Quoted from TheLaw:Well because Stern, or any company, isn't going to give you that info, that's silly.
The problem with the entire discussion is everything is unknown. If we had the schematics then we'd know how the boards work and if we could get replacement parts to fix them. As of now we don't.
But that's the entire point of the conversation. We don't know how bad it is, but what we DO know is that boards are failing in a small cross section of the community and that those that do know somewhat about how they work say they aren't designed well. We also know that the system to replace them is time consuming and costly. If they were forthcoming, this would be less of an issue. Secrecy/lack of communication breeds more speculation. They don't release sales numbers and we don't have any idea how many boards are failing and they aren't releasing schematics which has always been a staple of pinball. Everyone wants to talk about history, that is a big one. Why keep them private unless there was a reason?
It definitely impacts my decision to throw 5-8k on a newer Stern when I can throw that same money around on something else that won't have those issues.
Long run, let's hope it works itself out for the betterment of the consumers, not just Stern.