[Looking for Help] Converting NovaBlast to proper Jamma Cab

Hi All!

Thanks for reading. I recently received my long delayed Unico NovaBlast cabinet. It is a very nice modern attempt at a BlastCity format that aims more towards HDMI and USB connections similar to a Chewlix from what I am told. It does have its own Jamma harness and based on Unico’s promotions and testing it has a wide range of compatibility!

From what I have found though there is a catch… the PSU is not UL/CE certified or seem to be adjustable in anyway for +5v rail.

In working with ack he suggested a do some readings with a meter. With Dogyuun attached to the harness I had 5.22 going in and 5.13 at the board. With my MV6 attached I was at 4.03 going in and 3.83 at the board. I expected a dip for the MV6 I did not expect Dogyuun to be sitting so high in the tolerance window…

What is a boy to do? I decided to photograph and begin tracing out all of the cable runs in the cab. Most of the connections are JST. My thought process was to repurpose the existing amp, control board and install a proper PSU and wire a breakout board as needed.

First time doing anything like this in a cabinet. I work as an AV technician at a university feel confident I can do this… with some community input.

I have some Qs I would love your feedback on to help me bring this project to life…

- What adjustable power supplies are you using? I have been pointed to mean well 125A, Happ, and Sun?
- Is there one I could use to power the whole cab?
- Is one a better option that others if I am repurposing components with JST connections?
- Is anyone familiar with wiring a breakout board and would be willing to share their experience?

Photos attached of the NovaBlast wiring. From the external power cable plug > the the PSU > to the breakout board > to the control board > (off breakout) to amp > two connecting cables up to speakers > (off breakout) to LED board for marquee.

Will work on a diagram to upload as well.

Thank you all!

Here is the wiring diagram I came up with. I left off the cables off of the control board. They include player 1 and 2 control, coin player 1 and 2, Jamma kick connection, and display out.

I don't do much with cabinets so take this with a grain of salt.

You are going to need to tweak 5V on the arcade power supply depending on which arcade board is connected. If the arcade power supply is also powering the unico you risk sending to much voltage at the unico side if your 5V adjustment is off (or if you power it without an arcade board connected).

If it was me I would have the arcade power supply dedicated to powering the arcade board. It looks like there is a jamma extension cable with a 40 pin (?) connector for data pins and 6 pin (?) connector for power/ground. I would disconnect unico side of the power connector and wire it up to the arcade power supply, then only have a ground connection from the arcade power supply to the ground pin on the unico side so they have a common ground.

Gotta love the LCD television power supplies to try to power arcade boards. *chef's kiss*

ack said:

If it was me I would have the arcade power supply dedicated to powering the arcade board. It looks like there is a jamma extension cable with a 40 pin (?) connector for data pins and 6 pin (?) connector for power/ground. I would disconnect unico side of the power connector and wire it up to the arcade power supply, then only have a ground connection from the arcade power supply to the ground pin on the unico side so they have a common ground.

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this is very sound advice.

a lot of modern cabs like Vewlix have a dedicated PSU for the cab and a second PSU for the game board for these exact reasons.

Hi All,

Appreciate you weighing in lol especially for the call out of the LCD PSUs. Clearly not what was advertised.

I do have an update and this is one that occurred before everyone weighed in and something I can adjust.

I did purchase a PSU with a 5V potentiometer. Its output is 5V/10A and 12V/12V. I wired the 12 pin connected on the Unico board which is feeding power to the Jamma harness to the 5V, 12V, and ground respectively. I also wired the speakers, and the display to 12V and Ground last night. Ack has been kind enough to be going back and forth with me in DM and I understand now breaking out the power supply for Jamma and other components should be done.

Do want to ask with the potentiometer only adjusting 5V and the Jamma being the only thing that is taking the 5V should I have any concern of potential damage to the 12V components?

I wanted to make sure I closed the loop in case anyone else ends up in this situation. Based on advice from Ack and the rest of the good folks here I setup 2 PSUs. One is balancing speakers, fans, marquee, display, and amp. The other is powering the Nova Blast Board. Now as I adjust the 5V I no longer need to worry about impacted the other components.

The 6 slot is working good now?

ack said:

The 6 slot is working good now?

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Hey Ack! 6 Slot has ALWAYS worked good now I have a stable power environment for it. I might look to get a different PCB for it though. 5V 10A and I am typically 4.75-85. Games seem to run fine but assuming that’s too low long term.

If anyone has any thoughts on the PSU I am happy to hear it. At least I know I am not risking overloading anything now.

I had read the wiring of the Jamma harness could result in drops but not sure if that’s something I should put much thought into knowing the 6 slot is power hungry.

r27blades said:

I had read the wiring of the Jamma harness could result in drops but not sure if that’s something I should put much thought into knowing the 6 slot is power hungry.

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Instead of guessing you could just measure what the voltage is at the PSU terminals versus the jamma edge. 10A should be enough, so I assume there's a substantial drop.

nem said:

Instead of guessing you could just measure what the voltage is at the PSU terminals versus the jamma edge. 10A should be enough, so I assume there's a substantial drop.

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@nem appreciate you weighing in! Yes, I can confirm the voltage out of the PSU is greater than what is seen at the edge.

You should beef up the wiring then.

@nem here are the readings. My voltmeter is set to 20 and out of the PSU I have 5.8. Photo attached showing the read out at the PSU.

I believe if connected to a different board that doesn’t pull as much the read out at the PSU would be higher.

Again, any thoughts you have regarding what I should check please let me know.

That's a lot of electrical energy turning into heat! Definitely re-do the wiring.

What would normal or acceptable drop off look like? Do you have any suggestions for a replacement Jamma harness?

On a three foot harness it shouldn't be more than 0.1V.

You don't need a whole new jamma harness. Just do new power wiring from the jamma edge connector to the PSU. 4x 18AWG for both +5V and GND.

nem said:

On a three foot harness it shouldn't be more than 0.1V.

You don't need a whole new jamma harness. Just do new power wiring from the jamma edge connector to the PSU. 4x 18AWG for both +5V and GND.

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Appreciate you @nem I think after some testing this will work much better. A little concerned though since I am already using 18 AWG.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B09TK83NVP?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

I've learned over the years that not all wire is created equal and a lot of the no-name brand stuff carried places like Amazon can often be thinner gauge than advertised.

I personally use Remmington Wire: https://www.remingtonindustries.com/hook-up-wire/
though people like @Lemony Vengeance with a whole lot more experience building harnesses might have some good suggestions as well.

Agreed, some cheap wires are more insulation than copper.

Can you show your current wiring job for the jamma connector? From the picture you posted I see some clip style terminal block connectors. I would avoid using those.