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Episode 440 - Robo-Frenzy To-do, Multi-Races wiring and changes, 1959 Williams Golden Bells

For Amusement Only EM and Bingo Pinball Podcast·podcast_episode·22m 49s·analyzed·Jan 31, 2019
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Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.020

TL;DR

RoboFrenzy power fixes, Multi-Races wiring progress, Golden Bells playfield analysis.

Summary

Nick Baldridge hosts Episode 440 of For Amusement Only, discussing progress on his RoboFrenzy and Multi-Races homebrew pinball projects. He details solving a 30-volt power issue on RoboFrenzy, advancing Multi-Races wiring with Jones plugs and driver board configuration, and modifying the cabinet for non-reversible Multi-Races installation. The featured game is 1959 Williams Golden Bells, a competitive bell-sequence game with multiple win conditions (5, 7, or 10 in a row). He announces an unannounced project coming at Texas Pinball Festival 2024.

Key Claims

  • Found 30-volt power issue on RoboFrenzy caused by cold solder joint on 30-volt commons feeding the transformer

    high confidence · Nick Baldridge describing RoboFrenzy troubleshooting

  • Multi-Races will use 11-position and 12-position Jones plugs (22 and 24 pin) for playfield wiring

    high confidence · Nick describing Multi-Races wiring configuration

  • Multi-Races will feature 9 total lamps (4 bumper lamps + 5 playfield lamps) and 3 relay-driven coils

    high confidence · Nick detailing Multi-Races component count

  • Multi-Races cabinet modifications will make the game no longer backwards compatible with Victory Derby

    high confidence · Nick explaining irreversible payout mechanism rewiring

  • Nick will announce a new project at Texas Pinball Festival March 22-24, 2024

    high confidence · Nick's announcement about TPF reveal

  • Golden Bells has ten bell sequences where you can win by hitting any 5 in a row, any 7 in a row, or all 10 in a row

    high confidence · Nick describing Golden Bells winning conditions

Notable Quotes

  • “There was a cold solder joint on one of the 30 volt commons which fed back to the transformer so nothing was getting the 30 volts except occasionally, you know, if the wind was right stuff would be powered.”

    Nick Baldridge @ ~2:30 — Key technical problem solved on RoboFrenzy electromechanical restoration

  • “I have to wire them to the playfield wires and I also have to wire the female side which goes directly to the connectors of the SW16s, the switch boards and the PD16 which is the driver board to drive the lamps.”

    Nick Baldridge @ ~5:00 — Details technical wiring methodology for Multi-Races custom build

  • “The die is cast and I just need to go for it. I've just been kind of chicken about it.”

    Nick Baldridge @ ~9:30 — Decision to irreversibly modify Victory Derby cabinet for Multi-Races

  • “I will be at Texas Pinball Festival in Frisco, Texas, March 22nd through 24th of 2019, and I'll be bringing the multibingo with me for everybody to play.”

    Nick Baldridge @ ~16:00 — Texas Pinball Festival appearance announcement with new project reveal planned

  • “Golden Bells is one of the great 1950s games that has multiple ways to win and it's got some of that Williams innovation which is usually pretty interesting.”

    Nick Baldridge @ ~17:30 — Contextualizing the featured game as exemplifying 1950s pinball design philosophy

  • “You don't have to get them in order. Um, well you do, but it doesn't have to start at number one, if that makes sense.”

    Nick Baldridge @ ~18:45 — Explaining the innovative 'any consecutive sequence' winning mechanic of Golden Bells

Entities

Nick BaldridgepersonRoboFrenzyproductMulti-RacesproductVictory DerbygameWilliams Golden BellsgameTexas Pinball FestivaleventFor Amusement OnlyorganizationWilliamscompany

Signals

  • ?

    restoration_signal: Cold solder joint identified and resolved on RoboFrenzy 30-volt power distribution, representing methodical EM machine diagnostics

    high · Nick's detailed description of finding and fixing the 30-volt solder joint issue

  • ?

    design_innovation: Multi-Races using Jones plugs for modular, transportable playfield wiring with SW16 switch boards and PD16 lamp driver configuration

    high · Nick's detailed explanation of 11 and 12-position Jones plug wiring strategy

  • ?

    design_philosophy: Nick optimizing coil management by using relays to power 120-volt AC coils rather than underpowering with low DC voltage, demonstrating constraint-based design thinking

    high · Nick's explanation of relay-driven motor and payout coils on Multi-Races

  • ?

    event_signal: Nick announcing unannounced project reveal at Texas Pinball Festival March 22-24, 2024, with Multi-Races debut and prize competition

    high · Nick's explicit TPF announcement and statement of forthcoming new project reveal

  • ?

    restoration_signal: Victory Derby cabinet being irreversibly modified for Multi-Races installation, including payout mechanism rewiring, shelf reorganization, and weight redistribution

    high · Nick's detailed discussion of cabinet alterations and decision to proceed despite permanence

  • ?

Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.068

0:00
What's that sound? It's 4 Amusement Only, the EM and Bingo Pinball Podcast. Welcome back to 4 Amusement Only. This is Nick Baldridge. Over the last two weeks, a lot of things have been going on as usual, so let's jump in. My projects have been largely stagnant for the past couple of weeks, but I have accomplished a couple of things. First of all, on RoboFrenzy I did find the 30 volt issue. There was a cold solder joint on one of the 30 volt commons which fed back to the transformer so nothing was getting the 30 volts except occasionally, you know, if the wind was right stuff would be powered. I'm still not getting power to the motor which is, you know, pretty crucial and I still have a couple of wires to run off of the timer unit and the I'm going to be talking about the things that actually drive the various coils. And I still need to drill and wire in the player position units, which will drive the rest. But at the moment, I'm trying to block off enough time to actually get that done and tested in a way that allows me enough time to make mistakes and, you know, go back and fix them and document and all that good stuff. Franchiconstailandativesooooo duradisionalville I'm not a fan. I've been a fan evolving in your community of flamencoów orphan Filipnici 홍ouski ichst Unfortunately, I haven't had a whole lot of time to rub together here recently. I have, however, spent a bit of time on multi races, and I got a bug under my skin here to go ahead and finish wiring up the playfield, so I went on Saturday, I believe, last Saturday, and spent a goodly chunk of time lacing up the cables that are coming from the playfield and wiring each individual wire. As I have to put the project down for long periods of time, I find that's the only efficient way to do it. Even if I was doing it the same day, you know, completely wiring it from A to Z, it's still quite helpful to wire each individual wire Robert So I was mulling the point of using Jones plugs for nothing, I really wanted to use Jonesplugs on the MultiBingo for the naturals series because it could almost get to be a bit too much not, which I thought that the increased reliability in terms of ease-of-transport however Closed caption Site fans It's not removable, but the majority of the wiring is going to come from the playfield, and that will all be run through Jones plugs. In scoping it out, I have an 11-position plug and a 12-position plug, and of course Jonesplugs, they're always duplicated, so it's 22 and 24 pin, But I have yet to wire those up. I have to wire them to the playfield wires and I also have to wire the female side which goes directly to the connectors of the SW16s, the switch boards and the PD16 which is the driver board to drive the lamps. Now I believe I've mentioned that I'm going to make every lamp in the game controlled. So that includes the four bumper lamps as well as the five playfield lamps. So we've got a total of nine lamps and then there's going to be a couple of coils, not that many, and they're going to be relays. So I'm going to have a relay which drives the payout mechanism and I'll have a relay which drives the shutter motor and I'll have a relay which drives The big motor, the control unit motor. So I'm going to have three relays, that's three coils, and then nine lamps. And I believe that will take care of the whole game. It's pretty exciting. Not that many coils involved, which is always good. So now the reason for that is that most of the coils are actually 120 volt AC coils. So rather than power them with less than 50 volts DC, I'm going to go ahead and run them through a relay and get them powered. So I'm looking forward to getting the last of it wired up. I just have bare wires hanging out from under the playfield, but the playfield does fit and the wiring does fit over the trough actually. So I will be able to remove the playfield I going to have to alter the cabinet a not insubstantial amount Now the way that I altering it wouldn impact Victory Derby except for the fact that I taken out the reset bar So I going to have to figure out a way to make that work or I need to actually the can flip out, the control unit shelf and work on that, or you can flip out a and access it from both sides, which is extremely helpful without having to remove the back glass or do anything else. I really enjoy that aspect of it, I think it's such a cool design. It's a lot of weight to be added for not a lot of game. The floor The core length cabs are already heavy enough and it's going to be weighted in the front, which means that it doesn't need to be quite so heavy in the back in order to achieve the same amount of resistance while you play and shake. So I'm thinking I'll go ahead and start removing some of the items. I am already going to have to rewire the payout mechanism in such a way that's not reversible, So even if you did play Victory Derby, you wouldn't achieve a payout in the same way. So I think the die is cast and I just need to go for it. I've just been kind of chicken about it. I haven't wanted to do it, but I think the time has come. So that means that this will no longer be backwards compatible, unfortunately. I'll have to replace a shelf I'm going to have to dewire several trunked bundles in order to make this happen. But I think it's all for the best. The control unit I can move down to a lower shelf, which will lower its center of gravity, but also make it so that the back glass is more accessible so that I can replace with I'm going to go ahead and start the TV slash monitor and block that in and leave that accessible for troubleshooting and removal or whatever needs to happen. So I think that's the master plan there, but it's going to take a little bit of doing and experimentation in order to do this right. The other thing is I'll need to wire up a very small Jones plug in the head to carry the I'm going to go ahead and run some more of these. I'm going to run a few more wires and make it so that, for example, I can step the replay 내� Operation Pine customize From 행신 alcohol제 dust took to me it's been a few days since youtube produced, and 2old a lot of nobody happens to be fired and that would make it robber or RPM APAображccan, to the primeiraων you hair sent back that would make it time that she preform directed without the need to actually track the position as a step up an jakieś one what type of hand now weather and other states Brother to do it if are that correctly that control unit shows actually has a step are located on and perhaps to the control unit is much smaller than the later gains letter него Closed Captioning provided by the Amara.org community

gameplay_signal: Golden Bells features three nested win conditions (5, 7, 10 in a row any position) with alternating lane/target mechanics creating multiple strategic paths and challenge layers

high · Nick's detailed playfield analysis showing complex sequence mechanics and multiple scoring paths

  • ?

    historical_signal: Golden Bells exemplifying Williams innovation of the 1950s era with sophisticated multiway win mechanics and smart playfield geometry

    medium · Nick's contextual commentary on Golden Bells as representative of 1950s Williams design philosophy

    • 9:59
    They are bothığınical andbai transportingata庇ת tubing Avo taymino channel Bryan osmenuk it shall I think it's well worth it and I certainly have the space on my driver boards. See, one of the things about the driverboards is that you have two banks of eight. So, if you can divide up your coils evenly into eight and eight and in my case I'm gonna be driving lamps off of one set of eight and then one additional lamp is in there, so I need to utilize the second set for that. And then I'll need a second driverboard to drive my coils game that gives me sixteen total coils i can fool around with but i've only talked about so if i have a replay register up and down that's five but if i have the step or bouts another one more too sold let's say that seven and i can throw in another couple stepped rescottle difference sounds because uh replay unit is going to give one very distinct sound however there are various other steppers for keeping track of various things within the game that would give a more standard sound I guess you say It's a sound that you'd expect if you were standing in front of one of these machines. So I just have to balance all that and figure out what the best options are going to be. And that's going to come with a lot of testing. I'm not a fan of the word pinball, but I can run all those wires and like I say, if I'm running a plug to the head anyway, who cares, right? It's essentially free. So, a reminder, and you'll be hearing these reminders all the way up to TPF. I will be at Texas Pinball Festival in Frisco, Texas, March 22nd through 24th of 2019, and I'll be bringing the multibingo with me for everybody to play. I'm a fan of the game, and I may even have a prize for you if you're able to get four or five in a row. Also, the reason that I'm going to TPF is not just to introduce the multibingo to a brand new crowd of people, but there's going to be an announcement there, something else that I've been working on. And I'm very much looking forward to hearing what you think. So, if I see you in Texas, be sure to let me know. All that said, let's move on to today's featured game. It's 1959's Williams Golden Bells. Golden Bells is one of the great 1950s games that has multiple ways to win and it's got some of that Williams innovation which is usually pretty interesting. So in this game there's a sequence of ten bells marked cleverly one through ten. Your goal is to get any five in a row, any seven in a row, or all ten in a row to light special. The special is collected through a center gobble hole and what makes this really appealing to me is that you don't have to get them in order. Um, well you do, but it doesn't have to start at number one, if that makes sense. For example, you can get numbers three, four, five, six, and seven and light special. If you light eight and nine afterwards, you get double special or one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, if you see what I'm saying. It can be any five in a row and any seven in a row. And then lastly, if you get all 10, you like TripleSpecial at the GobbleHole. This looks like a game, and it's not one that I've played, but I've seen come up frequently here recently. This looks like a game that would provide quite a bit of challenge. Let's talk about the playfield layout here because I think it's pretty interesting. As you come Come to the playfield, there are two bumpers, two passive bumpers arranged at the top flanking two rollover lanes. Now, the passive bumpers advance the lit bell. So, there's an indicator above each bell on the playfield. There are ten bells arrayed there towards the center and there's a little indicator above them and the lit one will be acquired when you hit one of the targets marked spot. Now, the The rollover lanes will spot the lit bell, but only one of the lanes will spot at any given time. It will alternate back and forth. So you have to nudge the ball into the appropriate lane in order to start your sequence. And then from there you're going to build, remember, any five in a row, seven in a row, or ten in a row. . Now below these lanes, there's a cluster of three bumpers. Oneof them is another advance bumper. And flanking that on the left and right side are two jet bumpers, pop bumpers that'll fling theball around. In the corners, upabov the bumpers, there are two standup targets. They each score 100 thousandor when lit, and again this is alternating, it will award you one bell. It'll spot one of the bells for you. Now, one of the interesting features about this playfield are these big plastics which cover the left and right sides. They're marked with artwork that says advance and with arrows pointing to one stand up target, kind of close to the flippers and above that rebound rubber which is directly perpendicular to the center targets which we'll go over shortly. map host cambrianodigframe.net
    16:32
    kation DALEwei0N And when they lit so this is alternating as well they will spot one of the bells down below that those are the stand-up targets that i was talking about those advance and they also score a hundred thousand points so they're pretty valuable but they're very dangerous uh... with the angle that they're in uh... below those is another set of targets however they're alternating Motivity Indones Um, which is a little bit unusual. Um, I really like this playfield layout and I think it has potential to be great fun and very frustrating in a fun way. Um, below the sling kickers are the flippers and if you've seen a game with the large triangular sling kickers then you kinda know what you're looking at here. in the so it's a range in such a way that there's no outlines there are only these two drains to the alcohol and the drains are a set of lanes so you can actually bump the ball back into play by using your bingo skills Super Gen‐...
    19:16
    Those two lanes which lead to the outhole also will spot a bell when lit and again that alternates and they'll score 100,000 points. So again, this layout looks extremely challenging but a whole lot of fun. I can't wait to play one one day. This is a game, this looks exactly up my alley as a game that I would like to Knight past delegate foto Stephaninctlexive of Betty The right you have the ten thousands and on the left of the stripe you have williams golden bells written there the hundred thousands and above that at the top of the back glass you have the millions the playfield is very colorful eyes red white and blue and yellow and green on the passive bumpers That advance the bells are green. The jet bumpers are yellow. And the playfield is mostly on a field of blue. And the advanced plastics which I mentioned on the left and right hand side or light shields depending on the terminology are mostly red. At the top left and right you have plastics which have an illustration of a bell. And at the bottom left and right on the sling kickers you have the woman who's playing the bells. She's playing them again down at the bottom, twice. And above that towards the center of the playfield you have the ten bells arrayed with their ten inserts to indicate the ones that you've already spotted and then ten inserts above that to indicate the one which will be spotted next. I think this art package is straightforward but I do happen to like the way that every shot is I'm a fan of the art, and I think it's a great way to show what you're doing.
    21:47
    And again, the fact that there are essentially three different sequences, or two sub-sequences and a main sequence, I think is fantastic. There's nothing more satisfying than being Internet Thank you for listening and I'll talk to you next time.