New Balls number 1 on list!!!!!

Forget protectors, a waste of money on a HUO pin.

Use cling vinyl and save a ton. Also self adhesive felt from Hobby Lobby

Mirror blades and a shaker.

You won't need cab protectors....new Stern's ship with those already on.

As for mods...there will be a plethora of them coming out for GoT. It all simply boils down to preference. My current fave pin is my TWDLE. Almost as many mods for this pin as there is for TZ. Hard to choose, but have to keep within the "mod budget".

Get new Balls. Real shiny ones. The ones from Stern are not as shiny as the aftermarket balls.

Enjoy your pin. Besides a shaker have some fun first.

Hey congratulations on your first NIB. Make sure you take some photos of the unboxing. I agree with the advice to get a shaker, it adds allot to any game.

New balls, shaker, Titan silicone rubber, and clear plastic washers.

GoT Premium in a couple weeks?
I hope you're right.
I heard not til January.
Sure it's not an LE?

Yea, premiums aren't even scheduled until mid December.

Some solid options:

Better balls
Protectors
shaker motor
Upgraded speakers and woofer and/or external woofer
Powder coated armor from Pinball Refinery
Blue led dmd (should look fantastic on the premium)

I have a NIB tron and AC/DC. Only mods I have are shakers on both, a cover on my ACDC ugly stock bell that made me wince, LEDs on my Tron I put in, and over the years I have changed the balls. I don't know why everyone needs to mod the hell out of their pins unless they change functionality. But if it gives you the warm and fuzzies to spend the money and do it; go for it. It's all about your personal enjoyment and to each their own. Powder coating, protectors, decals, etc... they don't do anything for me. One day I may go color DMD but it's spaced out so much from my original purchase that when I do it I know it will renew my excitement for the pin. Save some fun for another day....

Haha... you said, "better balls"

You are missing out greatly if you haven't switched to the clear rubber disc pad.

Does that change functionality or just appearance? I haven't seen it.

Both

Speaker upgrade!
www.pinballpro.com
image.jpeg

I would vote for one of the $80 Polk subs instead of the better in-cab speakers. Huge bang for the buck and you can hook two pins up to one sub so you have a huge sound upgrade for only $40.

Get a torpedo level and basic tool kit to adjust the pin.

Canadian example
http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/mastercraft-torpedo-level-with-backlit-lcd-0574575p.html#.VjwQ1H6rSUk

Buy a good can of carnuba wax. Give that playfield a nice rub down.

What is wrong with the pinballs that Stern ships? I have a NIB AC-DC and LOTR and the balls seemed ok.

You will need a pair of these Aviators for the game's light show

nordstrom_mens_shop_daily_blog_spring_essentials_aviator_sunglasses_tom_cruise_3.jpg

I respectfully disagree. I got the FF speakers for my AC/DC Premium and there was a noticible difference in sound quality, especially with the bass response (you could get Pinball Pro...they're both great products!). Then I bought one of the Polk PSW-10s (I think that's the model?) and the bass boost was negligible. So yes, you can just get a subwoofer to boost the bass, but it does nothing to smooth the shrill high end of cheap tweeters in the speaker panel.

Never had a NIB, but here's what I would do:

New balls
Replace all the rubbers with Titan silicone
Plastic protectors if available cause they are badass looking
Shaker
Sub
Get some feet for the legs that work well on the type of floor I have
Also, do something to keep the flashers in the spotlights to stay in (not sure what solutions are out there). Those WILL fall out if you do nothing.

Absolutely 150% worth it. Haven't heard one bad report yet. The play and feel is almost like regular rubber, easy cleanup, have held up great for the people that use them on routed games that get lots of plays.

All this obsession with balls.

I hear what your saying. I've had both and both are great. I guess in my mind an external sub being used for 2 pins is about the best mod for the money. I like big bass (which is why I have a Danley DTS-10 in my theater )

oops. double post

Most NIB stern are just plain kick ass out of the box. Open it and play the heck out of it. Nothing bad is going to happen in the first few months of ownership. I think you will appreciate all the added stuff more if you play it stock for a while. It's easy to get caught up in the ordering of extras while your waiting for it to arrive.

My last nib Stern was STLE and the only thing I added early was the shooter lane protector. Even that's isn't really necessary unless the shooter lane is painted (like spider man). They seem to have quit doing that more recently.

I had a dream that I had a rusty ball in my MM...that's when you know you really care I guess.

First I want to say this is my Favorite PS name. I assume you are riffing in The WWE wrestler The Big Boss man which is just great! Anyways completely agree wait till Mods start rolling out. Enjoy game stock for a while not sure if the Premium has a shaker but that would be tops on my list for day 1 if it doesn't.

Double post

Geez Triple post! Sorry. My phone must not work well with new set up.

There's nothing wrong with them but you have to put balls in anyway so I always reach for premium balls versus the balls they ship with. The balls they ship with, when compared to premium balls, look dull and pitted. For $10 I prefer to go premium.

Heres a good post about them...

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/balls-premium-comparison

The GOTs used at the Chicago Expo Stern launch party were all Pros (other than the one proto LE) and they had the shaker added to them. Worked great.

Haven't seen the menus in a GoT, but most (all?) recent Sterns have the functionality for a shaker motor. Even my BBH has, although WPT doesn't, guessing the cutoff peroid is between the 2.
Shaker motors are fantastic.

Invisiglass, although expensive makes the world of difference, I hate playing a machine now without one as the reflections seem so much more distracting than before.

Premium balls (a given)

The only other thing I'd add as a standard is some kind of device to lock the bulbs in place on the spots around the slingshots. They are very poorly designed on Sterns. I showed Gary Stern the ones I have installed in all of my machines and he specifically requested pics of them as they are already in the process of designing something similar. (I'll try and dig out a photo of them)

Like others have said, take your time with adding the mods, it'll then 'refresh' the game rather than just having a different game from the start.

Have just added a colour DMD to my Met Prem, can't keep off it now, although my scores have gone down as I'm spending most of the time trying to watch the screen rather than the playfield.

The games are coded to use the shaker and yes they add a lot to the game.....more than I would have guessed. I've added a shaker to my ST and IM and it's the single best thing I've added.

sears has one that is just as nice for almost half the price
http://www.sears.com/craftsman-digital-torpedo-level/p-00948295000P?prdNo=5&blockNo=5&blockType=G5

Cliffy's

Don't buy a bunch of cheap plastic crap and stick it all over the playfield and call it a "mod"...just my opinion...probably will get me a -3x down vote smiley top secret probation or some such

Not from me! Totally agree.

I've bought them and have none of them installed on my pins. I don't like metal everywhere. I find that the cling vinyl works fine in the areas you want it to work and it won't damage your play field if you want to change to something else. Or mylar.

I also love the $2 sheet of self adhesive thin felt you can get at Hobby Lobby.

A lot of people love Cliffy's, i'm not one of them, especially for a HUO environment but its whatever floats your boat.

Personally, I would advise you to leave it as is to start.

Get nice balls for it straight away ... The stern balls are crap.

Play the thing for a few months. Nothing like a new game. It may need a few tweaks here and there, as new pins do. Get it tuned up and playing sweetly.

Then in a few months when the "new toy" feeling wears off, you can start modding it up. You'll have a better feel for what it needs, and lots of new mods will have come out by then.

That's my advice anyway.

rd

I've had my TRON:LE with Stern balls in it since I unboxed it in 2011 and there is ZERO playfield wear.

I get that you're excited about the new toy, but maybe give it a go as-is before you fill it full of junk. If you still want to tart it up later then you'll have some actual experience with the game to know what sort of mods you'll like.

New ultra shiny pinballs!
http://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=1325