[QuadList] Quad Heads--When metal tips gave way to Ferrite... and what role Spin Physics played--

Thu Sep 4 19:32:42 CDT 2014

Ken,

What was RCA's "Alfecon II"?

Regards,

David Crosthwait
DC Video
Transferring NTSC, PAL & SECAM quad and helical source tapes!

david at dcvideo.com
www.dcvideo.com

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On Sep 4, 2014, at 10:01 AM, Kenneth Zin via QuadList wrote:

> 
> 
> From: Kenneth Zin <kenzin at sbcglobal.net>
> Subject: Re: [QuadList] Quad Heads--When metal tips gave way to Ferrite... and	what role Spin Physics played--
> Date: September 4, 2014 10:00:04 AM PDT
> To: Ted Langdell <ted at quadvideotapegroup.com>, Quad List <quadlist at quadvideotapegroup.com>
> Reply-To: Kenneth Zin <kenzin at sbcglobal.net>
> 
> 
> Ted, Bill Fitts, has nothing to do with Prodex, nor did Spin.
> Prodex was a Corporation formed by:
> Carl Moyer ( owner of Vidicopy and a former Ampex and Memorex person) Carl was my boss's boss.
> Allan Behr sales person for Prodex and a former Ampex person.
> Kenneth Zin Engineer for Prodex
> Robert Pfannkuck former Panasonic person and contact for Fujio Sato in Japan 
> David Orr former Sony person
> 
> Sato had the expertise to make the ferrite heads with MIG heads ( MIG =metal in the gap) which no one knew how make except Ampex, Sony, NEC, and Matsushita.  At this time people could make ferrite heads for type "C" and quads, but could not make heads for Sony betacam SP or Panasonic MII.
> I tested heads for CMC and the results were reported to Bill Fitts.  None of the CMC head passed.
> At that time CMC was purchasing head from Sony to be able to sell the heads to their customers, CMC could not make the MIG record heads, but like other refurbishers could make the play heads.  Most refurbisher
> had a very hard time with the Sony DT, Ampex AST, Hitatchi HST,NEC or 3M ATF. most of them use the same pizio element and just replace the tip or head.
> The heads from Sato were even better that the Sony's. Longer life, and Signal to noise. Frequency response and DG, DP were the same. My job was to test the heads new , refurbished and returns solve electronic faults
> and send these reports to Mr. Sato, of which I did.
> Prodex ended by closing the corporation down. A contract clause that Allan Behr legal person had inserted into the company said that Allan Behr was to be paid a fixed amount monthly profit or not.  Thesecond problem was that if we fired Allan Behr he still got paid so long as the corporation was business, so we closed
> down Prodex and Allan Behr took the inventory of heads.  Mr. Sato got penny's on the dollar for the unpaid inventory.
> 
> I work with Bill Fitts to get Videomax started and introduced Bill Fitts to Mr. Sato, did the same testing as for Prodex.  Did not get into a business relationship with Bill Fitts.  Videomax supplied heads that Bill bought from
> The Video Company ( Kenneth Zin) of which I tested and purchase from Mr. Sato. I also sold heads to VideoMagnetics.  Mr. Sato would send heads to me and I would say I did not need heads, but they kept comming. Mr. sato said that he had to make "X" amount of heads to stay in business, sells had drop off due to the price drop by Sony US by more than 50%.  I did not sell the head to the customers, Bill Fitts had the list 
> of CMC customers and Tony Korte had his customers list.  Push came for the monies for the inventory 
> Bill would not buy any heads, and knew I did not have the capital to float the business, thus I was force out.
> Mr. Sato had a Japanese friend here in San Jose and he took the inventory and Mr. Fitts bought the heads
> at a very low price.  Mr. Fitts told Mr. Sato that was the new selling price and that Mr. Sato had to find where Sony purchase the spares for Betacams, and Mr. Sato did, now Mr. Fitts have the spares heads and all of the other spares to sell below Sony US price.....that work for two years until a new boss in Sony US,
> he ended all sells of spares to non Sony people.  Bill had purchase large amounts of spares, as you had to purchase in lots of 100 each minimum of each item. Also the Chicago electronics place was selling the Sato heads also with the spares Which is still in business.
> 
> Ken
> 
> 
> On Wednesday, September 3, 2014 1:14 PM, Ted Langdell via QuadList <quadlist at quadvideotapegroup.com> wrote:
> 
> 
> 
> While looking for something else, we found an interesting patent that outlines problems and solutions to interchanging tapes made with metal (Alfasil) or ferrite heads.
> 
> Issued late in the Quad game, (1980s') this patent http://www.google.com/patents/US4398226, the invention enabled the use of ferrite heads to record a signal similar to that of metal heads so the playback on a metal-head wouldn't require readjustment of EQ.
> 
> "With the equalization of a quadruplex recorder adjusted to accommodate the new ferrite heads, it happens that tapes, pre-recorded by use of metal heads, are productive during video playback of color over-saturation. It would, of course, be possible to adjust (or readjust as the case may be) a quadruplex recorder depending on whether it was reproducing signals recorded by means of metal heads or by means of the new ferrite heads. But such a tack is not too practical when, for example, tapes produced by means of metal heads are interspersedly spliced to tapes produced by means of ferrite heads. Consider, for example, that a pre-recorded commercial made by use of a quadruplex recorder having metal heads is to be spliced into a taped TV program made by means of a recorder having ferrite heads. In such a case, either the playback electronics will have to be optimized for good playback (and thus broadcasting) of either, but not both, the commercial or the program."
> 
> "...the concept of the invention is to mount corrective attenuation circuit(s) directly to the quadruplex head assembly, such circuits being of a type which self-disable during signal playback. Thus, no alteration ever need be made to the quadruplex recorder to effect a uniform standard for the level of recorded flux, regardless of the nature of the head employed. Head assemblies employing metal heads will record a certain way . . . and head assemblies equipped with ferrite heads (plus the corrective attenuation circuit) will record that very same way. During playback, however, the improved efficiency of ferrite heads vis-a-vis metal heads is brought to bear as the corrective circuits cut out. There is, pursuant to the invention, virtually no difference between recordings made by quadruplex head assemblies equipped with metal heads or with ferrite heads, so long as the corrective circuits are employed. As far as the user is concerned, and except for the long life provided by ferrite heads, he could not care less whether his recordings were by metal or ferrite heads since all such recordings are all essentially identical, and playback is the same."
> 
> At one time, Spin Physics was one of several companies refurbishing Quad heads, and engaging in R&D in other areas of magnetic recording and playback involving other media formats.
> 
> Spin Physics was founded 1968 by James Lemke, PhD and was sold to Eastman Kodak in 1972. (Hence Kodak appearing in the patent list here: http://www.plainsite.org/flashlight/spin-physics-inc/page-1/table-patents)
> 
> In August, 2000, San Diego based Spin Phyics sold Prodex—its BetacamSP head replacement business—to Palo Alto based Quad head refurbisher Videomax, headed by Bill Fitts.
> 
> By 2001, the Spin Physics website noted it was making more than "2,000 models of magnetic tape heads, supporting virtually every make of high-end recorder in worldwide commercial, OEM, government and aerospace markets throughout the world," according to its website, captured by Archive.org's Wayback Machine: https://web.archive.org/web/20010301080630/http://www.spinphysics.com/
> 
> It was building a motion analysis system noted here:
> http://machinedesign.com/engineering-education/looking-back-232011
> 
> Spin Physics Milestones were listed here: 
> https://web.archive.org/web/20010220054542/http://www.spinphysics.com/Press/MileStones.shtml
> 
> A mid-2001 website redesign using Flash rendered the content after that unrecovered by Archive.org, and by March of 2004 the domain was for sale.
> 
> What do you remember about Spin Physics?
> 
> Ted
> 
> Ted Langdell
> Secretary
> Quad Videotape Group
> e-mail:	ted at quadvideotapegroup.com
> 
> 
> ______________________________________________
> Please trim posts to relevant info when replying.
> 
> Change subject to reflect thread direction. Thanks.
> _______________________________________________
> 
> Send QuadList list posts to QuadList at quadvideotapegroup.com
> Your subscribe, unsubscribe and digest options are here:
> http://mail.quadvideotapegroup.com/mailman/listinfo/quadlist_quadvideotapegroup.com
> 
> 
> From: Ted Langdell <ted at quadvideotapegroup.com>
> Subject: Quad Heads--When metal tips gave way to Ferrite... and what role Spin Physics played--
> Date: September 3, 2014 1:13:41 PM PDT
> To: Quad List <QuadList at quadvideotapegroup.com>
> Cc: Ted Langdell <ted at quadvideotapegroup.com>
> 
> 
> While looking for something else, we found an interesting patent that outlines problems and solutions to interchanging tapes made with metal (Alfasil) or ferrite heads.
> 
> Issued late in the Quad game, (1980s') this patent http://www.google.com/patents/US4398226, the invention enabled the use of ferrite heads to record a signal similar to that of metal heads so the playback on a metal-head wouldn't require readjustment of EQ.
> 
> "With the equalization of a quadruplex recorder adjusted to accommodate the new ferrite heads, it happens that tapes, pre-recorded by use of metal heads, are productive during video playback of color over-saturation. It would, of course, be possible to adjust (or readjust as the case may be) a quadruplex recorder depending on whether it was reproducing signals recorded by means of metal heads or by means of the new ferrite heads. But such a tack is not too practical when, for example, tapes produced by means of metal heads are interspersedly spliced to tapes produced by means of ferrite heads. Consider, for example, that a pre-recorded commercial made by use of a quadruplex recorder having metal heads is to be spliced into a taped TV program made by means of a recorder having ferrite heads. In such a case, either the playback electronics will have to be optimized for good playback (and thus broadcasting) of either, but not both, the commercial or the program."
> 
> "...the concept of the invention is to mount corrective attenuation circuit(s) directly to the quadruplex head assembly, such circuits being of a type which self-disable during signal playback. Thus, no alteration ever need be made to the quadruplex recorder to effect a uniform standard for the level of recorded flux, regardless of the nature of the head employed. Head assemblies employing metal heads will record a certain way . . . and head assemblies equipped with ferrite heads (plus the corrective attenuation circuit) will record that very same way. During playback, however, the improved efficiency of ferrite heads vis-a-vis metal heads is brought to bear as the corrective circuits cut out. There is, pursuant to the invention, virtually no difference between recordings made by quadruplex head assemblies equipped with metal heads or with ferrite heads, so long as the corrective circuits are employed. As far as the user is concerned, and except for the long life provided by ferrite heads, he could not care less whether his recordings were by metal or ferrite heads since all such recordings are all essentially identical, and playback is the same."
> 
> At one time, Spin Physics was one of several companies refurbishing Quad heads, and engaging in R&D in other areas of magnetic recording and playback involving other media formats.
> 
> Spin Physics was founded 1968 by James Lemke, PhD and was sold to Eastman Kodak in 1972. (Hence Kodak appearing in the patent list here: http://www.plainsite.org/flashlight/spin-physics-inc/page-1/table-patents)
> 
> In August, 2000, San Diego based Spin Phyics sold Prodex—its BetacamSP head replacement business—to Palo Alto based Quad head refurbisher Videomax, headed by Bill Fitts.
> 
> By 2001, the Spin Physics website noted it was making more than "2,000 models of magnetic tape heads, supporting virtually every make of high-end recorder in worldwide commercial, OEM, government and aerospace markets throughout the world," according to its website, captured by Archive.org's Wayback Machine: https://web.archive.org/web/20010301080630/http://www.spinphysics.com/
> 
> It was building a motion analysis system noted here:
> http://machinedesign.com/engineering-education/looking-back-232011
> 
> Spin Physics Milestones were listed here: 
> https://web.archive.org/web/20010220054542/http://www.spinphysics.com/Press/MileStones.shtml
> 
> A mid-2001 website redesign using Flash rendered the content after that unrecovered by Archive.org, and by March of 2004 the domain was for sale.
> 
> What do you remember about Spin Physics?
> 
> Ted
> 
> Ted Langdell
> Secretary
> Quad Videotape Group
> e-mail:	ted at quadvideotapegroup.com
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ______________________________________________
> Please trim posts to relevant info when replying.
> 
> Change subject to reflect thread direction. Thanks.
> _______________________________________________
> 
> Send QuadList list posts to QuadList at quadvideotapegroup.com
> Your subscribe, unsubscribe and digest options are here:
> http://mail.quadvideotapegroup.com/mailman/listinfo/quadlist_quadvideotapegroup.com

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