I'll check that..

I just can't believe that every bulb would blow. I'll check that too

Easy to understand if you put 50V on them instead of the 6V they run at!

Yep, I did it twice when setting up my Paragon. Had to replace every gi bulb on the playfield. Twice!

Looks nice. Just do one wire at a time and it's hard to go wrong.

It's always worth taking 20 pics before you start from every possible angle - just in case!

The "polarising pin" goes in the hole/pin position of the shell/housing that corresponds with the one that is not occupied on the PCB so the plug can't (easily) be installed incorrectly.

When you get that bottom one done can you post a picture for me.. Still have a GI problem. Thanks

Paragon - the red wire you crimped will work, however, the strands are too long. They should not be on top of the little clip that locks the pin into place on the connector. That clip has to be pushed down in order to get past the locking lip in the connector. If that clip does not have enough room to be pushed under that lip, you may never get that pin out again without damaging the connector body. Once that lip in the connector body is damaged, it may not hold a pin in place when putting the connector onto a circuit board.

This is why I always look at the back of each connector after plugging it in, especially if I don't know the history. If the lock mechanism is bad, you will see the back of the pin raised above the connector body. You can push it back into the connector and hope the friction fit keeps the pin in place.

Good effort - you're getting better.

The inner part of the pin on the red wire should be tighter. Did you get the 18 gauge pins or the 22? You want that crimp to be really tight, the goal is to make the wires one mass (airtight). (Don't solder it though.... big mistake a lot of people make)

It looks like you got the type of crimpers that you have to do 2 crimps on each pin based on the crimp. If not, it's not forming the crimp correctly (should look like a sideways B, with no gap in the center of the B).

I got one of the $29-$39 economy types and never looked back. I have the other one that you have to do 2 crimps per pin but haven't used it for anything since getting the one with the die. You can make good crimps with the 2 type but it takes a lot of practice. Like Billc479 says, you have too much wire on the other side of the pin. You want barely any coming through, there's zero advantage to having that wire there (unless your plan was to solder to it.... which is a bad plan)

There was just an article on hack a day about crimping a couple days ago worth looking at. Turns out some bad crimps caused many fires in some AC equipment.

Repair work can be as much fun as flipping, really.

Good Job.

Those Vampire type connectors are not as reliable as a Molex Connection.

When you get the time, splice those wires properly. Solder and shrink wrap over the joint and it will clean up nicely.

IF you want to replace with properly color coded wire, WireBot in WI has coded wire available.

The connector you show is an "IDC" - Insulation Displacement Connector. It does exactly that, it cuts through the insulation (displaces) to make connection with the wire.

They are used for manufacturing because they are FAST to assemble when compared to the crimp type connector.

They are not reliable and can't carry anywhere near the current of a correctly crimped connector.

I suspect they are partly responsible for the many burnt connector issues experienced in later model WMS era machines where they were used almost exclusively.

Yes

If you are going to stick with plasma displays do them a favor and turn the voltage on the solenoid driver board down from 190 to about 170/180V to prolong their life and prevent some burn. The brightness level will barely change but the displays will thank you.

Mixing displays should be OK - just watch out with the LED one as it doesn't need the high voltage (pin one of the display connector) - the others need it.

You have fitted an Altek solenoid board and they don't have an adjustment for the high voltage. But this does highlight what I said right at the start - LOOK around before buying - the Altek are great BUT (IMO) using surface mount parts basically means you will throw the board away of it has a problem or you will need to send it out for repair which probably wouldn't be worth while.

Some other replacement solenoid boards use through hole parts just like the original AND they have an adjustment for the high voltage so you can help your displays last longer. That's why I suggest researching before jumping at the first option you see.

It's all OK - things will work fine. Sometimes it's 'nicer' to be able to do things such as wind the voltage down - I'm just pointing that out.

....and....you will gain enough knowledge and skills in the meantime to probably be able to repair your original driver board, re-fit it to the machine and THEN wind down the voltage.

Keep at it!!

My General Illumination isn’t working. Anyone see the difference between these two connectors? Mine is on the left.. Trying to figure it out.. Maybe the white/brown wire isn't correct on mine. My wires are a lot more dirtier and harder to tell, but looks like the brown band is smaller on his then mine..

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Your harness should have enough play that you can stand the PF up and lean it against the headbox. Just be careful to keep it square so it doesn't bind.

Alltek has lifetime warranty, and will mail you a new board once he gets your broken one.

That's great but there simply is no reason (apart from cost saving for the manufacturer) to make a HUGE board this massive size with SMD parts. That is NOT why they were invented. Boards like this are far better being made using through hole parts where available.

As I have already shown, some are available that are made with through hole parts so obviously these parts are still available - AS WELL as having adjustable high voltage which the Altek does not - a major fail IMO.

I would try replacing the SCR associated with that lamp. Which lamp is it?

Note the lamp driver board connector pins are numbered upside down. Pin 1 is at the bottom, not the top. The pin 4 red-green wire you're looking for is 4th from the bottom of J3.

You can try jumpering the lamp next to it that's working to the one that's not working to ensure it's not a wiring issue

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Go ahead and change Q59. They don’t cost much, and yes, any and all components can fail and not give a visual indication.

If only it were that easy to tell when a component is bad….

Yeah - that one failed hard just to help you out.

They don’t all fail that way.

Just pulling your leg on the “help you out”.

Semiconductors in general - transistors/SCRs/MOSFETS/diodes and many more different types - *usually* fail by either shorting or going open circuit without any external visible anomalies.

Your Q12 was an isolated example and is not what you are likely to find moving forward.

The only way of knowing for sure is to measure them either with a multimeter (and knowing how to interpret what it tells you) or with a component tester. It's normal to measure operating voltages using a meter while the power is on to confirm if a circuit is working as it should be but this will come to you with more experience.