<EDIT> Split from 6000 thread at this post.


Great News!!  (Well, almost...)

IT BASICALLY WORKS. 

Sorry it took so long to post, but I couldn't test any of the settings recommend until I changed the battery on the CHAMII+ and finished building my new harness, which replaced the more kludgy harness that I had been using. The battery had died sometime last year after I had given up on getting it to work.

The settings that most of you recommended are the ones working right now. I FINALLY have been able to achieve a setting that both increments the meter and triggers the jackpot properly in test mode. Unfortunately (this is the "well, almost" part ) I still cannot get it to work with the serial return enabled.


Thank you and lots of K+ stormrider, Slottex, Firebird, and a69mopar for all of your help!

So, for those who need it in the future, here are all of my settings for my Bally 5500 ProSlot using ME920000 (1995) Mains:

Hardware:

  4N35 optocoupler relay installed in Jackpoy Relay 1 per manual
  U17 chip installed* in the MPU board and JP9 set to pins 2 & 3 (lower two pins).   *Uninstalling this chip has no effect on any test that I tried.
 
  Harness from backplane to Mikohn CHAMII+ as follows:
     Bally J9  (Relays)   Pin  1 to Mikohn J7 pin  3
     Bally J9  (Relays)   Pin 10 to Mikohn J7 pin 13
     Bally J10 (BAL LINE) pin  2 to Mikohn J7 pin  9
     Bally J10 (BAL LINE) pin  3 to Mikohn J7 pin 10


Software:

  Mikohn CHAMII+ Jackpot set:

    Base amount $250.00
    Current Value: $as needed.
    Increment 1 0.0125
    Increment 2 0.0125 (1.25 cents per credit. Hard amount, not a percentage.)
    F3 SNGL
    F4 M-08
    F5 3sec
    F6 JP0 (zero)
    F7 $$$$
    F8 MS00

  Bally 5500 ProSlot set:
    In Test group 11:
      Opt 2:  0005  MPI (setting 0004 - the same setting with serial 435 return, does not trigger the jackpot properly. It increments the meter 3 coin-in pulses.)
            7:  1
          18:  0000
        78H:  0000
         78L:  0001


What's weird is that I'm pretty sure that I tried these settings last year with no success.
I thought that the harness might have been part of the problem, but the unsuccessful test results which send coin-in pulses to the Mikohn instead of the three-second short were the same for the other configuration settings that I tried as they had been before. In addition, the old harness never failed to send a coin in pulse when I played the machine, and I never got a 91-0 error (with the serial return data working in option 0005). That tells me that my old harness did not have connection issues.

---

Some failure notes:

Setting M00, MS01:
Option 2 = 0002  --> Does NOT increment during play. Jackpot DOES trigger. Serial N/A.
Option 2 = 0004  --> 91-0 error.
Option 2 = 0005 --> Increments okay in play. Jackpot interpreted as 7 coin-in pulses instead of triggering.

Setting M00, MS00
Option 2 = 0002  --> Does nothing. No increment, no jackpot, no extra pulses.
Option 2 = 0004  --> Increments okay in play. Serial return works and current progressive amount can be read in bookkeeping meter "b.".
                               Jackpot interpreted as 3 coin-in pulses instead of triggering.
Option 2 = 0005  --> Same as 0004, but without the serial data.

Setting M08, MS01:
   Didn't write down the results.  , but did not work.

That's awesome Stat!  
That's the game where you wave your hand through the optics and it acts like a "pull" !!!
Cool !!
What is even WAY better is the detailed notes you've put down here!
It's better than any manual would give, to someone that wants to hook a cham up
to a Bally 6000 machine....

ADD>>> okay, a Bally 5500 machine...cool!

When I used to play the machine with the serial return enabled, there were long delays between each spin while the machine got the updated data from the meter. It finally occurred to me that perhaps the reason that the jackpot won't trigger with the serial data enabled is that the processor on the Bally might be too slow, or perhaps the installed chips are too slow, and the delay is enough to interrupt the jackpot pulses so that they aren't seen correctly by the Mikohn.

The thing is that this machine came with a progressive from the factory and outside of the casino ripping out the progressive and the player tracking system, it is essentially original, so perhaps the thing never worked with the serial data. I find that odd, however, since the casino would certainly have wanted records of the progressives stored in the machine.

Now that I'm certain that M08 is the correct machine type for this slot, I'm going to go methodically through all 23 MS settings (since they control the serial communication protocol) and see if any of them will work with option 2=0004 (Serial MPI).

I'll post when I get it done. It will be a while, since it's time consuming to remove the progressive board, set it up in the computer room for each change, and then re-install and test the change.

<ADD> I know that I'm all alone off the deep end when it comes to keeping accurate books on my home slots.   Most people wouldn't give a crap that the serial return didn't work.

My slots are in a spare bedroom -- eight of them along with a WMS wide body pin. There is just enough room to move between the machines, and I can use a foldaway stool if no one wants to play behind me. I couldn't fit a computer in that room with a crow bar.

I keep a second Mikohn PS and meter in the computer room so that I only have to carry the board itself, but it's still enough of a PITA to discourage me from running through 21 additional tests. Once the meter is set up and running, however, I won't need to change it. The computer's main use is for my home recording studio.

I programmed the unit to display two animated messages about a minute and a half apart, and the jackpot the rest of the time. The first says, "Welcome to the Las Vegas Hilton's SpaceQuest Casino," and the second says, "Eat at Quark's, Play Keno  $$WIN$$." It used to read "Play Dabo" but I changed it Monday.  

There are still one or two small issues that I want to resolve with my machine to get it into perfect shape, but this success is a major step forward.  It was supposed to have a progressive installed when it was built, so I'm glad to have it restored to its original condition.

The Spacequest machines are really cool. This one is in pristine condition and has custom sound and artwork that many of them did not. I bought it in early 2003; I think that it was one of the first to be removed from the casino. I also like the Blazing Sevens theme, so I enjoy playing it. The sound chip specifically states "Spacequest" on the label, and the glass is copyrighted by Bally, not Sunkist or another company. I don't know if they really made it, but the LV Hilton obviously contracted directly with Bally (and I suspect IGT) to fill their custom order of new machines when the Spacequest was built. All of the paper stickers on the machine (hopper, etc.) state that they were earmarked for the Spacequest.

I visited not long after they opened the casino and the ST:Experience, and again many more times before they closed it, so I know that the custom order was a one-off project: they never purchased more of these space-age designs. Any machines that were removed were replaced with standard slots until, one by one, these custom jobs were gone.  The last time I saw any there was in 2005. There were four or five left buried against a back wall, lost in a sea of TITO stepper and video units. By 2006 they were gone, too. 

The place was unusual and unique back in 1998. Once they replaced all of the custom machines, it was just another room full of slots with a fancy name.