The NEW Build Your Own Arcade Controls
Arcade Collecting => Miscellaneous Arcade Talk => Topic started by: Nephasth on February 19, 2012, 10:56:47 pm
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:D
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=103207.0;attach=179539)
Already set up for any sized tokens. This will be stealing all the attention away from the other games... :cheers:
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Love darts and think its under-rated as a gameroom necessity. I have an Arachnid board that gets lots of play. :cheers:
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One of my "grails" is an Arachnid Galaxy 2... just a wee bit out of my price range though. Main things I wanted was color video scoring and coin op. Used to be in the leagues around here, until I got the job I have now. Working nights every other week keeps me from participating in leagues now. This will let me hone my skills for tournaments. :)
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Nep, so you feel its a decent dart board as compared to a bristle board with steel darts? I have no basis for comparison, I've only played with steel tipped darts on a conventional board. I've seen some soft tip setups (home use) that were pretty bad. I assume it will score cricket/301 or whatever you ask for?
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No soft tip board will make for a good comparison to steel tips and a bristle board. The dart leagues around here use Arachnid Galaxy 2s because they can all be linked up and keep track of everybody's stats throughout the seasons. On the Arachnid Galaxy 2s, each player actually logs in with a hot button (http://www.leagueleader.net/bullshooter/products-2/dart-accessories) before each match. You can also store credits on the hot buttons so you don't have to feed tons of quarters into the machine before the match (the most I had on one at one time was $150, which lasted me and my partner a whole season). This board, a Medalist Dart Star Spectrum, is from 1994/5 and isn't as technologically advanced, but it will make for great practice. This board can also use 3 different matrices (?) from different manufacturers, currently it has an Arachnid matrix. The home use soft tip boards are junk. Coin op boards are much more robust and made for extended use. No holding the board against the wall while pulling the darts out here. You do get broken and bent tips here and there, but they're cheap. When I play darts, I want to play (and drink), I don't want to worry about keeping score. But with all that being said, soft tip is what I got into from the get go. The weights and distances of steel tips feel strage to me, so I stick to what I know. But if you've never tried it and have the time, it's worth getting into a league for at least one season to feel it out.
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The Medalist boards are software selectable to use either the Arachnid, Valley (now Shelti), or Merit target head/matrix assemblies.
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Well, this board has been getting daily play in the new gameroom and a few things have been done to it.
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=103207.0;attach=183273)
First, the decal just under the board was/is damaged and was half peeled off from the previous owner. I removed the decal completely and used a combination of adhesive remover and brake clean to remove the residue. Brake clean is much more effective at removing adhesive than the adhesive remover, but I wouldn't recommend using brake clean on porous materials (like wood). Once the back of the decal and the cabinet were clean, I sprayed some new adhesive to the back of the decal and reinstalled it. Over the past week or so, only a couple areas have come up (around the most damaged area of the decal). It looks much better than it did.
I don't know why I thought this had an Arachnid matrix in it before, but it is definitely a Medalist. Anyway, many segments of the target are cracked, chipped, and broken which causes "stuck segments" every now and again during play. I've been on the lookout for a complete target head. I snagged an Arachnid target head off eBay recently, but come to find out that the mounting holes aren't even close to lining up with the studs on the machine. So now I'll be on the lookout for Medalist parts only (which seem to be about as rare as hen's teeth). I've called Medalist a few times and left messages, but I never get any return phone calls. :-\
While browsing the operator menu, in "Diagnostics" I found a "sensor" option. Went to it and it said "Auto player change: OFF". Well that sounded great, I've been getting tired of pushing the "Player Change" button after each round. But there was no way to change "off" to "on" with the buttons. Did a little reading and found out that the machine has a motion detector. Located the detector and saw that an indicator LED would light when I moved near the sensor. The "sensor" menu is only supposed to show when the sensor is activated, but "off" wouldn't change to "on" when the indicator LED was lit. Luckily, the manual stated which header the sensor should be plugged into on the PCB, and it was currently plugged into the wrong header.
It was plugged into the first or second header (J12 or J13) on the bottom of the board. It needed to be plugged into the fifth from the right header.
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=103207.0;attach=183271)
With the sensor plugged into the right header, the "sensor" test in the menu worked. However, during play, the sensor would only work about 40% of the time, and the sensitivity was cranked to max. After a lot of tinkering, I found the sensor to be much more responsive when facing forward vs. straight up (how it was originally installed). So I got some angle brackets and mounted the sensor to face forward.
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=103207.0;attach=183269)
Now the auto player change function works great and the sensitivity is only set at about 25%.
Another thing left to do to the board is splitting the video signal. The clear cased TV sitting next to the board in the first pic will be a secondary display for people watching so they don't have to crowd the player when they're throwing. I'm waiting for a converter to come from China to convert the VGA signal to composite. I tried a cheap VGA splitter and cheap VGA to composite cable, but the TV wasn't syncing.
If anyone has ANY parts to one of these and would be willing to sell, let me know. I'm looking for newer ROMs (mine are Version 2.0), target head, decal sets, and maybe other stuff.
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Medalist generally does not sell direct. You have to go through your local Medalist distributor's parts department. They should be able to burn you new eproms with the last version of the software.
General information on the Spectrum (a.k.a. Spectrum Genesis):
http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Medialist_Spectrum_Genesis_Tech_Information.pdf (http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Medialist_Spectrum_Genesis_Tech_Information.pdf)
Manual sections:
http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Operator_Setup.pdf (http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Operator_Setup.pdf)
http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Miscellaneous.pdf (http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Miscellaneous.pdf)
http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Diagnostic.pdf (http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Diagnostic.pdf)
http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Basic_Setup_Manual.pdf (http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Basic_Setup_Manual.pdf)
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Video converter came today. One of those $12 jobbers from China. Works great! Well worth the purchase.
Here it is installed inside the cab (silver box in the top right). The ports on top are for the outputs, currently using VGA and composite but S-Video is available as well. The left side is video in. Right side is power in (5V pulled off the switching power supply) and dip switches for PAL or NTSC. The bottom has buttons for menu and adjustments that don't affect VGA out which is nice. ---smurfy--- though, the adjustments don't save after a power cycle. :-\
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=103207.0;attach=183875)
Quick shot of both displays running.
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=103207.0;attach=183877)
And the view from where players are generally waiting/watching.
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=103207.0;attach=183879)
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I finally got in touch with a man in the Medalist parts department! I wanted to order a full set of segments, but there were a few types on back order. Luckily, all my cracked/broken segments were in stock. Prices were right too, so I picked up a new spider with the segments I needed. Parts showed up yesterday, and I installed them last night. The difference is amazing! I'll be ordering more segments to replace the rest of my old ones soon.
A couple before shots. You can see the some of the inner segments are chipped. All of the inner segments had cracks between holes which would spread the segment causing intermittent "stuck segment" faults.
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=103207.0;attach=254946)
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=103207.0;attach=254948)
New spider (grey) next to old spider (white). The old spider has a date of 9/19/95 :o, and it shows its age. The old segments I replaced are still in the old spider. I got all the new ones from Medalist except for the outer bull segment, I picked up a couple NOS ones off ebay a while back.
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=103207.0;attach=254950)
A couple after shots. The red and blue of the new segments is noticably brighter than the old, which is expected.
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=103207.0;attach=254952)
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=103207.0;attach=254954)
Played a few games after installing the parts, no "stuck segments" and much fewer bounce outs. :cheers:
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Looks good!
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Any chance i could get some more pics of the inside of the cabinet? I have four of theses exact boards and trying to get a couple working!!!
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Yeah, what exactly are you wanting pics of? I can snap some tonight. I'm curious, what version of roms are in your boards?
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Im really not sure about the roms as i'm just skimming the surface at this point but i have access to about 6 or 8 other machines for parts ect. As far as the pics just general plug locations and such lot of loose ones kind of just hanging around.
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Im really not sure about the roms as i'm just skimming the surface at this point but i have access to about 6 or 8 other machines for parts ect. As far as the pics just general plug locations and such lot of loose ones kind of just hanging around.
I sent you a PM.
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Hi i have the same board myself.. bought it in pieces and have gotten it working but i still feel there are things missing.. could i also get some pics of the inside.. and i have 3.0 rom right now.. dunno if that is a newer one or very old one.. thanks in advance..
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There's not much else inside. Anything in particular you're wanting to look at? I emailed the last guy to ask, but he never responded... :-\
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i would like more pics of the board up on the top.. i have some wires up there not plugged into anything.. it looks like it would be a hard drive or disk drive of some sort..
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Post pics of what you have questions about.
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I just bought one of these boards and got it running again. It needed a new power supply.
Did you find a new ROM for this board? Mine is running on V2.0.
Can I ask how much the spider and segments were from Medalist? I am going to need it!
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How much did Medalist charge for new segment setup? I just got this same board and will be doing that same deal. I called Medalist but no call back yet. They are 20 minutes up the road so maybe I will pay them a visit.
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It was about $1-$2 per segment. The spider was like $14.
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Nephsath,
Did you come across a manual for this machine by chance?
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Yep. Ken has made some excellent information about this machine available. I'll shoot you a PM.
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Manuals and info Ken has made available:
Medalist generally does not sell direct. You have to go through your local Medalist distributor's parts department. They should be able to burn you new eproms with the last version of the software.
General information on the Spectrum (a.k.a. Spectrum Genesis):
http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Medialist_Spectrum_Genesis_Tech_Information.pdf (http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Medialist_Spectrum_Genesis_Tech_Information.pdf)
Manual sections:
http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Operator_Setup.pdf (http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Operator_Setup.pdf)
http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Miscellaneous.pdf (http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Miscellaneous.pdf)
http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Diagnostic.pdf (http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Diagnostic.pdf)
http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Basic_Setup_Manual.pdf (http://arcarc.xmission.com/PDF_Darts/Dartstar_Spectrum_Basic_Setup_Manual.pdf)
Thanks again Ken! :applaud:
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Thanks for the info. Hopefully I can get ahold of medalist to send me new segments and the spider...
Have you swapped the original monitor for a flat screen yet?
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Have you swapped the original monitor for a flat screen yet?
Nope. As long as it keeps working, it'll stay in there.
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At one time Medalist did sell a monitor conversion kit to replace the existing CRT style monitor with an LCD flat screen. It included all the needed mounting brackets, bezel, and wiring harness adapters. I don't know if they still sell those kits, but if I recall correctly, the kit sold for around $400 and you had to order it through your local coin machine distributor's parts department.
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Picked up a new segment/spider. Complete set. Im excited to install it this weekend. What is the skill level for removing the CRT monitor from the cabinet? I really want a wide flatscreen up there, but dont want to get in over my head.
Hey Ken, I was just camping in your neck of the woods last weekend. Just south of Tumwater...
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Removing the CRT monitor will require a helper to hold the monitor while you remove the mounting screws.
1. Disconnect the monitor's power cable from the screw terminals on the switching regulator power supply located below the gameboard. Make note of which wire colors went to each terminal on the power supply's terminal strip.
2. Unplug monitor's VGA video cable from the gameboard. A small straight slot screwdriver may be needed to loosen the connector's screws so that you can unplug the connector.
3. Undo the monitor's remote adjustment board from the cabinet.
4. Be sure to undo all the cable clamps holding both the monitor video cable and it's power cable.
5. There are several Robertson head screws that hold the monitor to the cabinet that need to be removed. They are #2 Robertson (square drive) heads. Four along the bottom of the monitor and two each on each top side. See the attached pictures. The red circles indicate the screw locations.
6. Have your helper slowly lower the monitor down and lift the whole thing out of the cabinet. Monitor weighs about 20 pounds. It's heavier than it looks. Watch to be sure you don't break the neck of the picture tube.
7. That's all there is to it.
BTW, the monitor shown in my pictures is a Neotec NT-1431 (VGA resolution).
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I'd lay the cabinet down on its back to remove the monitor. It'd make it a lot easier than working 6' off the ground.
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I'd lay the cabinet down on its back to remove the monitor. It'd make it a lot easier than working 6' off the ground.
I've done it that way too, but you have to tie back or prop open the dart head door. Be gentle with the hinges because they break easily.
Also, keep in mind the Spectrum cabinet is made with a very slippery plastic and there is a possibility you could drop the cabinet and damage something.
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Thanks for the info, you two. I scoped it out after reading your instructions and I think im going to try it. I pulled the cooling fan out to
clean it and it broke from being brittle. I replaced it with a computer fan I had laying around, 120mm. I reinstalled in an exhaust position. Was that right? Or should it pull cool air in? Or does it matter?
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The factory installed the fan to exhaust (blow outward) the heat from the cabinet.
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I read through the manuals provided in this thread but didnt see anywhere telling me how to reset the high scores back to zero. There are also some names that arent kid friendly.... :censored:
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Pull the battery and reinstall.
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I tried pulling the battery, left it out for a minute then put it back in. Didnt clear the top ten list. There is a jumper for the CMOS. Three pins, the jumper is on the right two.Would that reset it putting it on the left two?
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With the game off, turn dip switch #1 on. Turn the game on. Go to board setup. Go to top ten lists. Press button 1. Press any target segment. Go back to the main menu. Turn the game off. Turn dip switch #1 back off. Turn the game back on. The top ten lists should be cleared.
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I have a Dart Star board, upgraded to an Avanti Elite. I need a couple of the upper cabinet door hinges , mine are broke. Does anyone know where to get them?
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Okay. My menu was slightly different, but I found it under reports. Cleared it out for the four or five games and we are in business. Thanks for your help!!
I picked up a few items today to replace some damaged pieces. Its coming along....
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I have a Dart Star board, upgraded to an Avanti Elite. I need a couple of the upper cabinet door hinges , mine are broke. Does anyone know where to get them?
Start with the parts department of your local Medalist distributor or telephone Medalist tech support.
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I've now finished my repair guide to the Neotec NT-1431 monitor used in the Medalist Spectrum dart machines. It is now posted here:
http://www.arcade-museum.com/manuals-monitors/Neotec%20NT1431%20repair%20guide.pdf (http://www.arcade-museum.com/manuals-monitors/Neotec%20NT1431%20repair%20guide.pdf)
It's loaded with photographs too!
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Ken, this is awesome! Thanks for this and everything else you do for the community! Can't thank you enough.
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did anyone ever find a source for the roms (online?) or could send me some 3.2x roms?
ken amazing work on the repair doc.
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Practice on this board paid off!
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Im sure hobby roms can prolly burn you a new version. Grats on the win Neph, bad news is you still live in Wyoming :(
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Congrats! :cheers:
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Grats on the win Neph
Congrats! :cheers:
Thanks guys! :cheers:
Im sure hobby roms can prolly burn you a new version.
A while back, I was talking with a KLOV member that had the latest roms in his board. Basically, the only difference is the graphics and maybe some sounds. Same games, same rules. So it's not really worth upgrading my roms.
...bad news is you still live in Wyoming :(
Really bad news is I'm probably going to have to move in a month or two. Really putting the squeeze on those NephRings, almost considered refunding everybody.
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Really bad news is I'm probably going to have to move in a month or two. Really putting the squeeze on those NephRings, almost considered refunding everybody.
---fudgesicle--- that noise. can I paypal you $20 as a prize for winning darts? Also, I have a guest room if you want to downgrade to Delaware
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Really bad news is I'm probably going to have to move in a month or two. Really putting the squeeze on those NephRings, almost considered refunding everybody.
---fudgesicle--- that noise. can I paypal you $20 as a prize for winning darts? Also, I have a guest room if you want to downgrade to Delaware
:lol
No dude, I won plenty of money at the tournament. Downgrading is not in my future, but thanks for the offer!
:cheers:
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I meant upgrade! :P
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I have a Dart Star board, upgraded to an Avanti Elite. I need a couple of the upper cabinet door hinges , mine are broke. Does anyone know where to get them?
Where can I find more info on this Avanti Elite upgrade?
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I have a Medalist Spectrum board that has had the screen conversion done. the machine started locking up from time to time and started happening more frequently as time went on. By locking up I mean the screen would freeze and none of the buttons would do anything, had to turn it off and re boot only to lock up again. Now the screen comes on and says "no input" and goes black. Im guess the motherboard crapped out. Anyone have any ideas whats happening or where I can find a new mother board. The one I have is labeled Medalist 1994
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Locking up can be one of these problems:
1. Stuck segments in the target head.
2. Power supply voltage too high or too low (check voltages).
3. Blown/dying electrolytic capacitors on the game motherboard.
Here is the current address and phone for Medalist (ask for service department or parts department):
Updated manufacturer information August 2017:
Medalist Marketing
NetworkSports LLC.
720 South 333rd Suite 102
Federal Way, Wash. 98003
Phone: (253) 939-2900
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Holy ---steaming pile of meadow muffin---. Can't believe I've owned this board for this long. It hasn't been used in 3 years though. Not since I bought 6 Arachnid Galaxy 3s... Which I've since sold and now own Radikal boards. I'll probably be digging this out of storage soon to give to a friend.
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It appears this is where all the Dart Star experts are so I am hoping someone will have an answer for this. I have an old Dart Star Spectrum from 1995 running Spectrum v3.1. It has been performing like a champ until recently. It now thinks that it constantly has a stuck segment on triple 5 or double eighteen (even though there is no stuck segment) and I cannot get this to go away. I can't even run diagnostics on it as the stuck segment screen keeps appearing. Even with the target head/sensor mat disconnected, it still thinks it has a stuck segment. Any one have any suggestions on how to fix this? Thank you in advance.
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It appears this is where all the Dart Star experts are so I am hoping someone will have an answer for this. I have an old Dart Star Spectrum from 1995 running Spectrum v3.1. It has been performing like a champ until recently. It now thinks that it constantly has a stuck segment on triple 5 or double eighteen (even though there is no stuck segment) and I cannot get this to go away. I can't even run diagnostics on it as the stuck segment screen keeps appearing. Even with the target head/sensor mat disconnected, it still thinks it has a stuck segment. Any one have any suggestions on how to fix this? Thank you in advance.
Disconnect the ribbon cable from the main board. Is the problem still present? If not, you may have a short in your ribbon cable. If so, possible board issue.
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Thank you for the reply. I am guessing it is something with the main board which is a major bummer as I can't seem to get a parts person to return my call at Medalist (or NetworkSports LLC) or whoever they are these days. I will keep trying though.
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Hi there! I just bought the Dart Star Spectrum. It started out fine, then in the middle of a game it rebooted. Then it kept going through of a series of failed reboots. I turned it off for a while and it booted up fine. then a few hours later it did it again. Any ideas on why its doing that and how it can be fixed? Thanks!
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Current set up for darts...
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That's a lot of dart boards.
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That's a lot of dart boards.
I could still ( and likely would) hit the wall.
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That's a lot of dart boards.
If you build it, they will come...
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Is that a tablet for scoring set up on those?
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Is that a tablet for scoring set up on those?
Yep. I use an app called DartConnect for steel tip leagues, tournaments, and casual play.
No, I'm not afraid somebody will hit one with a dart. Been using them for a year and that hasn't happened. General rule of mine... If they can't hit the board, they shouldn't be playing leagues.
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You would have to hand out suits of plate mail armor to everyone if I was playing.
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Darts isn't as hard as non-darters think. After a few minutes of instruction on throwing mechanics, most people are able to hit within a few inches of where they're aiming. With plenty of practice, low tons, hat tricks, high tons, ton eighties, and white horses become commonplace.
But yeah... If you want to throw a dart like a baseball, you'll never hit ---steaming pile of meadow muffin---.
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What strange looking dart games. I've never seen any like those. What brands are they?
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Manufacturer is Radikal, formerly Gaelco, formerly Valley. Model is iDarts. Made in Spain. Online capabilities are second to none right now.
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Online capabilities are second to none right now.
Porn?
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Online leagues, tournaments, and casual play.
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I had a dart machine out on the porch. Made it a couple years until the humidity exploded the cabinet. Been thinking of putting a nail on the wall and hanging a bristle board out there. Maybe once it's not 500 degrees outside.
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Medalist Dart Star Spectrum, Arachnid Galaxy 2, and Arachnid Galaxy 3 cabs are all plastic. Doubtful you'll find one at a PBJ price point, though. If you get tired of chalking for steel tip, consider the $24 a year for DartConnect.
There are also soft tip online home boards now. Gran Board 3, I believe it's called. A few of my players have them. I've never thrown on one though.
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Manufacturer is Radikal, formerly Gaelco, formerly Valley. Model is iDarts. Made in Spain. Online capabilities are second to none right now.
I thought Valley became Shelti?
http://www.shelti.com/ (http://www.shelti.com/)
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If you click "read more" on Shelti's dart page, you get a 404 error. But what's interesting, is it pulls up a pic of a more modern dart board than the previous page had. And even more interesting is what's on the screen of that dart board... The exact graphics Radikal used on it's boards early on (the software has been updated several times since). I've attached screenshots of both companies' websites that demonstrate they were running the same software. Not sure exactly what exchanged hands, or when, but they're definitely related.