NEW Putting together my baby pacman

Shawn1976

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I'm finally putting together my baby pacman but haven't finished the playfield yet.
Having everything else wired in I turned the game on.
When I do the screen is black and I hear a faint pacman startup sound and then nothing.
I hit the sound test and hear sound and can also go through a video test.
I don't have any of the playfield connections set up with the boards and was wondering if that's the reason why the game isn't powering up.
Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks
 
I have a Baby PacMan myself but I admit I am no expert on repairs. But it sounds like the Vidiot board might not be talking to the mph board. I think there is a self test on the vidiot board to tell you if it is communicating correctly. It has a series of flashes, I think it needs nine flashes to be working... Good luck...
 
The most likely problem is the connectors between the PCBs. Press on them, wiggle them and reboot and see if you can notice any change (slide the covers off and use a pointy object to press the the wire into the vice). Replace them. Big Daddy Enterprises is the best place for Baby Pac kits of all kinds. If pinball repair is for you, invest in a good set of ratcheting crimpers.
http://bigdaddy-enterprises.com/index.htm
 
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Shawn,

After you hear the music you are supposed to hear the solenoids kick. Your play field isn't hooked up so you didn't get this. I have also had your exact same problem when fuses under the play field are dead.

I have a strong feeling your problem relates to the play field not being hooked up. You could have other issues too - but I wouldn't waste any time troubleshooting without the play field hooked up. Just my opinion based on chasing my own tale before noticing dead fuses under the play field.
 
I was thinking the same thing that's why I wanted to ask to see if anyone had a similar issue before I racked my brain on trying to fix it.
I'm waiting for some rubbers to come in to finish out my playfield and I'll report back when I do.

Shawn,

After you hear the music you are supposed to hear the solenoids kick. Your play field isn't hooked up so you didn't get this. I have also had your exact same problem when fuses under the play field are dead.

I have a strong feeling your problem relates to the play field not being hooked up. You could have other issues too - but I wouldn't waste any time troubleshooting without the play field hooked up. Just my opinion based on chasing my own tale before noticing dead fuses under the play field.
 
I'll also try your advice as well.
I know those stupid IDC connectors are a bitch if they don't pinch the wire the right way.
I'll post my results on this as well.

The most likely problem is the connectors between the PCBs. Press on them, wiggle them and reboot and see if you can notice any change (slide the covers off and use a pointy object to press the the wire into the vice). Replace them. Big Daddy Enterprises is the best place for Baby Pac kits of all kinds. If pinball repair is for you, invest in a good set of ratcheting crimpers.
http://bigdaddy-enterprises.com/index.htm
 
I'll also try your advice as well.
I know those stupid IDC connectors are a bitch if they don't pinch the wire the right way.
I'll post my results on this as well.

If you have same problem after hooking up play field and checking all fuses... You are probably left with connector replacement as your next best troubleshooting method assuming you have working boards and are getting the right number of blinks on the MPU.
 
You need to do a communications test. Flick the test switch in the coin door when the game is fully powered on. You get 2 columns that should show matching numbers in each column. This is to test to make sure the boards are communicating properly... so you probably will need to hook up everything to get the game to actually start. If the video test works it means you've got video so you should be able to see the communications test screen.

My guess is you'll see the top text but no numbers showing up in the columns.
 
Alright.
I hit the video switch and got this.

Alrighty, so the problem is narrowed down to a connection issue between the MPU board and the Vidiot board. Check all the connections between the two boards. That's essentially your issue.

A working game should have a screen like this:

babypac2.jpg


All the info you probably need can be found here:

http://www.pinrepair.com/bally/babypac.htm
 
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Alrighty, so the problem is narrowed down to a connection issue between the MPU board and the Vidiot board. Check all the connections between the two boards. That's essentially your issue.

A working game should have a screen like this:

babypac2.jpg


All the info you probably need can be found here:

http://www.pinrepair.com/bally/babypac.htm

Konidias- pull the three fuses from under your play field and then the game on. You'll get same screen on test. Or unplug your play field - same screen problem Shawn has now.

Shawn - I urge you not to waste your time until your play field is plugged in. You could still have communications problems (wouldn't surprise me) but I can replicate your issue on my working machine by removing fuses and/or unplugging play field.

Upon further reflection - people have bench tested these boards so there must be a way to get the communications test working without the play field. Maybe someone here has done it? All I can say for sure is I can replicate Shawns issue by unplugging my play field. Could be my game has another wiring problem for all I know - but it does otherwise work for me...
 
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My advice before you go any further is to replace all the .100 connectors with molex. it will save a lot of headaches later and will get you closer to a working machine. I'm not super close but just north of Orlando. If you need anything let me know.
 
Im going to stop and wait for the parts.
I've already ordered the parts I need and the're already in the mail.
Also when I get it running is there a way I can test all of the lights on the playfield?

Konidias- pull the three fuses from under your play field and then the game on. You'll get same screen on test. Or unplug your play field - same screen problem Shawn has now.

Shawn - I urge you not to waste your time until your play field is plugged in. You could still have communications problems (wouldn't surprise me) but I can replicate your issue on my working machine by removing fuses and/or unplugging play field.
 
My advice before you go any further is to replace all the .100 connectors with molex. it will save a lot of headaches later and will get you closer to a working machine. I'm not super close but just north of Orlando. If you need anything let me know.

You will almost certainly end up doing this no matter what... So if you are waiting on parts for your play field now is a good time to do this. :)

Just in case no one told you - do not change bulbs while the game is on. You'll blow SCRs left and right.
 
Im going to stop and wait for the parts.
I've already ordered the parts I need and the're already in the mail.
Also when I get it running is there a way I can test all of the lights on the playfield?

Yes. Test button in coin door brings up light test. You'll almost definitely find yourself with transistor and diode issues. Feel free to call me if you get stuck. As you can tell in this thread lots of guys have battle scars from this game and we all stick together. :)
 
Perfect.
I'll shoot you a pm and thank you for everyone's help on this.


Yes. Test button in coin door brings up light test. You'll almost definitely find yourself with transistor and diode issues. Feel free to call me if you get stuck. As you can tell in this thread lots of guys have battle scars from this game and we all stick together. :)
 
As you can tell in this thread lots of guys have battle scars from this game and we all stick together. :)

Hahaha, yes that much is true. I still have issues with my Baby Pac even now... The latest issue is that I get a black screen on start (same issue as OP)... a bit of jiggling wires and shaking stuff gets the game back up so I'm assuming I need to replace the connectors.

All I can say is if you can get all the LED flashes on both boards you're in great shape. The biggest hurdle for me was just getting the Vidiot board to actually get through the test sequence.

Also make sure you've replaced the battery on the MPU. I replaced mine with the 5101 ram module. The user Denikar on here was selling it but dunno if he still is.

It cost me $16 and I'll never have to worry about replacing a battery again.
 
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Hahaha, yes that much is true. I still have issues with my Baby Pac even now... The latest issue is that I get a black screen on start (same issue as OP)... a bit of jiggling wires and shaking stuff gets the game back up so I'm assuming I need to replace the connectors.

When you get that screen do your solenoids pop or hear music?

I had a similar issue whereby I had to juggle stuff too and could always get it working eventually. Lol. Then I bit the bullet and changed connectors. Much more stable. I think my driver board needs new headers too but since the game works 99% of the time perfectly I'm scared to "fix" anything else.
 
Agree with Brian. Put it all together and then test. You will most likely have to replace all of the IDC connectors and is a good preventative measure. On mine I have also seen the connection test fail when initiated from the MPU but then reliably work when initiated with the test switch inside the coin door.
 
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