Pin 2000 UPDATE PRISM BOARD

[Caveoftreasures]

Can anyone advise on this part.
PINBALL 2000 PRISM UPDATE BOARD (PUB) 04-12863
Price: $29.95  Pinball Spare Parts.

What does a PINBALL 2000 UPDATE PRISM CARD do ?

Is it for both Revenge from Mars and Star Wars Episode 1 ? iF U have a early model of either pin 2000 models, how do u determine if it has the latest roms/software etc.

Shld i look at the computer boards or look at something on start up ?

any advice would be great, thankyou 

Brett

[Private Gimp]

Brett,
The card you mention is a software/firmware updating tool for both RFM and SWE1 to update the rom set (including sound) directly in the computer case.
The Prism board is one of the 2 critical device cards that both Pin2000 machines needs to operate housed on the motherboard PCI slot within PC, that is, the prism board and rom boards are sandwitched together form one part (and if you check on ebay the prices for the Prism alone is very expensive and the same for a populated rom board, not so for the rom board without the roms on it). The 'PUB' Card plugs into it and updates the roms directly. To be perfectly honest, I havent done any software updates using the PUB card and haven't needed to this way.

If you want or need to update the software the alternative is to use the Pinball 2000 Update software connected through comm1 of the pinball machine, the DB9 pin serial connector to the left inside the coin door opening via a PC or Laptop with a bona-fidey DB9 serial port only and Nul cable, USB converters dont work so you need a reasonably old PC/Laptop with a proper DB9 serial port (becoming a dead set rarity now as everything is US bloody B). The process can also be a little tricky to do and is explained in the Marvin pinball bible here http://www.pinrepair.com/pin2000/index.htm.
I have done this twice already but thats it, no more updates now or never :{

You will also need the files to upload from your PC running the Updater software to your Pin2000 machine. Check for these on-line http://www.pinball.com/tech/pin2000/software.html
Apparently the PUB card is a handy device to have but how often do or will you actually need it?

For RFM the current software/firmware is offically 1.5 and unoffically 1.6 because its not easily available on-line.

To identify your version of running software go into the diagnostic menu using the door switches, select Utilities and then System Information. The running version will be shown here. You will not need to open the PC case or fiddle with the guts if you go the Pinball20000 Updater software update program.

On RFM anything lower than version 1.5, then look to update it.
For curiosity sake, has anybody on this forum updated their software using the PUB card that can clarify the method?

regards,
Cliff

[ddstoys]

Thanks for the info Gimp.   My rfm has software version 1.1. I'd better look into an update

[Caveoftreasures]

mine said built june 9 - 1999.   version 1.2  machine build number 50,010 (fifty thousand and ten)  

But that dont make sense, so maybe its meant to be 5010 and someone from the factory put an extra 0 in the number.

I gotta say, i love this RFM. It is just the very pinnacle of where pinball really evolved into a new era, and i really think it was the right direction. Both the new Pin2000 and the traditional pinball could have lived side by side. Perhaps say a make of each design could have really worked.

Imagine, for example, having a traditional Star Trek Next Generation sitting next to a pin2000 Star Trek Next Gen. You could enjoy both the different technology's and still have the fun of both titles. If only STERN did a really cool Pin 2000 machine based on Twilight Zone, or Medi-Evil Madness etc etc.

Food for thought.  

[Caveoftreasures]

*UPDATE*
A BIG THANKYOU to Cliff (Private Gimp) for taking some time out and telephoning me today with some technical advice for my Revenge from Mars.

If u havent met or spoken to Cliff before, I can add that he is a top bloke and a great asset/wealth of knowledge for all Aussie Pinball Members.

Thanks again Cliff, and look forward to catching up when u visit the Gold Coast/Brisbane next. 

[Private Gimp]

Thanks Brett for the very kind words.
RFM is an awesome piece of machinery and to me adds that something special to my collection. I love locating the parts and learning heaps more about it as I go.

Iam a bit jealous of the line up you have, a pinheads dream I think. The only DMD I have is TZ. Next time I am down in Melbourne I'll certainly look you up and bring the camera.

I have a bit more to explain on the PUB card.
Its actually an 8 bit ISA card, not a PCI as I first though but makes the upgrading of the software this way much more difficult in respect to the PC needed.
You need a 486 (or better) PC with an 8 bit ISA slot in which to install the PUB card and using the PUB updater software to 'flash' or 'copy' the new version pin2000 software on (the software you intend to upload and transfer to your RFM or SWE1).
Then plug the 'flashed' PUB card it into you RFM/SWE1 motherboard ISA slot and upload the new software. The PUB card essentially becomes the software carrier and copies the new software to the flash rom on the Prism board. It can be used to update both pin2000 models respectively as long as you perform the 'flashing' to the particular software revision you want for RFM and SWE1, in this way the PUB can be used for any verison of software and both pin2000 models.


regards,
Cliff

[Private Gimp]

I got a message from Martin Weist regarding the procedures with the PUB updater card:
You purchase a PUB Board, lets say its RFM V1.2 code.
Procue the PUB updater program.
Plug in PUB Card into ISA SLOT of your PC and boot it
Flash the PUB ram using the updater program with RFM V1.6 code.
Shut down PC
Remove PUB from your PC motherboard
Shut down P2K game
Insert updated PUB card into vacant ISA slot in the RFM computer motherboard
Switch on the game and wait till update is finished successfull (green message)
If it fails, powercycle and try again (easy, just powercycle just the PC with red button)
When finished and OK power down PC
Remove PUB card from the RFM motherboard.
Power cycle machine.

bobs your uncle ....done and playing. 

hope that helps
Martin

So there you go, the process of using a PUB card. I think its worth it if you have several RFM's and SWE1s because you simply update the game and move the PUB to the next machine and do it again...and again.

Regards all,
Cliff

[Caveoftreasures]

I have ordered 2 x of the PUB cards from Mark C - pinballspareparts as he has stock for $29 each. Seems very inexpensive. I will get Beaky (Andrew) to weave his magic and make it work. He loves all that techno jargon. I will just make a cup of tea, sit back and pretend i know what he is doing. 

Everything listed above I will print and follow it with Beaky leading the way. Thanks again for your help.  Will wait for the PUB cards to arrive. 

[beaky]

I was just researching this while all these posts where going on.
Yep needs an ISA slot.
We will just have to find an old P.C with one of these. I threw all mine out years ago. 

 

[beaky]

I have a solution to the problem of programming the pub boards if the pub boards do not have the correct updates.
The computer in the pin 2000 obviously has an ISA slot.
I will simply remove the prism card from the pin2k computer board. Connect a normal monitor, keyboard, mouse and hard drive with windows installed on it to the pinball 2000 computer board (with out the prism card it is just a normal computer).
Next we transfer the data to the pub update cards (swep1 & rfm).
Then I remove the keyboard and other devices, put the prism card back in and hey presto we have two pub cards programmed.
No need to buy an old computer that we will only use once.

[Pintoxicated]

I was wondering if that would work or not.  Let me know if it does.  I have got one of those boards as well that I wouldn't mind getting the RFM update on.