Totally get it. It's been beat to death (pro vs prem)

All I can say is, at TPF, I could FEEL the difference on the premium and it made me want it. But just to muddy the point, I like DP Pro better.

Just proves there is no winning here with whats right or wrong

Right...but it is painful. I was going to go Premium on FF but splurged on the LE because I really wanted the Expression Lights and Stern's track record isn't good on kit production. The color combo and real/mirrored back glass just looks sweet on the LE as well. BUT...at 13k (plus tax for supporting my local distributor), it's getting ridiculous. ~2k more than Rush LE. Totally unfamiliar with the band, but the game looks like a winner! If others agree, then it should at least hold it's value...who knows?

Start cranking the left orbit loop around multiple times on DP Prem and report back. Massive difference that one shot.

I have not put time in on a DP premium or LE, so I guess I'm lucky I don't know the difference

Funny story though- I bought a NIB Iron Maiden and absolutely loved it. I had it for almost a year and thought that since I loved the pro so much it would be great to have the upgrades on the IM Prem with the differences in the ramps and lock... boy was I wrong. Perhaps it was a personal thing or I just got used to the pro so much, but after owning the premium for a few months I absolutely regretted selling my Pro. I think many like the Premium over the Pro on that title, but my tastes were for the speed and flow of the "lesser" model.

Definitely the only LE I plan on spending this type of money on. Crazy to drop 13k on it, BUT.....the foil side art, the expression lights, and more importantly, the dead post, combined with me being a big FF fan, this was the perfect storm of money spending.

Same with me and RUSH. I'd have all three editions if I could.

Exactly where I was at. I was a sight unseen buyer of the game based on theme alone. There's not a band higher on my "grail pin" list higher than FF.
Once I saw what was included, LE was the easy choice. For me. The side art is better than I thought it'd be. The expression lights, the powder coat, and the little things like the shaker and glass upgrades that all add up to an amazing experience.

I've got 2 local spots I can go play the Pro if I ever feel the need to, or pull it in a competition. My game is bolted to the floor.

There is GNR and then everything else band wise. Total package

Have em all or played em all.

SmithAFoo really good too. Especially if you are a big fan

I played rush pro and was shocked how packed it was. Then my local place got rid of it and got the premium, and while it is cool, I couldn't tell too much difference between the two besides the ramp and clock. All terrific for sure.

that shot rocks. i also love AIQ black widow >> captain marvel, rise and repeat.

My thoughts from Day one of LE 372: favorite shot is the Rami, favorite scene with the expression lights is the Overloard ball abduction. The shaker kicks Ars. When you trigger the dead post Dave’s foot lights up thenDistortion Pedal. That is Rock n roll. Also posted earlier in the Owners forum:

Man, oh man. I havent played anything quite like it. I shot the Secret “Overdrive Skill” Shot or Congo shot and it was like 5 mil for a single shot. I tried again later only to fall one lane short and the Overloard taunts with and I’m paraphrasing “you need to be more cleaver than that”. Really? How F’en cool (adult mode off) is that! You are doing a city, then the Overloard, balls all over, you hit one up the right ramp Area 51, so thrilled to get a hit on the top flipper, while caos ensues, just outstanding! The satisfaction of triggering Area 51 mb when the hatch raises and you hit the target just hard enough.
Jack’ oh Jack. Your magic little post. A 10 dollar piece of plastic. I just have to say, in a not weird sort of way, I love you. Back in the caos, a left peer to see amber lit, look right and hit the left flipper and F’en ya! Just F’en amazing. And when you don’t hit it in time the agony of defeat.
And yes, the Expression lighting, is totally worth it. It really is. Adds depth to the game visually. Now I think I will go back and try it in the Dark.

This game and its creators is something truely special.

I liked the Foo Fighters and saw several of their shows in my youth and Nirvana before and always thought of them as a rebound band but their music has always been around me. Flash forward many decades later and I didn’t really appreciate them until their covid show in Vegas where Dave broke down each song in a VH-1 style Storyteller session. And truely witnessing Taylor’s talent putting Freddie Mercury to shame singing a Queen song in his crazy leopard pants. It was one of my top 10 If not top 5 shows of all time. Wife and I will be going to Bonnaroo later this year to see them ( Dave sign my Back glass ) After playing my LE today for the first time there is just something special about this pin and the team who created it. Today I received my grail pin in which I didn’t know existed and I wasn’t looking for. Being a casual fan, I feel lucky to be among 999 others owning this very special pin. The reveal, the speculation, the torture of waiting, late night obsession, discovering twitch and a deadflip with you fine folks has truly been a memorable experience.

To those that have their LE or Premium FF.

Anyone have tips to get deadpost to reliably bounce ball up enough to flipper for save as in streams and videos??

I just got my premium yesterday, I love it so far, did quick set up so far as had to go to work.

Today I will try to set up with actually measuring pitch as only did by eye only, maybe needs higher pitch for deadpost to gain speed and bounce high enough to flipper.

Also posts by outlanes do not have rubber rings, not sure if normal?

At least one person mentioned that they had to bend out their apron very slightly so the ball would bounce off the deadpost back into play.

Normal

Mine is at 6.5 right now, level side to side and the post works like a champ. I only miss maybe 2 out of 10 times, usually because the ball is too fast and hits the flipper before I can lift it.

When you get FF, awesome congrats I knew you would get one so you could have them all

Just set up #409 LE at my son’s house and only played a couple of games (grand daughter had to go to bed ).

The hype is real.

Yep, that one person is me. My dead post would bounce the ball into the bottom of the left flipper when it was held up. I bent the apron out toward the playfield a slight bit and now it bounces perfectly to the right flipper.

Here’s my dead post experience after about 100 games.

- if the ball doesn’t have enough pace you sometimes have to give a nudge forward to give it enough juice to make it to the flipper. If it’s really slow it may be a lost cause.

- if it’s got a ton of pace, it will sometimes bounce up more vertically and hit the raised left flipper and drain. Mine only does this occasionally so I haven’t bent the apron or anything.

Same here. In the week of daily play I have yet to have it not have enough juice to bounce up to the right flipper, unless I biff it.

Yep, agreed. If the pace is slow, chances are even with good timing, you may not save it. I'm fine with that, I like the randomness. I'm probably at around 8 out of 10 myself, at 7 degree pitch.

I've disabled my deadpost. Its either too slow to make the right flipper or too fast and hits the bottom of the left. I opened a ticket with Stern just in case but I'm not sure its anything wrong....but yeah I'd rather have consistent expectations of a ballsave than a dice roll.

Then buy a pro. Seriously. By its nature the dead post isn’t going to save it EVERY time. It takes a little skill, some finesse and sometimes a little luck. That’s honestly why I prefer it over the regular ball save. I’ve gotten to where my dead post save is successful about 95% of the time but sometimes it still hits the left flipper and drains or doesn’t have enough juice to make it to the right flipper. Sometimes it just makes it to the tip of the right flipper and you have to do a little juggling. It’s amazing.

Don’t confuse the dead post with a ball save. It isn’t. It’s a mechanical feature that can help you save a left outlane drain.

This is why the Premium is a more challenging machine than the pro. The dead post is not a 100% ball save like on the pro. The Area 51 super jackpot is WAY harder to achieve on a premium vs a pro.

It’s simply a more challenging game.

Yep. For me, the LE is one of the most challenging games Stern has produced in quite awhile. At 7, so fast. No pops to give any break from the furious play. It's all good, since I find both Rush and GZ too kind and gentle. I prefer shorter playing games, but at the moment, FFLE is a little too short a player I need to just play it more...the left ramp is one of the most deceptively dangerous shots. Sure, it is safer with the left flipper, but that's just not practical if you are going to have fun and progress with the game (the shot needs to be mastered from the right flipper).

Agree, but don't forget that Area 51 is arguably a little easier to start because you can activate it on your first trip up the right ramp if you keep it on the upper playfield and hit the shots. And each mode has a freebie shot up top that you don't get otherwise.

I think it's a really good balance and a great way to give owners of both some advantages and disadvantages.

Normal, but there are two post rubbers in the goodie bag you can use if you like.

There are times with FFLE, I can pick a song to start the game, and not even hear the end of the song before the game is over. It can be brutal at times, but I keep hitting start.

That’s true. It’s easier to start but harder to get the super on

My understanding is that the right outlane should have a rubber, left does not. That’s how they were set up at TPF by JD.

One thing to check on your game is that there is no Mylar on the apron on the left side on premiums and LEs. At TPF JD went around and pulled the Mylar strip off the left apron, said it slowed the ball down too much for the dead post to work correctly.. I would assume they fixed that on subsequent runs but you never know.

Haha OK I’ll return my premium and buy a pro wot m8?! I still love the upper playfield and 3-D sculpts. I’m just saying, the dead post isn’t reliable.

I think of it as a more engaging game as well.

However, according to the TiltForums game guide, the Premium/LE will light Overdrive more frequently than the Pro to compensate for it not being 100%. I have not validated this to be true, however.

"The left outlane is lit for Overdrive at the start of the game, and after two completions of the Sonic Radio targets (one for Prem / LE models). This is a virtual ball save on Pro models; on Prem / LE models the Deadpost will raise when the ball rolls over the left outlane, hold up the left flipper to save the ball."
http://tiltforums.com/t/foo-fighters-rulesheet/8162#:~:text=Overdrive%20Ball%20Save%3A

Well, first off I’m saying if your definition of reliable is a 100% ball save then that’s not going to happen.

Secondly, if your dead post isn’t getting the ball to your right flipper at least 90% of the time then you probably have a mechanical issue based on my experience with my premium.

Things to check:
- make sure there is not a Mylar strip on the left side of your apron. If there is one, remove it.
- there should not be a rubber on the left outlane post. It slows the ball down too much. If there is one there or you installed one, remove it.

So, I guess my reaction would be dependent on what your experience and expectations are.

My deadpost works great. It's one of the coolest things in pinball. This game is really fun. The upper playfield is really well done. Keeping the ball up there is a big challenge and it's fast and satisfying.

Had a few games on an LE

First impressions:

FAST. very fast game.
Unique bounces. As far as Sterns go, I felt this game challenges my reflexes as there are new ball bounces, new angles which are different from other new Sterns I have played. I love that!

The Deadpost.
Freaking awesome!
Especially whenever I pulled it off during MB. So much fun keeping all the balls in play and then utilizing the Deadpost to save a ball on top, oooh wheee just Delicious Exciting pinball.
You have to be ready for it, otherwise late flip or unprepared and the ball will hit the post then drain off the bottom of the right flipper. It is a skill we will all embrace improving and learning.
Definitely worth it.

The flow through the Area 51 upper PF:
It was fast. I cannot imagine there being any notable or significant flow difference from the pro. Every time I had to be super aware and ready to catch the ball in time at the upper PF. just zooms right on by if you don’t engage with upper flipper.
But a challenging upper PF, that gives you just enough satisfaction to keep you hungry to go back for more. Great upper PF! one of the best I have ever played.

Art and LE appearance:

This is most beautiful LE I have seen from Stern in the past decade. This LE is beautiful.
Art is ZY at his best. I must have spent 15mins just looking at/over all hidden gems and details.
Well done. Everyone involved.

Jack Danger and Team crushed this one.
Fantastic pin.
Very exciting and I am Freaking excited for this one.

At some point we should probably abandon the hype thread and posts like this should be made / stickied in the owners thread

Oh so I'm not the only one

This worked for me too!

Thanks everyone for feedback.

This game is awesome!! Only at 0.93 code too, can't wait to see future code updates.

Are you LE owners or those with LE speaker upgrade switching speaker setting to 4ohm? I assume we should? I left equalizer on default but I'm curious if anyone is doing anything with that that helps. No complains on the sound I just want to optimize!

There's already one referencing this in the tech section of the owner's thread index.

Leave it at 8 and equalize.

So since Stern posted video of Premiums on the line, does this mean they are full throttle on premiums and done with LEs or are they still switching between the two? Still no word on my premium shipping.

What seems to be the consensus on the shooting trough strength?

They paused the last of the LEs waiting for cabinet decals and did Premiums while they waited for the LE decals. So not full steam on Premiums quite yet, there are more LEs to be made.

Good info thanks man!

I don't know the number strength in setting, but I pick the lowest and go from there.

My machine is set to lowest setting and ejects balls with no problems. This helps reduce any wear to your shooter lane. Each machine might vary slightly, just want enough strength to get ball ejected without having to struggle with ball ejection.