I'm Interestd in an Odyssey video Machine

[vette6048]

Looking for a working Odyssey machine in nice shape. I have to be crazy to want one knowing the headaches they can cause. Will be heading out to Vegas on Feb 12th for a week. Not looking to spend a ton of money on it. Would like to have keno games on it if possible. Call me at 773-284-8631 and ask for Louie

[robertwinter]

I have a few available but they would need to be shipped, unless you want to drive into Los Angeles to pick one up.

FYI, Odysseys get a bad rap for being headaches.  For home use they're pretty solid.  I've had numerous machines running for years and have only had one issue, which was ultimately fixable.

I'm just getting into I+ games and can now fully appreciate the Odyssey platform more than ever.  15 games accessible with no chip changes, all on a single drive.

Figure an I+ base machine at $1500, 15 games at about $200+ apiece, and you're already at $4500 minimum.  Forget about buying glass or the headaches of swapping all the chips just to play ONE game.  Damn shame IGT buried the Odyssey technology.

Anyway, sorry for the rant.  PM me and I can give you prices.

Oh, and my Odyssey site is here - http://www.robertwinter.com/slot/odyssey/

[knagl]

Damn shame IGT buried the Odyssey technology.

Agreed.  They were way ahead of their time, and are still superior in some aspects to games being produced today.

[Bettor Slots]

I love the Odyssey's.  I can remember back when I use to frequent the Aladdin, back when it existed...I would sit there for 10 hours straight playing that damn race car multi-reel game.  I can still hear the dang race cars buzzing in my head.

Damn shame IGT buried the Odyssey technology.

Did they bury it or did they expand on it?  I seem to recall hearing something about this new Server based slot machine platform from IGT....."gonna take over and change the industry".  Apparently a player can sit at a machine and select from a menu of games...you know they are like graphic Icons on the screen that the player can pick from of each game.  Then once picked the message goes out to a Server and downloads the game selected to the machine from it's hard drive.  Sounds similar?

[KirkLasVegas]

I love the Odyssey's.  I can remember back when I use to frequent the Aladdin, back when it existed...I would sit there for 10 hours straight playing that damn race car multi-reel game.  I can still hear the dang race cars buzzing in my head.

Damn shame IGT buried the Odyssey technology.

Did they bury it or did they expand on it?  I seem to recall hearing something about this new Server based slot machine platform from IGT....."gonna take over and change the industry".  Apparently a player can sit at a machine and select from a menu of games...you know they are like graphic Icons on the screen that the player can pick from of each game.  Then once picked the message goes out to a Server and downloads the game selected to the machine from it's hard drive.  Sounds similar?

I had one....I absolutely HATED the god damn thing.
When it ran it was VERY cool....but!
When it didnt.....power supply issues, hard drive issues, special cards (Psycho card) special motherboard (no supply) 32" 16:9 CRT, touch screen impossible to get and a variety of * ERROR * messages on a regular basis. Bill validator CRC errors.
The machine was simply evil and would kick you in the chops every chance it got.
I got lucky, I bought it not working CHEAP...fixit it numerous times, replaced most of it while I owned it. Finally the Thor motherboard took a shit in my cornflakes. No can find...
I dismantled that huge piece of crap, parted it out to save a few other dinosaurs and got all my investment back.
If you like to be Bitchslapped, kick in the chops, pissed and crapped on, have your wallet drained,waste space then by ALL MEANS YOU NEED A ODYSSEY!!!
I can save you time,money,gas and expenses! simply come over here, give me $10 and I will hit you with a 2X4 over and over.
MUCH cheaper than owning a Odyssey! No cut hands,no running for parts, no wasted weekends trying to coax it into running for another weekend,no explaining to the wife,friends,family why that big box of crap is not working again!


Kirk

[robertwinter]

Did they bury it or did they expand on it? 

The proposed IGT server based system is nothing like the Odyssey except for the fact that it's multigame capable.  Being an IT person myself, I can understand the desire to have the software at a central location.  Update software at one location and every machine on the network now has the latest and greatest version.  But you can kiss the home market goodbye when this technology becomes reality.

Let's look at the Odyssey for what it was when they came out over TWELVE YEARS AGO.  Huge 16:9 monitor.  Yes, it was a CRT, but the 16:9 revolution hadn't hit the mainstream yet.  And the graphics?  State of the art 3D animations with beautifully choreographed music and sounds.  Compare this to what you see on most modern IGT video slots today and they are VERY flat in comparison.  A lot of IGT games look like cheap Flash animation conversions.

I had one....I absolutely HATED the god damn thing.

Sorry your experience was so bad.  The Thor mobo wasn't a good sign to begin with.  That's why they went to the Tucson (and likewise changed from Quantum to Seagate drives)

I've owned over 10 of them, all working, and as far as I know, the ones I've sold are still working.  I still own 4 machines, all working perfectly.  I have many parts available and have been successful in helping most people getting their machines back up and running.  I have fully working and tested mobos, Eboxes, Psychos, vid cards, hard drives, etc still available.  But don't break the touchscreen as they're irreplaceable.  if you do, the game is a paperweight.

ANY game will need repair at some point.  The Odyssey suffers from the fact that the company was short lived and not many games were produced, hence the scarcity of spare parts.

[stayouttadabunker]

I very much agree with you robert.  The Odyssey was way ahead of it's time....
Look at everybody scrambling to do what they did long time ago...
It's too bad Kirk had a lemon.

[reho33]

I saw a few at Foxwoods back in the late 90's but never wanted to play them. I confused them with "Games of Nevada", that's what I thought they were.

[rickhunter]

I think much of the problem with the Odyssey machines was a heat problem.  I mean they were using Pentium chips when everybody else was using 8 bit cpu's.  All those electronics and the HUGE monitor enclosed and operating 24 hours a day cannot be a good thing for heat.  If they used server class hardware it might have fared better, but they would have needed to use the very noisy fans typical of server class hardware.  If you get one that is relatively healthy and don't leave it on 24 hours a day, you should be good to go.  I for one would love an odyssey, but at this point I'm reluctant to invest because the parts are so expensive and scarce, that I would just rather spend the money on a bluebird or something more modern.  Bluebirds are now using Pentium 4 chips, which have been out of the PC market for quite a while now.  You would think, they would want to use more modern chips as they are easier to get and are more energy efficient.

[vette6048]

I found one Odyssey for sale up in Reno Nevada. His price is $1500 or best. Says it works fine but you have to register it with gaming people because it was won by a former IGT employee. I know this sounds crazy but if you go to Craigslist under Reno and type in Slot Machine you will see the machine. He told me if I'm interested he'll send me the paper work and everything should be fine as long as I supply my address in Henderson Nv. The only reason I'm interested in one is I am selling a Gamemaker and an American Coin Enterprises Keno machine. I will not go overboard on the price to get a Odyssey. Anybody ever hear of an American Coin Enterprises Keno machine?

[stayouttadabunker]

Correct me if I'm wrong but I think the AC company was bought out by IGT a few years back.

[dpalmi]

His price is $1500 or best.

I've always wanted an Odyssey myself even though I know they can be trouble - it just amazes me that someone is asking that much for one.  If I had a chance to buy one, I would only buy it if I could get it cheap - like $600-$800.  Does anyone think it's worth spending $1500 on a machine that is impossible to get parts for (monitor) or very expensive? 

Dan #2

[knagl]

American Coin went out of business after it was revealed that they gaffed chips in some of their route locations to prevent top awards from being hit.  For example, in a small bar with video poker machines, the gaffed American Coin machines were incapable of hitting a Royal Flush.  I don't think IGT bought them -- I think they just plain went out of business after the scandal came to light.  I didn't know about American Coin keno, but an article I read implied that perhaps some of their keno games were gaffed, too.

Bunker, were you thinking of Anchor Gaming?  IGT bought Anchor Gaming in 2000 or 2001, and as I learned from reading this article, Anchor had a big role in the creation of the Wheel of Fortune slot machines.

[vette6048]

Dan,
I agree that spending alot of money on the Odyssey is not worth it. If I found one with a good price I will give it a try. I believe there are people that own these and they do not realize how expensive there are to repair. Maybe one day I will get lucky and find one for the right price.

[vette6048]

Maybe thats why I don't have to much success winning on the machine. Besides the payouts are horrible. Bet 4 ouarters have to catch 10 out of 10 to win a $1000.00. Its still a challenge I guess.

[robertwinter]

I for one would love an odyssey, but at this point I'm reluctant to invest because the parts are so expensive and scarce

This is the very reason I own more than one machine - built in spare parts.  Now I've got spare parts beyond the machines I bought for parts.  The only item I don't have a spare for is the touchscreen, which I did have, but I used it to resurrect a machine from the dead.

And $1500 is a good price for one, especially if it's 100% working.

[PWRSTROKE]

Anchor Gaming designed and built the top wheel assembley for the wof.  Igt bought them and the patent.  Igt bought ac coin.  I think you can still see ac coin on the miss. gaming commission site- .  B.

[brichter]

American Coin went out of business after it was revealed that they gaffed chips in some of their route locations to prevent top awards from being hit.  For example, in a small bar with video poker machines, the gaffed American Coin machines were incapable of hitting a Royal Flush. 

Wasn't there a murder or 2 associated with American Coin also?

[knagl]

Wasn't there a murder or 2 associated with American Coin also?

Yep.

[stayouttadabunker]

They killed the gaffer...

[StatFreak]

MODERATOR NOTE: Topic moved to Odyssey board, as it has some interesting information. SF