(Topic ID: 149614)

TZ (WPC) Double Flipper Reset until game warms up

By drshaw

8 years ago


Topic Heartbeat

Topic Stats

  • 15 posts
  • 9 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 8 years ago by markmon
  • Topic is favorited by 2 Pinsiders

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#1 8 years ago

So everything I've read, is that if you hit both flippers and the game resets in the first 5 minutes of it being turned on, but it doesn't reset after the game has "warmed up", then it's most likely a Thermistor problem in the power box. My machine is in a cold-ish room, and sometimes I'll go weeks without playing it. When I (or my kids) turn it on, the first 3-5 minutes will produce a game reset when both flippers are hit. Goes away after being left on in attract mode for 5 minutes which is our current work around. If I've played the game for an hour, turn it off, and come back to it a little later, the warm-up period where the game resets is less time then if it has sat for an extended period of time.

So I tried to test the Thermistor by connecting some alligator clips to each solder pad that the Thermistor legs are connected to and when I do that, the game just resets without fail every time I hit both flippers. Removing the alligator clips (by now, the game is warm), the problem doesn't happen. Install the clips again, and boom, reboots with both flippers. First off, because of the Varistor is also soldered on the same pad as the Thermistor, I don't think I'm getting a very strong connection with the alligator clip. It could be better on that leg. Lastly, I wonder if I'm using too thin of a wire gauge to jump my Thermistor. I believe the clips I have are 24AWG and I read somewhere on here that you'd want to use 14AWG or something? The thermistor is a relatively cheap part so I may just swap it regardless, but do you think I have BR5 problems, or something else with the symptoms I've described before I go to the trouble?

Thanks!

#2 8 years ago

Sounds possibly like the caps on the driver board also , as they dry out and dont charge as well or hold charge as well as they do when in good working order. Time to bust out the dmm and do some testing ....

#3 8 years ago

Since it has to "warm up", there could be cracked solder joints somewhere. I'd look for those first before swapping out parts.

Also, see here: http://pinwiki.com/wiki/index.php?title=Williams_WPC#Game_resets

#4 8 years ago

Lots of possibilities for sure

#5 8 years ago

Since I'm in a surly mood after having to repair a bunch of ripped up through holes, I advise against replacing any cap until you've exhausted ALL of the steps prior to that step in the PinWiki. We put those steps together in that specific order to avoid unnecessary damage to the boards.

I see that you have a WCS also. You could swap the power/driver boards to see if the problem follows. If WCS resets after placing the TZ power/driver board into it, there's a pretty good case that the board has an issue like headers or maybe the 5V filter cap. If TZ doesn't reset with the WCS power/driver board in it, that doesn't completely indict the original TZ driver board. The mere act of swapping the boards "cleans" corrosion from the header pins and seats the female pins in slightly different positions on the male headers pins.

Let us know what you find out...but keep the iron cold for a while longer.
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#7 8 years ago

Technically, it's a band-aid. A very useful band-aid since it can get a non-working game up and running and can sometimes help narrow down where the actual problem is, but it still doesn't actually fix the underlying cause of the resets.

If you ever see that adapter in a game, you already know there's problem with it.

#8 8 years ago

Thanks for all the help and suggestions. So does the gauge of my alligator clips matter then because it sounds like it isn't the Thermistor? This, based off the reproducable fact that when I jump the Thermistor, the problem seems more prevelant. I can try swapping power driver boards with my WCS and see if it follows.. but I hate to disturb "sleeping dogs" so to speak. The WCS is working perfectly and I don't want 1 problem to become two, especially since there is a fairly easy work around of just waiting until the machine warms up.

I guess I should also note that I have that color changing LED door mod in my back box, that makes the translite door fade colors in and out. I can't remember as it's been nearly 3 years since I installed it, but I think it vampires off a 5v connection somewhere (it's an older version of the mod, and I think it takes it from an unused connector near the coin box). I wonder if that is contributing to the problem, I suppose I can disconnect it and test easy enough.

To be honest, that daughter board sounds tempting.. if it can get me past the first few minutes off a cold boot so I don't have to wait for the machine to warm up!

#9 8 years ago

If the thermistor isn't burnt/damaged, it probably isn't the problem.

I still recommend this:

Quoted from ForceFlow:

Since it has to "warm up", there could be cracked solder joints somewhere. I'd look for those first before swapping out parts.
Also, see here: http://pinwiki.com/wiki/index.php?title=Williams_WPC#Game_resets

#10 8 years ago

Try just reseating J101, J102, J114 on the driver board and J210 on the MPU and the Z-connector between the MPU and driver boards.

This sometimes is a temporary fix which just suggest female connectors may need to be replaced. If of the wired connector show signs of discolored white connector housings, then you would also need to replace the male pin connectors on the board at that location.

#11 8 years ago
Quoted from ForceFlow:

Technically, it's a band-aid. A very useful band-aid since it can get a non-working game up and running and can sometimes help narrow down where the actual problem is, but it still doesn't actually fix the underlying cause of the resets.
If you ever see that adapter in a game, you already know there's problem with it.

Actually, if the problem was a bad 5v circuit, this permanently solves it by providing a stable 5v from a circuit that has plenty of spare headroom. It is not a band-aid. Yes, if you see this board on the circuit then it means there's an issue with the board. But it tells you exactly what that issue is and also solves it. You can also tell if a bridge or cap is replaced which also meant there was an issue with the board.

#12 8 years ago

While you're trying the easy stuff disassemble and reassemble the Z connector at the power connection between the CPU and PDB.

1 week later
#13 8 years ago

Hey guys, thanks for all your suggestion. I ended up ordering that kahr.us daughter board, the pro version. When I was installing it, I decided to double check most of the ribbon cables to make sure they were seated flush, and the Z connector wasn't. After install, I left the backbox open and turned the machine on (it hadn't been used in a few days so this would be a great test)... the game did not reset, and the Pro version of the daughter board stayed green on the LED so it wasn't detecting a 5v issue. At this point, I'll assume that re-seating the Z connector, or re-seating the MPU connector to install the daughter board resolved the issue. But it's nice to have the daughter board installed for added peace of mind and extra testing in my current and future WPC games. Thanks again!

#14 8 years ago

Your reset issue will eventually return since resetting the usual suspect connectors 'fixed' the issue. Those connectors and headers need replaced.

#15 8 years ago
Quoted from Chrizg:

Your reset issue will eventually return since resetting the usual suspect connectors 'fixed' the issue. Those connectors and headers need replaced.

Depends. He didn't say he reseated the z connector. He said it wasn't seated securely and he pushed all the way in place. That could very well be the end of it

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