Looking at getting a Space Duel, and I have questions

[Jive]

Looking at getting a Space Duel, and I have questions

I have been looking to add a vector game to my arcade, but I really know nothing about them. I've done some work with CRT monitors, like recapping, and general adjustments, but the vector stuff has always scared me reliability wise. I found a very nice Space Duel not far from me, and cosmetically, it looks fantastic, with a solid cabinet, new control panel, nice art, etc. Monitor looks good, at least from the pics I've been sent, but I don't know what I am looking at in the pics of the monitor chassis. Looks like some small circuit board has been added, but I have no idea what it is. If there is anything I should be looking out for here, please let me know.

Here are some pics:

 

[GreaseBall]

That's an LV2000, it's used to replace the low voltage section of the deflection board. It's supposed to keep the low voltage area from failing and killing transistors.

 

[bungy]

Buy it! You will not regret it.

 

[andrewb]

Get it, but just be aware that vectors (and expecially color vectors) can be very finicky. They really need to be repaired propely to be reliable, and many aren't, so you can run into issues, and chase your tail if you don't know what to do. However the knowledge to do them right is all here.

If you have any questions or issues with it once you get it, just post them here.

 

[joeycuda]

Space Duel is very fun, very cool graphics, and great sound effects. You won't regret it I don't think.

 

[ArcadeTechGW]

I'd buy it if I were you. The game looks great, and I do t see anything that gives me any concerns.

 

[taylormadelv]

From what can be seen here, that looks like a very clean Space Duel. Let us know how much you paid. Good luck!

 

[Tufnel]

not to be a vector buzzkill. however....

if you arent great at working on games and dont know anything about them they are tough to deal with

I love some of the vectors but gave up after getting sick of every one of them having issues off and on.

Im sure the guys who have been working on them for 20 years will tell you they are easy to fix and keep working.. lol they aint.

Unless you want to get one and give to someone with the knowledge to bulletproof it for you?

 

[Outland81]

Space Duel is an investment, for sure. But it's totally worth it!

I would buy the game and then as soon as you can, send all the monitor boards to andrewb for repairs, even if the game is working now.

That's the deflection board, the neck board, and the high voltage (HV) cage/board. He'll have everything fixed up 100% and then you won't have nearly so many worries.

Also, read his "How to bring up a 6100 color vector monitor" guide. You won't regret it! He covers everything from testing voltages, frame transistors and high voltage to inspecting boards and wiring, and much more.

I just had my Space Duel on a location for over a month where it was on between 8-10 + hours a day, 6 days a week (and 4 hours on Sundays). The game performed flawlessly. The monitor boards were repaired and refurbished by andrewb during Fall 2018. I also sent him the game pcb and the audio board around the same time, just to cover my bases.

I even installed cooling fans on top of the cabinet at his suggestion, to take the heat off the monitor (a good idea especially for location use where the game is on many hours at a time).

The result of all these investments is a game that has had no issues whatsoever.

Good luck! And enjoy the game.

 

[dalaibl0445]

Looks pretty good. I bought Space Duel with known issues with the monitor... Seller didn't hide anything and when i picked it up, he went over it with me... we played a couple games together, and i still wanted to buy it... it shifts from solid sharp picture, to pretty blurry, and shifts back to a solid sharp picture.

i will (in a couple months maybe) send stuff out to andrewb to have him update the boards.
the game plays great, so i'm always cautious to "mess" with anything... but i guess there is no other way to learn.

i'd buy it. but that's because i love the game.
good luck.

 

[jkoolpe]

I'm totally biased as I love me some vectors (as you can probably tell from my KLOV signature ), but GET IT! GET IT NOW! .

Looks as though the chassis was already worked on/refurbished along with the LV2000 kit already installed which is all good.

The date on the sticker in the picture says this was done back in 2014 which seems recent enough. Of course, it all depends on how well the person did on the refurb job and also how it was operated thereafter (i.e. on all of the time or just part of a collection that was only powered up on occasion).

Still, it's always a good idea to look over those boards to look for unhappy/cracked solder joints and reflow 'em, particularly at the main molex connector points. It only takes a little while and is well worth the effort.



Jon

 

[fcjim]

As GreaseBall pointed out, that little board is an aftermarket addition that replaces a known weak point in the monitor's deflection board, makes the monitor more reliable. The fact that it has this installed is a really good sign, it means that somebody that has a clue has worked on this game at a fairly recent point in its life. In fact I think it's reasonably safe to assume that the monitor has already been gone through, and as long as it keeps working I would not really worry about doing any preventative maintenance to it.

Personally I think the reputation vectors have of being unreliable is largely undeserved. They do operate differently than a raster game and are therefore different (some would say more difficult) to repair, but it's not like it's brain surgery or something. I'd buy that game, make sure your edge connectors are nice and clean, check/adjust your voltage going to the board, and then enjoy it.

In addition to being beautiful to look at, Space Duel is a really fun game. For a while it was seen chiefly as a part-out candidate to fix Star Warses and Tempests, but it seems to me that it's being appreciated a lot more lately.

 

[mrbill2084]

someone also replaced big blue in the transformer. Space duel is probably the most reliable of the atari vectors.

 

[Jive]

Thanks for all the info guys. I may be trading a pin for it, as the values seem to be about the same...at least I think. Here is a couple more pics of the Space Duel. Pin is a Gottlieb Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

 

[Jive]

Ok, the pin deal fell through, but he is wanting to sell it to me for $1000, which I think is a decent deal, but not sure. What do you think?

 

[andrewb]

That's a fair price, if the cab is in decent shape, and it's complete. (Even better if working, though you should not expect it to stay that way, and expect to invest some work and/or money into it to make it reliable.)

 

[Jive]

I am concerned that there seems to be a crack in the cabinet in that one pic, about halfway up. There is a smaller crack on the top front, which I wasn't that concerned about.

 

[andrewb]

I see two cracks on the side, one at about eye height, and another smaller one at the top, on that one side. Looks like it may have been dropped at one point, or transported weirdly.

If the game is working, it's likely just cosmetic. Yeah, it's a negative, but the rest of the cab looks pretty clean (from the pics at least). No cab is 100% perfect, so it's a tradeoff. Most of the time you're looking at the front of the game, but it would be your call.

 

[Jive]

The seller did note these cracks, so it isn't like he is hiding them, and he says the cab is solid. I have bought and traded pins with him before, and he seems to be a straight up guy, so I think I may have a Space Duel in my arcade come Thursday!

 

[fcjim]

$1000 is a fair price these days for a working, clean Space Duel, especially one that's had recent repairs/upgrades as this one apparently has. I do see the cracks in the cabinet, which is a concern but not a huge one unless the cracks go all the way through.