Malibu Qbert - (Scrambled Screen)

TheYeti

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I love Q*bert. So I built my own 1/2 scale replica. But I always wanted the real thing and finally snagged one over the weekend. I feel extremely lucky to have found one, let alone one in such good shape and with a swearing marquee. I've got 5 other machines in queue, so this restore could take a while.

I plan to do the following for this partial restore:

1. Rebuild the power supply. (More on that later)
2. Replace one of the coin mechs
3. Replace the CPO
4. Re-cap the monitor
5. Replace the T-molding
6. Replace door lock and coin lock
7. Patch lockdown bar holes
8. Touch up paint here and there
9. Install the multi-Q*bert game kit

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mini Q*bert's keychain and serial tag
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Yes, mini Q*bert has a working knocker. :)
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Boards are very clean.
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I know serial numbers bounced around a lot and didn't always start at zero so does anyone know if this number is early?
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I believe the monitor is original as it shares the same serial number as the cabinet itself.
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I thought this was intersting. Someone wrote "Malibu Qbert" on one of the serial tags. Does that mean anything to anyone?
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I was pleasantly pleased to not find a pack of dead rodents inside!
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I'll replace the CPO. Luckily, it sounds like Phoenix Arcade is going to be doing a reproduction soon so that's great timing!
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Another shot of the other side. I'm probably going to leave the side-art alone. It's in pretty good shape.
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I'll be the first to say congrats. That thing looks like it just needs a good cleaning and call it good. Great looking survivor.
 
I'll be the first to say congrats. That thing looks like it just needs a good cleaning and call it good. Great looking survivor.

Thanks! Agreed, a good cleaning and a new CPO and it will look really great.

Bad news is that it only works for about 2 minutes before I noticed smoke coming from the back. One of the resistors was red hot and smoking!

This happened before I bought the machine. So needless to say, I got the game for less than expected.

I'll be rebuilding the power supply for sure. I heard Qbert power supplies were made with cheap parts. Think I'm going to use Twisty Wrist's rebuild kit here:

https://www.twistywristarcade.com/qbert/21-qbert-power-supply-rebuild-kit-1.html

I also noticed that the power cord was frayed. Do you think this had anything to do with it? LOL:

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I think this is the Qbert from Malibu Barbies Dream House.

I feel like there is a knockers joke in there somewhere. ;)
 
I think the biggest accomplishment is that you grabbed this thing before Exidy could. :D He and the 1UPs are your competition for games in the area, lol.
 
I think the biggest accomplishment is that you grabbed this thing before Exidy could. :D He and the 1UPs are your competition for games in the area, lol.

No kidding! ;)

I jumped on it really quick. Since it was only 20 minutes from my house I had it paid and loaded in less than 1.5 hours.

I already had the cash ready to go as I was looking for a Joust anyway.

It's bitter sweet because I really wanted a Joust but when another game pops up that you want...you don't have time to kick the tires.

Exidy is a great guy to have in town. He buys a lot of games but I notice him selling a few every now and again. Of course his collection is incredible!
 
The Malibu notation probably refers to a Malibu Grand Prix arcade. Someone was probably working on the ps and noted which game and location it came from.
 
Your missing a cap off of your power supply.

Be carful removing the bottle cap transistors. The transistor spacer is extremely brittle and will crack and fall a part on you if your not careful.
 
The Malibu notation probably refers to a Malibu Grand Prix arcade. Someone was probably working on the ps and noted which game and location it came from.

Cool! Thanks for the info! Now I know the history of it and the mystery is solved!
 
Your missing a cap off of your power supply.

Be carful removing the bottle cap transistors. The transistor spacer is extremely brittle and will crack and fall a part on you if your not careful.

Holy cow! You're right!!! GOOD eye! Thanks for the tip on the bottle cap transistors. I've capped a few monitors before and a Nintendo power supply, but this PS will be a first!

Here is a better shot of the entire PS. And the missing cap you pointed out! (right of the blue cap...hmmm I don't see a cap number next to it)

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While you might not see the cap number but you can tell where one use to be.

The zener diode is a smaller value Voltage or Current on your power supply be the looks of it.

Now the amp on the sound board should not be affect that much due to lower voltage or current.

The lower voltage and current will affect the knocker. The Knocker might have been replaced with a lower voltage version.

Why are these points worth mentioning? If you rebuild the power supply you might end up over driving the knocker and cooking it.
 
While you might not see the cap number but you can tell where one use to be.

The zener diode is a smaller value Voltage or Current on your power supply be the looks of it.

Now the amp on the sound board should not be affect that much due to lower voltage or current.

The lower voltage and current will affect the knocker. The Knocker might have been replaced with a lower voltage version.

Why are these points worth mentioning? If you rebuild the power supply you might end up over driving the knocker and cooking it.

Wow, thank you so much for all this good info. I'm a little nervous to rebuild this PS now! :)

I think at the very least, I'll rebuild it and disconnect the knocker before turning it on. That way I can measure the voltage to make sure it's correct before hooking it back up.

If I fubar the rebuild and turn it on, could I mess up the sound board or main PCB?
 
http://www.arcadeshop.com/i/942/gottlieb-power-supply-conversion-kit.htm


I know alot of folks dont like doing the switcher conversion, but these kits from Arcade shop have always served me well.

Thanks teetdogs! I'm going to make an old college try in rebuilding the original first. If push comes to shove, I'll be looking into the the switcher conversion.

EDIT: I remeber hearing that those switch conversions don't output the proper (odd) voltage for the knocker. The voltage is actually less that what the knocker requires so the knocker sounds weak and quite. Certainly not the end of the world, but having the proper knocker voltage would be nice.
 
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Read the number off of the knocker is the simple way to figure out if you have an original or lower voltage version.

Plug in the power supply. Unplug the sound pcb and the Main PCB.
There is a voltage adjustment pot on the Qbert power supply turn the voltage down.

The qbert switcher can be fixed to work properly.
A decent size dc to Dc converter can boost the 12 volts to 30 volts.
A +12 to -12 can be installed to fix the the lack of -12
 
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