No, the sound boards in these 2 games are different.

Thanks for the info Matt! I may have found one of those plastics you mentioned. Here's to hoping.

Todd

Got my MC yesterday. Cab needs some love, playfield has a smidge of insert wear. Backbox lights were out but are fixed. DMD went out got it running again, but looks like the power plug needs to be repinned. Sound went out this morning.

Going to tear it down after I do breakshot, but wanted to know what are people doing for leds in the backbox? I put blinkers in spots that the translite has windows or lights which looks good. The real issue is that comet's comfort bulbs are too bright and it causes doom/the skull in the door/ and the moon's face to show up all the time. Anyone suggest a dimmer led?

Also, my moon is taped on the translite. I believe it is still on its paper so I need to carefully remove the tape and put it back.

Nice to have another one here in Indy! For the backbox, I simply put reds on the "welcome" sign, and interspersed warm whites and blues. GREAT game, hope you got a good deal!

If you need like ANY parts for the game, check with MattElder. He's got like a Alvin G warehouse in his house.

And a museum !!

Just let us know where (if) you get stuck with the pin.
LED´s on Alvin G. is for me a NOGO . I love the machines the way they were back in the old days.

What is your serial ? All pcbs in a row ?

Congrats to this beautifull machine !

No longer in indy. Long gone in fact.

As for a deal, translite is mint, everything works and boards are clean. Ramps were supposed to be mint but two entrances have a piece missing. Cabinet has chips that I can fix in the black. Front of cabinet there is a run from top to bottom about an inch wide in the paint. The left side of the cab has paint that ran but should be able to fix it. Rest of cab is presentable with normal nicks and scrapes, plus alvin g flipper wear. It is a converted agbgowt cabinet and mine is just black with no flecks. Entire machine needs a shop.

Game came with a bunch of spares. Untested cpu, drop target assembly, pop bumper assembly, two outhole kicker assemblies, 6 nos drop targets, cliffy protector, rubber to shop the machine, and 24 nos coils.

All in all I did ok given the rarity. I paid 3800 + 406 shipping. I normally don't disclose how much I pay for things, but in this case I bought it as a treat for flipping machines. I figure the spares are worth several hundred dollars by themselves and shipping I eat. It sure beat paying 6k for the huo one or 4200 for an unshopped one with non-working sound.

It should be a real backglass and not a translite. The GI issues with the backbox seem to be pretty common and it looks like the connectors at the top right of the driver board are prone to overheating, so LEDs can help prevent this. I found that the basic pinballlife flat frosted LEDs work great. I used white aside from purple for the welcome sign and used a paper strip as a diffuser there to make it look like neon. Congrats on the score.

Both wrong, its more like a giant window decal, ie think big sticker. I know someone with a nos one, but their asking price is more than some nos playfields.

Congrats !! You have an Proto !
Please check the playfield ... if there are some areas white printed ?
There are protos out with different playfield and cabinett former garageBand , and some earlies with normal playfield but the red´ish cabinetts.

I have a NOS BG that I would like to sell. If anyone is interested please PM me.

I left the club and want back in. Literally the only game I miss out of dozens of games I've had here and got rid of. Anyone want to sell? PM me

Do not know what you mean by white areas?

I have the game back together now, but seems my switch matrix is shot. I think the 339 that controls row 6 is bad. Two switches other than 43 register as 43. I think the 2003a that controls col 8 is also bad.

Now, the fun part. I swapped this board into my als, and it works perfectly. So you think it would be a playfield problem? Swapped the als board into mystery castle, everything works except two things. Switch 32 is still bad, most likely a bad switch. Instead of switch 36 killing row 6, its switch 33. Switch 36 works perfectly. Again, both the board that came from als and the one that is in mystery castle work perfectly in als.

IMG_1251 (resized).JPG

Matrix State (resized).png

Just a quick update. The issues appeared to be one switch where the diode had gotten crushed against switch 32 (col 8). The other was a broken diode on the right slingshot.

Still do not know why I got different results using two cpu boards of the same revision.

Thanks for the pic ... no proto !

See the difference on my playfield and you know what I mean .. I was just wondering about the earlie cabinett, former garageBand cabinet with the red and no "sprinkels".

MC 268 (resized).JPG

MC 277 (resized).JPG

MC 274 (resized).JPG

Good to know, but happy with it as it is, sorta. Long term I'd love to find scans of the cabinet and get decals made. Mine has paint runs.

Tried upgrading to rev 3 roms, but they refuse to work. I used 27c512 for DMD_u4, CPU_u2, and SND_U102. I used 274001 and doubled up the rom images via the command line for the rest.

With them installed I got the following.

CPU board boots, but if I take the game into test mode I notice some screens have random text on the screen. Picture a dmd screen just filled with letters.

Sound board boots, but the sounds are garbled and the quality is horrible.

DMD board refuses to boot.

I verified the checksums on all the chips. I tried burning them to different chips, but still the same result. I am thinking the game may not like the 27c512 for some reason?

By "refuses to boot", do you mean it shows "PLEASE WAIT" but never gets beyond that?

I think the rev 3 ROMs require a different chip for the game to function properly. The display board in particular will have issues if it doesn't have a compatible chip. At least that's what I have observed with my own machine. Mine came with rev 3 ROMs, but when I replaced the original and failing display board with an NOS one from ebay, I never get past please wait.

Did you try replacing the chip? Not sure about the other issues you mention.

*edit* never mind, I reread your post and saw you updated ROM at U4 on the DMD controller, which is what I was thinking of...

There's a thread here where some folks have successfully upgraded: https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/alvin-g-mystery-castle-rev-3-roms-now-available

indicator light on the dmd driver board is solid indicating that it never booted. I believe the issue is that i need to change the jumpers to go from a 256k to a 512k rom.

Got the roms running. I burned dmd u4 on a 256 chip. That fixed the dmd. Then I reburned snd prom 1 as it was not playing the voice in test. Got it alld one, played 3 games and the damn drop target broke again. First nos drop lasted less than 10 games. This one might have seen 20. Both times it was the E in castle. Is there something I am missing or are these made of glass?

Congrats on the update. It's worth the trouble. I have had my MC for about 7 years and never broke a drop target. Maybe they aren't dropping properly?

Dropping fine. The replacements came from two different groups. Guess I will try it again! Luckily I created a boatload of decals so no worries there.

Finally think I have the diverter correctly adjusted. Game should be good to go after I reinstall the ramps.

I had this game and broke so many drop targets! It's partially why I decided to sell. The ones from Marco seem to be quite brittle. YMMV

Maybe the stock that is left has become brittle over the years.

I am gonna be listing my Mystery Castle soon. It is the all black cabinet no speckled on cabinet. I had pics of it when I sold the other Mystery Castle a few years back here on Pinside, just look under topics by doughslingers

Post some fresh pics to build up the excitement!

I'm in the market for this game. Sold mine 2 years ago and really miss it. PM me if you're looking to move one for a fair price. Right now, I have a Baywatch and FH for trade bait in pins, and a gorgeous Robotron arcade I might be convinced to let go of.

Steven

Good luck to you. I wish my cabinet was nicer and still trying to collect more parts for mine. Unless you get lucky be ready to ship it because usually only see them for sale a couple times a year.

I need to figure out something odd with mine - it likes to reset when you hit a certain switch seemingly every time all of a sudden - and then play it more and I might be interested in letting it go, but it will probably be in a few months... No time right now.

I sold mine to crazydoughdude in Minnesota. Great guy who has wanted this pin for years. I probably gonna miss it but mafe it thru Halloween.

New member to the club and another Mystery Castle has surfaced from the depths of solitude in a non-pinheads basement. This one just needs some love and it'll turn out great.

It was purchased new in '93 by a couple who owned a music hall saloon on Long Island. In '95 they took it home, got played by the family occasionally, and sat there for 23 years.

It's dusty and dirty, but will clean up real nice.

Anyone have any leads on finding the drop target decals or where to find the appropriate blue stand up targets?

IMG_5903 (resized).jpgIMG_5826 (resized).jpgIMG_5829 (resized).jpgIMG_5836 (resized).jpgIMG_5841 (resized).jpgIMG_5831 (resized).jpgIMG_5860 (resized).jpgIMG_5901 (resized).jpgIMG_5843 (resized).jpgIMG_5929 (resized).JPGIMG_5823 (resized).jpgIMG_5825 (resized).jpg

Has anyone ever purchased these drop targets from Marco? http://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/DTP-001

Are they the exact size as the originals? I noticed in the manual the C-A-S-T-L-E targets are part number BUT-M08, and Marco's are listed as DTP-001.

Hey Dave. Congrats again on the game! The part number for the drop targets is indeed DTP-001, and it’s correct in the manual. What you saw is the part number for the plastic above the CASTLE drops. The parts are broken up on different pages. What you were looking at was the page for ball guides, plastics and rubbers. Flip back to game specific parts, and in the exploded view of the drop target assembly you’ll see the number. For what it’s worth, Alvin G & Co. tried to make part numbers make sense somewhat, so if you see a number like BUT-M08, you know it’s for a plastic....or Butyrate. Anyway, what Marco has should be NOS, but I can sell you some as well.

As far as the blue translucent targets go, I’m low on the blue ones, but you can try to find round translucent ones and cut the sides off to make them rectangular. I did that a lot when I was completely out of the proper part.

I have an art file for the bullseye drop target decals here, so I can send it to you to print some new ones.

You are THE MAN Matt... Seriously, thanks again for all of your help thus far. I'll PM you for the targets and decals.

I'm probably going to have more questions as I dig through this game. Right now, I'm trying to have my power supply repaired and replaced which I'm sure will be an adventure in itself. Really wish that PCA-028 PS from Marco was compatible.

Also, notice how my moon is taped on four sides... I assume that's an adhesive sticker that should've been applied directly to the translite, right? Not sure what yo do there. Leave it be, or try to remove it and apply it correctly. I'm afraid the tape may pull art off the back if I remove them.

Thanks, I’m glad to help where I can.

I’m going to check out my PCA-028’s here sometime to see if they can be made to work. I would think that they might be backward compatible somehow, but the board footprint and layout is much different, so wire lengths and connector issues might be a problem.

For some reason the angry moon decal was taped on at the factory instead of using the self adhesive on the decal. I’ve left mine alone. I’m guessing you could get that tape off the backglass masking okay, but it never bothered me enough to try.

If it’s a factory thing then I’ll leave it. Knowing it’s meant to be that way is how I’d want it.

Perhaps they realized after attaching it direct to the glass, the face in the moon shows up too much outside of the mode it’s supposed to be lit visible.

Thanks again!

Congratz to this very fine pinball machine !
And welcome to the club !!

I would not remove the moon .... if unlucky you might destroy something. Leave it alone ...
Thr tranlucent targets are a pain in the ass, I need them for MC and PP but no way to get them.
I thought about making them and this days we have other materials like macrolon, PET, etc to make them more stable.

alvin_g_logo-tom2 (resized).jpg

alvin_g_logo-tom3 (resized).jpg

Thanks TomDK! Happy to be here.

Good news for me on the Power Supply. Clive at Coin Op Cauldron is going to take on the repair and I've got the board in the mail as of this morning. Once that's fixed and back in the machine, I'll either have a fully working game with maybe a few mechanical kinks, or at the very least the ability to identify the other gremlins lying within.

Quick question - does anyone have the original pink sticker that sits in the middle of the apron scanned? It's the graphic with the pinball being sliced into several pieces.

The vending company who originally sold the game to the previous owner NIB, threw their sticker on the apron. I hate when they do that. I'm afraid to peel it off, but I also wouldn't mind it staying to tell the story of it's origins. I'm thinking of getting the sticker reprinted and laminated, and just place on top so I can have both available to show.

I should have several still. I'll get it to you with whatever else we send your way.

I'm digging in and threw the snowball down the hill tearing this thing apart for a deep cleaning, new rubbers and LEDs.

Regarding the lights with red condoms on them. I assume these are just regular GI lights that glow whenever the GI is activated, and do not come during their own special sequences, right?

I'm trying to coordinate my LED order, and wanted to put red LED towers in those spots with 4SMD warm white bulbs around them. Has anyone put towers under their plastics in this game?

Thank you!

IMG_5990 (resized).jpg
IMG_5994 (resized).JPG

No, they aren’t normal GI, they’re an alternate set of GI that is activated during Doom mode to give the playfield an eerie red glow.

I thought so... The few videos there are of MC being played, I wasn't sure if what I was seeing was just that.

If anyone has a picture of your PF while shopping it out with those lights in place that would be awesome. I'm pretty sure where mine are at, are the correct locations.

Thanks Matt!

No, please no .... no LED on this great machine.
That is the thing I dont understand, pinside is a meeting place for peoples onliest skill seems to be the possibiltie to order LEDs and overpriced "mods".
In the area when Alvin G. games came up there was no LED ! Buy a new pinbal and you have LED and it will fit to the machine and its aga, , but pleaaaase not in a Alvin G. pinball.

I have machines with LED and looks great .... MET, DI, WOZ ... and I have several machines with bulbs ... all which leaved the factory with bulbs ....

Bulbs with condome

DSCF1068 (resized).JPG

DSCF1070 (resized).JPG

DSCF1071 (resized).JPG

DSCF1076 (resized).JPG

First off, THANK YOU for the pics. Your PF looks amazing and it's very helpful to have these bright natural light pics in addition to what I took.

Also, I'm sorry man! I'm not one to deck it out in rainbow colors or anything. I'm definitely a Warm White guy and trust me, no mods outside of doing LED's will ever go on this game. Not into them. This game should especially have a warm white base since it is a dark spooky castle, where the warm glow reminds me of candle light. Warm white all over and red where there's supposed to be red.

So jelly! Been looking for one and that looks great! Congrats!

This pin is a great find. I stopped over last night to assist with his HH and from when I saw MC after the basement rescue to now it is really shaping up.

Things are coming along well for my MC resurrection.

While waiting for my power supply to come back I got the PF cleaned up and waxed. Now re-installing all the metal posts and guides hardware I took off, cleaning and polishing them piece by piece as they go back on. From there replace all six drop targets, one stand up target, and spruce things up under the PF, refresh and clean the flipper mechs. I cannot wait to play this game in a dark room with the sound UP.

Two quick questions...

1.) Has anyone replaced the foam squares that are glued to the bottom of the ramps? Mine are a little dirty and may make more sense to replace them with fresh material.

2.) Does anyone know of the best way to securing the Rev3 Rom and other associated Rom updates needed?.

IMG_6010 (resized).JPG

IMG_6031 (resized).jpg

IMG_6029 (resized).jpg

IMG_6032 (resized).JPG

Disregard this... I was able to add the Rev3 ROM sets in my order with Coin Op Cauldron.

Still looking for info or advice on what others have done to replace or even clean the foam squares at the bottom drop holes of their ramps.

Here's the image for the drop target decals you needed. I made this by hand, but it should be pretty accurate.

MC-drop-hires (resized).jpg

Thank you so much! I really appreciate this. I can’t wait to get this printed and applied.

You can clean the originals with rubber ring cleaner, but I’d just replace them with fresh rubber. Here you go: same part, except blue instead of gray.... https://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=689