Megatouch 6 (1998 Merit Ind.)
The Story: Anyone who's been to a bar in the last 15 years knows what a Megatouch is. It's that coin-operated touchscreen machine that usually sits on top of the bar with all the fun mini games. Card games, trivia games, memory games, it has them all. Our gameroom was growing bigger and I wanted a game that the whole family could enjoy. I was also looking for a birthday present for Sue. We wanted a Megatouch but I just wasn’t sold on the bartop cabinet, nor was I sold on the newer models which are basically a PC in a box. Were "old school" around here, and I wanted something that would look nice with all the arcade games.
The Score: An old Megatouch showed up on KC Craigslist listed for $100. It was advertised as working with some red colors missing from the monitor. What surprised me was the cabinet, it was an upright "cabaret" model with a backlit marquee, full over/under coin door and a 19" monitor. I had never even heard of this model before, I had only seen the bartops with a 13" monitor, but apparently these were fairly common. It looks nice and the seller assures me that the missing red color from the monitor was the only issue. He says he's negotiable and we agree on $75. The perfect number for my budget to buy Sue a birthday present, and her parents were planning a trip down to visit us, so they graciously agreed to bring the game along with them. Nice. It really goes well with all the arcade games too.
The Service: We were greeted to a working game, but were surprised that it only had 13 games. Apparently it was the "Tournament Edition" Megatouch 4 and, for whatever reason, had the least amount of games compared to other versions. I found a good price on a working Megatouch 6 PCB and now were in business, 24 games. The red on the monitor was extremely faded and any adjustments just made it look worse. I tried a cap kit, but to no avail. This game had a dying tube, rats. I had just bought a used monitor from a friend, which also needed a cap kit. After install, it kept blowing fuses. I figured out that the game didn’t have an isolation transformer installed, and apparently the original monitor didn’t require one, but this one did. A new transformer and a cap kit were installed. I finally had a good picture, but the touchscreen wasn’t working properly. Sheesh. I had 2 working controllers and they both did the same thing. I got advice that the transformer may be interfering and that I should relocate it away from the monitor. So I moved it to the bottom of the cabinet, but it didn’t change, I was still losing sensitivity in the bottom corners. From there I had found another working Megatouch Cabaret. Again in KC, and this time on eBay. Sue was planning a trip to visit her Dad anyway, and the bidding was low with no reserve. The monitor is a little "dim", but it has full color and a working touchscreen. I won it for $76. Sue brings it home and I swap monitors, now her MT6 is back in action with full color. Now the funny part... I had sold off another Megatouch PCB, and a fellow collector in KC wanted the rest of it. I was planning on another game pickup in KC anyway, so I agree to deliver. That’s now 3 trips to Kansas City and back for a Megatouch. Sue's parents took one, Sue took one, and now I was taking one.
The Score: An old Megatouch showed up on KC Craigslist listed for $100. It was advertised as working with some red colors missing from the monitor. What surprised me was the cabinet, it was an upright "cabaret" model with a backlit marquee, full over/under coin door and a 19" monitor. I had never even heard of this model before, I had only seen the bartops with a 13" monitor, but apparently these were fairly common. It looks nice and the seller assures me that the missing red color from the monitor was the only issue. He says he's negotiable and we agree on $75. The perfect number for my budget to buy Sue a birthday present, and her parents were planning a trip down to visit us, so they graciously agreed to bring the game along with them. Nice. It really goes well with all the arcade games too.
The Service: We were greeted to a working game, but were surprised that it only had 13 games. Apparently it was the "Tournament Edition" Megatouch 4 and, for whatever reason, had the least amount of games compared to other versions. I found a good price on a working Megatouch 6 PCB and now were in business, 24 games. The red on the monitor was extremely faded and any adjustments just made it look worse. I tried a cap kit, but to no avail. This game had a dying tube, rats. I had just bought a used monitor from a friend, which also needed a cap kit. After install, it kept blowing fuses. I figured out that the game didn’t have an isolation transformer installed, and apparently the original monitor didn’t require one, but this one did. A new transformer and a cap kit were installed. I finally had a good picture, but the touchscreen wasn’t working properly. Sheesh. I had 2 working controllers and they both did the same thing. I got advice that the transformer may be interfering and that I should relocate it away from the monitor. So I moved it to the bottom of the cabinet, but it didn’t change, I was still losing sensitivity in the bottom corners. From there I had found another working Megatouch Cabaret. Again in KC, and this time on eBay. Sue was planning a trip to visit her Dad anyway, and the bidding was low with no reserve. The monitor is a little "dim", but it has full color and a working touchscreen. I won it for $76. Sue brings it home and I swap monitors, now her MT6 is back in action with full color. Now the funny part... I had sold off another Megatouch PCB, and a fellow collector in KC wanted the rest of it. I was planning on another game pickup in KC anyway, so I agree to deliver. That’s now 3 trips to Kansas City and back for a Megatouch. Sue's parents took one, Sue took one, and now I was taking one.
