[QuadList] By Gosh it's a Bosch... Kind of. Visual, Allen and the Fernseh connection.

Sun Jun 14 23:31:04 CDT 2009

On Jun 14, 2009, at 7:19 PM, Grace McKay wrote:

> The construction of this machine reminds me a lot of our FDL and  
> Quadra telecines-details like the knobs and switches, the way the  
> cards are built, etc. It looks like it came from the same design  
> team...
>
> grace mckay
>
> ps- I wonder if any still exist in the USA?
>
> Don Norwood wrote:
>> Ted:
>> In fact, not just the head but the entire transport seems to be the  
>> Bosch machine as in the pics below........
>>  Don
>>

Grace's reaction to this machine was much like mine—"Looks like an  
Bosch FDL telecine!"—when I stumbled on it
on the website of former KNBC engineer and longtime Virginia director/ 
production co. owner Bruce Braun.

so I went Googling for Bosch Quad machines, and found the details  
recounted below
(and which were previously posted under "Ampex/Toshiba and Quads made  
outside the US including Bosch--2.2MB of pix")

So how did a Bosch deck get into the US, and how does Visual/Allen fit  
it?

That's the story we'll be telling, with the help of Al Sturm, a former  
Ampex engineer who worked for Visual and later for Merlin Engineering  
Works.

The Fernseh BM40 photo that Don posted tonight is apparently from here http://www.broadcasting101.ws/colorvtr_1970.jpg
and is one of a number provided by Anselmo Roccaforte of Argentina: http://www.broadcasting101.ws/anselmo6.htm

By Gosh, It's a Bosch:
Robert Bosch's Fernseh division made a limited number of quads through  
its long-time connection with RCA.

RCA provided licenses for its patents, and for the Ampex technology it  
acquired the use of through the "RCA Color for 'How Ampex did it"  
cross-licensing, but Fernseh was apparently limited in how many units  
it could make a year, tied the Ampex licenses to RCA, which made RCA's  
quads possible.

Here's a tube-type Bosch Fernseh BM20, the first Bosch Quad model  
which is pictured on
the Deutsches Fernsehmuseum Wiesbaden website:

Does it seem to look like a brother to a certain line of Telecines  
that came decades later?  The doors
have me wondering whether there was an air circulation and filter  
system that would improve head life
and reduce errant particle-caused dropouts.

Here are a trio of what the Fernsehmuseum website reports to be BCM-40  
solid-state Bosch quads....
and there's a page about them.  They were introduced in 1967, if my  
translation of the Google translation is OK.

They were introduced in 1967, if my translation of the Google  
translation is OK.

And a pair of RCA machines from the same site for comparison:

The museum's page on the BCM40C reports the C model appeared in 1972:

and here's what's also said to be a Bosch BCM40 provided by Gunnar  
Mass, from a Wikipedia page about Quad:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quadruplex_videotape

Click here for BCM40 High Resolution image via Wikipedia

Note how the deck is upside down, á la Ampex AVR-1 and RCA TR600.
With the limited amount of room at the top, it looks like one would  
have banged
knuckles threading things, particularly around the capstan in the  
upper right.

The upper panel colors are gray and the control panel on the right of  
the deck
is noticeably different from the BCM-40C above.

No "winding knob" in the center of the panel..
although there appears to be what could be one on the bottom row of  
controls.

It's asserted on this webpage (and several that copy this page) that  
no Fernseh (Bosch) units
were ever sold in the US. That may or may not be true in terms of  
"Sold."

However, I've seen what appears to be one on the website that former
KNBC engineer, longtime Virginia director/production co. owner Bruce  
Braun has.

This photo is Bruce at KHOF-TV, 30, Los Angeles with the machine in  
question,
opposite the deck of a VR-1000 he's leaning on..

At some point, KHOF-TV also had a
VR-1200 w/sidecar and VR-2000:

Some of you might remember KHOF-TV as the
Reverend Gene Scott's flagship station for his "House of Faith"
broadcasts late at night?

But that's another story entirely!

Ted Langdell
Secretary
Skype: 	TedLangdell
e-mail:	ted at quadvideotapegroup.com

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