Gottlieb built one for system 3 games. Very hard to find. Wish I could get my hands on one.

I think the reason you don't see PC/microcontroller based testers is because most board testing takes place at the hardware level, rather than at the software level.

Then on top of that it's hard to test for certain issues at the software level, like when there's a problem with address or data lines. Or, if there's a short somewhere with unexpected voltage going somewhere it's not supposed to go, it's possible that it could damage the PC/microcontroller.

I think the closest automatic/computerized testers available that offered more than just a LED blink diagnostic were probably the bally fixit ROM board and quickscan80 tester.

Someone here has been working on an ardino MPU tester for Bally MPUs. Look for the Dyi MPU tester thread.

The quickscan80 is an absolute life saver. It's a shame Williams didn't have a bus header like Bally and Gottlieb.

Unfortunately, I missed out on getting one. Instead, I rely on the Sys80 Universal Tester board: https://www.pinitech.com/products/gottlieb_universaltester.php

System 7 boards have an unpopulated header with most of the signals you'd need. Also you'd probably test the mpu board by itself, so the signals are all available on the 40 pin header.

Adam at onecircuit was working on fluke 9010 replacement but looks like he dropped it several years ago. figures, now that I know what the 9010 is useful for, you can't get them cheaper anymore.

You kind of have to know what you're probing for. Data signal (high or low?) clock? voltage? Something else?

Then what if there's a malfunction on the line you're probing? How would that be interpreted at the software level? How would that malfunction relate to other things?

Hardware diagnostics are hard to write high-level language code for, which is probably why it hasn't been done. I don't really see a computer-based tool being significantly helpful for microprocessor-based hardware since all you would basically be doing is replacing a multimeter and logic probe.

A PC/microcontroller would probably be more useful when pairing it with modern microcontroller-based hardware. But again, if you're trying to troubleshoot stuff at the hardware level, it's hard to beat a multimeter and logic probe.

You need to keep in mind that most of the older pinball hardware are being run by pretty primitive computer systems. Williams system 3 through 11 were built around a pre-packaged computer architecture of the 6800 series processors. In these system there really are no high level diagnostics for a computer based system to interface with. There have been some programs written for the williams boards that can be used to test some of the components on logic side of the boards. I am thinking here specifically of the Leon test programs for checking PIAs and memory functions.

One thing about these systems: 6800 based systems have very little fault tolerances built into them, most of the time they either boot and run or they don't. Having a system that 'kinda' runs is pretty rare.

As pointed out earlier, this is why most of the time the most useful tools you have available to you are a logic probe, and multi-meter. I also keep an oscilloscope around so I can find 'floating' signals.

For testing most common output circuits, I use a lot of the test fixtures that are available from siegecraft electronics. That said, if you want to get into board repair, I don't know how much longer siegcraft will be around. The owner wants to sell the company. I also have a dedicated display because I work mostly on early Williams games. It was made from a kit produced by @DumbAss. You can find out information about that board here: https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/dumbass-test-and-reproduction-pcbs

IMG_3132 (resized).JPG

Where the heck is the Amusement game tester division of Kurz-Kasch?

Yep, see here:
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/diy-bally-mpu-tester-

Been flirting with this idea for the past year. Gottlieb test fixture where it can go test peripherals, read ROMs, etc. Controlled/statusing through a USB interface.

Would that include sound boards? MPUs and driver boards are documented pretty well, but later sound boards are generally a bit more mysterious and are somewhat lacking in troubleshooting info.

hmmm....

Saw this thread and thought that it was interesting. I have been doing work for an electronics store that works on pins. Yesterday they ask that I fix a few System 3-7 board for them. Was digging thru things and said hey if this helps ya... The store has the missing board and I should have it tonight... anyone used this before? I found the manual on line... I figure with my pincoder adapter should make working on these pretty simple...

image (resized).jpg

Interesting - I wonder if there any others out there in captivity. It looks like it can test the MPU without the driver board attached. I wonder how well it worked.

I’m itching to find out! Once I have the control board I’ll be able to fire it up. This thing was probably pretty hi tech back in 1979

Flying probe tester in action:

Can dream, right?

-Rob
-visit https://www.kahr.us to get my daughterboard that helps fix WPC pinball resets or my replacement Type 1 sound board for System 3-6