I was under the impression the LED didn't fail but something else on the board

It may be easy but still a major design flaw. I have had my game almost 2 years (still love it) but once again now that winter is here with the dry air I am getting lockups. and one board locked kills everything down the line.
Now I have never had a board failure just the data gets corrupted and sometimes it will reset itself but always works after a restart. I have replaced 4 or 5 boards with the newer boards with the added buffer board but once again I am having issues. No issues with Lloyd and Frank and Sal helping to get it fixed again but still a major design flaw from the start.

Double

Maybe they build all 2000 and store them and then ship all at once?

That's probably why it takes so long

Granted, it's easy to diagnose and fix but this design is equivalent to the wiring in old Christmas light strings, one goes out and you are dead in the water. You can live with a single bulb out but the machine is useless until you fix what should be a minor inconvenience issue. JJP corrected it in TH thank goodness.

Those days are gone. I hate to tell you, but the last "Pro" game I bought is almost exclusively light boards. Sockets and bulbs are going the way of the dodo.

In general, LED bulbs don't go bad, certainly not with intended usage, even after many, many thousands of hours. If an LED bulb is bad, it's bad from the get-go. So if you've got an LED bulb that is not working, in a socket, it's most likely not the bulb. Then you have to potentially replace the socket (which usually requires soldering tools), or trace it back to the main board and fix something there, no?

I'd rather unplug an LED board, jump it so the rest of the boards down the line work, then plug in the new board when I get it. Doesn't get much easier.

I'm not giving JJP a pass on the original design - seems as though the original light boards were ill-designed from the start. Had they been designed / spec'd properly from the beginning, there'd be zero issue with the daisy chain style integration. And like Dave H says, bulb and socket implementation is rapidly becoming extinct. Like it or not.

John in NC - all my Xmas lights are LED except for the ones on our fake tree - and if one LED goes out, the rest stay lit! To hell with those old bulbs!!! Luckily, if one of the WOZ light boards goes out, it doesn't disable the game - but I agree, it creates a very minor inconvenience of needing to jump the board and replace when the new one arrives. I'd wager it would take physically longer to replace a socket, properly, or trace and repair main light board, than it would to swap a LED light board. One to four screws and a plug.

But I could be and probably am wrong! My wife says so all the time...

How does TH LED light board design differ from WOZ's? I'm curious to know as I try to learn more about the game I will eventually get!!

Man that sucks....said the old dude who will go kicking and screaming into the future.

First production Hobbit is pictured on facebook. Looks like a row of regular LE's.

Very excited seeing the pic of these cabinets during assembly and with one having a playfield installed. Are these the engineering samples?

th1_(resized).jpg

Looks awesome!!

Really is looking great!!

Didn't Jack hint/say during one of his speeches that there was still a surprise to come? Any speculation on this???

I wonder if Jack will ever use pegs and a plastic apron.

I will be happily surprised if games ship to customers this month.

Nice to see the progess.
But it looks like standards with the chrom ball rails.

I hope for a last suprise

Special flipper f.e. with the LE/Gold armor finish?
A windlance toy at the kickback?

Hard to tell, but the trim is not stainless.

According to their FB post: Jersey Jack Pinball "Yes ! We will be running LEs and Smaugs side by side on the line"

EAG is next Tue-Thurs in London- Europe's biggest such show. I hear that Hobbit/JJP won't be there. Why??

http://www.eagexpo.com

No idea of the exact reason.

No manufacturer can cover every show everywhere. It would be nice.

Maybe they are more busy getting that line rolling ?

LTG : )

The LEDs are wired in parallel versus serial meaning they are independent. If one goes out you only lose that one

There really should be a hobbit at Kiwi Pincade in March. All JJP has to do is ship PaulOz his game before early March...

Great to see some progress.

Look at the hinge that is an LE

and the axe on the slings

I thought the LE and the SE were getting ramps/habitrails to match the armor. Did that get dropped?

54bdc71ca8e77edbd0863b372da5fd0aca2924f2_(resized).jpg

2805bd85cb61fbd1d099dd236854970096a5b1a1_(resized).jpg

Yeah, it must be engineering samples.

I think Alex indicated that it is not realistic to powdercoat ramps, but the habitrails are supposed to match.

Seems like air balls could get trapped around the SMAUG area pretty easily. Might need a plastic shield like POTC.

Based on what? Your experience with the tens of thousands of plays at the shows over the last few years or just pure wild speculation?

Based on my eyes. It looks like there are a few ledges or nooks there. Notice my use of the word "could" not "would". So yes, it is speculation, although not really wild. I have not heard whether there have been any issues with this.

SMH, so all the photos we keep seeing are the exact same machines, nothing more has been done since the first post of this "group" of pins

This is a copy and paste i got from someone from a company. I will not disclose who but it is :

"they are in the process of producing a few test prototypes but that is it. The actual production has not started."

UH MAZE ING

This info obtained today 1/15/16

It's amazing that you're surprised by this.

If this is true, this preorder is getting even more tedious. I'm tired of having my £6000 tied up for the last 3 years!

Not going to give it up so close to the finish but DAMN JJP! please get this game out the door!

Not me either, mate! My preorder ain't going ANYWHERE! I'll outlast you, Jack! You hear?!?!
(/fist waving angrily at the sky)

I'm not cancelling! I'm not budging! I WANT MY HOBBIT!
I can wait this out, EASILY.

I'm a fricking pinball camel, Jack! My order stays on the books!

How does this differ from what they told us weeks ago?

"Not going to give up this close..."

Bingo.

This mentality is exactly why JJP has categorically LIED about the production schedule over and over and over, with WoZ and now TH.

Does anyone really think they DIDNT know the game was a year off last year? Of course they did. Why lie? The exact statement above. Keep stringing people along, keep them thinking 'we're close, maybe next month' and they keep their preorders. Surely no one wants to be the 'dolt' who cancels the week before shipment starts.

THIS is the dichotomy of JJP that makes me crazy: the cool things they are doing with pinball on one side, their dishonesty on the other side....

And to think there is a thread asking when the Sternbbubble will burst. Given 'll these delays from everyone but Stern, they have nothing to worry about..

Why not? I've powdercoated some and they look and hold up great.

Whatever comes after "let's be patient so they can get it right", well, I'm about there now.

I went to the EAG show in London, and JJP was not there as we know. I find this moderately concerning. It's Europe's biggest amusement industry show, and although mostly not pinball of course, Heighway Pinball and Stern (via the Electrocoin stand) were there.

Are cost considerations really that critical for JJP right now? Do they anticipate Hobbit delays being so far out still that it's not worth taking orders? Has interest in WOZ declined so much?

I get the 'can't be everywhere' argument, but surely you need to invest to grow a business, and, specifically, to be at Europe's biggest industry event? Particularly if you claim to want to grow the operator market. For example, the Sega and Bandai Namco stands (and many others) had lots of redemption ticket games, which I thought would have been right up JJP's street. Maybe next year, I guess...

I agree about the delays getting to the 'too long' stage now. It's put me off pre-ordering. There are machines I'd like to pre-order now, but I'm highly reluctant to do so again.

That said, if it's just putting down £1k or so, and nil else until ready for shipping, that model might work, but even that I'm thinking about after being so badly stung with Jpop and Predator, and long delays with WOZLE then THLE, MMR, P3 etc.

On the positive side, Nemo will be arriving soon (the gold one that Antonio has done such a lovely job on), and MMR within 2 weeks hopefully as it recently arrived at UK port

Due to all these delays & Jpop/Kulek shenanigans, I actually switched to jukebox collecting! Also bought some vintage arcade machines. So it's diversified my interests, which I guess is a positive.

Wait...didn't you just order a few months ago? I had been in since October of 2013.

According to pinball news report the crowds were well down this year. That's not too surprising because most British people are maxed out on debt and there's little money about to put in coin-op machines never mind buy a new one. Also operators that have seen him for the last two years might have asked him how the hobbit is earning on location !

Yes. You are more worthy than me. Except I did pay extra. I'd just like to see anyone get a game and report back. The line should be moving by now. Edsel Ford built airplanes and an assembly line to do it
In less time.

No they don't. Powder coating ramps is a really really bad idea. Wireforms are one thing as the ball follows a predefined path, ramps will get ball tracks, valleys, and divots which will impact the roll of the ball significantly. There is a reason none of the manu's or pinball coaters will do it and it's certainly not cost. A ramp would be about the cheapest part to coat as there is little to no prep on it.

No I'm not. I cancelled.

(On a related note, I'm planning a trip to Corolla this summer...looking forward to playing your Hobbit. )

I'm thinking about having a pinball open house when Hobbit arrives.