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LOTR Random Resets - Where to start

Judderman

Judderman

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Joined
Mar 28, 2016
Messages
925
Location
Cheshire
Hi

My LOTR has been resetting occasionally - today has been particularly bad, once it reset making a 'binging' sound with a message to open the door, which I did. Didn't seem to make any difference. I turned it off & on again & it had reset to factory settings, high scores gone, pay-to-play & cave troll off. Then had a fairly good game, activating all multiballs (even completing one of them), one shot off destroying the ring, doing fairly well (> 100mill) when it reset again. I haven't noticed any pattern to the resets, except maybe it happens when there's a lot going on.

From what I have read, I possibly need to reseat some ribbon cables, but I'm not certain which, also it seems a bit of a random strategy. Is there a methodical way to work out what's wrong?

Any suggestions?

Stew
 
Have you measured your 5V rail on the CPU board? My LOTR read 4.9V and the game occasionally reset. Bumped it to 5.1V using the trim pot and never had another issue.

I didn't have any settings reset issues though, so it might be something else here...
 
Not yet - I also vaguely remember something about 5v & resets, but hadn't paid much attention as it didn't affect me. I'll get the manual out & find it. Is it just multimeter from the 5v pin to earth while the power's on (mm set to DC volts)? This is the first time I've had to deal with anything more complex than continuity & replacing a diode.

Thanks for the suggestion - may not be til during the week or even the weekend, there's no real good light source in the conservatory.
 
A common problem with LOTR, try re-seating the ribbon cable at both ends then re-routing it so that it is not sitting on the fluorescent tube (send it round the side of the tube holder and hold in place with tape or glue spots).
 
Thanks guys - I've taken a couple of photos.

Do you mean ribbon cable A or B, @Moonraker? (I suspect A as it already looks to have a little glue around it.

1608155042889.png

and is this the trim pot you mention, @Fubar?
1608155241699.png

Stew
 
I had this a few months ago on a TSPP.
I had to replace the rectifiers, voltage regulators and capacitors.
Also replaced the pins and connectors that takes the 12v and 5v to the other pcbs
 
Judderman said:
Cheers - and thanks for pointing that bit of the manual out - I was only looking at the CPU board bit. Do I take the DMM reading on the power board, or the CPU board (I'll probably do both to get the practice)?
Click to expand...
5V rail should read the same everywhere.
 
Cheers guys - hopefully sorted now. Fairly confident it was a connection problem, when I was moving the bundle of wires that were blocking my view of the connector with the 5v out of the power board, I saw multiple resets. Measured 5.03v, so no need to touch the pot. Reseated the advised connectors, and all those in the area of the bundle I moved, and at the ends of the bundle. Machine works, but not had time for a long game yet, been a busy weekend
 
Could be a bad/cracked wire, in which case the problem will resurface. Try to twiddle each one in turn and narrow down the one causing the issue.
 
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