Museum of the Broadcast Television Camera

E-mail Received, May 2018

The camera EMI 201

Link 101 camera similar to the 105 camera


Doug Ingham writes from New Zealand:-

Greetings.

I have acquired some of the remains of an EMI 201 vidicon camera, in particular the camera head, the Remote Control Panel and the companion TL.1116 Instruction Manual, reprinted in 1965.

The Remote Control Panel appears to have been stored in a damp place; some of the front panel paint, on top of aluminum sheet, has bubbles underneath. The lens, vidicon, and some of the modules from inside the camera head are missing. The CCU/power supply and interconnecting cables are also missing.

I have discovered, by talking to some of the surviving studio staff, that Studio 2, a 2-camera (two EMI 201) black-and-white continuity and current affairs studio was decommissioned in 1975 and all of the equipment was disposed of. This camera is one of the two 201s.

Studio 1 was equipped  with two Marconi Mark IV IO cameras, also decommissioned in 1975. The EMI cameras originally had integral mesh 10667 vidicons and the pictures were very "soft" by comparison with the IO cameras.

My informants are not sure about the original lens configuration. This 201 camera head has a zoom lens mount (but no zoom lens) and a 201/8B mod number next to the ID plate. However, the ID plate suggests that it started life as a 201/7 turret lens version. I have attached two ID plate photographs in case these provide you with more information.

EMI vidicon problems.
In relation to an earlier camera restoration, I appealed to NZ enthusiasts for working 1 inch vidicons. All of the EMI 9677 and 10667 had lost their vacuum owing to oxidation of the mirror-like faceplate seal. RCA, EEV and various Japanese vidicons appeared to have a thin bead of red (epoxy?) to protect the seal from oxidation, and still had a hard vacuum.

Biography notes:-

Straight from secondary school, I joined NZBC (New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation) in 1964 as a Technical Assistant Class 2, the "lowest form of life" on station.

My first job was testing the many E88CC valves in Marconi Mark IV IO cameras, Marconi Mark IV vidicon telecine cameras and EMI 201 vidicon studio cameras, every three months, using an AVO valve tester. On average the valves lasted about 12 months.

The philosophy seemed to be to replace the valves before their emission fell too far, but I wonder if the frequent testing introduced mechanical failures!

After a period in the Wellington studio I transferred to the Christchurch studio. Both Wellington and Christchurch had similar make and number of cameras (two IO cameras in Studio 1, two 201 cameras in Studio 2, and a three IO OB van). I know of at least four 201 cameras.

There may have been more, but I'm not sure. Each one had an EMI picture and waveform monitor, and a Remote Control Panel (for the operational staff); the CCUs were in the Central Apparatus Room (for the technical staff).

Initially, the four stations were stand-alone, only feeding a local transmitter. Inter-city linking, when it came, was by microwave, owned by NZBC.

Doug.