1972 Magnavox Odyssey UNBOXING, Tear-down, and Game Play

[@mikeycourington2011]

This is so cool. That and I am freakin' jealous. But the coolness definitely trumps that. And you hooked it up and actually played it instead of worshiping it in the box...that is the way to go. Nice, man!

[@ThatTimGuy]

Thanks!

[@quatz1981]

That is some high end circuitry right there. Fascinating stuff.

[@JC-hi8fk]

Still more exclusives than the Xbox One

[@ThatTimGuy]

Ooo zing!

[@alexleon5503]

after seeing this teardown i see that your unit is full of cold solder joints on the cartridge slot as well as the controller inputs! reflow em’ with some fresh solder to avoid any problems in the future (:

[@ThatTimGuy]

Thanks for catching that!

[@montywil75]

My Dad had this and I pulled it out years later and played it. This is so nostalgic. Then he bought me Odyseey 2 for my birthday in 82. It was sooo cool!

[@johneygd]

If it is true that theres no 1 single tiny chip in there then i must say this an amezing analogue computer considering it did had some collision detection, and despites the very primitive graphics, it just looks like being digital. But it’s clear this tennis game did set the stage for pong, without this machine there would,ve be no pong and no game console at all, the oddysey formed the basics of what game console become later on. Thumbs up whose gonna play with the oddysey along with friends during partys in 2020.

[@Joseph_G]

Detecting when the dot hits the paddle is the most impressive part to me too, but the Odyssey is digital not analogue, diode-transistor logic circuits are digital circuits.

[@damienhartley7298]

@joheygd: The Odyssey is the only console you need because it will never be obsolete because there is nothing else like it.

[@tardelius5778]

Pong like game concept goes way back than oddysey itself though. There was a physcisit who actually developed a game in 50s that created the basics of pong for later years… so no oddysey didn’t set the stage for pong. The game that the phycisist did could be called the first video game ever… but unfortunately nintendo lost a lawsuit against atari so it is not considered as the first video game :(

[@6.thedollar415]

*Timestamps for mobile users* Unboxing: 1:52 Manual: 8:48 First look at the console: 28:43 Overlays: 33:38 Tear down: 38:28 Video cord (game cord) mod: 52:51 Batteries: 54:39 Turning it on: 56:01 States game: 1:05:21

[@ThatTimGuy]

Nice job. Thanks 😊

[@theobserver4214]

MoldyWater05 No longer necessary on iOS KZbin. It only took 13 years

[@danielcopeland390]

I only watch this channel for the exquisite hand modeling ✋🏻🤚🏻🖐🏻🖖🏻👋🏻

[@ThatTimGuy]

LOL....It's better than my ugly mug!

[@danielcopeland390]

That Tim Guy Lol, and your gonna tell me your a grown man and a teacher and never heard the word "candelabra"????

[@ed150arcade2]

Thats pretty neat. I've cracked open a 2600 and to my surprise it was more woodgrain than parts. Very small pcb

[@ghostunix731]

Atari used wood to give the system more physical value unlike today were a computer is made of uneventfully material and basically valued by profit margin of economical software or how long it entertains your kids.

[@ChronoGamerOne]

Enjoyed watching the tear down! really cool to see how you approached it.

[@TechHowden]

That metal shield is where the RF modulator is

[@pdoucette14]

that was spectacular

[@jeenkzk5919]

Very nice video!

[@ThatTimGuy]

Thanks!

[@hipnoticheadnotic5631]

This narration is great. Might keep second version lol. The beginnings

[@Flow-.-]

Playing a Magnavox Odyssey on a Phillips Magnavox

[@oliverclare2074]

Great great video 👍 I was just wondering if you could elaborate a bit more on the process of soldering the new video cable to the board? (i.e. what equipment is needed? Do you need to drill a new hole in the plastic? What type and gauge of cable can be used?) Asking because those original video cables seem to be almost impossible to find for sale separate to the console, and I’ve had no luck finding out which other consoles share that weird proprietary connector. I haven’t done any soldering before, but in this case it seems like it would be the ideal solution 👍 Many thanks

[@ThatTimGuy]

Hi Oliver, to solder you would need a soldering iron and some solder. If I'm recalling correctly (it's been a while since I've opened this video or the Odyssey), you would need two wires. A thin gauge would be fine, somewhere between 18-24 is probably fine. I believe (and don't quite me, it's been forever!) that it's a composite signal. So one wire is the signal and the other is ground. This would then get terminated into a coax style connector or RCA if you are using an adapter to convert to coax. As far as drinking a new hole, I'd try to use an existing spot but I'd need to look at the system again to be honest. If there's enough interest for it, I can go further into looking into how to do it. Thank you for the comment!

[@S_l_f_m]

Respect for this guy XD congratulation serious hahhahahah this is very very rare

[@Joseph_Anders0n753]

It looks like fun

[@jeenkzk5919]

The sound you're hearing is from snow. We had a Montgomery Wards pong clone that worked similarly. You would turn the TV down and get the sound from a speaker in the console. It only generated two types of beeps if i remember right

[@Joseph_G]

No doubt later systems worked as you remember, but the Odyssey had no sound at all.

[@applescruff1969]

This came out two years after The Beatles broke up.

[@classicarcadeamusementpark4242]

Nice review Tim. Odyssey might have been first, but I was never too impressed with it, though it did help launch the industry. I still have my 1975 Pong from when I was a kid if you want to borrow it some time to check out.The 2600 was the first "multi-game console" worth using. Pong was decent for the time.

[@ThatTimGuy]

Nate, I'd love to check that out. I regret not buying the one I saw sitting at a flea market about a year ago. I swear it sat there for months until that vendor left.

[@classicarcadeamusementpark4242]

I'm amazed these are not more sought after. They go cheap on eBay. The very first popular home video game system (and arcade system) from more than 40 years ago, and no one cares about them? I'm puzzled. I have the two extra paddles (two built in to the Atari Sears Pong) and two external. I'll have to see if the power supply is there. Remind me when it warms up and I'll bring it along when we get together in RI.

[@tommyhatcher3399]

Wasn't the first Odyssey made in the mid-60's? I'm guessing they didn't update the technology much for the '72 release.

[@Duke_Togo_G13]

Omg! A long episode! Exciting!

[@ThatTimGuy]

Just a tad....but now I can avoid all the multiple parts this one would have been! I tried linking to different sections people might want to see in the description!

[@Duke_Togo_G13]

Long episodes are good! Really enjoy them. I've never seen an Oddessy tear down. Interesting! Great video!

[@jthecat9621]

21:45 The football token and yardage marker would of been attached to the bottom of the score board.

[@tatraplayzpe6398]

For mobile users take this Unboxing 1:52 Manual 8:48 First look of the console 28:43 Overlays 33:38 Teardown 38:28 Video cord game cord mod 52:51 Batteries! 54:39 Turning it on 56:01 States Game 1:05:21

[@ThatTimGuy]

Awesome 👍

[@tatraplayzpe6398]

@@ThatTimGuy thanks

[@yank3656]

thanks for sharing That Tim Guy

[@SergioPL]

Great video!

[@Always_LaggginTTV]

And I have a question about the types of TVS that can be used, do you have any suggestions or an idea where I can buy one? And do more modern CRT TVs work, the big boxy ones?

[@ThatTimGuy]

Projection TVs should work but the overlay wouldn’t cling. Not sure if the light gun would work well either. Sometimes you can find TVs at the Salvation Army, flea markets, or the side of the road. Craigslist often has them listed too for free.

[@Always_LaggginTTV]

That Tim Guy, thank you so much man, they are impossible to find

[@BeepBeepImAShep]

This is when gaming consoles were made

[@bobbyjack8033]

Kewl

[@hipnoticheadnotic5631]

The kids would huddle around the adults. Home console marketing beginnings. Cool artwork

[@whuffo]

I bought one of these new back in the old days. It was a giant disappointment and mine lasted for a year before failing.

[@DJlegionuk]

Are the games built in and the carts just work like a game selector ?

[@ThatTimGuy]

The game card really acts like a series of switches and jumpers to let the logic work in different ways. It’s not really built in with the sense me a ROM but merely a set of logic and info. Seems almost foreign to me honestly. Think of it like an electro-mechanical pinball’s logic...that’s maybe the best analogy I can come up with. It would be great if I understood it!

[@DJlegionuk]

did it come with a service manual ? www.magnavox-odyssey.com/Service%20manual.htm

[@DJlegionuk]

Looking at the schematic it made me thing of programming with procedures for each function. generate player 1 ball ect. then the game carts would have access to each of these sections and pass something like x,y offset for example, this could be a simple resistor lower value = left and higher = right and then one for size. I wonder if anyone has made one from 7 series logic ?

[@Joseph_G]

What Tim said is right, the cards do add something - they're more than mere selectors (there were even additional games you could buy which came with additional game cards) - but they aren't really a storage medium like later game cartridges and discs are, they're more analogous perhaps to a hardware add on since the cards are PCBs which modify the Odyssey's circuitry.

[@lericolino]

Hi, in argentina we have a clone of this console named telematch from panoramic. there is some repair manual or some kind of book to look into the electronics? because i want to fix mine but is very difficult to find some eschematics about it. thanks

[@ThatTimGuy]

I haven't seen any schematics either. But I also haven't looked. If you find something, please do share! Thanks!

[@spectralv709]

Thanks, this was more pleasant than watching the angry video game nerd make fart noises for 11 minutes

[@chrissyw1013]

I am having the same problem as you with the second controlle not workin did you fix this and how?

[@Always_LaggginTTV]

What are the sizes of the overlays, you said 19 but never the bigger ones, I’m trying to see what size a TV is worth getting

[@ThatTimGuy]

I think the TV I did mine on is a 27” with the large overlay for comparison.

[@Lord_Kratos69]

First console

[@genericyoutuber3251]

why does it take so long to do an unboxing, tear down and gameplay

[@chrissyw1013]

Did you ever fix the problem with player 2? I have had this same problem

[@ThatTimGuy]

You know, I should really look at that again because I'd love to play it! One of these days I'm sure!

[@adude8479]

can it use any c cell bateries?

[@ThatTimGuy]

Yes. Brand does not matter and you could use a rechargable battery.

[@utubepunk]

What's in the box? What's in the box??

[@ПацайПацан]

gameplay on 58:14

[@WhiteWolfie_95]

I don't like making fun of people. I really dont. But you never heard of candelabra? Really? Huh..

[@ThatTimGuy]

I lived a sheltered life!

[@Milan03]

Where can you buy this

[@ThatTimGuy]

eBay would be a good start.

[@BoleDaPole]

Its 2018, you can still say the word indians..

[@lileggert6821]

Where did you get this

[@ThatTimGuy]

Family friends know I collect and handed it down when it came time to part ways with it.

[@cagataycetinkol7730]

Tarihi eser

[@winstonsmith478]

HORRIBLE PCB design and what looks like incredibly crude hand soldering of the different modules without even bothering to clip the leads. I bought one for my parents and siblings back when it was introduced in 1972. MANY years later, I asked my mom if it was still stored in the attic and she said she'd sold it at a garage sale, probably for next to nothing. I hope the person who bought it knew what they had, but I'll bet they didn't.

[@hennyslhennick5703]

I bought one of these then smashed it with a hammer