while updating some of the parts in my RFM, I decided to take a look inside of the pc case to see if I needed to clean it (both the power supply and cpu fan are things to keep clean if you want to keep your pin2000 up and running 
while nosing around, I noticed that there was only 1 dimm installed and upon further investigation, the dimm contained only 64MB of memory. according to the manuals on the internet for the Cyrix Media GX motherboards (pinball 2000 wiki - http://www.pinwiki.com/wiki/index.php?title=Pinball_2000_Repair) it states that both dimm slots can be populated with up to a 256MB dimm (for a total of 512MB)
given that the companies that still have this type of ram available, I decided to take the plunge and invest a whopping $10 to max out the ram from this seller:
ebay.com link: itm
I received the ram today and installed it (a breeze for those unfamiliar with replacing ram in a computer)
here's the long winded (but fool-proof instructions) for upgrading the ram:
- turn off & unplug your RFM/SWE1 machine (safety first!)
- remove the translite
- unscrew (the thumbscrews) and unplug the video cable and the 9 and 25-pin serial cables leading to the computer on the left side (taking note of the which cable plugs in where and it's orientation
- unplug the 6-pin molex connector on the front (right side) of the case
- lift and slide the computer case forward (don't worry, it is designed to slide forward, pivot & swing downward so that you can unplug the power cable on the back side of the case)
- remove the 6-pin molex cable from the nylon cable management clip on the right side
- unplug the power cable and unclip the power cable from the 2 nylon cable management clips
- lift the computer case slightly to remove it completely from the track and out of the machine
opening up the computer case
- slide the latch holding the top of the case cover to the right
- lift the case cover up and off
upgrading the ram
note: I unplugged the ribbon cable leading from the motherboard (at the motherboard) to the video card, as well as the small 4-wire cable and the 2 cable bundles providing power to the motherboard to allow complete and open access to the dimm sockets. it probably wasn't necessary, but did make the job easier) again, taking note of each cables orientation and position (the video ribbon cable is keyed and marked with a pin-1 red stripe, so you shouldn't have any problems)
- once the cables were out of the way, simply press outwards on the white clips to release the ram dimm from the socket
- insert the new chip(s). they are keyed so they will only fit in one way. if you press down on the top of the dimm (firmly, but not too hard), the ram will seat itself into the socket and the retaining clips will snap back into place, securing the dimm into the socket from both ends.
note: you need to use matched pairs if you plan to fill both sockets. this means that the ram has to be the same type, size and speed. if you plan to fill just one of the sockets, make sure that you populate socket 1 and not the 2nd one
re-assembly:
simply following the instructions above in reverse order to close up the pc case, put it back into the machine (w/ the back end resting in the track, and the front end hanging downwards), plug the power cable and 6-pin molex connector back in, sliding it back into place, and finally securing the 3 cables back on the left side of the case (monitor video cable and the 9 and 25-pin serial cables
end result:
the system definitely takes a bit longer to boot up (the prism card performs a ram check prior to loading the o/s and program code), however I did notice that the animations appear to run a lot smoother
if necessary, I can provide photos for the above steps should anyone feel that this is "out of their league"
Oakdale, CA
