd.com/support_firmware.html

Announced today: https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/colordmd-announces-x-men-official

Next weekend.

Are the DMD's shipping with the extra parts for those games yet, or are the separate?

"The current bracket shipped with new displays works with both old and new Stern backboxes. New brackets may also be purchased separately to update/relocate older displays for use with Stern games."

To the OP. You have lots of great advice in this thread. I will sum it up in one post.

When you order for the SAM/Whitestar it will work in either.

I moved mine from LOTR to AC/DC to try the new AC/DC code. Looked too fantastic to remove.

When in LOTR the DotsXL looked fantastic.

Both games needed a ColorDMD.

So you need two. That sums it up.

The bracket is included. The Pinbits shield and hex standoffs are sold as a separate kit on the ACCESSORIES page of our store. The Pinbits shield and hex standoffs add extra cost that are not needed for most supported games.

DotsXL for the win.

LOTR is a great game to put a colorDMD into. As a player, you'll get plenty of opportunities to enjoy the enhanced animations on the display.

Do Both !!! there both well deserving and both my favourites!!!

I say buy 3 to save on shipping. One for LOTR, one for Xmen, and one to run sigma on any machine because it looks awesome. Then when the next colorization comes out, you already have one.

I took mine out of NGG and its already in XMLE waiting for the update.

Canada..
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Australia..
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This is why I don't know if I'll ever get into these. It was bad enough on par, with shipping, when I was facing $500 each more or less, and having to consider if I replace one, it will look odd, so I'll likely have to do all of my machines. Now that it will be $700++, with 24 DMDs... Yikes.

Great product, and done well, but I'm hoping the parts to do the DIY and the opportunity for a super bulk buy solves this for me down the road.

Also, glad you got a LOTR, HUO? LE? Make sure you DON'T us the POTD diverter onto the metal ramp, just buy all the protectors for the shire!

Because you won't gather souls as quickly, which are needed to start RotK MB.

Exactly. You can collect extra souls in the Shire.

Wait, do you plastics protectors? If not, wait on ordering those, as the arwen plastic gets hammered and breaks. The protector set has two for that one to sandwich it in. There is also an insert for the shire, and a Cliffy for it, and a clear in pinbits protector for the wood rail as well.

As Rob stated, there are massive souls in there, especially the second and third time through loading up rotk mb. I question if anyone has got to valinor with this protector, you would have a hard road with it for sure.

Congrats on the pickup. It's a super machine. I am usually close to valinor each game now, with only andand aways the rotk mb needed to be beaten. I have to refine how I approach that....

I have always used the POTD diverter on my game and I don't see a significant difference in gameplay. I always seem to get the MB's lit in chronological order which is kind of cool. After I am done with Two Towers I am usually just lacking a few hundred souls.

As for the original question.....I think the ColorDMD is a must buy for LOTR, that said I was able to help John do a lot of testing on his machine while he was working the coloring for Xmen and it looks freaking awesome on that game. Those animations were made for color.

It becomes a much bigger deal the second time around, when you need to start RotK again to finish it off before getting to Valinor.

Order three and get free shipping!! FYI

How many times have you been to Valinor? If you have not, and you have been close, I bet it's ROTK that was still in your way.

The problem *isn't* getting there once for ROTK. That isn't assisted all that much with souls from the shire, as when they start dropping in there, they give 150, 200, and increase. No biggie the first round, as there are so many points in the POTD switches, which are constantly lit with 500 or 250.

The problem is that it’s extremely hard, and I mean REALLY hard to beat ROTK in the first shot. I did this once, and for comparison at this point for me, I beat FOTR MB about 80% of the time now, and I feel like a dolt if I don’t beat TTT each time.

So getting the souls the second and third time, the lights for the POTD are not lit as well, and it starts to take 2-3 times the entries there to get what you had before, HOWEVER, the shire souls is still slowly increasing, and by the third round and above (which I usually need to have a chance to beat it, as it remembers where you left off the prior round), I’ve seen souls values in there reach 800, 850, which really help in offsetting the lack of souls you are not getting lit on the POTD.

So again, while you may not see the value if you are usually only starting ROTK once, and not getting close to Valinor yet, trust this advice, as you will have the “big game” eventually, and that little protector may be the cock block to Valinor you kick yourself about for the rest of your pinball days.

I love protectors, but I think I was the first to really start talking about how this one doesn’t have to be there if you protect the shire good enough, and how it will limit your ability to get to Valinor. Many knew it restricted the souls, but many didn’t (and still don’t) realize how that actually translates down the road for beating ROTK.

(EDIT - I forgot I have the settings on mine set slightly harder for all the MBs, so I believe the lighting I get round one is equivalent to the lighting the default gives for the POTD frequency the second round for 500s and 250s)

I an no where near good enough to even think about getting to Valinor so it really isn't an issue for me. The way the ball just plunks down there off of the Arwen plastic just feels so clunky, like it wasn't very well thought out. Everybody can do whatever they want, I will just keep on pluggin' along the hard way I guess

I put the diverter on my game, it's worth the ball clunking around all over the place by just making a few more deliberate ramp shots.

-c

I'll just leave this here

Sure you are, but you have to be focused on every shot, every opportunity. Bump this if it happens, but one day you will have "that game" where you were close, and you will start to consider how you can make it all come together better for another shot at it. A BIG key is always shooting the left orbit for POTD shots when the balls comes in the right inlane. If there is one strategy you ever stick to, do that.

The closer you get, the more addictive it gets. I never thought I would have a prayer at Valinor when I got that game, and thought only guys like Bowen got this stuff.

This is LOTR. Rob and I have discussed this aspect before, but LOTR is designed to play, IMO, like a brutal clash. The POTD fires the ball against the wall, so does the right ramp. The ball is *made* to fall into the shire from above, and the fact that souls are awarded is evident of that, by design. Having said that, you need, as you do to pretty much with all Sterns, to take it into your own hands to properly protect some of the problematic issues and wear areas, but that diverter essentially changes the gameplay design slightly, and it's one that unfortunately puts a roadblock on finishing ROTK, and thus a roadblock to Valinor.

In any case, I've said my piece, do with it as you want to anyone reading. If you don't think you have a shot, ever, at reaching Valinor (cough, loser talk! - and by that I mean it is attainable for you!), and you prefer a clean ball return, the loss of souls won't matter either way.

I bought the protector many years ago that is a one piece clear plastic ramp that comes off the end and down to a square dish inside Hobbiton. Been there for 10 years and works perfect. I don't know why they stopped making them but my Arwen plastic is perfect and the Hobbiton hole is not chewed.