[QuadList] Restoring an Ampex AVR-1

[Stephen Nease Jr]

I have CC'd this to James Snyder at CEI.

Regards,
SWNJr


Stephen W. Nease, Jr., Chief Technology Officer
The Library of Congress
Motion Picture, Broadcasting & Recorded Sound Division
National Audio-Visual Conservation Center
Packard Campus
19053 Mount Pony Road
Culpeper, VA 22701-7551

202-707-1885 Office
snease at loc.gov E-Mail

http://www.loc.gov/avconservation/packard/


>>> "John Walko" <jwalko at scenesavers.com> 10/22/2008 10:02 AM >>>

Hello group;
 
We are working with a local non-profit organization in our home town.  An Ampex AVR-1 was donated to them when it was taken out of service from a local television station several years ago.  The machine sat for several years while this non-profit (an organization called Media Heritage) prepared their facility.  Their facility is now far enough along that they would like to get this machine operational.
 
Some background.  The machine was working when it was taken out of service.  It has been sitting without power for probably the last 5-6 years.  It appears as if the machine was originally wired for a 208-three phase volt power supply, and that is the way it is currently wired.  We’ve been working with the engineer (now retired) who originally kept this machine in working condition.  He knows a tremendous amount about this machine, and has helped us get to the point where the machine will power up.  However we have run into a road block, and I hope someone can help.
 
When we powered the machine up, we did not power up the air compressor…we just wanted to see if the machine itself would run.  When we let the machine powered up for more than a few moments, the circuit breakers in the lower drawer start to trip.  We have tested the power supplies in the lower drawer and have found a few of them don’t appear to be working (this is regardless of whether the circuit breaker is open or closed).  There also appears to be a problem with some of the boards in the side cabinets (which, we believe is causing the circuit breakers to trip).  We have not tried the air compressor yet, but are not overly concerned about it, because we could use an external compressor if necessary.
 
The machine is very clean.  We have removed and reseated all the boards and power supplies (with the machine powered off, of course).  We have visually inspected everything to see if there was anything obvious (such as exposed wires) and see nothing out of the ordinary.  I did not record which circuit breakers trip, or which power supplies appear to not be working.  I could get this information if it would help anyone diagnose the problem.  What we don’t want to do is get into a situation where we are replacing the hundreds of caps in the machine to try to figure out the problem.
 
We are looking for another machine.  The intent is to utilize good components from this, or the other machine to make one operational.  It does not matter to us if the other machine is operational, as long as it is largely complete (although an operational machine would be ideal).  Since this organization is a non-profit, they are operating on a shoe-string budget, so we are seeking donations (however, we can cover minor expenses, such as pick-up/shipping, etc.).
 
An ideal situation would be an organization who has a machine that is no longer being used or one that is a spare.  As we are located in the Mid-West, machines located in the eastern half of the US would be ideal.
 
Can anyone offer any advice or do you know where any machines might be located?  I can be reached at 800-978-3445.  Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
 
John Walko
Media Archive Manager
Scene Savers
www.scenesavers.com
800-978-3445
513-708-1474 (cell)
859-292-1110 (direct)
 
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