Merit MAXX Diamond 2 Motherboard Issue

[coinopshop]

 Hello all.
 
 Just picked up a countertop megatouch. Machine turns on, fans spin BUT there is no pic on the screen and a "beep" is heard every 5 seconds from the motherboard. I'm assuming I have a motherboard issue. Is there a "known" fix for the symptom mine is having ? Is there a relatively cheap replacement I can put in place of the original motherboard ? Thanks in advance.

 Dave.

[stayouttadabunker]

Is there a power adjustment dial on the power supply?

[coinopshop]

Is there a power adjustment dial on the power supply?

 Nope. I replaced the power supply with a brand new one. ( This is what is leading me to believe it is the motherboard ).

[stayouttadabunker]

I'd start asking around for some type of Merit Maxx manual for your machine.
There might be some troubleshooting info in there that explains the "beeping" sound.
It must be a warning signal of some type...

[ROCKET]

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[stayouttadabunker]

Rocket,
What in the world does freezing a hard drive do?
Do you put it in a plastic bag and throw it in the refrigerator?
I'm in no way doubting this procedure,by any means,
as I trust your knowledge of these machines way more than anyone I know -  but I'm much more
interested in how freezing a hard drive,...fixes it?
The freezing process shrinks sealed bearings or something?

[ROCKET]

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[stayouttadabunker]

  Hot shower=John C. Holmes
Cold shower=grapes of wrath???

[ROCKET]

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[channelmaniac]

If the beep is coming from the speaker and not the hard drive, then pull the memory, clean the connections and the slot, then put it back in.

If the base 64k of memory isn't readable the machine will beep like crazy.

There are a whole set of beep codes that help you figure out what is going on with a machine.

RJ

[dpalmi]

Hello all!

Not to sound like an ass - but no video and beeping is not the hard drive.  Those are BIOS error codes - the motherboard is trying to tell you what's wrong.  In the old days of motherboards - which this would be - 5 beeps would indicate an issue with the processor.  Have you tried removing any heatsink/fan and re-seating the processor?  Here is a great link on Wikipedia with some old codes http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power-on_self-test.

As a side note - I have actually heard of techs having luck with the freezer trick with hard drives...although I have no idea why.  If you have a drive that won't spin up - I personally have had luck giving the drive a quick twist of the wrist - it's kinda of like banging on a car starter with a hammer - just a dead spot in the contacts.

Dan #2

[stayouttadabunker]

I remember smacking the tracks to get my dead car moving because of a bad connection.

[coinopshop]

Hello all!

Not to sound like an ass - but no video and beeping is not the hard drive.  Those are BIOS error codes - the motherboard is trying to tell you what's wrong.  In the old days of motherboards - which this would be - 5 beeps would indicate an issue with the processor.  Have you tried removing any heatsink/fan and re-seating the processor?  Here is a great link on Wikipedia with some old codes http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power-on_self-test.

As a side note - I have actually heard of techs having luck with the freezer trick with hard drives...although I have no idea why.  If you have a drive that won't spin up - I personally have had luck giving the drive a quick twist of the wrist - it's kinda of like banging on a car starter with a hammer - just a dead spot in the contacts.

Dan #2

 I'll give this one a try and count the beeps. I've done all the memory stick and edge connector cleaning already, same problem.

 Thanks.
 Dave.

[stayouttadabunker]

Dpalmi's post from Wiki was pretty cool to read about.
The beeps were never standardized and...
 
( Watch out ahead here...read with caution as your tongue might get tied up )

The different manufacturers had different beeps for different things during different years.  

[coinopshop]

Dpalmi's post from Wiki was pretty cool to read about.
The beeps were never standardized and...
 
( Watch out ahead here...read with caution as your tongue might get tied up )

The different manufacturers had different beeps for different things during different years. 

 I justed checked my game out. I'm geting a "single beep" about every 7 seconds. I removed the processor and re-seated it but to no prevail. I think I'm just going to look for another motherboard.

[ROCKET]

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[coinopshop]

as I mentioned I dont claim to be a expert .
but have been dealing with MERIT -JVL-MIDWAY/WILLIAMS for years

have approx 75-100 machines on site in working order . have run  routes of machines in bar rooms /pubs etc .
all have had diff issues ..

as far as the issue that was first mentioned by the poster !!

he has no video

has a beep every 5 seconds from mother board ??

I DONT CARE ABOUT BEEPS -- BEEPS MEEN SH^^T TO ME WHEN WORKING ON THESE .. ALSO DOES IT CME FROM SPEAKER OR PART MEANS NOTHING --COMMON SENSE IS THE KEY !!


as I mentioned >>check all connections<<<  remove and replace is the way I check  !!
That way if you have a corroded connection you can see it and clean it .

of all the Merits I have worked on over 1000 counter top and caberet machines -- I have seen only a handfull of mother boards go bad .

as far as hard drives I HAVE SEEN PLENTY GO BAD !! TO BE EXACT I HAVE A DRAWER  OF OVER 30-40 HARD DRIVES FACTORY INSTALLED IN MERIT MACHINES -THAT JUST SH^^T THE BED !!

SOME YOU CAN PUT BACK IN THEY WILL WORK FOR A WEEK ? OR A HOUR THEN DIE AGAIN .

ITS COMMON .. 

THE OTHER THING I MENTIONED --DOES HE HAVE THE CORRECT SECURITY KEY TO MATCH THE DOUBLE DIAMOND 2 HARD DRIVE ???

did the machine ever work as equipped now ??

is the CRT FUSE BLOWN ?? it has a new power supply but the chassis fuse is dead ?? has that been checked ??
many of the models had a fuse where the IBM --115-volt cord plugs into in the back -is that fuse blown ??

do you see a faint glow on the neck of the CRT = CATHODE RAY TUBE --when the power is on ?? indicating the CRT IS GETTING POWER ??

what else has been done ?? did it work at any time before you had it ?? what have you done so far ??

pictures help also .. my guess is still a bad connection ribbon cable off or plug corroded -- or bad hard drive --

rocket

 ok. I "should have mentioned". I too have been in the coin-op industry for over 25 years. Repaired many of these myself.
 Just tought somebody here may have had this same problem.

 I did all of the connection checking, cleaning and such. The hard drive and the key match #'s perfectly according to Merit's site. The monitor does fire up but displays no pic. Removing the ribbon cable from a working motherboard would bring up a BOOT DISK FAILURE on the screen. I get nothing, not even an attempt to display anything on the screen. I'm certain the motherboard si the problem, just wondering "what" on the motherboard could be the culprit.

 I have replaced ( or sent out ) over 2 dozen motherboards on these megatouches. But I'd like to know how to repair them myself ( besides the usual cap kit ).
 

[ROCKET]

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[coinopshop]

are you saying you replaced the ribbon cable from a known working machine on your machine ??

and you get boot disc error ??

if thats the case the hard drive is junk ?/

have you tried putting in another set of software ??

a diff hard drive and matched security key ??   then has it worked ??

thats what i would do -- to condem the mother board !!

 No, that's not at all what I meant ( about the ribbon cable). You can power up a working Megatouch machine WITHOUT the ribbon cable connected and the screen will show "BOOT DISK FAILURE". That's what I meant. I have another key from an EMERALD version, just waiting for my harddrive to arrive I bought off eBay. My plan is to swap those out and give it a try. I bought this machine used/broken. Trying to bring it back to life without having to purchase another motherboard.

[ROCKET]

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[coinopshop]

ok I am not trying to stir up a fight here .. just understand what your saying ?

you say if you remove the ribbon cable from a known working MERIT MACHINE .

TURN IT ON IT COMES UP BOOT DISC FAILURE !!

what is the relevancies  of this concerning your machine ??

if you have a known working machine and pull the ribbon cable off the hard drive --it should say boot disc error or failure
BECAUSE THERE IS NO HARD DRIVE CONNECTED --TO BE RECOGNIZED BY THE MOTHERBOARD


in your case your hard drive is connected !! But I suspect is no good -- turning slow --wont spin up -locked etc
so your mother board is recognizing it being there .. but you have no screen ??

as I said in two post back --to confirm mother board is no good or problem ??

drop in a a known working hard drive with correct security key and see if machine comes to life ..

if it does then it was the hard drive --if it does not it could be the mother board -ribbon cable -hard drive - etc .

does that put us on the right track ??

 I think we are both geting a little confused.
 A few post back someone suggested that the ribbon-cable may not be connected ( or bad ). I'm saying this has nothing to do with my problem. The motherboard should and would still fire up without the ribbon-cable being connected, go through the memory test and all that happy horse****...BUT....the motherboard would stop once it tried to load from disk and display on the screen BOOT DISK FAILURE. Just tossing out the possibility of the ribbon-cable being the problem.

 I can hear the harddrive spinning. And the "faint clicking sound" after the power switch has been turned off. Not saying it's good or not, without the motherboard at least trying to boot I cannot tell.

 I don't believe anyone is trying to start a posting war, It's all good. I also going to see if I can borrow a motherboard off a friend of mine. This may help me tremendously.
 Thanks for the replies. I appreciated it all.

[ROCKET]

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[coinopshop]

 I believe my MB is a 586 Mitsubichi ( It's doesn't have an ATX power coinnector ). If you think you may have one shoot me an email

 Thanks,
  Dave.

[ROCKET]

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[coinopshop]

ok