My tooper arrived DOA. Back to Stern for repair. It lit up but didn’t move. Oh well. It’s just Pinball so I’m not going to get worked up over it.

Props to you for having a positive attitude.

#206 finally in the house!

Everything looks great and working and contrary to what someone previously said about him continually spinning, in 4 games played only happened once.

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Something I noticed after having this thing on for a couple hours now is that in addition to adding a bunch of new sounds in game play and r2 sounds in attract mode I noticed a minimum of 3-4 new video clips in attract mode. I’ve owned it for over 2 years and am certain I’ve never seen them before.

People keep seeming to beg for pinball DLC. Maybe it finally happened, just at 30 times the price anyone expected. Stern would hardly be the first company to hide code in a released product that only does anything if you connect an expensive peripheral accessory.

It’s the first topper I’ve seen when you first install it almost appear to do a code update and node board update so there is either code embedded in the topper or plugging it in unlocks material that was already in the 1.05 update.

There is quite a bit of additional sounds both in game and attract and I keep seeing new video material, quite interesting.

It is overpriced though and based on other toppers I think $499 would have been a reasonable target but Stern knows the market and these do seem to be flying off the shelf at $775 so who really knows.....

Yeah, I'm not going to fall into the sarlacc pit of commenting on people deciding to buy these or not. Stern is making their money. Maybe they should've asked 1k for them. I'm going to watch that twitch stream later, but from a cursory scan through of it..I'm not at all impressed for the money. They're going to have to try a lot harder....which we all know they won't.

Glad you are happy with it! Anytime a new (or replacement) node board is installed in a Spike game, the CPU board programs the new node board. This happened with my Batman 66 BatSignal topper as well. I think that is what you are seeing. I believe all the R2 topper content was loaded into the game code previously.

Not sure I am buying they won't try harder. That Black Knight topper is pretty badass, and only $429, which is a bargain compared to the R2 topper. BUT - It hasn't been released despite being shown at Expo in October, so hopefully it doesn't get delayed as much....Same with Munsters at clock topper at $425. So while the R2 price does suck, It doesn't appear to be the trend.

Stern sent me a return label, crossing my fingers they will fix it and it wont spin around aimlessly like a stupid useless droid.
In the mean time i think I got my Darth Vader sixth scale Empire Strikes Back pose just right

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I’ve lived for 2 years without it, so it’s either going to get fixed and be great, or I’m going to get a refund. Either way, it’s way optional and supposed to be fun. I often forget that.

"Only".

lol... I've bought working games for less than these toppers. It doesn't just suck, it's literally insane.

So have I. I get it. It’s a premium item for a premium item.

I love how the excuse made by rich (or ......) people to justify overpaying for frivolous shit is always "Because that's the price." This was the exact same non-logic used to defend JJP raising prices, which led to Stern raising prices, and they're both still going higher and higher. Whatever. Like I said...I'm not going to defend my position or convince anyone to change theirs. Enjoy playing your new.....topper. I won't even be arsed to respond to anything else along these lines.

Not sure what your point is other than to shit on the product and the price. Which you have done for multiple posts now. As for "higher and higher", the toppers for games after Star Wars have a topper price hundreds less, so for toppers specifically it isn't the same pattern as game pricing.

Game pricing. Gotta pay attention to context. Does JJP sell 700$ toppers? No? That would've been a cue that I wasn't referring to toppers, but making a comparison within the same market of how people keep justifying the ever increasing cluster.... that is pinball pricing. My point is that people like you that just wave your hand and dismiss it as a "premium item" are like the same guys that buy designer shirts like they're in some way actually better than a 20$ shirt, just because they paid more for it. You're not getting MORE, or even BETTER. But it's your money. I couldn't afford a 700 buck topper even if I had the damn game. I'm just utterly fascinated that people pay these prices, and seem to be happy to continue to do so, even when there isn't a single innovative thing done by this very expensive add-on that wasn't done by Doctor Who 18 years ago. OH WAIT THERE'S RGB LEDS NOW, STUPID ME.

Draining this shit.

Bye Felicia.

Technically this isn't downloadable content (DLC) because you don't have to download anything. However, Stern has provided DLC for free in the form of code updates for years. Many of these updates have provided new modes, callouts, and other content. In some instances (Game of Thrones, Ghostbusters) new features and not just bug fixes were provided at no cost years after the games were first sold. A lot of the appeal of the Stern toppers and the reason they find buyers at premium prices is because they interact with the code in the game.

But they do sell a CE version that comes with an exclusive topper at a much larger premium than $700.

.

Well I bit the bullet and bought one, number 409 here in Kiwi Land.
I think it really adds to the game...

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I want to buy one but still no news from stern distributor here in germany.

Did he order some?

They told me so in an email.

Same here...

Limited edition freaking blueberries ! What’s next ... jeez oh peets

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But did it include a piece of the bush?

Attention Topper Owners!

Upset that your “limited edition” numbered plaque cannot be seen and only faces the wall? Then check this out!

Our topper’s plaque is now mounted opposite the LE plaque, perfect placement if you ask me!

Since the topper’s plaque is only glued on, carefully heat it from behind and then slowly peel the plaque off the front of the topper. You can now adhere it opposite the other plaque or wherever else you may like!

Enjoy!

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Same here, I also sent mine back to Stern. I bought mine from Hemisphere pins. I will never buy anything from hemisphere again. Here is hemisphere response to me after I refused to take topper apart myself:

“I'll have my brother Mark have Stern send you a return label for this topper. Just thought if you wanted to take a quick peek I'd help you send so many times it's simple stuff but got your voicemail and sounds like you're not mechanically inclined. No big deal to us if you want to ship it back and forth. I'll have Mark get a hold of Stern for a label.”

I thought that was a pretty lame comment..

I think it’s factually a nice approach. He’s offering you a shot at an maybe easy solution. You chose the technocrat approach and they are ok with it. That’s apparent.

I don't know what level of service comes from a distributor but at that price and it being dead on arrival I would expect them to send someone to your door to fix it or take it away. Mechanically inclined has nothing to do with it, I can pretty much fix anything but I certainly would never work on a new product or one under warranty. It always makes me chuckle when people suggest you do their work for them for free.

After almost a month later, I got in both boards from Stern yesterday and replaced them (I know I shouldn’t be doing their work for them but oh well). R2 worked for about 30 seconds and then went dead again. When I put another call into Stern, Chas from customer service informed me that the metal clamp which holds the motor in place may be loose and touching something that is shorting out the driver board. He also said I’m not the only one with this problem (which I know from reading this thread) so it amazes me why Stern didn’t post/send out a service bulletin addressing this issue. Or, why didn’t their new efficiency manager catch this issue before the toppers started leaving the factory. Typical Stern product!

So where's the signed certificate of authenticity?

I freaking ate it with the first couple berries.
The LEs tasted about the same as the SE. Haven’t tried the CE yet.

Warranty? In pinball? In what other industry does the product cost as much as a car accompanied by virtually no warranty...

Did you check the signature first to ensure it actually was God's signature? Even if you already have one framed, you best have made sure that His signature was authentic and you didn't ingest a bunch of them cheap knock-off blueberries that keep flooding the market to cut into God's profit margin. I'm also presuming there were significant price differences between LE, CE and SE. Finally, it's hard to tell from the picture, but I'm not sure those are actually HD containers.

Do they not give you anything on a topper, they have to at least give you 30 days?

It’s a lot louder then I was expecting.. you can turn sounds off yet cant adjust volume level...

What are you talking about? Everyone who has had issues has been supported by Stern.

Calm yourself no need to fire up the Stern defence force. I asked Dan1733 what kind of warranty they give you on a topper. I did not make any statements about Stern.

You can only post pics no vids here? I wanted to post vid of topper working

What did you have against taking it apart? Sounds like they were willing to talk you through a fix... I've had nothing but a great experience from Kurt and Mark, and I've had issues and they've always come through...I live in Texas and always buy and will continue to buy from Hemispheres

That’s great to hear they treated you well and you will continue to buy and support them. I was just commenting on my experience with them. What do I have against taking the topper apart? Well I already have a JP LE trex head from stern in pieces from jaw not opening, own a business and have a wife and kids. So my time is pretty god dam valuable to me. So yea it’s being shipped back to fucking Stern! Now put it to bed already!

The content of this statement and choice of words clearly shows the problem i would say

There are vids in the thread already. Someone streamed a topper cam for an hour.

Fair enough. I think Stern gives 60 days on pinball machines. I’d guess the topper “warranty” is the same. What happens in reality is a much longer period typically.

dont be condenscending to your customers. calling him mechanically inclined is a diss. he paid 750 for that topper and all op is responsible for is the install. i can rebuild the engine on a mack truck and sometimes i dont have time for tom-foolery. just take care of the customer bottom line.

I sent my topper back to Stern about one week ago because all it did was go in circles, so damn annoying. I think they weren't packaged very well, so it got bumped and the top dome part was off, I hope its worth all the efforts when it comes back... crossing my fingers.

Bought my topper at the end of November and still waiting on it arrive

I guess there are arguments on both sides of the fence. I can see both points but I think the bottom line is a lot more gets done when we treat each other with respect. I think it is fine for the Vendor to try to offer his services to fix the item before having to send it back but I think it is also fine for the owner to say thanks but no thanks without a snarky response back from the vendor.

I have always tried to be respectful when working through issues. Stern has worked with me on my Metallica years after the warranty was over, explaining how to use a multimeter, reviewing pics and providing advice, sending some parts without charging me so I find their customer service pretty good (granted some of the issues where quality control on their part but I never complained to them and they helped fix the issues).