If you are like us, a step-by-step guide to install something foreign or something you have never done before is absolutely priceless (plus a guide saves you from tearing out your hair)!

There are plenty of video guides on how to install Stern Pinball’s Insider Connected upgrade kit, however we couldn’t find any for our specific use case – what do you do when there are no spare RJ45 ports on the Node board near the arch (under the playfield) on the Star Wars Premium pinball machine? Well, we break ground by writing this step by step guide (with heaps of images!) in the hope that it helps someone out there to install Stern’s very cool Insider Connected (IC) system.

NOTE: At the time of writing this step-by-step guide, the Star Wars Premium / LE Replacement Arch was not available to purchase in Australia, so we improvised where to install the IC QR Reader, as these machines do not have the space to accommodate it on the arch.

Tools Used:

• You will need the Stern Pinball Insider Connected Upgrade Kit – For (SPIKE 2) Premium / LE Models (part number: 502-5420-01) which retails for AU$395.00
• 11/32″ Nutdriver – we used this Wera 395 Hollow Shaft 11/32″ Nutdriver, which retails for AU$26.35
• Clean cotton gloves – use these when removing the playfield glass

Stern Pinball INSIDER CONNECTED Upgrade Kit (Premium/LE)

The manual is a good resources, but not much use as it did not meet our specific use case

You will need this quick start guide right at the end, so save it for later

The 11/32″ nutdriver

Pre-step:

Before you begin opening your machine and installing the IC kit, make sure your machine is on the latest game code. Please go to the Stern Pinball support page to check, and if required, download the latest code and install it on your machine. Each code update has a READ ME file, make sure you download it and follow the steps to update your game code (if required). If you are already on the latest game code, then you are ready to proceed!

Step 1:

Before opening anything on the pinball machine, make sure it is turned off! Then grab the keys for the backbox (keys are usually stored on the other side of the coin door) and open the backbox by unlocking it, remove the translite and then lower the LCD/speaker part down towards the glass. You are now ready to go to step 2!

The backboard keys are usually on the other side of the coin door

Opening the backboard reveals the main CPU board

Step 2:

From the IC kit, get the microSD card and insert it in (label up) the slot just below the CPU/heatsync – make sure it clicks in. Then get the WiFi dongle and insert it in one of the spare USB ports to the right of the CPU/heatsync. If unsure, check the below photos. Once you have inserted the microSD card and WiFi dongle, you are ready for the next step.

The microSD that came with your IC kit is inserted in the SD slot just beneath the CPU

The WiFi USB dongle is then inserted in the spare USB ports to the right of the CPU

Job done – microSD and WiFi dongle installed on the main CPU board

Step 3:

This is where things deviate from the IC manual, so please pay close attention! Since there are no spare RJ45 ports on the node board near the bottom left arch, you will need to run a long Ethernet cable (CAT5 or CAT5e) from the front of the machine, all the way to the backbox to connect the cable to the spare port on the main CPU board (in the backbox). Once you connect one end of the CAT5/CAT5e cable in the spare RJ45 port on the main CPU board in the backbox, tuck the rest of the cable behind others, ensuring it is not intruding/pulling on any other cables running down to the cabinet. Push the cable through the left hole on the bottom of the backbox, ensuring it goes behind the playfield. You have done well so far, so take a little break, as the next step involves removing the playfield glass and lifting up the playfield!

The IC manual states to use the spare RJ45 port on the node board, but as shown, both ports are already taken. So a long Ethernet cable is required to reach the main CPU board in the backbox

Forget the ethernet cable that came with the IC kit, it is way too short! Get yourself a long (at least 6ft) ethernet cable (we used a 2.5M CAT5e cable)

Connect one end of the Ethernet cable to the spare middle RJ45 port on the main CPU board in the backbox. Then tuck the rest of the cable (allow some slack!) through the bottom of the backbox and into the rear of the cabinet.

Step 4:

Are you rested? Did you grab a drink? If you answered yes, then you are ready! This step is probably the toughest, as it involves removing the lockbar, playfield glass and then lifting the playfield up towards the backbox.

First thing, make sure the LCD/speaker panel on the backbox is in the closed (up) position – make sure you lock it! Don’t worry about the translite, that can stay off for the time being.

Open the coin door and unlatch the lockbar from the two latches (one on the left and the other on the right) that hold it down. Once that is done, remove the lockdown bar by pulling up – don’t worry, the glass won’t slide out!

Once you open the coin door, there are two latches on either side that need to be unlatched to free the lockdown bar (the bar that holds the glass in place)

Remember how we listed cotton gloves in the ‘Tools Used‘ section above, well this is when you will need them – go and put them on! Once your gloves are on and with the coin door in the closed position, gently pull the glass towards you – make sure you have enough room behind you! When the glass is fully out / cleared from the cabinet, stand it up on a carpeted (or rubber) surface, ensuring it is leaning on a blanket instead of directly on the wall (or any other vertical surface).

Take the glass off with care!

With the glass off, you can now remove the balls out of the trough so they don’t go flying and damaging stuff once you start lifting up the playfield. Through the coin door, you will notice a big solenoid to the right – this is used to kick out the balls from the trough. Using your index finger, push up rapidly on the round flat part on the bottom of the solenoid to kick out the balls. You will have to kick out each ball individually, so make sure you keep kicking out till the last (6th) ball is taken out of the machine.

Remove the balls from the machine by ‘kicking’ them out (of the trough) by pushing up rapidly on the solenoid as pictured

This is your chance to inspect your balls – if they look ok, give them a thorough wipe, if they are dinged/scuffed up or they have lost their shine, it is time to replace them! If you do replace them, make sure you get the right ones, as machines with magnets require balls that do not magnetise / stick together!

Now comes the lifting! Grab the bottom of the playfield near the apron/arch and lift up slowly. Once the playfield clears the cabinet, pull it towards you. Rest the handles of the playfield on top of the cabinet. Now grab the handles and start lifting and tilting the playfield back towards the backbox. The playfield should be resting up against the backbox.

The whole point of this step is to run the CAT5/CAT5e Ethernet cable from the backbox, behind and underneath the playfield! Pull the Ethernet cable through from underneath the backbox and ensure it is run as close as possible to the back of the cabinet. Once the cable is inside the cabinet, run it through to the front of the machine – wrap it around the handle of the cashbox.

Now put the machine back together by lowering the playfield and pushing it back into the cabinet, ensuring you do not snag any cables behind it. Give the balls a wipe or replace if required and then put them back in the machine. This is also a good opportunity to clean the glass – give it a nice wipe down and then slide it back into position over the playfield.

Reinstall the lockdown bar, ensuring the action button sits properly on top of the electronics required to actuate it. Lock the lockdown bar with the two latches and then you are done! Phew, that was a lot of work! We are almost on the home stretch now!

Step 5:

Now the fun part – connecting the Ethernet cable to the IC QR code reader to ensure it works as intended. Once connected, it is time to power on the machine! You will notice the machine doing its thing in updating itself (Node boards etc), so be patient and wait for the updates to complete. Use the images below as reference to show you what to expect, as certain messages could make you panic, like “Nodes Not Found”!

Connect the Ethernet cable into the RJ45 slot on the Insider Connected QR code reader 

Power up the machine! You should note that the IC QR reader is drawing power (blue-ish light) 

Do not panic if you see this message. Just close the coin door and the update will continue to completion.

Once the machine updates itself to get IC integrated it will reboot.

Once the machine reboots, open the coin door so you can use the buttons to navigate the menu – go down and select “Stern Insider Connected”

First things first – setup the connection. We went with WiFi.

Select your WiFi network and then enter the WPA/WPA2 (WiFi) password

Once your WiFi connection is set, you should see a similar screen as below

Login to Insider Connected via your phone’s browser. You’ll need this to setup and register your location, machine and game room details with the Insider Connected ecosystem.

Once your location, game room and machine details are registered, you’ll be greeted with the below screen in the Stern Insider Connected Setup menu item

We are finally ready to play some pinball with Insider Connected enabled! Don’t forget to scan your player QR code on the IC QR reader!

Step 6:

At this stage you can call it quits, but that means your IC QR code reader is sitting on top of your coin box, which means every time you want to scan in, you need to open that darn coin door and scan your QR code – this may be ok if you only play once in a blue moon. For those that prefer to have their IC QR reader accessible any time, read on!

Since the IC QR code reader could not be mounted on the apron of our Star Wars Premium (and LE) machine, we had to improvise and fashion a spot for it. Even though Stern did release a replacement arch (that has a slot for the IC QR reader) for Star Wars (Prem / LE machines), it is very difficult to find as it is constantly sold out.

So, what did we do? Well, you know that bill acceptor slot on the coin door? Well, we used it to house the IC QR code reader! We learned the hard way that the coin door on Australian Stern pinball machines is quite different from their US counterparts. We ordered a mounting kit from the US, only to find that it did not fit at all on our Star Wars machine! This is where we putting our thinking cap on and improvised. Since we did not have a 3D printer, nor the skills or equipment to create a nice black metal plate, we ended up getting some black hard-board from Officeworks (stationary supplier) that artists may use. Was this the best product? Probably not, but it did the job for well under $10!

If you have come this far, congratulations, you can now pat yourself on the back and play some pinball as your reward!

This is not where the IC QR reader should remain! So what to do?

The bill acceptor space will never be used (by us), so why not use it to house the IC QR code reader……

Once you cut out that black hard-board to be fastened to the coin door, you’ll then need to mount the IC QR code reader, with the RJ45 slot pointing up! It is important to have enough slack in the Ethernet cable connection so there is no snagging when you open/shut the coin door.

The job is done! It isn’t the prettiest of solutions in mounting the IC QR code reader to the bill acceptor slot, but it works, and that’s all that counts!
images (c) 2023 ausretrogamer.com

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