(Topic ID: 217157)

Future Spa: Troubleshooting Help

By Thorzhammer88

5 years ago



Topic Stats

  • 9 posts
  • 3 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 5 years ago by BigAl56
  • Topic is favorited by 1 Pinsider

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#1 5 years ago

Hi All!

I'm in the process of doing a restore to a '79 Bally Future Spa, and have hit a bit of a snag. The original MPU board was down for the count (Solid LED, too much damage to justify the time salvaging), so I decided to replace it with the Alltek MPU board. The MPU board went in, and the game shows as booted. I get into attraction mode and can technically start a game, but have no flippers. Here are my problems: displays only show the numbers 0,3,4,7, and 8; when going through the self-tests, only the lamps operate properly (displays only show 0,3,4,7,8, no solenoids, no sound). The solenoid/driver board is new, and I swapped out the lamp driver board for one with LED support. I've re-pinned all the connectors on the MPU board, and still have no luck. At this point, I'm running out of ideas, and welcome any and all thoughts.

Thanks for the help in advance,
-Thor

#3 5 years ago
Quoted from vid1900:

Set the DIP switches for "memory clear", perform the clear, then put in FS back as the game.
Then listen when you start a game that the relay clicks on

I've definitely heard the relay kick over on start, but I haven't tried the memory clear yet. I'll try tomorrow morning and report back.

#4 5 years ago
Quoted from vid1900:

Set the DIP switches for "memory clear", perform the clear, then put in FS back as the game.
Then listen when you start a game that the relay clicks on

Okay, reporting back. Performed the memory clear, and status remains unchanged. I've already gone through and ohmed out the coils, and they look to be in good condition. When stepping through the test sequence again, I did manage to get the flipper relay/coils to energize and confirm that they are working. Again however, nothing else seems to be functional, and displays are still showing 0,3,4,7,8.

#5 5 years ago

I've uploaded a quick video of the issue, if that helps anyone visualize the problem.

#7 5 years ago
Quoted from vid1900:

Usually there is one bad connector contact, so pull the connector off the MPU and repin them all (reuse the same plastic housing).
If you don't have a crimper, then at least look at each female connector terminal and see if you see a corroded or bent one.
You can also unplug one display at a time (with power off, 10 seconds to drain caps) and see if a single display is pulling the others down.

I'm going to go through all the contacts Sunday and report back. I replaced all the MPU connectors, and the problem persists, so next I'll jump onto your suggestion and see what results. Thanks for the advice!

#8 5 years ago

Update: I've identified 3 of the problems causing issues and am in the midst of repair.

Issue 1 - The displays only showing the digits 0,3,4,7,8. This appears to have been caused by a bad decoder chip (4543, I believe) on the bottom right display. I found out that the displays are daisy-chained (I probably should have assumed that), and with that info, was able to take displays out of the circuit until I identified the culprit board. I further tested my conclusion by adding a known-good board back into the suspected board's place and confirming that the issue was resolved. Unless I can find a replacement chip, I'll be replacing the board.

Issue 2 - 3rd digit is missing on all displays. After evaluating the schematics, I suspected a bad connection at J1 on the MPU, and re-pinned the connector. This did not resolve the problem. Again, taking into account that the displays are daisy-chained, I suspected connector issues at the displays, but found nothing obvious. It wasn't until I closely examined the pins on the bottom of the board that I discovered that someone previously attempted to re-flow the solder, and accidentally bridged two connections. I de-soldered the bridge and the 3rd returned.

Issue 3 - No coil power. I checked the playfield fuse and didn't see anything, so I continued to troubleshoot all of the other boards. Ultimately I re-pinned the entire harness because it needed it, anyway (this game is in the process of being restored). Still, no luck. I suspected that my visual inspection of the playfield fuse was the problem, and took a meter to the fuse. Blown. I just couldn't see where it blew.

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