If they would communicate there would be less for people to complain about.

Communication is a good thing in both positive and negative situations. It would also bring about more people to combat what you feel like is Pinside negativity, as people would know what is going on and wouldn't resort to the idea that their problems are falling on deaf ears.

I echo the Ops cheers for Stern.

Pinside is full of great people. You need help with your pin? You'll find it here. Want the latest news? It's here.

There are thousands of threads here civilly discussing repair techniques, strategies, EM maintenance etc etc. Unfortunately, the pinball threads I'm most interested in seems to be dominated with vitriolic grandstanding. It's a shame. It ruins the experience.

I love my modern Sterns. I've been pretty vocal about that.

I don't love them because of blind allegiance.
I don't love them because I don't appreciate other eras of pinball.
I don't love them because I hate JJP.
I don't love them because I don't care about price or quality control.
I don't love them because I have a long standing beef with another Pinsider.

I'm a huge Stern supporter because they continue to design, build, and ship pinball machines I'm excited about.

Hooray for the company that has Lyman, Borg, Ritchie, Gomez, Trudeau, Sullivan, Freres, Dirty Donny, Zombie Yeti, and now Elwin?!

Hooray for the company with 10 machines in current production. TEN machines to choose from. Right now. 6 of those are HIGHLY polished, and I would argue with anybody that MET and TWD are the best pins ever made.

The only reason I would hedge my bets on those 2 machines, is I feel Lyman is going to knock BM66 out of the stratosphere! Just a hunch.

I love pinball, and that's why I'm a huge fan of Stern. Keep it positive!

I love them too and have about 25K I would love to give to them right now (BMLE GBLE, AEROLE).

However, their quality is at best sketchy which is inexcusable at the prices they now charge for their machines.

I can remember a few years back when many were being called "Stern Fanboys" when they were touting their love for stern pins.

Well written and true story... I love maple syrup(had some today)! LOL.

I have to say that I'm a happy customer as well. Bought a NIB GB pro in October and a NIB ST premium in November and aside from a couple of minor issues with ST out of the box, it's been a great experience. Chas was a great help and responded quickly to my issues both on the phone and through email. Literally sent me a part I needed the next day after contacting him. Zero playfield issues to speak of to this point. It's been good...I can't complain. Despite all that however, I am a bit hesitant to buy another NIB Stern just based on all the shit I've been reading of late.

I've just got my seventh Stern. Love them.

It would easy to allow this to descend in to a mudsling festival. I totally hear your apprehension. I get it. We've seen some issues. I would offer that the issues are more rare than Pinside makes it seem. There are thousands of happy customers who don't hop on line to say, "Hey, I got my machine, and it has zero issues!"

I bought TWDle NIB. Needed to install the ramp flap fix. No issues. Best game ever.

I bought MET Pre NIB. Chased hammer magnet issues for ages. Right Ramp entrance and exit were misconnected. 2nd best game ever.

I bought GBle NIB. I'm one of MANY people who had no issues with my GB. I lowered the right ramp height. Helps that shot IMO. Added the Outlane plastic covers. Huge help. One tiny piece of the CC flaked off the side of my playfield under the Outlane post when I moved it. I don't care. If it gets worse, or shows up elsewhere on the machine, I'll call Stern. Its a super fun game. Music is amazing. Crazy.

I bought a BM66SLE. Code is at the ZYGOTE stage, but I love how the machine shoots. I think it's going to be great. A few small QC issues. LED tops busting off. Little things. Nothing like @iceman44's Weed Whacker mech tangle!? I'm thrilled to have the SLE. It's stunning.

I'm seriously considering Aerosmith. I think the Toy Box gag is stellar. Machine looks incredible. I need some hands on time with it.

This is not meant to be, "Hey look at me, I spend a Sh!T-Ton of money on Pinball!". Just a guy who's had repeatedly great NIB experiences. I see all the issues too, but they don't worry me. Serious issues will be dealt with. Minor issues I can easily handle myself.

Truth be told, I'm playing the HUO IM 1st gen I picked up more than anything these days. Also my Fathom, and my Quicksilver.

I suppose it's a ridiculous luxury that my collection is large enough, that the wait for code, and a machine being down for a technical issue doesn't phase me.

Just want to reinforce and echo a positive experience.

I will continue to support and champion Stern because they make pinball machines that make me REALLY, REALLY happy.

Yeah a few years ago though is when shit started getting crazy. When JJP was first announced everyone started picking sides for some reason and everything went downhill quick; actually much worse than now. Seemed like everyone was a "fan boy " of one company

You have a Fathom and a Quicksilver? My hero.

I like a lot of the games Stern makes. Some titles I just don't care for...

I'm going to say so and also say good job Stern and pat them on the back for no good reason, other than they make good games.

Certainly Stern has some minor manufaturing processes to improve upon and their communication skills have always sucked, but c'mon, it's not like their CEO is being accused of embezzling money.

There would probably be a bum fight over it, with stoptap and I controlling the violence like some kind of bum-lords. Perhaps that's the wrong wording, but they are very hard to find (Met, not bums).

NIB Ghostbusers Premium here.
Jan 2017 manufacturing and PF dates. It has none of the defects that have been mentioned and is playing great. I'm very happy with it.

IMG_9329 (resized).JPG

I waited three years for MET to develop as a first Stern game.
I waited less than a year to buy GB.
They are either doing something right or I'm in serious midlife crisis mode.
Probably both, oh well!

Same here. Another sucker for punishment.

Look....we are all glad there still new pins being made.....but there is NO REASON to be giving props to Stern. No offense meant to the OP but seeing posts like this that appear to be from someone that may be new to the hobby really Grinds my Gears..There is definitely too much Stern basing going on but Stern's silence kind of rubs people the wrong way. Some are very vocal about it as some aren't. Now there are plenty of good and bad buying experiences of NIB Stern pins.

The problem is people's expectations are all over the map....some expect it to be plug and play like a new movie you buy, chunk it in your player and it works. That is the average and typical buyer. Anything less than that and it's the end of the world. Now a true educated buyer understands there can be minor issues/maintenance needed. It seems we have a large number of new people in the hobby and they have some knowledge which is good but they don't fully know the history of issue of all recent games in the last 10 years. Sometimes a little knowledge is dangerous....you can look arrogant and you know half of what you think you know......

To the OP it's good you had a great experience....but let's rewind to when Metallica was brand new. There were TONS of issues with that game. Magnet boards were bad and had to be redesigned. Sparky coils were locking on...some even catching on fire!!! How is that for quality control? There were reports of playfields chipping around magnets and numerous other issues. People complained about the hammer, the orbit post. Code took a long time to become good. So you can thank all the early buyers of Metallica to absorb all the issues and growing pains. Improvements were made and it has become a game that most really enjoy.

Stern has not done anything special to deserve ANY special recognition. They did what was needed to correct issues and make their product work. They have done the same with issues on other releases as well.

I have had good experiences with my NIB Sten pins. I have no reason to bash them. They have been relatively issue free. But stern has done nothing that is over or above my expectations either to give them any props....

In fact their recent releases have been less than stellar. The BM66 cash grab fiasco, the complete lack of commutation from Stern regarding issues, the constant "Stay Tuned!" response regarding code updates. The fact they delete any negative response/question on FB.....a good and honest company embraces and acknowledges good and bad feedback. The way Stern refuses to handle it publicly kind of rubs me the wrong way and seems almost shady....Is this the kind of company anyone should be doing business with? Bottom line is there are tons of companies with poor business practices and ethics and we buy their products/services all the time and probably don't know it.

It's a good thing I buy from a distributor I know and trust....to ensure any issues I have will be taken care of. Those are the people that should get props when they go above and beyond to make things right. If your distributor does not then find another.

You do seem upset. I disagree and am happy to give compliments when they are due. My game is great and I am pleased.

Not upset at all Nevus....just passionate maybe...but I find the premise of giving props to Stern almost comical.....it really makes me laugh to be honest given the number of true issues people are having with Stern....but I believe much of that is blown out of proportion.

And as I said in my original post this was not in any way to offend the OP...it's good that he had a great experience as did I....I guess the point is there was nothing exceptional that Stern did to make me say or feel "WOW!!! Stern blew me away!"

The games I bought I played and enjoyed them prior to buying them. I had no expectation of when or if code would be updated. The game play play appealed to me. The games worked out of the box with only minor adjustments needed as I expected. Nothing more and nothing less.

The problem is one of balance. If all we see are Stern "problem" threads, then the perception can get out there that Stern does nothing right, the mob lights torches, and only bad things happen.

For the record, I'm not new to the hobby. Hope that doesn't grind your gears.

Agree with you on the balance but this is one of the few places people can kind of vent when their NIB $6K-$15K TOY does not work. That's a good reason to be pissed. But some are a little extreme about it.

As I sit here in the man cave, sadly seeing my BM66LE sit dormant for the time being, I play my TWDLE and GBLE, 2 of the best and most fun pins ever!

The tech is coming next week to fix BM66LE. Great customer service

And I gotta say, Aerosmith looks freaking cool too. Probably gonna want that one too.

Despite some issues from time to time Stern makes some great pinball!

I trust that Stern isn't flying a technician out from Elk Grove to fix your game. With that given, who is providing the great customer service in repairing your game?

There iceman sits all broken hearted....oops never mind. KPG tried to warn you DA but you wouldn't listen!

P.S. Aerosmith really does look cool doesn't it? I may want one too!

There are a couple of competent local tech guys here. Coming next week

How do you like your GB now, is it a keeper?