I didn't see anything significantly different between the Pro and Premium. The Pro plays fine, and the hammer isn't all that, so I'd say go with the Pro if you like the game!

I've played both pretty extensively and IMO the price difference between the Pro & Premium is not warranted. When it was first released I thought it would be a big difference between the models but after playing them I found there is not. Metallica Pro is the way to go great playing pin.

Whichever model you decide on -- disable the up post.

I played both and I like the Pro better. The hammer seems to block your visability on the premium and LE.

Put some LEDs in the machine and enjoy!

I plan to buy a pro as soon as I move one of my machines...it will look great next to my AC/DC premium.

Is it a setting in the menu or it has to be manually removed ?

Metallica is neat, but the code needs a lot of love in my opinion.

I don't know how many pins you own, or how much money you have, so this may not apply. If you haven't played one yet, I would make sure to do that before putting it next to AC/DC and hoping for the same experience. AC/DC is a far better game than Metallica is right now, mostly because of the code.

An example that caught me off guard was that the song choice in Metallica seemed to have no effect on the gameplay at all. Maybe I didn't understand the game enough?

All of that said, I played Hooked's Metallichrome this weekend and it was an amazing looking game with all of his mods on it.

I own a Pro. Have played both. I agree with the above Dude. Also, I really did not care for the hammer, even when it's working correctly. Do yourself a favor, go with the Pro.

It is a setting in the adjustments menu - no hardware removal necessary.

Go with the Pro - I have one and I love it! And when they release the new code, it's like getting a whole new game. Even if they don't, which they will, it will still be worth it because its a great game already.

Don't you automatically lose the skill shot that way?

Yeah, I definitely think better code would make Metallica awesome. The shots were very tight, and there felt like there was a lot to shoot for. The game seemed to have a lot going for it.

The Sparky toy is really cool, and the light show is great as well. The sound package is great also, the callouts are well done.

Hooked goes into detail on how he modded out his pro, including adding spinners to it, in this thread:

http://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/metallichrome-concept-by-hkd

I am really enjoying mine. I was not a huge Metallica fan, but the artwork and layout did it for me. It is one of those games were you crank it up to 50 and rock out. My friends and I also turn up the Pandora-Metallica Station until the house begins to shake while playing. I highly recommend a Metallica Pro. Good Stuff

Well, the regular skill shot gets a lot harder. But you still have the super skill shot.

i have the pro and love it. havnt played the others,and to expensive to buy imho. i like the up post thats mentioned, gives it more variety and whe n you get it rockin it disables itself and makes for great loops. to eac their own. never played acdc so cant help in that comparison, although ive seen one and met is much more pleasing to the eyes imo. playing along to seek and destroy is just orgasmic bliss to me in the pinball realm however one more 500.000 reward for mystery scoop bring me back to planet earth. aaarrggg.....

I bought the pro because of the hammer issues. Thought about trying to come up with a cross mod to make it move, but too busy so that probably won't happen. Spinner mod on order, so I don't think I'll switch to the premium.

Scott

Absolutely buy the Pro! I love mine.

I bought one after playing a METLE, and don't miss the hammer or moving cross/snake mouth at all. In fact, the game is MUCH faster without them. Plus, you can customize the LEDs on the Pro, which you can't do on the Premium/LE.

FWIW, I almost bought an ACDC Premium, but the artwork on Metallica is light years ahead of ACDC.

Absolutely worth buying!

Agree with everything but the last part. I have both Metallica Pro and AC/DC Premium. AC/DC code is complete and is one of the best pin ever. Metallica is a crazy game but you need that finishing move on it. Both are keepers and yes AC/DC art really sucks in comparison to Metallica but don't ever buy a pin for the artwork and maybe pass out on one of the best machine evarrrrrrr.

He did not say it was a better machine or anything about code, just that the artwork is better, and there is no doubt about that. Honestly, if he values artwork why should he pass. Some people value artwork more or less then others. AC/DC prem/le is a fabulous machine but the artwork on MET is waaaay better.

my wifes playin it in her bra and panties right now, does it get any better than this... aarrrgg if i only new how to post pics on this site.

I was not implying he said anything about the code or comparing which one is the best gamewise but the way I read it was as if in the end, he decided which one to buy only because of the art difference. I respect everyone opinion, that was just mine.

Quickly, sneaky-sneaky, go for tilt

i went in for closer look. 2 min 12 sec later and yes it can get better. sorry couldnt help it youlook so hot playing pinball wuz was my excuse to her...

It actually becomes a skill shot - whereas before all you had to do was plunge the ball enough to hit the post to drop the ball into the pops, now you have to apply skill to get the ball to the pops without relying on the post.

And besides, who doesn't go for the super skill shot every singe time anyway?

The New Jersey Devil's do have a point. I'm waiting for the final version of the code to remove or not that post.

Buy it....you won't regret it! I own it and love it. I also have an AC/DC pro. The MET gets played more these days.

Actually, I thought the Pro version with mellow bulbs looked FAR better than the Premium with blue-whitish LEDs. The artwork is more oranges and browns, and had a more cohesive look with bulbs. If you really think you need to add LEDs (I don't), then go with the absolute warmest white LEDs you can find. Regular white lEDs work with games that have a blue or purple based color scheme, but not with games having artwork that is predominantly warmer colors.

I also agree that the hammer seemed to block more visibility up the middle than it added to the game.

I really think the use of LEDs in a title is very subjective. I loved the warm lighting from LOTR and would never swap it out for LEDs. (When I owned one) I have since seen a machine that was tastefully done and looked better. My STTNG was not playable (too dark) with lights out and the LEDs really make it look nice sitting next to AC/DC.

I think my need to put LEDs in the Met comes from seeing the premium and the pro side by side and how the artwork stands out even more with brighter lighting. YMMV...