What did I do to be treated so wrongly?

[dontknowsquat]

Well as many of you may know, I do not know a lot about slot machines. So I listen to the advice you provide. I recently asked about acquiring a clear chip for my S2000 three reel Wild Cherry. I was directed to Ron Ball. Since he was the person I had bought my current clear chip from, which was suspected to be corrupt, I had my doubts. But , I went off of the recommendations . After receiving my new clear chip, today. I excitedly began the clear process. I should've suspected something was wrong when the pins didn't line up and the chip required a fair amount of wiggling to fit in the socket. Load up the MPU and all kinds of lights go off on the MPU, and then the two ambers. Remove the MPU , remove the chip , replace the base chip and now the 'netplex is down' is flashing on a loop, no lights on the MPU. Did I receive a chip with a virus? Or is this common?  Where do I go now?

[DB26]

Ummmm. No, no way. Ron is not going to do that. Your chip probably didn’t line up properly because it’s a new chip. New chips have their legs bent out pretty wide and don’t fit in the sockets right away. You have to use a pin straightening tool (or bend them manually) to get the to the correct angle.


Did you use a key chip after your clear chip?

[dontknowsquat]

Didn't do anything but flash the Netplex is down , on a loop. No eeprom or ram error , just the flashing. When I tried the clear chip again I got no lights on the MPU and after about 5 seconds everything  went dark.

[DB26]

Do you have a key chip? Usually after you do a ram clear you must do a key chip to input your new settings.


I don’t believe going from clear chip to base chip will work.

[dontknowsquat]

The clear process involves putting in the clear chip, then the base chip, where you turn the key and hold the test button, and the really loud alarm, then the key chip. Ig can be done without using the base chip, but the forum directed me to the process and as I said before, I follow the directions of the forum. I have done that process so many times I hear it in songs. I tried to clear again and all I get was a flashing amber after bootup.

[Stayouttadabunker]

Are you installing the clear chip in the socket in the right direction?

[DB26]

The clear process involves putting in the clear chip, then the base chip, where you turn the key and hold the test button, and the really loud alarm, then the key chip. Ig can be done without using the base chip, but the forum directed me to the process and as I said before, I follow the directions of the forum. I have done that process so many times I hear it in songs. I tried to clear again and all I get was a flashing amber after bootup.

I see. Yes, definitely follow their directions. I’m new myself so I’m learning every day.


Post a pic of your board and chips.

[RodneyK]

I don’t see how you can even ask what did I do to be treated so wrongly. Something is up you just haven’t figured it out yet. Implying that RB mistreated you is just wrong. He is a standup guy that I’ve dealt with many times. I’m sorry you are struggling with your machine. It’s never fun and can be maddening. I hope you get it straightened out soon.

[dontknowsquat]

Very frustrated.  The mpu flashes second amber and the red at the bottom. All other lights are solid.  'Netplex is down' flashes on a loop.

[erbs]

In my experience a red flashing lamp has to do with a bent pin either one of the chips or on the 2 banks of pins on your mpu where it plugs into the mother board. Ron has helped me tremendously over the years and is a great guy. He would not steer you wrong.

[dontknowsquat]

That bent pin makes sense . Like I said previously , I caught hell trying to get the pins to line up on the clear chip. Not saying he is a bad person. Just know I need another new clear chip. Beginning to wonder if this even has the correct board set in it. Dated 2004, but I played a version of it back in 1991. Was a revised board made in 2004? Could somebody please post a picture of s2000 boards , or direct me to a picture.
 

[sixcardmark]

In my experience a red flashing lamp has to do with a bent pin either one of the chips or on the 2 banks of pins on your mpu where it plugs into the mother board. Ron has helped me tremendously over the years and is a great guy. He would not steer you wrong.

  I couldn't agree more.  Ron is a top notch guy.  Check those pins.   

[DB26]

That bent pin makes sense . Like I said previously , I caught hell trying to get the pins to line up on the clear chip. Not saying he is a bad person. Just know I need another new clear chip. Beginning to wonder if this even has the correct board set in it. Dated 2004, but I played a version of it back in 1991. Was a revised board made in 2004? Could somebody please post a picture of s2000 boards , or direct me to a picture.

http://newlifegames.net/nlg/index.php?topic=11840.0

[dontknowsquat]

Thanks, I have the 1270 board with the idiotic base chip location. That bend in the metal makes it hard to interchange the chips if you have large hands . Well, just broke a pin on the clear chip. !)#%&$@!#%&. Waited over a week for that chip. Big hands, good for palming a basketball, no so good for small spaces.

[Stayouttadabunker]

You need a 40-dip socket that uses a handle to grasp the chip pins instead of tiny holes.

Mouser.com has them....called ZIF sockets.

[dontknowsquat]

Thanks.

[Delma]

Fairly new as well......in the short time I've been here Ron has helped tons....Don't think that's the issue. I can say I've experienced a similar issue and it was the chip itself. Chip extraction tool helped me quit damaging these chips so often. I've noticed once you take something straight and hard( I use a metal ruler) to bent the pins in a little bit they'll slide in and out the sockets without hassle. Just sharing what helped me as a novice and letting you know that surely no one here steered you wrong. This site and these members have helped me get entire game room with over 70 games up and going.


Hope you get it figured out. Do keep posting and you will get help.

[sixcardmark]

I usually remove the adapter board so I can see what the hell I'm doing.  That base socket is in a bad spot.

[rickhunter]

A couple of things that I would look into:

1.  Does your board have the green varta battery still installed?  If it does and it no longer charges or is discharged, you will get the issue you are having, even when replacing the original chips back on, in fact, if you put your chips back on and all the pins are good, and you are getting the red leds and the netplex down message, your board most likely has a bad VARTA battery, or it is discharged to the point where it is not supplying the necessary voltage.  Leave the machine powered up for a few hours and power down and up to see if the machine comes back up.  The other solution is to remove the Varta battery and associated other ic's so you no longer have the issue.

2.  Like it has been recommended, the 1270 enhanced board when using a daughtercard for the base and GME chips is a nightmare to deal with whenever you need to key it.  I have honestly used a clear chip 1 time in 8 years of owning several S2000, and only because it was to experiment to see what happened to it.  Almost all issues can be solved with just key chipping and setting the machine up correctly.  You really need to invest in the zif socket, it will save your key chip over the long haul, especially if you are going to be changing game themes and such.  In casinos, typically once the machine is setup, there will be no changes done to that machine until it is removed from the gaming floor.

[nglayton]

That bent pin makes sense . Like I said previously , I caught hell trying to get the pins to line up on the clear chip. Not saying he is a bad person. Just know I need another new clear chip. Beginning to wonder if this even has the correct board set in it. Dated 2004, but I played a version of it back in 1991. Was a revised board made in 2004? Could somebody please post a picture of s2000 boards , or direct me to a picture.

Here you go


1) Have you ever had this machine up and running?
        Sounds like you have more issues than the clear chip.
        If you have other hardware issues those need to be fixed before the clear chip will do much to help.


2) I personally think a virus on the chip is an absurd suggestion. - What would the end game be?


3) They make a tool to straighten and align pins on IC chips.  The tool is fairly cheap, and possibly a good investment if you do this a lot. Look here -  With a little practice you'll be a Pro in no time.


4) This forum and it's members are by far the best group of people I have ever dealt with in an online forum. I too am a slot newbie and have never gotten bad advice or parts from anyone here. If they were selling bad parts they wouldn't be around for very long.


5) Can you post a pic of your board? Maybe someone here can help spot the issue.