[QuadList] Odd VR-1000

[John Fletcher]

>From what I've heard/read....

The machine used by the Grateful Dead wasn't really a _custom_ modified
VR-1000 transport.  It was a Ampex MM-1000 -- a 2", 16 (or 24) channel
audio multitrack recorder.  It was a stock catalog product of Ampex Pro
Audio -- their first 2" multitrack recorder.   

The MM-1000 audio transport was basically a VR-1x00 series video
transport, heavily modified at the factory for multitrack audio use.
The record/play channels were almost identical to standard AG-440 audio
electronics. 

Ampex made a good number of MM-1000s (over 100? 200? maybe more? anyone
know?).  It was a stock Ampex Pro Audio catalog item from about 1968
through 1973 or so.  The MM-1000 was superceeded by the MM-1100 and the
MM-1200.

The MM-1000 could, AFAIK, take "90 minute" reels in it's factory stock
configuration.  I think there's some misinformation floating around out
there about this.  From what I've heard, the MM-1000 that the GD took on
tour in '72 was "custom repackaged" just to make it easier to move
around.  The frame used for this repackaging job might have been a
VR-1200 frame, making the resulting machine LOOK a lot it was custom
built from a quad videotape machine.

IIRC, there was a discussion recently about this on the Ampex Mailing
List  (www.recordist.com/ampex)

- John



On Mon, 2012-01-30 at 12:29 -0600, bill.spencer at northstarstudios.tv
wrote:
> Please trim posts to relevant info when replying!
> Someone mentioned a few weeks ago about finding an odd VR-1000 that
> looked like it had been modified with a 2” audio stack.  Today I read
> an article about a VR-1000 transport that had been modified to be a 16
> track audio recorder so 90 minute reels could be mounted for longer
> recording time.  This was done by the Grateful Dead for their 72
> European tour and whether this machine was the one, or if they got or
> gave the idea to someone else, it proves there was such a machine.
> The description of how the material was recovered, speed corrected,
> and otherwise cleaned up for making new files for duplicating the big
> box set that is being released is also interesting.  It is the Jan 12
> issue of Pro Sound and I don’t have a url for the digital version, but
> I know there is one.
>