[QuadList] Ampex AVR-3

[Bill Carpenter]

Hi Lee, and everyone,

When the machine was first built after the NAB 76 Introduction we found out there were many problems and that caused the largest field retrofit in Ampex's history. 
I don't know of anyone who has the all details, but I do remember there was some wiring changes in the TBC area, to solve some ground loop problems.. These problems and the Autotracking problems were the reasons why they weren't used as playback machines in edit suites.
All the machines that were delivered were retrofitted.
At one time I had fifty machines in Hollywood that were "out of service", with most being in three machine, high end edit suites.
This all happened because the project engineer and the product manager had other things as major distractions during they design phase. 
It all got dumped on me and I pulled to together the best group of engineering folks from other projects and then formed a retrofit group of field & sustaining engineers to do the retrofits.

The factory then incorporated the same changes in all machines leaving the factory. 

So in summary probably the first 150 machines were retrofitted in the field, and the remaining units, about 350 were factory built to incorporate the changes. 

The retrofitted units probably have wiring changes that are functionally the same, but look different because two different field engineers made the mod's. The machines in the LA area were all done by a group of six Redwood city based sustaining engineers.

Bye for now, Bill Carpenter


--- On Thu, 3/10/11, lee williams <lasvegastvengineer at yahoo.com> wrote:

From: lee williams <lasvegastvengineer at yahoo.com>
Subject: [QuadList] Ampex AVR-3
To: "Quad List" <quadlist at quadvideotapegroup.com>
Date: Thursday, March 10, 2011, 3:10 PM

I was wondering if anybody knows just how many different flavors of AVR-3's did Ampex make? 
 
I am working on 5 of them and can clearly see 3 distinctly different types of wiring harnesses between the machines. 
 
So far, the only cards I find that will not interchange between the models is the #22. 
 
Is there any kind of quick reference (other than the manuals) to tell which series of cards work best with which machines? 
 
Also does anybody have a spare #15 audio card that they might be willing to sell? 
I have one that shorted out and totally charred. 
 
Thanks 


 


      
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