Just acquired a GameMaker.. but know zero about it!...and it is dead...

[bwerner6632]

Hi everyone!
I have just acquired a GameMaker machine (for free!) but there are only three things I know about it: One: When I turn it on, the only lights that come on are four green lights in front of the MPU (Or that is what I assume it is)... the button lights, florescent cabinet lights, or the red reset light does not come on. The DBV 200 bill validator cycles, and a small red light is on on it's side, but thats all that happens. Two: The date of manufacture is 2/95; and three; I know nothing else about this machine. So.. first off, how do I go about identifying what version of the machine I have? I would like to try to fix it, but have no idea where to begin. I have experience working on IGT S+ machines, but this is my first Bally machine. Unfortunately I don't have the keys for it, so I will be taking it to a locksmith to pick the lock to open the MPU area..... so I can't look at it until I get that done. What do you all think?

[Chris-socal]

There are several generations of Gamemakers. Some pictures will help us.
If 1995 its probably a V7000, when the batteries die on the game board they will not boot. After changing the battery you will need a set chip to set up the game, one of the topics at top of the Gamemaker threads has instructions on the setup process.
They can be challenging the first time but very fun games.

Chris

[bwerner6632]

Thanks Chris! I plan to go out to the garage and take some pictures today.... so I'll post those later. Thank you for the info.... Would the battery cause the CRT to not show anything? It doesn't... not even a blue screen. But when I turn off the machine there is a reaction from the CRT... like a flash or something... I'll take a video of it and see if I can post it.....
Bill

[Chris-socal]

Many of those have Tatung monitors (14728, 14428 or some variant), they often need a critical capacitor kit to be installed and sometimes the HOT burns out. But if you get a flash that likely indicates the HOT is working.
Its pretty time consuming to do a cap kit on that board simply because there are some wires soldered directly to the board and/or neckboard. You will need to label them or cut and insert an inline connector or un-solder/ re-solder, plus there are the connectors for touch screen zip tied into place.
Its not excessively difficult, just time consuming.
Those boards also have delicate traces so be gentle when pulling capacitors.

I suspect that will resolve your image issues but you won’t know until you do a cap kit.
When you re-install the monitor after working on it you don’t have to re-connect the touch screen right away, you can just connect the CRT wires to test it first. Don't start turning knobs on the board thinking it will fix something and take pictures of the entire monitor and of the board before you start replacing caps.

And my last caveat: if you haven’t worked on a monitor before watch a YouTube video on how to discharge the anode cup before removing it.

Chris

[bwerner6632]

Here we go... second attempt...

[Chris-socal]

Hmmm, I think we need to see the game board. Open that metal cover/door inside and you should be able to grab the front lip of the metal tray and pull it straight out. The board wedge fits into the connectors.
I think its a V7000 but its 1998.

That is a Tatung monitor.

Chris

[kcirrick]

Here I am, late to the game as usual.

Chris has some great suggestions.  I recently replaced all the capacitors on the CRT of my Revenge From Mars pinball machine because the picture was distorted, full of static and no adjustments would fix it and then it just went out completely.  It’s a fairly rare Ducksan monitor.  I’m familiar with a soldering iron, but have never taken on such a tedious job and was pretty apprehensive.  I just took a methodical approach, took my time and was successful.  The only issue I ran into was that someone had worked on the monitor before so I had to work around their tweaks and jump some damaged traces.  One thing that made the job easier was that I was able to purchase the “cap kit” that included most of the capacitors needed for both the monitors main board and the neck board. I did have to buy a more expensive filter capacitor that wasn't included in the kit.  Taking your time it can be successfully done.  I got my cap kit from Arcade Parts and Repair and they do have some Tatung cap kits. Make sure you get one for your model of monitor.  Shop around.

I might wonder if your monitor issue could be due to a faulty transformer.  Worth thinking about should replacing the capacitors not resolve the monitor problem.  With multiple power issues the Game Maker's transformer could be suspect, but I wouldn't go there yet.  It’s entirely possible that the button lights and fluorescent lights are simply burned out.  The fluorescent light could have a bad starter.  I’d suggest finding some LED bulbs for the button lights anyway.  A cap kit always helps and is inexpensive so that might be where to start.  Once the CRT is working you can use the clear chip you have now purchased to configure the machine.

Oh, and not to throw a wrench into the works, but depending on whether it was ever replaced or upgraded or not, your bill acceptor might have an issue taking more modern bills.  Options depend on the bill acceptor.  Some have a chip you can simply replace and others must be sent to someone to be flashed to accept newer bills.  Third option would be to find and buy an acceptor that has already been upgraded.  But, you’ve worked on similar machines so you are well aware of such issues.