Category: Pro Audio Archive

Russco Broadcast Turntables Circa 1980

Post author By chris
Post date 08/23/2013
17 Comments on Russco Broadcast Turntables Circa 1980

Download the catalogs for the RUSSCO Mark V, Studio Pro, and Cue Master broadcast turntables, as well as their RTA-12 tonearm and a period pricelist:

DOWNLOAD: Russco_TTs_1981

Since we featured Technics broadcast turntables last week on PS dot com, I thought it would be interesting to see what their competition was at the time. I’ve only ever done work at two radio stations and both used Technics, so I know zilch about these Russcos. Anyone? I will say this: they do have a slightly unsavory quality to them; something about the overall design has a sort of carnival-ride aspect, the extruded chassis sharing the stillborn quality of a bumper-car attempting to evoke a Corvette. I can practically smell funnelcake when I look at these things.

Anyhow. Coming up next: RUSSCO mixers of the same period.

Tags Russco, turntables

Pro Audio Archive

JBL Studio Monitors: full-line catalog c. 1980

Post author By chris
Post date 08/13/2013
3 Comments on JBL Studio Monitors: full-line catalog c. 1980

Download the 6pp 1980 JBL ‘Studio Monitors’ catalog:

DOWNLOAD: JBL_1980_Monitors

Models covered, with text, specs, and photos, include: JBL 4350B, 4311B, 4331B, 4343B, 4313B, 4333B, 4315B, and 4301B speakers systems.

At one point or another I think i’ve come across all of these things in various studios, offices, and edit rooms… as I type this, I am listening to Tangerine Dream’s 1975 live LP ‘RICOCHET’ on a pair of JBL 18Ti, which were their hi-end home bookshelf speaker of the same era… still sound great btw.

Below: the 4350B. And yeah it weighs 261 pounds.

Tags jbl, studio monitors

Pro Audio Archive

The Cybersonics DM 2002 mini-lathe c. 1978

Post author By chris
Post date 08/08/2013
6 Comments on The Cybersonics DM 2002 mini-lathe c. 1978

Download the original 4pp catalog for the Cybersonics DM-2002 LP lathe:

DOWNLOAD: Cybersonics_DM_2002

At 3’x1′, and 250lbs, perhaps ‘mini’ is not a totally accurate description… Somewhere between a ‘disc recorder’ and a full-fledged Scully or Neumann Lathe and designed for ease-of-use, the DM-2002 was intended to allow recording studios to make high-fidelity ‘test records’ as well as production masters. These things apparently used an Ortofon cutterhead and were made in very small numbers. Hoe fkkn sweet would it be to have one these around. Mixtape? How about mix record?

Tags cybersonics, lathes

Pro Audio Archive

The DeltaLab DL-2 ‘Acousticomputer’ of 1979

Post author By chris
Post date 08/07/2013
11 Comments on The DeltaLab DL-2 ‘Acousticomputer’ of 1979

Download a pile of original sales materials and period-magazine-reviews of the DeltaLab DL-2, and early stereo ‘effects processor’:

DOWNLOAD: DeltaLab_DL2

Deltalab achieved success with their later Effectron offerings; these were simpler delay-with-modulation devices that sold in high numbers. You can download a bunch of Effectron lit at this earlier post (and check the comments there for a note from DeltaLab founder Richard DeFreitas!). I used an Effectron a ton in the studio at Uni; they are really great, fun, creative units. Nothing that you can’t do with a good delay plug-in, but having those knobs to turn does impact the user-experience in a great way that software can’t. I had not been aware of this earlier DeltaLab piece. There was also a DL5 ‘Harmonicomputer’ that I have some limited materials on; if there is enough interest I will post that as well.

Tags DeltaLab, digital reverb

Pro Audio Archive

AMS (Advanced Music Systems) Digital Outboard Processors C. 1981

Post author By chris
Post date 08/04/2013
3 Comments on AMS (Advanced Music Systems) Digital Outboard Processors C. 1981

Download the 4pp AMS ‘shortform catalog’ March 1981:

DOWNLOAD: AMS

Products covered, with text, specs, and photos, include: the AMS DMX 15-80S, DMX 15-80SB, DMX 15-80, DM 2-20, DM-DDS, and DMX 15R

I’ve never owned one of these things, and seeing as they are still pretty pricey I doubt I ever will: seems a bit of an unnecessary luxury given that a DAW can do all of these tasks just as well. But for some reason, the idea of a really nice 80’s digital effect unit has been appealing to me for some time now… might spring for a Eventide H3000 if ever have some spare scratch. I think those things have finally made it to the ‘so out it’s in’ stage.

Tags AMS, digital reverb

Pro Audio Archive

Orange County Electronics, Maker of Hi-End Broadcast Outboard Gear c. 1978

Post author By chris
Post date 08/03/2013
3 Comments on Orange County Electronics, Maker of Hi-End Broadcast Outboard Gear c. 1978

Download just a shit-tonne of sales materials for the Orange Country Electronics line of EQs and Compressors circa ’78 – ’80:

DOWNLOAD: OrangeCountyAudio

Products covered, with text, specs, and images, include: The Orange County VS-3 Stereo Processor, CLX-S-FM, VS-1 Stressor, VS-2, CLX compressor module, PEQ, SEQ, and DEQ equalizer modules, as well as a 1978 price list.

I know little to nothing about this stuff, other than it seems to be pretty rare, and some folks online believe the designs to be based on ADR’s kit (see this previous post). They sure look like they would be fun boxes for treating submixes, though, esp. the VS-2 Stressor, which combines a limiter, compressor, expander, and there is a frequency-contouring element to the compressor as well. Drop us a line and weigh in…

Tags broadcast, Orange county

Pro Audio Archive

360 Systems model 2800 programmable EQ

Post author By chris
Post date 07/26/2013
1 Comment on 360 Systems model 2800 programmable EQ

Download the 2PP spec-sheet for the very obscure 360 systems Model 2800 programmable 4-band parametric EQ:

DOWNLOAD: 360_EQ

Four channels, fully parametric, with filters that offer +12 db/ -infinity (notch) operation, and 28 memory locations. The pre-plug-in plug-in. Anyone?

Tags 360 systems, equalizers

Pro Audio Archive

Audio Obscurity: The VSC Analog Pitch Correction System C. 1980

Post author By chris
Post date 07/25/2013
No Comments on Audio Obscurity: The VSC Analog Pitch Correction System C. 1980

Download four pages of documentation regarding the M8 series of analog pitch-correction devices from the VSC corporation:

DOWNLOAD: VSC_Ana_Pitch_Cntrl

There were three models of these devices offered: the ready-made M8-C (above), which offered a pitch-shift range of 0.6x to 4.0x (with glorious 300-5Khz bandwidth); the M8-A was a expansion-only module, and the M8-B was a compression-only module.

If the idea of completely analog real-time pitch-shifting is not wacky enough for ya, how about mechanical pitch shifting? See this earlier post…

Tags pitch correction, VSC

Pro Audio Archive

The Ecoplate Reverb c. 1980

Post author By chris
Post date 07/06/2013
44 Comments on The Ecoplate Reverb c. 1980

Apparently built by a company called Programming Technologies (anyone???) and sold by Wes Dooley’s AEA firm, the Ecoplate is a well-regarded unit which has a pretty impressive frequency response for a mechanical reverb. If anyone out there is still using one of these, drop us a line with yr thoughts.

Tags AEA, eoplate, plate reverb

Pro Audio Archive

MicMix “Master Room” 210 and 305 Spring Reverbs C. 1979

Post author By chris
Post date 07/05/2013
13 Comments on MicMix “Master Room” 210 and 305 Spring Reverbs C. 1979

Download 8pp of sales + technical information regarding the “Master Room” XL-210 and XL-305 stereo spring reverbs manufactured in 1979 by MicMix of Dallas Texas.

DOWNLOAD:MicMix_210_305_reverbs

The 210 was the economy model. The 305 had optional balancing transformers. I regularly use a couple of other contemporary spring reverbs (Orban and Sound Workshop) but I’ve never had a MicMix unit. Anyone?

Tags MicMix, spring reverb