Brake Controllers

Ray:

Wow.

Thanks for making that so clear. I was a little reluctant to ask the original question, thinking I would get replies to go do a search on Google.

I had done a search on Google and read all there was on the TM forums. But it was all more than a year old. I did not realize that there were so few manufacturers. All the ads led me to belive that most brands were from different manufacturers.

I'll likely get the Prodigy and buy the GM harnass. For 12 bucks I won't have to tear apart my garage to see where I put my soldering iron.

Quote:
I've got a question. *If you are replacing a Tekonsha inertial controller, *wouldn't it be a simple matter to remove the old controller and hook up the Prodigy to the wires already installed. *Does it require running new wires to the connector ?

I replaced My Tekonsha Voyager with a Prodigy last year (BTW it was a very wise move). The wiring was exactly the same between the two controllers.
Another advantage with the Prodigy is that it does not have to be mounted in a nearly level position and you do not need to set the level adjustment.

I hated the Voyager. The Prodigy is pure bliss.

I was all sold on the Prodigy brake controller and then I discovered the Odyssey rake controller. Apparently it is similar technology to the Prodgy. However, it was described to me as "newer" and "better" than the Prodigy, but no details were provided.

The Prodigy snaps into its mounting bracket. The Odyssey bolts to the dash. Other than that I can not tell the difference. Price is pretty much the same. Cabella's has the Odyssey for 99.99. RVWHOLESALERS.com has the Prodigy for 99.99.

Anyone have additional info on the Odyssey?

[RockyMtnRay]

Originally Posted by PopBeavers

I was all sold on the Prodigy brake controller and then I discovered the Odyssey rake controller. Apparently it is similar technology to the Prodgy. However, it was described to me as "newer" and "better" than the Prodigy, but no details were provided.

The Prodigy snaps into its mounting bracket. The Odyssey bolts to the dash. Other than that I can not tell the difference. Price is pretty much the same. Cabella's has the Odyssey for 99.99. RVWHOLESALERS.com has the Prodigy for 99.99.

Anyone have additional info on the Odyssey?

No prior mentions here. This same question came up a couple of months ago over at TundraSolutions and there's not much new on the web since I looked back then.

The Odyssey is very new product (press releases indicate it came on the market in Aug 04). It's made by Valley Industries but other than a mention that this is a new product for '04, there's no other data on Valley's website. No user comment (that I could find) at discussions like the RV.NET forums.

Yes, it does use dual axis solid state acelerometers so its operating prinicipal is the same as the Prodigy. One slight difference is the Odyssey can be mounted 90 degrees from horizontal (true vertical); the Prodigy mounting angle can't exceed 75 degrees from horizontal. This difference may qualify as "better" in some retailer's viewpoint, to me it's not all that big a deal. As there's no body of user experience yet, how well it actually works in real world towing is a big unknown.

Unless someone pops up to report their experiences, 'twould appear you'll be the pioneer if you buy it. Be sure to give us a full rundown if you do.

Ray said, regarding the Valley Odyssey, "Unless someone pops up to report their experiences, 'twould appear you'll be the pioneer if you buy it. Be sure to give us a full rundown if you do."

I just might do that.

I have spent many hours researching the Odyssey versus Prodigy.

The advantages of the Odyssey over the Prodigy seem to be.

1. The Prodigy has a warning "Reversing the connection to the breakaway battery on the trailer will destroy the Prodigy". The Odyssey has built in protections circuits. I anticipate that in the future my son (21) and/or daughter (24) will borrow it. I only trust them so far.

2. Another Prodigy warning states "Disconnect trailer plug from the tow vehicle prior to testing a breakaway switch or you may destroy the Prodigy". Still don't trust my kids.

3. The Prodigy must be mounted between 0 and 70 degrees. I'm not sure how much it will matter to me, but the Odyssey has a mounting restriction of minus 90 to plus 90 degrees.

The press release announcing the Odyssey appears to be dated August 2004. Still pretty new. The clever technology for both the Prodigy and Odyssey seems to be the accelerometers. My son the Mechanical Engineering student claims that is pretty basic technology. He uses them routinely in the lab. This is not rocket science. Once upon a time I was an Electronic Engineering student before I switched to software. From my limited training I also think it is not rocket science.

According to Valley, the preformed cable (plugs on both ends) manufactured for a specific vehicle was "new in 2005". I'm still trying to find one. Though I certainly am capable of soldering two pigtail harnesses together, I'd rather not have to either locate my soldering iron (I have two of them somewhere in the garage) or have to go purchase soldering iron number 3.

I'm a technology freak. I will likely buy the Odyssey. If I don't like it I can fall back to the Prodigy. What's a hundred bucks. As long as I don't total the trailer during testing.

I have received a private email on the topic of the Odyssey, so I thought I'd share the most recent info with the group.

I'm still leaning towards the Odyssey, even though I have been unable to find any reviews, good or bad. I’m a technology freak.

The best price I can find for the Valley Industries Odyssey Electronic Brake Controller is at www.cabelas.com, $99.99. This is the same mail order price as the Tekonsha Prodigy.

New for 2005 is the custom wiring harness. A custom wiring harness has a plug on each end made for a specific vehicle. The Valley part number is 30508 for the 2002 Chevy Silverado. I want one of these so I don't have to solder the pigtails together. I hear a lot of complaints about voltage and current drop across the splices. This wiring harness is difficult to find. I have contacted Cabela's. They don't stock it and suggested I contact the Cabela's special orders desk. I emailed Valley Industries. Valley suggested CarQuest or Napa. I went to CarQuest. They have the controller in the online catalog for $160.00 but do not show the wiring harness. I now have an email out to the Cabela's special order desk.

The Valley Industries site also shows a slide in mounting bracket, very similar to the Prodigy. The Valley part number is 37192. The Odyssey comes with a bolt in bracket. I only have one TV so I don't care. But if anyone wants to install an Odyssey in multiple TV's they may want to look for the slide in mounting bracket.

The only place I have found any reference to both the custom wiring harness and the slide in mounting bracket is on the Valley Industries web site.

Hi,
For all you Tundra owners (RockyMTNRay!), where did you mount the brake controller? Before I start drilling holes I thought that I'd get some input.

Thanks,
Ted R.

PS - Please don't tell me that you mounted it in the cab I already know that much!

[RockyMtnRay]

Originally Posted by tritterbrew

For all you Tundra owners (RockyMTNRay!), where did you mount the brake controller? Before I start drilling holes I thought that I'd get some input.

Just above the in-cab fuse panel next to the door (pic is of both my tranny temp gauge and Prodigy). Controller display is easily seen; my knees clear it by a couple of inches as long as I'm careful entering/exiting.