Twice I've had weird power issues with the Alltek boards causing resets/boot problems. Weebly board fixed the issue. Minor/rare cases but, when both do the job well enough 99% of the time that's all I've got to go on

I've only used NVRAM/Weebly boards because I've heard of sporadic Alltek issues like the one mentioned above (though rare), but that's also all I have to go on.

I do like the fact that Weebly also offers assemble-it-yourself kits for a savings, if you like the more hands-on approach.

Haven’t used Weebly boards, but have used Alltek boards in many applications. If there is ever any trouble, they are fast to respond and send replacements.

I myself have not had any issues with Alltek boards, due to a bad board. I have screwed up one of their boards on accident(5v line didn’t like having 12v running through it, oops!), and they sent me a replacement at no cost.

I’ve used their MPUs, Light boards, Sound boards, and Power Rectifier boards many of times. I stand by them, but again, that’s my experience with them.

I've tried both and much prefer the NVRAM/Weebly boards. They now have SDB's with a no high voltage component for a bit less $. Works great with their 6 digit displays (or any other repro displays) which are excellent as well.

I have had good success with Alltek boards, probably installed over 40 of their SDBs in the past 15 years with no issues. Used them on location games as well, and more than once the short circuit protection came in handy. No experience with Weebly boards so I can't compare the two brands.

https://www.arcadepartsandrepair.com/store/pinball-kits-parts/pinball-kits/bally-as-2518-22-solenoid-driver-pcb-105c-cap-kit/

NVRAM/Weebly easy

I've upgraded the SDB lately, but havent updated the pictures yet. It now has 5v over voltage protection, redundant on board coil flyback diodes, better 5v regulator and some extra LEDs to indicate the solenoid/sound bank select status. 40A 100V mosfet coil drivers should be hard to kill with onboard flyback diodes. Just don't over fuse.

Top shelf stuff as always.

Stuff like this is why I will always feel comfortable buying or recommending NVRAM/Weebly boards. Great products with the genuine goal of improving them any ways possible. I have one of their universal MPU boards in my Stars and it works perfectly.

I have both companies products. My Alltek LDA had a couple of traces burn up and disappear. The Alltek guarantee is that you pay shipping both ways and your board will be repaired. If it cannot be repaired, then you can buy a replacement for $50.00. Alltek was able to repair my LDA by soldering in a couple of jumper wires on the back. The interesting thing about this repair is that Alltek used some jumper wire that was barely bigger than spider web ( I should post of pic of it).

For me, one big advantage with the Alltek MPU is that it can be configured for any of my Sterns. So, say if I am having problems with Seawitch or Big Game, or Catacomb, I can use one MPU for troubleshooting across all 3 pins just by moving some DIP switches. ( If you are buying tools for your pinball repair toolbox, consider getting an Alltek MPU to use as troubleshooting tool since it can be configured to run ALL of the classic Sterns and many many Bally pins of the era).
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I like my Weebly boards. I had a couple of transistor (SCRs? ) get fried on my SDU. Weebly offered to repair it but I would have incurred shipping charges. I was able to locate the transistors I needed on Ebay for around $5.00 shipped. When they arrived I made the repair.

The big advantage with the Weebly MPUs is that you can install all of these modified ROMs for the modified rulesets that are being made for these classic Sterns. I am going to be making changes to my Seawitch rules so a Weebly MPU is in its future.

If you are going to install some low voltage UNO displays, you can buy a Weebly board for a discount price that is low voltage only.

I have also assembled some Weebly rectifier boards. They are exceptional with their nice wide traces and huge diodes to replicate the bridge rectifiers.
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Both brands each have their advantages. Just figure out what properties you value you more.

The advantage of the Weebly board is bigger because it has more Stern game ROMs built-in including Stern freeplay options and a number of old/new modified versions since the Combo-ROM is continually updated.
It also has hardware support to help convert early Ballys to 7-digit displays.

I noticed all of the modern boards are made with vertically mound capacitors instead of the tied down type used by Bally. Has anyone experienced issues with the larger filter capacitors breaking loose? I know this was a fatal flaw with Cap Com boards back when. Todays caps are smaller though.

Educate me, please. When I ordered my Weebly MPU for my Quicksilver build, the order instructions tole me to key in which pin I was doing. I assumed it was a "fixed" ROM and if you want different rule sets you would need to replace ROM . But now I am understanding that one MPU board can be DIP configured for any of the classic Sterns. Is this correct?

Thanks

yes, it can be set by DIP for any of them, he just sets it to the game you specify ahead of time, because he's nice that way. It can be set for all the classic Bally's as well.

see chart https://nvram.weebly.com/uploads/5/4/2/5/54255141/bally.mpu.combo.2022-09.pdf

Thank you.

You will need to note the board revision printed on your MPU and reference the correct dip switch chart. That one linked above has a lot of custom roms that wouldn’t have been included on a Weebly MPU from 2+ years ago.

So far no. WPC89 boards are pretty old by now and had many large snap caps on the driver board. I don't think those snap cap solder joints are a problem until the plated holes get ripped out on a rework job gone wrong. Even on real old gear I can't recall broken solder joints on a radial electrolytic capacitor like you get on male connector pin or even TO220 transistors. The radial snap caps can get hit hard and leads pulled out, but the way they sit flush to the board I think gives them a mechanical advantage over something like a transistor flapping around.

Doing stuff like hand soldering wire leads to caps and using zippy ties to mount them really starts to be a time sink.