Help! I just finished bringing my Black Hole back from the dead, but I’m left with one nagging issue.

The game powers up into attract mode with no problem, but when I press the button to start a game it just restarts and goes back into attract mode. The reset happens right after resetting the 4-target (HOLE) bank and before resetting the 5-target (BLACK) bank. If I leave the game “warm-up” for 3-5 minutes it works fine.

I can also get it to work if I disconnect the ground wire to Solenoid 2 (the 5-target bank) at A3J4-10, or if I disconnect the sound/speech board.

All the self-tests run fine. I have re-pinned every board edge connector and the molex plug connecting the 5-target bank. I have replaced all the electrolytic caps on all the boards. Thinking I must have a flaky chip somewhere in the Solenoid 2 circuitry I started working my way back and ended up replacing every transistor and IC in the circuit back to and including the RIOT chip at U6. I also replaced the diodes on all four drop-target coils for good measure. I don’t have another sound/speech board to swap out to see if it’s the culprit.

The CPU did have some battery damage which I was able to repair with minimal component replacement and without losing any traces. Ground mods were also done.

Does anyone here have any ideas? I’ve searched Pinside and the rest of the web, but I can’t find any discussion of this issue. Thanks in advance.

(I have also cross-posted this on the Black Hole thread)

Thanks. Good suggestions.

I did replace the orange filter cap with the recommended 10,000uf 25v replacement. I also rebuilt the power supply using the recommenced modifications in Clay's guide (except I did not replace the trim pot or the regulator chip). J1, J2, and J3 were all upgraded to square pins and Trifurcon connectors.

I'm curious. Did your issue clear up on its own after the game was powered up for a while too? Maybe I need to take a second look at my power supply.

Thank you REGNE and Robotworkshop. I appreciate the input.

Ok, if I disconnect either the 5-bank or the 3-bank or the sound card everything starts up fine. With all three connected I can't start up until something somewhere warms up. Which I guess points back to my "rebuilt" power supply not being able to handle the draw when cold. All the voltage readings look solid, but I didn't replace the regulator chip. If I freeze this chip after the game warms up I can re-introduce the problem. So I'm going to order a new chip and I'll let you know how it goes.

Don’t email Steve. Just call him.