Obsolete NEC 1-inch open reel format

[RJMiranda]

Has someone heard about the NEC TT-series videotape recorders?

In the second half of the 1970s, Cuban TV re-started color broadcasts. (In the late 1950s there had been color broadcasts at Havana, using film materials and a lone camera for the presenter.)

The equipment used in the 70s was a lone NEC OB-van with four cameras. As it was the ONLY color camera chain, it was used either for OB-service, or parked alongside the TV building, with the camera cables running up the stairs towards the studios.

Originally it was equipped with two TT-1000 one-inch open reel VTRs. Later some more machines were bought, including TT-3000s that could accommodate bigger reels.

All of this is mainly hearsay, because I was a teenager. But a few years later I had the chance to visit the NEC OB-van, which at that time was already using BVU-200 Umatics.

In the early 90s I had a glimpse of one TT-series machine (not working) in one of the editing suites at the Cuban TV building.

I understand that a lot of 1-inch tapes are still sitting at the Cuban TV archives because there is no machine to play them. About a decade of history must be decaying inside these tapes.

I haven't been able to find any mention to these NEC one-inch machines on the Internet. Does somebody have some info on the format, and/or the availability of working machines?

[Electronic M]

There were 3 standard 1" video tape formats in the 70s Type-A (Ampex designed), Type-B (Bosch designed and mostly a euro format) and Type-C. C was the only thing that was good enough for broadcast in the US, but I could see Cuba using any of the 3 or a non-standard Japanese format (I know from 1963 until around 1970 Sony had their own 1" format but I don't know about NEC.

[ppppenguin]

There were at least three other 1" standards. Philips designed two of them in the 1960s. Neither was widely used. The IVC 1" standard was quite common in the 1960s and 1970s. Their machines were numbered in the 700, 800 and 900 series. I think that tapes were fully interchangeable between all machines.They were a competitor to the Ampex 5000 and 7000 series machines. These became known as A format as a back formation, after B and C were introduced.

Incidentally, the basic video track layout and drum diameter is the same on A and C formats. I have attempted to play A format tapes on a C format machine. I had some success but work would be needed to allow for the different audio and control tracks, as well as different deviation.

My best guess is that these "NEC" tapes are actually IVC format. There are still a few working machines around. If the track layout can be revealed using Edivue fluid then the drum diameter can be deduced. If that corresponds to a known format it would be worth trying to locate a machine.

[jhalphen]

Hi to All,
Hi Mr Penguin !

@RJMiranda, found this entry with a picture of the NEC TT-1000 1" VTR.

Japanese :
https://sts.kahaku.go.jp/sts/detail....7%B4%A2%29&p=8


Google english translation :
https://sts-kahaku-go-jp.translate.g...en&_x_tr_hl=en

For Japanese VTR/VCR afficionados, a 33 page pdf (7.2Mb) describing VTR history from the early days through to HDTV recorders.
in Japanese (Sorry!) but many B&W photos & tech data :

https://sts.kahaku.go.jp/diversity/d...em/pdf/002.pdf

Best Regards
jhalphen
Paris/France

[ppppenguin]

Hi Jerome!

Interesting articles. The NEC TT-3000 1" machine has a big drum, 120mm diameter. Not quite as big as A and C format but I think it's smaller than IVC700 etc.

The 33 page article has photos of the original Ampex VR1000 and what looks like an RCA TR70. There's also a curious looking quadruplex machine with two headwheels. If it was intended to be used as a profanity delay, it would have only been a second or so.

In the early days of videotape, there was a huge proliferation of formats. Mainly in the industrial market rather than broadcast where quadruplex reigned supreme for almost 20 years.

[ARC Tech-109]

I thought the NEC was a type-c format