S2000 - Blinking Lights/Screens/Candle - Machine Malfunction

[John0813]

I have an IGT S2000 Machine. After not playing the machine for about 3 weeks.....I turned the machine on and the normal start-up took place....After about a minute or 2..the lights/screens/candle begin to blink on and off....the game then goes back to normal. Everything is lite...I can play 2 or 3 games...and then the problem/malfunction starts over again.....there are no error messages and I tested the 3 volt battery which reads 2.6 volts. Sometimes when I can play a game...the machine will go into a general reel tilt...I will re-set the machine and things will continue okay for a few more plays and then the blinking problem happens again.

Any troubleshooting help is appreciated.

Thanks.

[cowboygames]

Not a problem commonly associated with a low battery, but at 2.6v that battery definitely needs replaced. When you get that far see if it fixes the problem. Do you have a 500 series or 1270 MPU? If it's a 1270 then your large green 3 cell battery may also be a contributing factor

[John0813]

Here is a video link which shows the issue: http://youtu.be/jnI_Oe9LA6g.

The green battery is dead...no charge in it... The board reads Model:1952-2.....#59701300, Rev A...6/04.

Does this info help?

[cowboygames]

You've got a 502 board, green battery doesn't matter and should be removed before it leaks if it hasn't already. Don't bother getting a new one of those, but for sure get the coin battery replaced and go from there

[John0813]

Will do....

I will let you know what happens....Thanks

[BR549 Auto Sales]

Not to hijack but if you remove the green battery from a 504 board do you have to solder a jumper wire across any of the leads where the battery used to be?

Thanks,

David

[cowboygames]

There has been much debate and discussion on that. My personal opinion? No   In this case he has a 502 so it's irrelevant

[John0813]

Quick follow-up question regarding the 3 volt round battery


.....if it is reading 2.6 volts and not 3 volts....why isn't there an error message showing a low battery ??

[cowboygames]

That was my first point. The battery is well low enough to trigger a low battery error, but hasn't. It is also well low enough to cause problems with the machine although the problems you are experiencing are unusual in any case. Battery replacement was suggested first because it definitely needs it. Other things to look at, like a loose power supply or harness plugs, would not only normally trigger other indicating signs, but also require removing blocking components from the machine to access them. Just trying to start you off with the most likely suspects first

[John0813]

Thanks...will replace the battery and report the results...

[John0813]

Quick update....before I attempted to change the 3 volt battery...I left the machine on for about 5 to 6 hours....the blinking stopped and now the machine plays fine.....I retested the green battery...the charge reads  .56 volts... (The 3 volt still reads 2.65 volts) the reels are spinning faster and the sounds are louder....any idea of what is going on....Did a battery recharge?  I still intend to change the low 3 volt battery but any thoughts are appreciated.

[mvco]

My guess is you charged up that 3 volt battery.  Change it out, and you will know for sure.  :-)

[CVslots]

I don't know....if a 500series board works fine without the green battery (like snipped off, gone, non-existent), I'm not sold on "recharging" it would change anything, at least permanently. We snip off the green batteries on any 500 series boards that go on the shelf and will not be used in the next few months (so dont freak out if you buy one from us with no green battery. It was tested before shipping and it tested good).  We haven't had any problems at all using them without the green battery.

If you catch this post John, try leaving the game on again, if you can, and see how it acts. I, personally, have seen machines get wacky under 2.80v on the corner battery (with no low battery message). I'm wondering if yours isn't alternating between wacky and okay. Why you haven't seen a Low Battery message, I cannot explain. Maybe something in the program that tells it at what voltage to display the message?

[smileman83]

If you search I had a similar issue Cowboy helped me with. It was a sporadic thing and I too got the general reel tilt, other weird errors and all seemed to point to the machine thinking the door was open.  Check that green battery for corrosion. If he says you dont need it, lose it. Get some good magnification and check all the leads under that battery with a DMM. You cant see all the solder points so you can scrape back the plastic over the trace to get a point to put your test lead on and the other on a solder joint. Luckily mine were intact and once I removed the green battery and neutralized everything real well, its functioned flawlessly.

Bruce

[cowboygames]

Quick update....before I attempted to change the 3 volt battery...I left the machine on for about 5 to 6 hours....the blinking stopped and now the machine plays fine.....I retested the green battery...the charge reads  .56 volts... (The 3 volt still reads 2.65 volts) the reels are spinning faster and the sounds are louder....any idea of what is going on....Did a battery recharge?  I still intend to change the low 3 volt battery but any thoughts are appreciated.

If the new coin battery doesn't fix it altogether you may have a power supply that's getting weak with caps going bad or something along those lines. I really think the coin battery is the culprit though. Be sure to ditch the green battery though before it causes other issues

[CVslots]

If you search I had a similar issue Cowboy helped me with. It was a sporadic thing and I too got the general reel tilt, other weird errors and all seemed to point to the machine thinking the door was open.  Check that green battery for corrosion. If he says you dont need it, lose it. Get some good magnification and check all the leads under that battery with a DMM. You cant see all the solder points so you can scrape back the plastic over the trace to get a point to put your test lead on and the other on a solder joint. Luckily mine were intact and once I removed the green battery and neutralized everything real well, its functioned flawlessly.

Bruce

It is well documented on this site that the green battery is NOT NEEDED on the 500 series of boards...As are the the illogical errors caused by the corrosion damaging the traces that lie in the area beneath the green battery.  

[proten]

One reason that it straighten out is due to the machine heating up. ("I left the machine on for about 5 to 6 hours")
Heat can make all kinds of weird things happen.

[CVslots]

We have seen some really strange things occur resulting from a battery less than 2.8v.  that's why I wanted him to leave the game on for another 3-5 hours. Mainly just curious to see what errors it would generate! Sorry John, don't mean to use you as a guinea pig!!!

[John0813]

I have kept the machine on as you recommended and there has been no problem.

I will test it again over the next few days and report back.

Thanks for all your help.

[John0813]

Sunday -- I finally got back to my S2000 Haywire machine....changed out the old 3 volt battery (which now reads 3.33 volts instead of 2.64 volts) and everything is working fine.   

Monday - Went back this morning...the blinking continued...the battery reads 2.96 volts....leaving the machine on to see what happens...

 Let the machine stay on.....everything corrected itself....no further issues....THanks to everyone that helped me..