[78-L] Does this episode of Hoarders apply to you?

[Michael Biel]

On 8/3/2011 10:14 AM, David Lennick wrote:
> On 8/3/2011 8:58 AM, Don Cox wrote:
>> On 03/08/2011, Robert M. Bratcher Jr. wrote:
>>
>>
>> The soundtrack seems to go first, probably because it is a very narrow
>> track near the edge of the tape.

My first machine developed a worn guide and the tape started to skew 
slightly which messed up the linear audio track on some tapes.  However, 
the track IS there, and with somereallignment of the audio playback head 
could be played.  I have a slew of old machines that can be used if 
needed to monkey around with the allignments to play a tape.  After all, 
I never intend to record a VHS tape again, only play them.

Like the lady in the Hoarder's show, I have thousands of VHS tapes -- a 
whole room full -- and Leah has two walls of shelves with VHS tapes in 
her apartment.  Additional thousands of DVD+Rs.  I am slowing down 
greatly in the amount I am recording, mainly because we end up doing 
much of tbhe same things (sometimes for back-up.)  She continues to 
record certain things like The Daily Show, Colbert Report, Bill Mahr, 
the Amazing Race and some historical programs and events.  For ten years 
she recorded every one of the early quiz shows from the 50s and 60s that 
Game Show Network aired, and she has made use of some of these.

I did not specialize in one brand of tape and still don't with DVD+Rs   
Yes there is a likelyhood that some will fail, but since it is 
impossible to predict which ones, the failures will be spread randomly 
rather than potentially taking out ALL of them like has happened with 
ALL of NPR's audio tapes because they specialized on one line of Ampex 
and every last one of them failed.

> Only on tapes you made before the advent of Hi-Fi recorders, of course. And
> those were around by the mid 80s.  dl

My first VHS Hi-Fi machine (which has since died) also recorded split 
linear stereo tracks and the machine I borrowed for the 1990 ARSC and 
Joint Technological Symposium -- the one where vinegar syndrome was 
first disclosed -- used only split stereo linear tracks.  I was hoping 
to get some of the pro-editing machines from the school which had split 
linear and hi-fi tracks, but they all have been surplussed already after 
I retired.

There are still some non-hi-fi machines around.  The year before I 
retired, my boss, The Department Chairman From Hell, decided to end the 
classroom machine shortage by sending a kid to Wal-Mar to buy a dozen of 
the cheapest VHS-DVD combo machines without telling us or asking for 
specs -- he was a theater guy who prided himself on not knowing anything 
but theater.  Naturally the VHS side was mono, which meant that I could 
not use the machines to play any of my tapes.  I think my displeasure 
with his stupidity made him happier.  This guy destroyed our department 
-- all my colleagues still tell me they wish they could also have 
retired.  He split up the department after I left, and then he left to 
go and destroy some other university.

Mike Biel  mbiel at mbiel.com