HIGHWAY TO MULTIBALL by Zen
There are three main multiballs in AC/DC that one should always try to advance while playing through songs.
The main goal in JAM multiball is to shoot ramps for jackpots. Pretty straightforward, and it doesn’t involve the “Song Bonus” or other such things which can be a bit confusing for a new player to wrap their head around on the first few goes. During JAM it is beneficial to choose a song that also awards the song 
value for ramp shots, such as “Rock n Roll Train” or “Highway to Hell,” along with the JAM jackpot for more scoring opportunities. After about twenty ramp shots, the Bell will light for a “JAM Multiball jackpot”. This value is usually around twenty million or so, which is good especially with an activated playfield multiplier. If you are within one shot of a multiplier and the bell jackpot is ready, you’ll be awarded the jackpot value with the multiplier on the same shot. AWESOME!
In JAM, shooting either ramp will award a base jackpot value of 250k, increasing as you advance the jackpot shots toward the final goal of the JAM multiball super jackpot. You 
should also consider the value of combos in this mode: if you shoot one ramp and then the other — let’s say a left-right combo — you will be awarded the jackpot value plus the additional combo value. This value increases with each successive, successful combo. Additionally, once 25
combos are achieved the right-loop/orbit shot will light for an extra ball. On top of all these scoring opportunities, the songs that I previously mentioned follow the same structure for scoring. So shooting a ramp in JAM multiball while either of those songs play allows you to collect the base jackpot value, the song value, the combo value, with the total doubled or tripled if multipliers are active by progressing the bell. All this comes together to quickly 
build the ‘Song Jackpot’ value and massive score increases. The song jackpot is increased by first shooting the lit shot of the chosen song. For “Rock n Roll Train,” the lit shot is the left ramp. When hit and followed by successfully hitting any of the other major shot on the playfield, you will light all other main shots. These are: left loop/orbit, left ramp, bell lane, right ramp, right loop/orbit, and all target banks.
The Add-a-ball feature during the JAM multiball is also important to note. This feature is common to most new Stern titles and is a source of some debate on AC/DC. To add a ball,
one must simply shoot the lit shot once on one of the five major available shots anytime during JAM multiball. Now, knowing which of these five shots is lit to do this is still unclear. I have heard Bowen Kerins and several other experts contest what actually controls this. As a general rule, I try to shoot each of these shots once while playing a multiball, to cover my bases. Sometimes you’ll add the ball on the first try and sometimes it will take all five before you hit the correct 
shot. One key thing to remember, and this is a common mistake people make: for the add-a-ball feature to be active, the shots must be lit for the current chosen song. This means if you are on “Highway to Hell” (HTH), you MUST first shoot the right ramp to light all the other shots. This is easy for this song as the right ramp is not only the main shot for HTH but is always the way to start multiball.
FAQ’s:
Q: How do I know when my multiball is ready?
A: The right flasher bulb next to the cannon above the right sling will be glowing anytime the cannon is ready to load. The DMD usually tells you how many shots to progress towards multiball.
Q: How many shots to get to JAM multiball?
A: The default is seven ramps for the first JAM and then increasing by 1 or 2 for each successive JAM multiball.
Q: What if I have a question?
A: Lyman Sheets saves the day. Finally a Stern with ‘status info’ again. Just hold either flipper button before plunging or while a ball is trapped and you will receive a plethora of information.
Originally published in Skill Shot 30