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Tape Trail Reel to reel, cassette and other analogue tape formats. |
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Tape Trail Reel to reel, cassette and other analogue tape formats. |
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In Reply to: RE: "A Format Tape 202" So what is this thing? posted by Dave Pogue on November 26, 2014 at 05:02:35:
Your tape could very well have been used in a radio station - but not necessarily an "automated format" one.In the late 60's I worked at WBMI, an FM station in Meriden, CT. The format was ALL 7 1/2" prerecorded tape (maybe 4 track - don't remember) that someone had made from records (definitely NOT from a commercial recording service) . Only equipment were two Ampex 900/1200? series (home) recorders, a three channel mixer and a microphone. All I had to do was keep the tape loaded - set the level to 0VU (on cue) identify the station every 10 minutes and read the news and weather (off a teletype) every half hour. Never forget mangling "...a mock-up version of a NASA space capsule... into.. a knocked-up virgin of...." - shows where my head was.
A buddy of mine picked up hundreds of similar (non-commercially) pre-recorded 10" tapes from a station in NJ. They were all 7 1/2 ips and were categorized by formats. Some had play dates, most did not.
Later (70's?) there were "chains" of FM stations that used exclusively commercially produced, pre-recorded tapes. As I remember, WBMI became one of those. They used Scully decks with huge reels - 17" 24"? and really slow speeds. Infrasonic cue tones to switch everything automatically, even the commercials. Because the stations were "chains" the tapes were rotated between them every month or so. Nothing "live" in the station unless something broke.
There was an FM station in Bridgeport, CT that continuously ran the "top 100 classical" pieces (from tape)for years. Non-commercial somehow
Back then no one listened to FM anyway. Many AM stations also had an FM license and played whatever (classical? elevator pop?) just to meet their license requirements - Then some smart station managers, realizing the opportunity, filled the airwaves with alternative rock - and the medium took off.
Charles
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- RE: "A Format Tape 202" So what is this thing? - stellavox 12/27/1406:33:48 12/27/14 (0)
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