Newbie To Aristocrat - Need some Help

[Daz_351]

Hi All
Just joined and could really do with some good advice
Recently purchased a old Qld gaming machine which has been converted to MK6 with NSW chips
Seller claims they were playing this machine during covid and has sat in the corner gathering dust ever since
They appear to have changed the game chips at some point and im unsure if they played it as a MK5 or upgraded and played as MK6
i had a few lock up errors and the main one was fixed by replacing the comms board and the 6 com links
Game booted straight up but has a Main door mismatch , i researched and discovered it should be a problem with the photo transistors / Led
Could be an aligment issue etc etc , Replaced with paired parts and have an understadning of the sensor circuitry however cannot clear the lock up mismatch error
Also checked the cherry switch as some were saying to swap tabs around till the error cleared however it has not cleared
I also see that some have modded the cherry switch but unsure if thats what i need to do or not
Under the impression the prev owner was playing this machine so im a bit confused how to clear this lock error
Does anyone know much about the sensor circuitry and what else could be stopping the error to clear ?
Any advice is appreciated as im 3 weeks into researching every forum and FB group thats going around
Found this group today and hoping for some help , Thanks in advance

[seadoo10]

You're in the right place.  Can you post some pictures so we can see what Aristocrat model you have?

[pokie3]

So the MK5 machines can easily swap around between MK5 & 6, it was designed like this so only the main board is the difference - the rest of the hardware is all the same.

The only thing is the door switch in the corner etc, it's nothing to with the LED leave that (well, make sure it lines up) but just rip the little cherry switch out swap the wires the opposite and the door lockup/mismatch will work. It only says that if the LED and door both conflict. - just that if need to swap around when you go from mk5 back to mk6 board (its just 2 wires anyway). You can also put in a switch somewhere too.

[Daz_351]

hello
thank you so much for getting back to me
Ive had other people also bring the cherry switch to light
The problem is.... ive tried switching the 2 tabs and it doesnt clear the error lock up
tried other combinations on the cherry switch as well
With the sensors lined up as well
Getting a bit frustrated with this machine
I will take some pictures and post soon
But if there is any document or vid showing me this mod please let me know

[Daz_351]

So the MK5 machines can easily swap around between MK5 & 6, it was designed like this so only the main board is the difference - the rest of the hardware is all the same.

The only thing is the door switch in the corner etc, it's nothing to with the LED leave that (well, make sure it lines up) but just rip the little cherry switch out swap the wires the opposite and the door lockup/mismatch will work. It only says that if the LED and door both conflict. - just that if need to swap around when you go from mk5 back to mk6 board (its just 2 wires anyway). You can also put in a switch somewhere too.

[pokie3]

Make sure the main board is fully in, I noticed you tried to pull it out and broke the tabs.. happens, there is a bit of a knack to get out.

For now, its possible the main board isn't properly seated, press the main board in, a bit firm -  as in make sure its fully in. Also check those smaller boards are also fully in. (can move in transport).

The white door switch in bottom right can be just replaced with a simple switch if you want to swap between mk5/mk6 easily but, for now I would just rip it out and just bridge the wires and close the door OR leave them open and close the door. (I can't remember what is what, only take 1 min to work out).

There are other posts here we people just move the switch somewhere etc.

Post pics of the lockups screen with door fully closed (and logic door which is the metal box with the boards in).

Anyway, these things are easy to figure out, just takes some time.

[Daz_351]

hello
thanks for the reply
any tabs that are broken were already like that when i got it
ive pretty much done all of the above in regards to checking the seating of the boards
As far as the switch goes tried different combinations im only interested in MK6 games so dont need any special mod right
what postion should it be NO or NC ?
im sure ive tried many different ways and i cannot clear this lock error
i will post some more pics thou very soon

[pokie3]

Thats cool,

My suspicion is the machines probably already got modded.

Just pull the switch out and join the wires (use paper clip or something) or leave open (not joined) close the door do the opposite, try again only take 1 min to work it out. The lockup in the lockup screen will clear the *** etc.

You have closed the logic door cage right? because why would you have a broken tab sitting on the open door. That has a micro switch on the door (again unless someone has modded that already).

Anyway worst case you can just use a manual wire on the backplane..

[Daz_351]

hello
thanks for the tips
Ok the logic door still has the micro switch attached which works in the lock up screen
As far as the cherry switch are you saying to disconnect that and just join the red and black wires together ?
Ive tried this and i also believe the optics are lining up and im still getting the main door mismatch lock up error
Could it possibly be something else like a component on a board or something ?
and yes the machine has been modded already including some switch/lamp arrangement coming off the backplane on connector security 3-5
figured this was a mod of some kind , weird thing is the prev seller was playing this machine during covid and i dont understand why its so hard to resolve this
Very frustrating to say the least
i also tried to attach pictures but the files are too large 

[pokie3]

The best thing is just take your time, plenty of people here to help.

Fair enough if only the door open/mismatch errors then it's really easy to fix.

Take a photo of the lockup screen too, perhaps around the door and bits. (reduce the res of the photos, these retro forums can't handle much).

Yeah so just take out the white door switch, yes use a paper clip (or something), join the wires, then open them, it should alarm beep each time you do this (because the door is open and optics are now out, it also triggers the alam on these events) - so as you connect/disconnect, this will test if these are actually hooked up or not. If you get nothing then it's probably bypassed and a custom switch or what ever.

[Daz_351]

hello again
i did remove the cherry switch and join the 2 wires together
no alarm or sounds at all
if u can give me your email i can send u some videos and pictures please
i know it sounds like a easy problem to solve but nothing seems to work , opto's look lined up
I could mount them on a board and remove the posability of them not lined up but to be honest i been suss
on them from the start , in my opinion the opto circuit isnt working but thats just a guess
regards Darren