[QuadList] 1200 makes pictures

[Chill315 at aol.com]

I also have worked before many of the quads.  The offering to the quad  
gods were sometimes not accepted.  Others it was readily accepted and they  
started to perform beautifully.
 
The Ampex always impressed me more.  I liked the way that they  constructed 
the machines.  I found that RCA always seemed to just bend a  piece of 
metal to mount something.  Or like the brake assemblies, were done  in what 
seemed as a constructed in what I would call a one or two make em  shop.  Ampex 
actually took the time to build a solid brake assembly.   The relays for the 
TR-60 that I had were mounted in the rear on a bent piece of  metal.  It 
seemed as an after thought.  Ampex actually had a relay  chassis in the rear 
of the VR-1200 that made sense.
 
Another thing that I did not like about the RCA was the Blue Ribbon  
connectors that were used.  I had to clean them about twice a year as a  
preventive.  The other part was that the connectors had pins with crimped  on wires 
inserted in the back of them.  These would work loose.  I  would go through 
about every year or two and push on them when the machine would  start 
getting flaky.  I never had a harness problem in an AMPEX  machine.  
 
The RCA modules were both harder and easier to work on.  Most were  hand 
wired.  It was easier to get to the parts with a scope once the module  was on 
the extender.  In the AMPEX you had to put each board on the  extender and 
then return it.  RCA sometimes had the test points on the  front that was 
helpful.  The shovel as we called the extender for RCA took  up so much room, 
you had to make sure that you had the space to work.   Fortunately, the 
third room that had these did.  The first two were  difficult.  
 
The RCA control system was built in behind the fold down door of the 4, and 
 60.  The RCA system had a unified control system.  Where the AMPEX put  a 
lot in the chassis.  Thus it was easier for me to trace a control problem  
in the AMPEX machines.  
 
Lastly, I liked the documentation for the Ampex machines.  I found  that 
the use of an interconnect was so helpful.  RCA had the modules with  the 
connector only saying where the signal went or came from.  Thus I had  to get 
out a sheet of paper and keep a lot of notes.  
 
I started out on RCA's and then went to AMPEX.  I found that my  preference 
was AMPEX.
 
Chris Hill
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