Has anyone managed to repair one of the LED light boards in a WOZ? I see they use A6281 as a driver but this chip is proving to be very difficult to obtain. I am wondering if anyone knows of a direct replacement for this driver.
(Topic ID: 167309)
Unfortunately, that part has went end-of-life, and I'm not aware of a direct replacement. Unless JJP has a bunch stockpiled, I suspect someone will have to create a retrofit system in the future.
That might be a better option than what I found. I found a place that will sell me 10 at $2 a piece but they quoted $30 in shipping. Thanks guys.
3 months later
Granville, OH
My question is if it's just one led on smd on the board (in my instance the red doesn't work but green and blue do and there are no other issues) is the driver an issue is there there an smd available that can go in? I know these ws2811 have built in controllers but if it's just the smd that's bad and not the rest of the set up.
More than anything we'll eventually need to have these be serviceable and I'd love to be on the edge of that so I don't have to pay $70 every time my rainbow letters act up
Quoted from agodfrey:My question is if it's just one led on smd on the board (in my instance the red doesn't work but green and blue do and there are no other issues) is the driver an issue is there there an smd available that can go in? I know these ws2811 have built in controllers but if it's just the smd that's bad and not the rest of the set up.
More than anything we'll eventually need to have these be serviceable and I'd love to be on the edge of that so I don't have to pay $70 every time my rainbow letters act up
My guess is yes, it is the controller that is bad. I have another board starting to go. This would be my fourth in 2.5 years. I like the game but my fear is that I won't be able to keep the game because I can't afford to light it 
That in itself is a hilarious thing to say, something I would never had expected in a pinball machine.
Eventually there will be a solution.... eventually.... With as many WOZ machines out there and them eventually failing I think there has to be a retro fit solution.
I still believe in Jjp but I agree this isn't the most bullet proof solution.
Life....finds a way....
If you only needed the A6281, or a few of them, an option could be to buy a few of these and transplant the parts:
http://macetech.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1
In the long run, I would like to see a redesigned board, or rather a set of boards, that uses more commonly available parts. If I wasn't so busy already, it sounds like a fun project.
It seemed prudent to order some myself, so I did.
Quoted from herg:In the long run, I would like to see a redesigned board, or rather a set of boards, that uses more commonly available parts. If I wasn't so busy already, it sounds like a fun project.
Put it on your "things to do" list as it will be in big demand in the future.
Quoted from herg:...and there's 10 less available now. It seemed prudent to order some myself, so I did.
I found those but they looked out of stock. Might be worth getting some!!
My first attempt to pull the bad chip and reset it was a failure. My current plan is to buy the replacement board I need and attempt to repair the bad one again. I used a heat gun but I need something with smaller tip so I am not heating such a large area. I think I might have put down too much solder also before I tried setting the chip. It seems like once you get the hang of it, surface mount might not be all that bad to repair. I need some serious spectacles though, it's tough to see some of these chips. That A6281 has like four pads on each side, 3mm package....yikes..
Quoted from pinstyle:That A6281 has like four pads on each side, 3mm package....yikes..
...and a slug in the middle! It's definitely not an easy job. Use good liquid flux, a hot air station is preferred, and I have a relatively inexpensive microscope. To put the part back down, solder paste is a bit easier to work with, but a small amount of solder on the pads, along with flux, and it's doable.
Quoted from pinstyle:My first attempt to pull the bad chip and reset it was a failure. My current plan is to buy the replacement board I need and attempt to repair the bad one again. I used a heat gun but I need something with smaller tip so I am not heating such a large area. I think I might have put down too much solder also before I tried setting the chip. It seems like once you get the hang of it, surface mount might not be all that bad to repair. I need some serious spectacles though, it's tough to see some of these chips. That A6281 has like four pads on each side, 3mm package....yikes..
I saw a product that helps keep solder molten so you can heat up a whole bunch of leads at once and then use a wick or sucker to get it all up. I forget the name of it though! Someone must know... It's like a special kind of flux kit. In the video they use it to remove like 8 pins at once really easily... and I was watching so many videos back then I forgot which one had it so... hopefully these clues can help 
Quoted from herg:...and a slug in the middle! It's definitely not an easy job. Use good liquid flux, a hot air station is preferred, and I have a relatively inexpensive microscope. To put the part back down, solder paste is a bit easier to work with, but a small amount of solder on the pads, along with flux, and it's doable.
Is the slug acting as a heat sink and/or ground connection?
Quoted from DCFAN:Is the slug acting as a heat sink and/or ground connection?
Yes, both.
Here's a pretty good video that shows the process I use. At work, we have preheaters, but at home, I use the solder, flux, and hot air method from the middle portion of the video.
Thank you everyone. That was one of the more informative videos I have watched so far. Hopefully I can get it down someday. I need a respectable rework station and to just start trying and trying. I saved a few boards from stuff at work that has surface mount components to practice on. I wish I knew a couple years ago that I would be attempting to work on surface mount, I bought a nice Hakko soldering iron, I would have bought a combination setup.
What every pinball tech will need in the next 60 months:
It should plug into the service outlet just fine (unless its a new stern...)
Quoted from pinballinreno:What every pinball tech will need in the next 60 months:
» YouTube video
It should plug into the service outlet just fine (unless its a new stern...)
I've never seen or used an IR reflow machine, when I worked on SMD boards in the early 90s for a living we had hot air reflow machines that had glass nozles for each package size. They gave you precise temperature and air volume control, man I'd love to have something like that now!
1 week later
Hrmmm, if another board blows I am curious to try this. I have a hot air rework station and a small reflow oven. May have to buy some of those chips just to have on hand.
Aliexpress never fails, cheap but will take forever to get here, but then again ive only blown one board in the several years I've had mine (knocks on wood)
What about the LED itself? anybody have the PN for that?
Quoted from arcadenerd925:What about the LED itself? anybody have the PN for that?
Based on specs and the footprint, I'm pretty sure it is a Kingbright that is now EOL. This one seems to be the best replacement.
http://www.kingbrightusa.com/images/catalog/SPEC/AAAF5051-04.pdf
BTW, I did receive the macetech boards a while back and pulled one of the drivers just to see how difficult it would be.
This is where i am assuming having a reflow oven would be handy. Wick up some of the excess solder, put down some new paste, stick it on top and pop it in. I do it all the time with the WS2812B's for unrelated light projects. I am going to go ahead an order some of this stuff and then next time I blow a board, give it a shot. But who knows when that will be.
Quoted from arcadenerd925:This is where i am assuming having a reflow oven would be handy. Wick up some of the excess solder, put down some new paste, stick it on top and pop it in. I do it all the time with the WS2812B's for unrelated light projects. I am going to go ahead an order some of this stuff and then next time I blow a board, give it a shot. But who knows when that will be.
Go Big or go home, I guess.... :
ebay.com link: NEW PRO T862 BGA REWORK STATION INFRARED SMT SMD IRDA WELDER SOLDERING MACHINE
At $150.00 I think Im ordering one...although it might be a piece of crap, you never know...
Or break into the wifes unused toaster oven, or this? :
ebay.com link: T962 Reflow Oven Infrared IC Heater Visual Operation Micro Computer New Setup
T962 is what i have, I have yet to even use it yet but when I do I can tell ya if its any good. For me it was either this or the toaster oven route.
Quoted from pinstyle:Pulling it was a piece of cake, getting back down is another story
It's really the same process other than having to align the part. Plus, you'll be using leaded solder and easily be able to get flux on it. I do have a good bit of experience worth it, though, so that may make a big difference in the confidence level.
I had a pretty high confidence level right up to the point where it didn't work 
Joking aside, I think I can probably pull it off but I need the right tools and a bit of practice. After the holidays I am going to try and round up some tools, see if I can pick up these chips and give it another go.
if shipping is cheap enough back and forth and you want to try my reflow oven let me know. Otherwise you could try a hot air tool, this is what I bought (does both soldering and smt):
https://www.amazon.com/X-TRONIC-XTR-4040-XTS-Digital-Soldering-Station/dp/B003TC8EQS/ref=sr_1_1
i looked at a few less expensive hot air work stations. Are they any good? I know nothing about them. Unfortunately I am not in a position to spend a lot of money on one right now.
The problem on that particular IC is that it's a leadless part, all the connections are on the bottom side. To do it properly you'd need to stencil on some paste and then reflow in an oven. It can be done with an iron but you need a scope, really fine tip, and experience. For my surface mount work here at home I've been using a converted toaster oven with a temperature controller, called a "Controleo" or something similar. Works fine for things as long as there isn't too much thermal mass.
Another thing to consider is the LED itself. Surface mount LED's are hydroscopic, meaning they absorb water from the humidity in the air, and can potentially 'popcorn' if you reflow in an oven with too much water absorbed into the component. Generally LED's are 172 hour exposure parts, so they're not dramatic when it comes to moisture sensitivity, but you'll probably want to bake it at a low temperature to get the moisture out. 60c for a couple days, or 120c for like 6-8 hours.
-Hans
Quoted from pinstyle:i looked at a few less expensive hot air work stations. Are they any good? I know nothing about them. Unfortunately I am not in a position to spend a lot of money on one right now.
Seems like alot to spend to give this a try. Perhaps post in a local section to see if a pinhead nearby has the tools you can borrow. Another shot in the dark, google "maker spaces" and electronics clubs as they are likey to have things like reflow ovens that they may let people use (or even help you with the repair).
as Hans said, the chip is leadless, however, I have soldered leadless RGB led's with a hot air tool, but takes a bit of practice to either A: not overheat and burn it, or B: to not put too much air against it and blow it off its mark.
1 week later
We had success repairing one of these boards today.
DCFAN had a board with the red segment out on one LED. I attached a couple of test wires to the suspect driver output and the 7.5V supply, then when the red segment wasn't working, I connected a cheap wedge based pinball LED to the wires momentarily. When it lit, we knew the driver was OK and the RGB LED was bad.
Using the Kingbright AAAF5051-04 mentioned above, I replaced the LED. Even with lots of flux and patience, I wasn't able to remove the old LED with the hot air station. There was just too much thermal mass in the power plane under the LED. I ended up cutting the leads with dikes, then using an iron to desolder the slug.
To install the new part, I cleaned all the pads, and put solder and flux on the center slug pad. I scraped off a small spot of the solder mask just outside the perimeter of the LED. Using an iron, I heated the power plane until the heat conducted to the center pad, and I could see the solder flowing. I then placed the LED and allowed the power plane to cool, finishing off the center slug connection. I then went around the LED and soldered the other six pads like normal using the iron.
Even though the specs on the LED do not match exactly, you'd be hard pressed to pick it out. The colors look nearly identical, even when staring at them directly, not through an insert.
Excellent!!! Hopefully we all can start doing this or maybe someone will start repairs.
Quoted from herg:We had success repairing one of these boards today.
DCFAN had a board with the red segment out on one LED. I attached a couple of test wires to the suspect driver output and the 7.5V supply, then when the red segment wasn't working, I connected a cheap wedge based pinball LED to the wires momentarily. When it lit, we knew the driver was OK and the RGB LED was bad.
Using the Kingbright AAAF5051-04 mentioned above, I replaced the LED. Even with lots of flux and patience, I wasn't able to remove the old LED with the hot air station. There was just too much thermal mass in the power plane under the LED. I ended up cutting the leads with dikes, then using an iron to desolder the slug.
To install the new part, I cleaned all the pads, and put solder and flux on the center slug pad. I scraped off a small spot of the solder mask just outside the perimeter of the LED. Using an iron, I heated the power plane until the heat conducted to the center pad, and I could see the solder flowing. I then placed the LED and allowed the power plane to cool, finishing off the center slug connection. I then went around the LED and soldered the other six pads like normal using the iron.
Even though the specs on the LED do not match exactly, you'd be hard pressed to pick it out. The colors look nearly identical, even when staring at them directly, not through an insert.
Quoted from agodfrey:Excellent!!! Hopefully we all can start doing this or maybe someone will start repairs.
It is a fairly labor intensive process to replace the components. After watching Herg do one I felt it is a bit like fine surgery. I suspect that if someone started to service these they would have to charge at least $40 to $50 for parts/labor to make it even approach being a worthwhile endeavor.
For the LED boards that have a failure, if they don't already have the little daughter filter board or are not the revision with the circuit protection then I would suggest just exchanging and paying the fee with JJP so you have an updated board.
Yeah, agreed. for me this was mainly just about longevity as opposed to cost savings. To show that we could possibly service these ourselves (or by a third party) if ever need be down the road. Also to verify components used, as I plan to at least grab a chunk of both drivers and the LED's just to stow away.
7 months later
Just found this thread.
I am wondering if anyone could tell me if this is the same failure when you get odd colored LED boards, say everything is white and you have one green, red, or blue one, which is obviously wrong.
And is it generally the LED that goes or the Allegro chip. I'm curious to know if anyone is doing this work or making aftermarket boards as well, for the WOZ.
If i recall, I believe it was the LED that was bad (if your missing the R, G or B in your light)
As long as JJP is still supporting these, I wouldnt worry about self repair just yet (plus, it is a major PITA to do)
Thanks for the reply, and I understand what your saying.
It's a generic issue with the game, supposed to be resolved with the newer games receiving WOZ 2.0 lighting. But that's not us.
These boards go out on a semi regular, if somewhat infrequent basis, maybe one every other month, so it's a pain and an expense at $20 per board. It's not like an Eiko 44 bulb you're replacing.
So, I was just wondering if there was a better way to permanently end the issue. Apparently, not just yet. I'm sure it'll get resolved at some point, either by JJP or the aftermarket.
that is def odd, I have had my ECLE nearly 4 years now, I have only blown 2 of the single light boards. The state fair insert board I had the same issue as you, I lost one element of the R G B so the color was off, so that one got replaced.
Are you frequently blowing boards? (basically, the driver chip, so the board no longer works and you have to bypass it) or are you regularly having a bad LED? (color is off)
The ones you replace the blown ones with have the daughter board which is basically a filter, enough of those filters in the light chain and you should see your board blows drastically decrease.
Because of the slug on the underside of the driver chip, its just too much of a PITA for me to try at this point (and I have a rework hot air station and a reflow oven) I'll shell out the $20 VS spending an hour + dinking around with it. YMMV.
My .02, if this issue gets bad enough, JJP will offer an upgrade to the 2.0 system.
I can understand though, probably extremely frustrating on your side. I would open a ticket with JJP (and CC jack) regarding the frequent board blows, they may hook you up.
Well, originally, I had boards go completely out, and then the static, or whatever it was that they recommended Mist N Shine to help with. Eventually, I think they ended up replacing three or four large boards, the "fish" board, TNPLH board, and maybe the Scarecrow board. That completely eliminated the "blown board" issue. And that's when I started having the odd color issues.
I have a box of about four bad boards, so this is a semi-regular occurrence, not counting the ones I've already replaced and sent back. I can almost sense when one will go, as the color gets a little off white, usually a light pink or purple, barely noticeable, and within a period of time, it'll go. I've probably gone through at least 10 or more.
So, what you're saying is that what I'm experiencing is the LED itself is bad? Is that a difficult change out? I have some experience working with PCB's, and if it's doable, I may be inclined to try it. I wouldn't try removing the driver chip, at your recommendation.
You say your game has had very few of these failures, which is odd to me because I've had quite a few, and some have failed after being replaced.
I just kick started this topic again on the JJP forum, and Zam (if you know who he is, he's a JJP employee) stated the 2.0 system requires a pretty extensive amount of work and will be pretty expensive. Some people say hundreds of dollars, and I've heard as high as $2K, but all estimates are uninformed estimates, at this point, I am sure. If it were in the hundreds, I'd do it.
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