Background

As is well known, pinball machines were never meant to last more than two years and as such, not a lot of consideration needed to be take in the design for it to last longer than this. Cost was of the essence!

And so it was with the PCB for the Mothership. Although the electrical design has come under criticism for its power consumption, apart from several redundant components (where cost could have been saved!), the design was constricted by the number of LEDs, their current consumption and the voltage available to drive them.

From a mechanical standpoint, however, costs were cut which would have a large contributing effect to premature failures: The flasher bulb holder was of the two pin design instead of the more stable (and more expensive) three pin design. The up and down movement of the large #89 bulb and holder puts undue stress on the two solder joints, meaning they fail prematurely. Also the LEDs, which are at the extremity of the board and therefore come under a lot of stress, were either soldered directly to the board and bent into position, or came with an LED holder as a support. Neither of these solutions provided adequate protection for the solder joints, however, thereby also causing premature failure.

The GozMod PCB addresses all of these limitations of the original design, thereby resulting in a more reliable board, which will give you many years of trouble-free enjoyment.

GozMod Features

1. High Efficiency bi-colour LEDs
• Same amount of LED brightness for less current flow
• Reduces current consumption of overall board
2. Individually secured LED holders
   • Each LED holder individually attached to the PCB
   • Prevents strain on the LED solder joints
3. Three pinned T10 bulb socket
• Two signal pins and one mechanical support pin
• Prevents strain on the flasher bulb solder joints
4. Customised switching circuitry
   • Changes LED colour according to game status