I just ordered 3 kits, all Premium and plan to use the coin door mount.
Time will tell if it was a good strategy.

Stupid question if you mount there what about volume speaker kit :O

Someone here made an adapter that can accommodate it. I’ll find the link.

(Edit) found it

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/stern-insider-connected-qr-code-reader-coin-door-mount

I'm sure Stern's cost is probably around that, but if you go to buy an apron from a parts supplier it will cost you $70. So if someone gets one for "free" with an IC kit, they might be able to sell it for ~$40 and recoup some cash. I think that was the point the poster was trying to make.

Buy a machine for close to 7K then buy SIC & try to get $40 bucks back loooool

I connected my machines to a free connector in the head, I think it's often used for toppers.

Check out this thread from the Batman66 club thread. The new run of Batman66 games that comes with Insider Connected already installed at the factory uses a splitter.

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/batman-66-official-club-thread/page/344#post-6724908
f95f38825df40ce7d0b94eb722e4bf007e982034 (resized).jpg

My picture is famous! Hey anywhere I can get the kit for a premium or are these on backorder everywhere? I want to install one in my Avengers and LZ.

I really like the look of your plate but would love to see what you could do with a “Bat Scanner” or similar text to integrate it into the theme since home users are going to know what it’s for.

I I did the same and works great. I also have a topper and still had a free RJ45 port in the head

It probably depends what game you have. Like I know the Stern topper for JP adds an extra game mode and lights up differently based on what you are doing in the game, so there is data going between the topper and the game, so I'm assuming it would need that network cable plugged in. Versus being just something that lights up, like the Tilt Topper I have on my JP.

Yeah that was a missed opportunity for stern while they were updating the apron art for this last run with IC. Would have loved to see bat scanner on there. Maybe a mod can be done? Here is mine. Thoughts? Maybe remove the big dumb red card and put something better there.

BBD12766-5F4E-4996-B019-38CD0160602F (resized).jpeg

Ordered 2 premium kits and installed one today. The insider decals were different. The one on the left is wrong, it’s a square without the diagonal cut out on the left. Must be for a standard?

49DC3C92-C7D1-45AD-934A-77CA4A3AAA6D (resized).jpeg

Left decal is the generic IC pro apron decal.

Installed on both my avengers and iron maiden last night, noticed that the avengers reader lights up for a moment and then will not re-illuminate. Anyone had an issue like this?

5A7610B3-F5D5-4249-BB08-FCEC3D155B8A (resized).jpeg

Does anyone know if it's possible to print your code and keep it on a piece of paper instead of your phone? Would that still work?

Yes

I laser engraved my QR on a piece of acrylic and then went over it with some white paint for better contrast. The issue with a printed QR or something of mine is there might not be enough light coming off of the reader to illuminate the code. I moved my readers to the coin door and relocated the quarter illumination bulbs to try and help with more light

A47CE83F-7C93-4D02-8959-34C13A211ED9 (resized).jpeg

If you don’t need that pro decal, would you mind sending it to me? The one I got has a bent corner.
(Or anyone that can help. Thanks!)

I am surprised that this works given how ethernet works and the fact that you need a powered network switch to "split" one ethernet run.

Can someone explain how this works? Is the stern node bus not ethernet based?

(not questioning that it DOES work...clearly stern knows it works if they are doing it at the factory. just wondering WHY it works

The node bus is serial, like RS485, with 48V power on same cable. Not Ethernet although it uses Ethernet cabling.

From what I understand SPIKE uses a custom network node system similar to ethernet or Canbus, but specifically for their needs in a pinball machine. Using regular ethernet cabling keeps the cost of the hardware down.

in my view it feels much more like token ring than anything else...

Neil.

yes i agree, as each node board will have an dedicated address. in the Manual:
https://sternpinball.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/SPIKE-System-Manual.pdf

2.2 NODE BUS CABLING
The SPIKE node bus utilizes standard Ethernet-style RJ45
8-pin modular jacks and ethernet cabling. SPIKE nodes are not
compatible with standard computer networking equipment.
CAUTION: Plugging a SPIKE Node or CPU board into a standard
Ethernet port may damage one or both devices and void your
warranty.
2.3 SYSTEM POWER
The SPIKE System is powered from an 48V DC switching power
supply. Each SPIKE node converts this voltage to lower voltages
required by the node and its specific components. A SPIKE node
controls high-power outputs such as game coils and some LEDs.
These nodes are supplied directly with 48V system power. Other
nodes are low-power boards that read switch inputs and output
to standard-brightness LEDs.

Its not ethernet. Its a power circuit and a data bus.

I picked up an IC kit for my LZ LE yesterday at Old Town Pinball in Saint Augustine FL. They had a few more in stock...

Does anyone else have frequent issues logging into the IC web app? Most times it doesn’t want to log me in. Tried to create accounts for my kids and the website just stops working. Seems a little buggier than I expected for a production rollout. Is IC still considered beta or is it considered full production? It doesn’t behave like I would expect from a production software deployment.

Yeah, I’ve been having difficulty logging in today too. Normally it works fine, but today has been spotty at best. Servers are either bogged down or they’re doing some maintenance, and in typically Stern fashion, not communicating about it.

Yes, I have the exact same issue. Posted maybe a week ago in this thread. They are sending a new one, sounds like it's a common issue they are having.

Very helpful. Thanks.

I used this splitter on batman.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B06X9DFH9P/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Got this today, no idea why. I'm not subscribed to the insider program..Stern auto billed me and I had it reversed earlier

20220124_141615 (resized).jpg20220124_141625 (resized).jpg

It is RS485, as can be attested when looking at the node board schematics.

So yes you can have a splitter, although it's not recommended, but if a the end of the chain (or beginning), it's not a big deal

Does anyone have IC kits in stock?

Same. Wife got me the Insider membership for Christmas last year (and got the kit with the hat, patch, lanyard, pin, etc) and it got auto-renewed this year. I wrote an email to ask what I was getting for my $40 (and how to prevent it from auto-renewing next year) since the renewal said no shipping was needed and that arrived a few days later with no reply to my email. So consider yourself lucky?

Just to add to the Insider connected topic here: I helped rig up a kit in B66 Premium and we replaced the apron with a Pro insider connected apron for now. we ran a regular cat5e cable you can get at microcenter from the IC kit to the ethernet plug in the backbox that was being used for the topper. I believe will will be splitting the plug in the future and modding the original apron to install the kit into it, but it was a working solution for now. This is on location and neat to see up and running.

So do you think Stern will keep supporting this and keep the servers online? Would suck to invest into upgrading pins with it and then have it obsolete in a couple years. Disclaimer I love it. I want to upgrade my Avengers and Elvira at some point.

Yes. It is a major effort for them and will be a focal point going forward. They have been diversifying their products for years.

HUGE THANK YOU JOHN! Just ordered a kit for my LZ Premium - been looking everywhere for one of these and they still had one in stock. you are the man!!!!

Thank you to you both! Just ordered a kit for my TMNT premium. There are 2 premium kits still in stock, pro is out of stock.

https://oldtownpinball.com/shop-new/ols/products/stern-insider-kit-for-premium-machines

and now they're gone.....

Took me a while but I got through this entire post.

I have an Insider Connected, code neutered, Mando Pro (v1.02 code). It shipped with the hardware installed. I am relocating the scanner to the coin door.

Looking for an apron without the IC hole. I cant find them in any pinball store inventory. Anyone selling them?

Also, it appears to me that this is a camera(?). So we have a machine with Linux at its core, WiFi and connected to the internet. My mind wanders about exploits and hackers, lol.

mando insider connect (resized).png

All pro aprons for the last couple years have had that hole hidden under the right side triangle decal. See if Stern can send you that decal to cover it up.

Good to know! Thank you

Russian hackers gonna get a lot of shots of neckbearded pinball dudes...

What if you play at home without pants?