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[ThunderFist]

Yesterday, I got a Budweiser Tapper in great condition, and it's playing great. Something puzzles me, though, and it's a message that pops up when I plug the game in. It does the usual color bar screen once it's plugged in, and then a message pops up that says:

SOUND BOARD
BOARD TIMEOUT

That looks like an error message, but having played Root Beer Tapper as often as I have in arcade compilations, I know what the sounds are supposed to sound like, and I can't determine that there are any sound related problems as I play. Both during gameplay and in the attract mode, the sound works just fine. Does anyone know why this message may be displaying?

[jcleverly]

here is info from the MCR faq. (tapper is a mcr game - meaning midway card rack, the 3 board pcb stack) if the yellow led on the outer most board is lit, there is an issue.

==================
B. Super Sound I/O
==================

Super Sound I/O Overview:
-------------------------
The Bally Midway Super Sound I/O board is, as the name suggests, the input
and output method for MCR series games, as well as the sound generator.

The SSIO is a Z-80 based computer. It runs at 2MHz from dividing down a
16MHz clock. The SSIO has 1K of SRAM, up to 16K of program ROM, access to
over 48 lines of system I/O (buttons and the like), and 2 8910 sound
generators.

The SSIO is capable of reading input from both switches (like standard
arcade buttons) and optical quadrature encoders (like a "spinner" knob such
as used by Tempest, Arkanoid, TRON, etc.)

Button inputs are read through 74LS244 data buffers with series resistors,
protective capacitors, and 10K pull-up resistors on all input lines. Some
boards appear to have been intentionally altered in the field by removal of
the .1uF caps and pullup resistors on the '244s. (Anyone who knows the
origin and details of this modification is encouraged to send the story to
me! -- clay@yahoo.com)

Angle encoder boards (such as TRON's "spinner" knob) are read as parallel
data from either J4 or J6 connections. Quadrature signals from the knob
are converted to parallel position data on the Angle Encoder Board, so the
SSIO only needs to read the results with no other conversion required.

Game specific settings are accomplished by adjusting one 10 DIP switch
block (SW1). SW1 contact #10 connects to the *uWAIT line, effectively
pausing the game when in "on" position.


SSIO Built in test mode:
------------------------
Low level SSIO test options are accomplished through setting on SW3.

| SW#1 SW#2 SW#3 SW#4 SW#5-SW#8
-----------+------------------------------------------------------
Normal | OFF
Operation |
|
SSIO | ON
Diagnostic |
-----------+------------------------------------------------------
Normal | OFF
Operation |
|
RAM/ROM | ON
Test |
-----------+------------------------------------------------------
Normal | OFF
Operation |
|
Oscillator | ON
Test |
-----------+------------------------------------------------------
Normal | OFF
Operation |
|
Filter | ON
Test |

For any of the test modes to be operational, SW3/SW#1 must be ON. To test
RAM/ROM, set SW3/SW#1 to ON, and SW3/SW#2 to ON and power up the board. A
steady "ON" LED #3 (in the lower left hand corner of the PCB) indicates
proper operation. A slow blinking LED #3 indicates a RAM error, a fast
blinking LED #3 indicates a ROM error. LED #3 is normally not lit during
game operation.