Tse-Tse Board explained

[Dirtguy]

Hi
Was wondering if someone could explain how a Tse-Tse Fooler board is used . Can it be used on a BB1.5 with a 19" top box screen, how does it connect to the screen, what it looks like (Pic). What games is it needed for? Is it the same as the top board in a goldfish machine that runs the animation? Was told that if you had a game that needed one for top screen bonus, that without it, the game would somehow still play with only the reel screen. Any explanation would be appreciated, Thanks!

[qbert]

I would like this information also. If it is the same board that is in the gold fish and if it goes bad does the top monitor go completely dark?

Rich

[rickhunter]

The tse tse is basically another mpu board (though not as robust as the main cpu).  It runs it's own os and game data, and it connects to the main mpu through a serial connector.  The main games looks for this top mpu and sends it commands to display whatever it needs to display.  This is how it works with native BB1 dual screen games.  As far as using it as a fooler, games that have top bonus special boxes, like top gun, Wizard of Oz, Men in Black, etc, use the same type of polling as a bb1 game. By sheer luck (and probably just easier design on WMS's side) the same command types are used on these games, so when the TseTse is connected, it responds to the polling that the main mpu does during it's bonus an boot procedures, thus "fooling" the system into thinking it has the appropriate hardware.  In essence any of the light controller boards used on these special top games should be able to be used as a fooler, but the tsetse seems easier to obtain as some these special top games are just destroyed.

When used as a fooler, you do not connect the vga plug on the tsetse to the monitor.  It is not necessary.  Typically when used as a fooler and the game is a bb2 game, the to screen is normally connected to the secondary vga port on the bb2 mpu and the tsetse vga port is not used.  On bb1 games that use a fooler like Men in Black it doesn't matter if the vga is hooked up or not.  The only requirement to be used as a fooler is serial and power connected.

[Dirtguy]

Thanks for the explanation, could you post a picture of one?
                                                                                                 

[rickhunter]

Here is one.

[Dirtguy]

Thanks, now I know what I'm looking for!

[rickhunter]

Broken Ticker has some, ask him for it.

http://newlifegames.com/nlg/index.php?topic=20643.msg109094#msg109094