Machines With Leds ! Excellent Results. What A Difference. Photos.

[pinnies4me]

I got an assortment of LEDs from www.rtbb.com.au to try out. I'm not a fan of the "change every lamp" idea, but they are excellent in certain feature areas. In AFM, the mode completed inserts are way too dark blue to let normal lamps light through well, and the LEDs work a treat. In Black Hole the lower playfield arrows have a similar problem, and LEDs did a great job there.

Unlike other suppliers locally, *every* LED I got from Greg worked, so not sure where he gets his stock but they seem good.

[Cow Corner]

LED's look great.
I use them mainly for inserts and the backbox, I use them in GI if an area on the PF looks a little dark and needs a bit of brightness.
I don't like LED kits as I like to experiment with different colours and effects and LED kits are not cheap.
I have only ever bought cointaker LEDs and have had the odd dead bulb here and there but nothing to complain about.
I have never got any LED's from rtbb but everything else I have purchased from there has been great with top service, price and postage...I will give them a go for sure....my newest additions have not been done yet.

[TUF-427]

Ive also experimented a bit with my Small stable of Machines,

Getaway HS2 is one that looks so much better with Leds in all the playfield inserts,

I dont do Gi or Flashers leave those incandescent...

Firepower I put a Select few in that really lifts the colour of the old inserts,

the Green X multipliers in front of the flippers I actually changed back to 47s as the leds were too bright and affecting gameplay Imho..

T2 is next on my list think it will look absolutely Fantastic with all led inserts...

[Caveoftreasures]

I shld have the videos ready shortly to upload. (my new video camera software is not very user friendly   Canon software no where near as good as Kodak software)

Congo - done - looks amazing
Turtles - done - lifts it so well
Gilligans - done - the improvement here is 10 fold

Twister - almost done - big difference
Independence Day - started - massive difference already

It seems that a winning combination that I and others use is to leave std flashers and std General Illumination (above playfield) and do the playfield inserts. Backbox LEDs are also a good idea to reduce excessive heat, espescially for machines that translites or backglasses cant be purchased for. Experiment with the backbox and see if u like or dont like the bright white light versus the buttery glow of std 555 bulbs etc.

The heat from candescent 44 and 47 plus std 555 candescent bulbs is just too hot. The heat and possible damage to inserts has made my mind up to changing over every machine over to LEDs. The look is a huge improvement on any title, plus any reduction in heat is a winner.
Just a few hours of leaving a machine turned on, and once u feel the heat on the translite or even the heat under the playfield inserts from std candescent bulbs will scare any collector. LEDs are a smart and attractive answer.  

[Retropin]

Should be able to purchase Off White LED at approx 4800 Kelvin as opposed to the harsh white 6500 Kelvin

[Caveoftreasures]

Good idea Gav,
Some suppliers have a new LED called "retro" which looks just like a 44 or 555 candescent bulb.

Good alternative for anyone who wants to use LEDS for general illumination instead of std candescent bulbs. (have ordered some, will test n report back when they arrive from the USA).

[philtech]

 Being inspired here on this thread with the LED mods I have just finished LEDun (LED underneath) my Swords of Furry.
WOW, it now looks better than a new machine and the colours are so vibrant I am addicted.
I can not believe the clarity and sharpness this has made, never mind the drop in electrical power and heat.
The back glass I put in wide angle blue LEDs except for all parts that have a red display which were replaced with (obviously) red LEDs, I have got to say this looks a million.
Also noted is that the LED lights flash at a much higher speed where the machine is more interactive.
Worth every $ spent.   

[Olivia_jason]

post some pictures mate, i love swords of fury, if you ever want to sell i might be interested lol

[Caveoftreasures]

well done phil.  leds do look good. 

I just finished Independence Day. It came up amazing.   I have 4 or 5 videos to add once i sort out this dam Canon video software.lol

I have done 5 machines in apx 2 weeks and they look great.  Its not that expensive to do it either if u buy Leds in bulk etc. Plenty sellers around with good deals. 

[Wotto]

Glad U R having success with LED's Brett 
Its a time consuming process 

I wonder if you will find over a period of time you MAY change or drop a few out?
I love LED's in certain places - I did find that SOME titles , if you packed them with loads of LED's nearly caused an epileptic fit for the player - the 'strobing' was just WAY too much ( TOTAN bonus countdown triangles springs to mind )
Not sure if you have noticed this yet in any of the games you have done?

If you find a good camera setting to get GOOD pics with - please tell me , as I have never been able to get pics to come up as good as they look in real life.

[philtech]

 Sorry for the blurry pic at the moment, but you should be able to get an idea of the LED difference.
Will try again tomorrow for a better camera setup as its hard to find the right shot.
Regards Phil...

[Olivia_jason]

Thanks for the photo Phil Great machine mate

[Caveoftreasures]

Phil,
I can see the difference already. Put it this way, you wouldnt even see the colours from that far away if they were normal bulbs etc, thats how i know how good the Led's look. My brother walked in last night and from 10 metres away, saw Independence day and said instantly, how good the Led's looked. Normally, from that distance you cant see anyt colour.

Wotto, hi mate. 

Something I have found, is that Bally/Williams inserts seem to be thinner and much more transparent (carries light thru much easier) than the thicker inserts on Data East/Sega. Thats something I have found instantly on Bally/Williams versus Data East early (1990) or later 1996/1997 later models of data East/Sega. The inserts seem to be thicker on anything else than Bally/Williams.
 So, on a Bally/Williams, u CAN get away with some Led's if ya want, but on data East/Sega etc, once u do one, u really have to do all inserts etc. The Bally/Williams patch gets rid of the small strobing on most Bally/Williams etc.  On the other manufacturers etc, the strobing is the same, but not that much to stop me from putting LED's in all 35 machines (yes, I am on a mission).

It just brings pinny's into the 2012 year n look. Reallistically, the std bulbs look good on anything prior to DMD etc, and I would not put LED's into say the 1978 model Phoenix, but all other machines, the answer is a resounding YES. and I used to be on the fence. It really makes a big difference and makes boring lifeless inserts come alive. I really reckon LED's are the way to go to modernise the fleet, if that makes sense. 

[Caveoftreasures]

I have attached a few photos of some plastic organiser cases that I purchased for $6 each from the Reject Shop. (some states its called Crazy Clarks/Sams Warehouse/$2 shop etc).

The organiser trays were in the auto section. I find them perfect to put all my LEDs into. Since I have every type and colour of 44/47 and 555 LED's, the numbers of compartments u need starts to add up. By the time u add up the std candescent bulbs etc, and every different flasher and type of candescents, again, you need more organisers. This has made storage and organisation when chosing them very easy.    photos below.

[Caveoftreasures]

a few more