Please note, we do not have any affiliation, sell or offer warranty on items contained in this post as this is just a reference guide for those interested in building your own machine or upgrading a previously purchased machine.

Items you will need:

1. Upright arcade cabinet with working CGA monitor.   The cabinet must be of style that can support a full size control panel with 2 players.
2. Sound system with 3.5mm stereo input connector.
3. All in one arcade control panel – such as one of the following which can be purchased on Amazon, eBay etcPandora’s Key 7 : https://www.amazon.com/Pandoras-Console-1920×1080-Players-Controller/dp/B075V86Z2Z/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1542119055&sr=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=pandora+key+7Note, the game console above must have VGA output and sound output.   There are many brands and variations to these controllers.  Get what looks best for you and check the video reviews.   The latest version of the “Pandora” series is “7” – which seem to have a faster emulation board.

    

4. VGA to CGA converter https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA1NV3629034&ignorebbr=1&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleMKP-PC&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleMKP-PC-_-pla-Tomorrow+Top-_-Media+Converters-_-9SIA1NV3629034&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIv-_x-dDR3gIVzrjACh021Az0EAQYAyABEgIGA_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds     or   http://www.hollandcomputers.com/data/Images_Additional/arcade%20game%20parts/ra-vga-rgb-converter%20vga%20to%20cga%20instruction.pdf
5.  Tools, hardware and a little ingenuity to mount the control panel and wire up the components.

Here’s the quick guide and overview

The all-in-one controller comes with games and is self contained.  All it needs is a TV monitor (HDMI which brings in the sound) or you can connect external components.  This is what we will do using the arcade CGA monitor and the external sound system mounted in the arcade cabinet.

Most arcade games have a CGA monitor.  It is not directly compatible with VGA outputs.   The game console has a VGA output, so we must convert it to CGA.   This is where the VGA to CGA converter comes in.

Additionally, sound must be connected.  The game controller has a 3.5mm stereo output connector.   This can go directly to a 2.1 PC based speaker system, many of which are mounted already inside arcade cabinets.

The VGA to CGA converter takes 12V DC power top operate.   Connect a VGA cable from the output of the game controller to the input of the converter.   Then the CGA output needs to be connected to the arcade monitor.   Many arcade monitors already have a VGA to CGA cable, but it is not a converter.

The game controller, VGA to CGA converter and your arcade game cabinet all need to be connected to AC power.  Many cabinets have a power strip inside where all the components can be connected.

Mount the game controller where the old arcade game controller was.

Adjustment – the VGA to CGA converter most likely will need to be placed into 640×480 output mode, otherwise the output will not work.  There are menu buttons on the converter to set that mode.

Use the most recent game controller that you can find in order to get the fastest and bug free games.   Many older systems did not work well, and while they came with lots of games, many did not function.  Use reviews on the internet to decide which is the best model for you.  Just make sure that whatever you choose, has a VGA output… which I believe all do.

I believe many of the game controllers can be connected to both a modern TV and use VGA out at the same time, for easier debugging and setup.

A couple years ago, I was asked to restore one.  I located a machine in the middle of Indiana and trailored it back to the shop.   This included bringing in everything I knew about arcade restoration and pinball restoration.   This machine still looks new today.

Restoration Notes

• Full cabinet restoration.  Including custom yellow paneling
• Playfield was fully stripped, sanded down and restored
• New plastics and parst
• Boards were re-built
• Monitor was restored

We were lucky enough to actually have 2 machines to restore.   They both were in reasonable shape considering, but suffered horribly from incandescent lamp burn and the resulting heat damage.   The heat from the standard bulbs over time charred the play field and dried out the inserts causing them to lift off the play field.

 THIS GAME IS FOR SALE

Cabinet Restoration

• Original artwork was salvaged.  Color keyed repairs and wood damage repaired.
• clear coat re-applied over entire surface to lock in the repairs and prevent any further sun damage and abrasion wear
• New legs, misc hardware, buttons
• Restored coin door

Circuitry Restoration

The latest release of the WPC series of circuit boards have become more reliable with less parts with one exception, the power driver boards.  Williams did away with separate bridge rectifiers and went with cost effective power diodes to do the same function.   However, these items do not disperse heat well at all.   Ironically, the diodes that drive the general illumination (that did all the damage to the play field) also caused a lot of heat damage on the driver board.    Anyone who says LEDs don’t save pinball machines are crazy because if this machine had been converted earlier, all of these repairs would not have been necessary.

Playfield Restoration

The play field was fully dismantled and cleaned.   All inserts were cut out, cleaned and leveled.  Multiple series of automotive clear coat and water slide graphics were necessary to get the play field flat and ready for paint work repair.   The burned natural wood area was re-colored and hole damage was repaired and painted.   Multiple airbrush layers were locked in with more automotive clear (I can’t even count how many)… and finally the whole play field was final wet sanded and buffed.

The following items were also upgraded

• Wareroom rail was epoxy coated white for a different look as was the skill shot
• Scimitar blade was plated in nickel for an unbelievable look
• New apron
• All new plastics
• All new ramps
• All LED conversion
• New pop bumper assemblies
• New rubber and balls

Before and After

Now that I have restored many pinball and video machines of the era, can I truly appreciate how different this game really was.   Generally, when a machine is designed to go along with a movie, it suffers greatly due to the overhead of licensing and timing.   Of course, this game didn’t get everything that was desired and thus left out the Discs of Tron 5th game. However, there are many items so significant in this machine that it is worth noting.

First and foremost is the cabinet design.   It’s odd diamond shape cabinet was certainly not loved by operators because you cannot get a hand truck on the back very well.   It also had odd shaped wood access panels that I believe probably broke often.   So I imagine it was carted from the side and man-handled through narrow door frames.  However the shape goes very well with the theme and allows the monitor and enclosure to be very dark and roomy.

The control panel and surrounding plastics were very well designed.   Curved clear acrylic panels with fluorescent graphics were mounted above and below the control panel along with ultra-violet lighting to result in a very futuristic look.   The monitor bezel was designed to have a three dimension look and feel and an MCU graphic was mounted behind it to make you feel like you were actually inside the movie.   All of this extra plastic and tooling had to add to the game cost significantly.

Lastly, the circuit design was also very much ahead of anything of the time.   The power supply board also housed a battery backup circuit so that game scores would be saved.  This was a pretty complicated design back in the day.   It also served as a separate analog power supply for the audio circuit – which had 2 separate channels for simulated stereo sound to reduce audio feedback.

The game board itself was so complicated, that it required 3 separate, double sided PC boards and ribbon cables connecting both ends.  Needless to say, finding a working TRON board set is hard to do.     This game in general can be very expensive to build – easily twice as much than a comparable Ms. Pacman or Galaga machine from the same company released the year before.

Restoration

This machine was a trade in for a pinball machine that we had sold earlier in the month.  I took this trade in because I had been looking for a Tron machine for quite some time.   Of course, I was informed that the machine mostly worked and that it already had new side graphics (so that was a plus).

In actuality, the game boards were a complete loss.  They had burned traces and so much rework that they could not be salvaged.  I was pretty disappointed.  However the side graphics were applied pretty well and the cabinet was in excellent shape.

This machine went on to get the following treatment:

• New acrylic control panel surfaces (top and bottom)
• New control panel and spinner graphics
• New joystick
• Rebuilt coin door and all metal hardware
• New monitor
• Like new Tron PCB set
• New power supply adapter board (made to replace the old board with newer battery backup technology)
• New switching power supply
• All Lighting replaced by color controlled LED.   This allowed us to program the color of the MPU, marquee and acrylic pieces.  When set to slow fade mode makes you feel like you are actually inside the game.   It’s very cool.

The following guides were created by us for use with all 25″ and 27″ Wells Gardner arcade chassis models:  U2000, U5000, k7400 and k7500

Wells Gardner 25″/27″ Chassis

(LINK COMING SOON)

Wells Gardner P719 Neck Board

This neck board is used on all of the Wells Gardner monitors on this page.

http://www.castleclassicarcade.com/files/CCA_P719_Replace.pdf

This machine was something totally different.  Black and white monitor.  Simple design.  Head to head action football using X’s and O’s like that of how a college football coach would draw up a play.

This is Atari Football – reborn and just as glorious as ever.

The Donor Machine

The donor machine was actually in reasonable physical condition, given the number of years on the clock and knowing how much of a beating these machines took on a daily basis.

The odd part of this machine was that it was equipped with joysticks in place of where the trackballs would reside.  Originally, I just scoffed at the retrofit thinking it was probably the best a route operator could do in order to get the machine back out making money.  But after disassembling the machine, I realized it was no retrofit at all.

Upon flipping open the hood, I saw that this machine had custom PCBs to convert the digital 8-way joystick signals to differential pulsed voltage outputs via multiple astable multivibrator circuits.   Ok, I was showing off there because I actually knew what it was as soon as I saw it (back from when I designed one in my Electrical Engineering lab).  What this means is that, for some reason which I can only imagine is because of lawsuits due customer injury), that Atari had actually changed their design in the latter portion of the manufacturing of this machine to use joysticks.  The circuits, connectors, and joysticks were all period specific items and all factory made.  I have never seen that before, nor have I read about it in any of the forums that cover the restoration of this machine.  Great!  We had a unique discovery!

So, while that is interesting and all, we’re were not going to keep it that way.  This machine needed to be converted back to the way people remembered it…  with those huge trackballs.     After finally sourcing all the components to rebuild the trackballs in new condition, I realized why they went to joysticks.  The balls themselves are almost 5 lbs each (larger and heavier than Bocce balls to give you a reference).   Now I remember the injuries people suffered on this machine (busted fingers, welts on their palms, huge blisters from pinches between the ball and housing.  AWESOME!

Other items:

• The monitor powered up but was pretty sad and had an unstable and horrible picture.
• The cardboard bezel for the monitor (in the shape of a stadium) was deteriorated and had liquid damage from years of drinks spilled into the machine
• The control panels were rusted
• coin door was there but not appealing
• glass was chipped and scratched
• cabinet (wood grain) was damaged and the graphics were poor.

Restoration

This machine went under the full restoration process, and in the end retains 100% of the investment.  Not only that, you will not find another Atari Football in this condition regarding the price.

• Black and White Wells Gardner raster monitor fully rebuilt and calibrated.
• Coin door rebuilt and restored
• Control panels were stripped, sanded down and refinished.  New control panel overlays were sourced.  Football play controls were repaired and circuit board repaired.
• Entire rebuild of both 4.5″ trackball assemblies – new balls, bearings, rollers.  Rebuild optics and cages
• Game PCB and RF cage rebuilt
• Entire cabinet and optional pedestal sanded down and restored in black with new molding and graphics.
• New glass
• New pedestal adjustble feet
• Power supply and cabling updated
• Football stadium bezel custom designed.  This is a Castle Classic Arcade original and cannot be purchased anywhere! We redesigned the stadium with a more modern look and custom made for the new owner (which will be blurred out for privacy).

Pictures

Before

Trackball / Control Panels

After

What is purity?

CRT monitors are additive color systems, meaning that all colors are created by adding a percentage of primary colors together.   These primary colors are Red, Green and Blue.

White = ( R:100% +  G:100%  + B:100% )

Black  = ( R:0% +  G:0%  + B:0% )

Red = ( R:100% +  G:0%  + B:0% )

Green = ( R:100% +  G:100%  + B:0% )

Blue = ( R:0% +  G:0%  + B:100% )

If your monitor exhibits any one of the following impairments, you have a problem with purity

In the neck of each CRT is a primary color electron gun.  The electrons are directed up/down and left/right by way of a magnetic coil located at the base of the CRT glass.  When an image can be displayed in perfect geometry and color, the CRT is considered to be calibrated  as pure.

The best example of purity is displaying a full screen of each primary color.  If each color can be displayed perfectly square (4×3 on standard CRT) and without color splotches, then the CRT is calibrated correctly (for that region of the world) and that there are no environmental impairments affecting the direction of the internal electron guns.  Purity is adjusted by moving the location of the windings used to redirect the electron gun beams (yoke).  More on this later.

What is Convergence?

Convergence plays hand in hand with purity in creating an image of expected color and with perfect alignment.  We know that each color is controlled by a separate electron gun.  Each gun is located in the neck of the CRT, but not in the same location.  So slight adjustments need to be made so that each gun illuminates the same exact location on the CRT to create a single pixel element.

Here is are a couple examples of very poor convergence.  You can also see the distinct primary elements.

Ok, so now what?

So, how did we get here anyway?  Why would my monitor look like this?

Simple Fix Convergence

First, let’s start with convergence problems.  Convergence is set and locked in place in the factory.  Arcade games typically get man-handled and relocated every couple years to new locations.  Operators are not usually very gentile with these machines and sometimes the glue which holds the yoke in place comes loose.  Sometimes convergence can easily be fixed by re-centering the yoke with the rubber wedges and gluing it back in place.   If that doesnt work, it is possible the  convergence rings were broken off or knocked out of position.  They too are glued in place and if they havent broken off, can be easily be slid back in position.  The manufacturer usually aligned these and marked them with ink or glue so relocating them back should be very simple.  If they have broken off, you will need to look into having this corrected by a professional or replacing the monitor (which is probably your best course of action).

Simple Fix Purity

All monitors have a purity fixer built in.  It’s called a de-gausser.  Most all  monitors have built in de-gaussing circuits that automatically run every time a monitor is turned on.  However, this only happens when a monitor is COLD.  So, if you are seeing this problem, shut off your game and wait about an hour.  When you turn it back on, you should hear a funny twang sound.  That is the degauss circuit attempting to rid the picture tube of unwanted magnetic interference.

Sometimes, when relocating an arcade game, the monitor will pick up stray magnetization.  Try running the automatic degauss circuit a couple times.  If the splotch has not been corrected, you may be one of what we call “the 1%”

Environmental Fix Purity

Sometimes, you have to adjust for environmental conditions that cannot be fixed.  You may have an I-beam in the wall or ceiling that is locally augmenting the Earth’s natural magnetic field.   Sometimes, it is in the ground below you.  Either way, this too can be overcome.

First, relocate the machine to another part of the room OR turn the machine temporarily 90 degrees.  Re-run the automatic degauss circuit a couple of times and see if this condition goes away.

If it works, then you have 2 choices:

1)  Relocate the machine or turn it 90 degrees.

2)  Compensate with magnets

Magnet Fix Purity

Ok, so we don’t love this solution because it is a trial and error solution, but it works – and nobody ever knows to do this.  This method also requires a little dexterity and risk of electric shock.  So, if you are not familiar with electronics or qualified for working with high voltages, please find someone who is.

First, you need some thin flexible magnet material.  Not too strong, typically fridge magnet strength.  A strip of flexible magnet can be purchaed in Home Depot or a craft section used for making picture frames etc.

The idea here is to use the magnets  on the back side of the monitor to compensate for the area that is not pure.  Experiement by moving the magnet along the back side of the glass tube.  The closer to the center (yoke), the more compensation.  Turn and spin the magnet until the blotch goes away and then glue the magnet in place.

You may see other magnets already glued in place by the factory.  Use that as a guide for size and location.

Again – do this with the monitor OFF and wait 15 minutes between each attempt so that high voltage is discharged.  Do all adjustments to the monitor in the position where the game will reside or you’ll be chasing your tail.  

If you have any questions, please comment on this article

Originally, in 1980, Pacman was released in it’s iconic cabinet (and yellow color) and took the world by storm.  Ms. Pacman was it’s successor in 1981, originally marketed to appeal to the female gamer (thus the blue, yellow and pink colors).  It really didnt matter as Ms. Pacman quickly overtook Pacman as the most popular game ever because of it’s changing maze and better game play.

Also in 1981, Galaga was actually an experiment in reusing the same game hardware and appeared to be released in cost reduced form – as the cabinets were actually made from pressed cardboard instead of the original multi-ply wood design.  Over the years, Galaga machines have suffered from age. Most of the time, cardboard cabinet has absorbed so much water that it mushrooms and de-laminates to a point of no-return.  As a result, we typically will use Ms. Pacman cabinets and convert them over to Galaga, or go the route of the “reunion style” and put both Galaga and Ms. Pacman graphics on the cabinet.  This emulates the 20th Anniversary Reunion arcade games that were re-released in the early 2000’s, but at a much reduced cost.

All cabinets of this style hold the 19″ vertically oriented monitor.  This means that the 4×3 monitor i s turned 90 degrees so that it sits taller than wider.  This is the orientation for many games of the early 1980’s such as: Galaga, Pacman, Ms. Pacman, Donkey Kong, Dig Dug, Centipede, Millipede etc.   Also, the monitor in these cabinets are laid down almost flat – like a table.

Up until about 2006 (give or take), all authentic arcade games have been designed around CRT arcade monitor technology.  Believe it or not, this technology has not kept up to modern TV or computers.  In the 80’s to late 90’s, over 98% of arcade games were designed for CGA graphics of approx 320×240.  Yes, that’s right!  About the same resolution as your old flip cell phone.  Some games went on to use EGA and VGA graphics (640×480)… which is the same as a 480i standard resolution TV set.  Still, far from even mid 90’s SVGA graphics and today’s high resolution TV and LCD panels.

The question is, why wouldn’t you use a modern display?   The answer may be counter intuitive to those not in the video/graphics industry.  The short answer is: because it will look horrible.

Why CRT Arcade Monitor Better Than HD?

If you’ve ever seen a regular standard definition (SD) TV show on a modern HDTV set, it looks horrible (and that is standing back at a distance).  Imagine what it would be like if you had to get up close to the display like you would with an arcade game.  There are a couple factors in why SD transmissions look horrible on HD sets, but one of the contributing factors is the problem of pixel aliasing.  While this is not exactly the same issue in arcade games, the results are very similar.

Modern day computer (LCD and CRT) monitors are actually not designed to support lower graphic resolutions and cannot support the slower refresh rates and larger pixel sizes.

Low resolution (CGA) graphics pixel sizes are relatively large and in order to translate these pixels to a higher pitch display, the monitor must be able to upconvert.  Additionally, digital monitor pixel sizes are in a fixed size and position on the screen,  where as analog pixel sizes (excited phosphor elements) can be adjusted for size and position to match an arcade game’s output 1:1.   So unless a modern display is an exact integer ratio of the desired output, it will blur the pixels – and unfortunately, arcade games from the 80’s and 90’s used all sorts of screen resolutions.

These are typical modern monitor (SVGA) resolutions:

• 512 x 448 @ 60Hz
• 512 x 512 @ 60Hz
• 640 x 480 @ 60Hz
• 720 x 480 @ 60Hz
• 800 x 600 @ 50Hz
• 1024 x 768 @ 50Hz

These are typical arcade monitor (CGA) resolutions:

• 240 x 240 @ 60Hz
• 256 x 240 @ 60Hz
• 256 x 256 @ 60Hz
• 256 x 264 @ 60Hz
• 304 x 240 @ 60Hz
• 321 x 240 @ 60Hz
• 321 x 256 @ 60Hz
• 336 x 240 @ 60Hz
• 352 x 256 @ 60Hz
• 352 x 264 @ 60Hz
• 352 x 288 @ 50Hz
• 368 x 240 @ 60Hz
• 384 x 288 @ 50Hz
• 392 x 240 @ 60Hz
• 401 x 256 @ 53Hz
• 448 x 240 @ 60Hz
• 512 x 240 @ 60Hz
• 512 x 288 @ 50Hz
• 632 x 264 @ 56Hz
• 640 x 240 @ 60Hz
• 640 x 288 @ 50Hz

So for example, if you had an arcade game that normally outputs 392 x 240, there is no matching ratio for SVGA.

More Details

One would think that higher resolution digital displays would result in an output that is just as crisp as the original.  However,  the problem is that the pixels do NOT line up correctly when converting from high to low resolutions… and therefore monitor needs to decide what do to for pixels that essentially hang off the edges.

In our example, for simplicity, we attempt to line up both high and low resolutions using a grid.  The grid represents the immovable pixels on a digital monitor.

The following example is a very simple “O” shape, single color graphic.  On a CGA (Arcade Monitor), you would see this shape pixel for pixel… and you would expect to see it that way.  On a modern monitor, the “O” shape gets rounded off and fuzzy on the inside and outside edges.  This is because the GRIDS do not overlay perfectly and the monitor has to decide what to do.  For example, if a pixel hangs off 50%, the monitor may reduce the luminance and/or color of that pixel (or possibly just turn it off).  Either way, the image becomes distorted and VERY noticeable.

Here are actual close-up photos of MsPacman on a proper arcade monitor VS computer monitor.  You can see on the computer monitor the blurry dots, wall edges etc.  Now, would you settle for this?

Summary

CRT Arcade monitors are naturally much harder to find in good working order as they are out of production and thus will require technical knowledge to properly rebuild, test and install.  Also, we will never take an old tube and “rejuvenate” it (which is a process of inducing high current thru the tube to burn off deposits in order to brighten up the output).  This process is only necessary when a CRT is beyond it’s expected life cycle and ends up being a temporary fix.  We always use FRESH tubes in all of our monitors

This is why it is important to find experts such as Castle Classic Arcade for a proper and authentic arcade machine for your home.

The Obvious

Ok, so your monitor wont turn on.  This could be for a number of obvious reasons.  Check these in order:

1. Look for something that may have damaged the monitor.  Many times an overhead marquee light fixture will fall and damage the tube, neckboard or chassis board.  If you don’t see any large parts lying around, you’re probably safe
2. Does the rest of the game work?  Is the overhead marquee on?  Are there any LEDs blinking on the game board?  Do you hear any sound when you insert a credit or press Player 1 Start?
3. Power is going to the monitor.  Check the main fuse.  This is sometimes located on the floor of the arcade game.  One or more fuses will supply power to the rest of the machine.
4. Check the fuse on the monitor.  Every monitor will have a small glass fuse located somewhere on the main chassis board.  Make sure the entire game is unplugged before you start poking around.
5. Make sure the video cable is plugged in and all wires are connected.  (Red, Green, Blue, Black and White

User Adjustable

Ok, so the monitor works, but it doesn’t look right.  There could be some simple adjustments to check first.

Check if your monitor had a wired remote control board.  It is usually about the size of an open matchbook and tethered to the main monitor board by a 24-36″ cable.  You need to understand the controls in order to adjust the monitor.  Most all of the following controls will be located on the wired remote control, however some may be located on the main chassis pcb.

Horiz Hold:  Use this to adjust the picture if it is rolling left / right.  If this does not work, check to see if the white wire is properly connected on the video input.

Vert Hold: Use this to adjust the picture if it is rolling up/down.  If this does not work, check to see if the white wire is properly connected on the video input.

Horiz Size: Use this to adjust the width of the picture

Vert Size: Use this to adjust the height of the picture

Horiz Pos:  Use this to adjust the position of the picture left/right

Vert Pos: Use this to adjust the position of the picture up/down

Bright: Use this to control the overall brightness of the screen.  This is in conjunction with the contrast.   First set the contrast in the middle. Adjust the brightness up all the way until the black image area is no longer black.  You may need to turn down the lights to fine tune this.  Then adjust the contrast up/down so that the colors aren’t too bright and washed out.

Not So Obvious

This is the grey area where a monitor works, but not even close to the way it should.  Unfortunately, many used arcade resellers leave their monitors in this condition and crank up the brightness and contrast to compensate.  Often this results in washed out colors.  Usually RED is the most obvious color of a tired monitor if the color bleeds onto other graphics.  Additionally, many arcade resllers rejuvenate their monitors to fix this issue.  This is a process of introducing high current into the tube to burn off deposits from the guns.  This actually works for a short time.  Sometimes for only hours, sometimes for months.  Either way, long enough to prove to someone that it looks good enough to sell.  This is unscrupulous behavior in my opinion, but you get what you pay for.  The problem is that there is no good way to tell if a monitor has been rejuvenated until it’s too late.   In this event, you’ll need a new monitor.

Repair or Replace

We can take your old monitor and give you credit for a fully rebuilt monitor (given it is the same or similar model and not physically damaged).  All of our monitors come with guaranteed clean CRTs with very low hours.  We rebuild all the typical wear components on all circuit boards and calibrate the monitor so that all color guns aim true.  Call or email us for detail.