Need help with sprint machine

[rob1234]

I have a 2 person sprint machine and when it starts up the monitor displays a bunch of numbers and letters and i can here sound but its all messed up. Any ideas on what could be wrong? I took a pic of what the screen looks like. Also, I was wondering what these cabinets go for...I saw one listed on ebay for $500 but i don't think they are worth anything near that. Is there a demand for these for mame cabinets?

[rob1234]

pic

[SirPeale]

Bad ROMs?

Misseated chips?  Try pushing on them.  Or extract and clean their legs VERY CAREFULLY

Edge card dirty?

Look around, maybe the answer is looking you in the face.

[RayB]

Man I LOVE old 70's arcade artwork. Look at that! MM MMM

PS: How's the art on the contorl panel? Is it worn off? I have a Sprint 2 control panel with no parts on it, but the art is in very good condition. Let me know if you need it.

[rob1234]

I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I AM DOING. THIS IS MY FIRST ATTEMPT AT FIXING AN ARCADE GAME, USUALLY I JUST MAME THINGS. I HAVE INCLUDED SOME PICS OF THE BOARD. PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF I AM MISSING A CARD OR SOMTHING THAT GOES IN THE BLACK SLOT PIECE. NOW FOR A DUMB QUESTION, WHAT ARE THE CHIPS ON THE BOARD THAT MAY BE MISSEATED AND HOW DO I EXTRACT AND CLEAN THE LEGS? AND WHAT IS THE EDGE CARD? I WILL NUMBER THE PICS SO JUST TELL ME WHAT PIC THE CHIPS AND EDGE CARD ARE IN AND EXPLAIN WHAT THEY LOOK LIKE AND WHAT TO DO TO THEM. THANKS! ROB

[rob1234]

THE PIC OF THE BOARD SHOWS A LOT MORE DETAIL THEN I THOUGHT IT WOULD SO PLEASE JUST LOOK AT THAT AND LET ME KNOW. THANKS.

[SirPeale]

Maybe an answer once you fix your caps-lock key.

[RayB]

Did this machine ever work? Or did you just get it?

The edge connector is that green thing attached to the edge of the board. It's got wires coming from it and the wires go off to other parts of the machine. Know what I'm talking about now?

Take that off and make sure the metal "lines" are all CLEAN so when you put that connector back on, all the metal contacts are touching properly with no dirt.

As for that black thing up top... If there's no chip in there, then that could be a problem.

Other than that, doesn't look like any of the other chips are socketed, so that means you couldn't remove them and "reseat" them even if you wanted to.

~Ray

[rob1234]

I did just get the machine. The previous owner said that it worked last time he played it but it has been sitting for a year with its back panel off and the guy dry walled his basement so it was really dirty. Does anyone know if anything is supposed to be in the black connector? Sorry about the caps lock earlier, I had a keyboard error and didn't have time to restart my computer. Thanks. Rob

[rob1234]

Ok i think my problem lies within the edge connector. A bunch of the connections don't seem like they are attached very well. Is there any place I can order a new edge connector? Also, does anyone have a wirring diagram for sprint 2?

[D_Zoot]

Ok...

First of all,  there are no empty sockets, right ??   Looking at your pic, it's hard to tell.  The large black object toward the upper RH corner looks like there is a chip in it, but I can't tell for sure.  Actually, it must, that's the main CPU and the board would be dead if that was missing.

Carefully clean the board, compressed air or one of those dust blaster cans.  That board is a mess and something might be shorting.

Clean the edge connectors by rubbing them with an eraser until they are shiny.

For these next two steps, you'll need manual,  pdf scans are available on the net,  google for it, some searching should find you one.

Look for a "test" switch in the cab somewhere, flip it and start the machine, see if it reports any failures.

Check all your input voltages with a voltmeter.  Primarily the 5 volt dc circuits are what's needed for the game logic, those should be darn close to 5.  The AC feeds to the board and the 12vdc (if used) should be close, but don't have to be dead on.  

Beyond that, I'm going to suggest you have the board repaired by somebody familiar with game board repair.  The first pic you posted indicates you probably have a failed rom chip or bad video ram.  Since you mentioned you don't have experience fixing game boards, it's best not to try with this one.   Atari boards can be a bugger to troubleshoot.

Good luck!
D

[RayB]

You don't need to order a new connector unless that old one is damaged. If it's only dirty, clean it.

Sounds obvious, but sometimes people need to hear the obvious.

[RayB]

OH and Rob, that board has two edge connections, but only the WIDE one on the left is what you need connected, and in your photo I see you HAVE the connector (it's green!). The short one on the TOP (in your photo) is meant for diagnostics. It's not supposed to be hooked up to anything in this game. It's only meant for technicians trying to troubleshoot it with a device called a "cat box".

Ray B.

[rob1234]

The top edge connection was not hooked up at all. I may need a new edge connector since mine is a mess. Some of the prongs broke off and I don't think the wires are making propper connections. The person before me connected one wire directly to the board. I am starting to think it may not be worth the money to fix. Any ideas on what this game is worth?

[danny_galaga]

i have no experience in arcade game pcb probs but i came across a site that has lots of info. now i cant find it!! but heres one that is specifically for galaga:

http://www.arcadeshop.com/galaga/galaga.htm

lots of interesting info, some of which will apply to all pcbs...

[dabone]

That game board looks very similar to night driver, and as such the lead thats probally bypassed straight to the board is power. Those boards run all power thru a transistor on board and frequently burn out the edge connector. You have a post problem, and the board will most likely need repair. The first place to start is over on the news group, rgvac.

http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&group=rec.games.video.arcade.collecting

Look at this article also. Apparently the inputs can cause the game not to come up.

http://groups.google.com/groups?q=sprint&start=10&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&group=rec.games.video.arcade.collecting&scoring=d&selm=%25bvOc.1203%24aR2.377%40okepread04&rnum=15


If that board needs repair, you need to find someone with experience as those are usually very fragile and not for someone new to soldering.


Later,
dabone