60's tape recorder track selector meaning

[dave]

I had a 4 track(?) reel to reel tape recorder circ 1960's that had a track selector slider switch. I remember though it had only two positions. Either T1-2 or T3-4 (or maybe it was T1-3 T2-4. I don't recall if it was stereo but if not why record 2 tracks at once?

Having rediscovered some tapes from that machine (long since gone), I'd like to play them and see what secrets they hold! Trouble is I don't understand what that track selection meant. Was it perhaps that one could do...

Record Pass 1, selected T1-2 Rewind Record Pass 2, selected T3-4 Turn tape over and repeat the above, giving 4 complete passes through the tape?

AFAIK there was no way to record just say, T1

Have tried witha friend old recoder and we are getting two "tracks" palying at once ie two stes of sounds played simultaneously.

I'm taking a look at what recorders are on ebay and may not get exactly the machine I had, so need to understand this track business.

[Peter Scott]

The first recording was made with the new full reel on the left and the empty on the right. This recorded tracks 1 and 3. When you got to the end you put right reel on left and vice versa. In other words turned them over. You could then record tracks 2 and 4. Each these would be in stereo. Many recorders (like the Revox A77 I use) allow you to record on one track at a time, giving you two mono recordings.

Peter Scott

[Rusty]

I think you will find more old timers on uk.tech.broadcast or the ham radio groups. Plus you find old recorders at radio rallies.

I vaguely remember the 4 track recorders, which were a tape cost saving feature at the cost of 3dB more noise. I think they recorded four mono tracks, but couldn't do it on adjacent tracks because there had to be a minimum spacing between tracks in the recording head construction. So it went on T1, T3 with the tape forward and if you turned the tape over you got T4, T2.

There was a professional Danish/Scandanavian recorder of the period which did do real stereo on 4 tracks and cost a fortune, like several hundred old pounds, about half the price of new Mini. Can't remember the manufacturer off the cuff.

rusty

[Rusty]

Google for "vintage tape recorders" there lots of stuff out there.

The stereo recorder was a Tandberg.

[Set Square]

I've still got an old Pye 9123 4-track recorder up in the attic, and have just found the service manual for it.

Mine is mono only, but has a socket into which an optional stereo pre-amp could be plugged to enable pre-recorded stereo tapes to be played.

The track selector has 3 positions 1/4, 2/3 and PAR. ISTR that 1/4 will record on or playback from an outer track, and 2/3 from an inner track. PAR would play back 2 tracks in parallel - mainly for special effects, I think. ISTR that (probably again with an optional pre-amp) you could monitor one track while recording on another, so that you could - for example - record a duet with yourself and then play the whole thing back using the PAR setting.

In normal use, you had 4 independent tracks - 2 each way up - so a 7" tape would last for a hell of a long time - albeit with some manual intervention.

[Set Square]

Chances are that your friend's recorder was stereo but that the tapes were recorded on a mono recorder. So you used the 2 tracks for two independent recordings - but they are being played back together. If my old mono machine still works, I may be able to do something with them - but not until the end of the month.

Whereabouts in UK are you?

[Dave Plowman (News)]

1/4" 1/4 track stereo works thus:-

(use a fixed font to read)

1>>>>>>>>>>>>> tk 1 left signal 2> tk 1 left signal 4

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Just to add I can transfer any tape or record to any other format as required. With DBX, Dolby A, B, C, SR. '8' tracks no problem. Elcasette too. Even the Lear Jet '4' track.

C'mon - give me a challenge. Even wax cylinders.;-)

[dave]

Thanks for the offer but the tapes *may* contain recordings of a friends younger brother who passed away a few years ago - if these tapes get screwed up I think it best it's me that does it - but many thanks again for the offer.

[meow2222]

If you were willing to go way down on speed, say 15/16" per sec, you'd probably die before reaching the end of the tape.

NT

[Andy Wade]

In the 60s there was another cassette format competing with the Philips Compact Cassette. German I think - Grundig? - BASF? - someone like that...

[Linda Hardy]

----- Original Message ----- From:

[Dave Plowman (News)]

That one I haven't seen. Elcassette was IIRC a Sony system using larger cassettes and running at 3 3/4 ips.

[dennis]

I think I have some stuff on a bubble memory chip somewhere. Its just the chip but I think its intact.

[meow2222]

I always thought the compact cassette came out in 73, shortly after 8 tracks in 71.

The one that always captured my imagination was an A4 sheet recorder. I dont know its trade name, but it was a magnetically coated A4 sheet of paper/plastic, with a head that recorded like a vinyl record - quite possibly at non constant linear speed. I saw one years ago, but no-one seems to have seen or heard of them. Dont remember how long a side lasted, but I dont expect it was too long! Hardly surprising they didnt catch on, but would be useful for large libraries of very short recordings. Not that I can think of any use for sucha thing...

NT

[Owain]

This sounds like it would have been used for office dictation; the audio sheet could have been filed with the transcript in case of a later query about the accuracy of the transcription.

Owain

[Chip]

On 10 Oct 2005 08:20:19 -0700,it is alleged that [e-mail] spake thusly in uk.d-i-y:

[snip]

Probably not the same device, but sounds similar in principle to this?

[Rolyata]

Andy Wade said

Yes you're quite right. I was presented with one of those in the early

1970's. The owner asked if I could modify it to take Phillips cassettes. Obviously that wasn't possible.

Cassette, but was slightly bigger and totally incompatible. Although being Grundig, it was beautifully engineered.

[<me9]

I had a Phillips cassette recorder long before '73, and I don't get things when they are new technology. I've still got it somewhere, despite it being ripped out of my car and stolen in '75.

[Andy Wade]

About 10 years before that. Around '62 or '63 - perhaps Between the end of the Chatterley ban And the Beatles' first LP...