Hi all. First post here. My 1979 Bally KISS needs a couple of new nixie tubes. Are these available?
Yep, you may be able to find used replacements...but if you're looking for new there are some nice options available. These pinscore displays use LEDs instead of gas tubes that require high voltage. If you replace the entire set, you can cease using the high voltage circuit and run them on 5 volts.
https://www.pinballlife.com/pinscore-classic-stern-and-bally-6-digit-led-display-module.html
Note there are numerous manufacturers making replacement displays, so do some research or ask around here. Also note displays are available in 6 and 7 digits so make sure you're getting the correct type.
Good luck, and welcome to pinside!
Depending on the issue(s), the Bally displays are fixable many times. Check out these pages for theory & repair tips...
http://stevekulpa.net/pinball/bally_disp6.htm
http://stevekulpa.net/pinball/bally_disp6r.htm
If the "glass" is gassed out or badly burnt... then going LED as frunch listed is a good option.
NOTE: these are not Nixie tubes.
Good luck...
Great responses which led to the solution. I have decided to go with a used display since all the others are in really good shape. (Dunno what I was thinking regarding nixie "tubes")
Best regards
If you have a Kiss equipped with Nixe Tubes that would be an amazing rarity.
Plasma Gas is the actual term. PG captures the warm glow of vacuum tubes and puts it to work in a 7 segment display.
Various displays were tried in the early days of solid state pinball including Nixe. Eventually we settled on Plasma Gas as opposed to vacuum florescent used by Gottlieb. The decision came down to what was the most attractive in a dimly lit arcade setting.
Nice to see the technology stay roughly the same for the next 40 years outliving it's creators.
making an actual nixie tube display would be a fun project. I like them. I kind of want to buy a nixie tube clock.
Quoted from barakandl:making an actual nixie tube display would be a fun project. I like them. I kind of want to buy a nixie tube clock.
I think Zitt used them on his Star Trek game if I recall
Quoted from Tsskinne:I think zitt used them on his Star Trek game if I recall
Can confirm.
Quoted from BigAl56:Nice to see the technology stay roughly the same for the next 40 years outliving it's creators.[quoted image][quoted image]
I should change that to 'most' of it's creators.
I built a Nixe tube Flip Flop at Bally back in the day just to try it out. It was summarily rejected.
Nixie tubes are cool. I picked up two Hewlett Packard RF frequency counters that were all Nixie tubes at a yard sale a few years ago. I was going to strip them for parts, but they were too nice. I ended up selling them after I reconditioned them. Someone else probably stripped them...
Quoted from Tsskinne:I think zitt used them on his Star Trek game if I recall
I did.
You can start reading about the nixies here:
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/star-trek-mirror-universe-pinball#post-745046
At one point; I considered going into low volume production on the nixie displays; but decided it was probably to nitchy… and sourcing volume nixies would be a long term problem.
Made these displays and exhibited them at 2011 TPF. I did the 7-digit conversion on the Silverball Mania using Oliver's EPROMS. Currently these displays reside in my Centaur. My profile pic shows what they look like with a backlight inside the backbox. You can see the game's wiring and boardset between and through the tubes. Kinda cool. My Centaur has a red backlight.
Picture 068 (resized).jpg
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