MA
I think Sony only sold two of those [MVS-8000 mixers], not sure why it wasn't more popular. Maybe it was a bit before it's time (do you think?) I quite liked the MVS8000 series.
Perhaps only two in the UK, Welsh facilities house Barcud bought one I think ?, and I've got a feeling one or two ended up in Soho. However, they sold a respectable number outside of the UK, I'll check on Monday.
I think Sony only sold two of those [MVS-8000 mixers], not sure why it wasn't more popular. Maybe it was a bit before it's time (do you think?) I quite liked the MVS8000 series.
Perhaps only two in the UK, Welsh facilities house Barcud bought one I think ?, and I've got a feeling one or two ended up in Soho. However, they sold a respectable number outside of the UK, I'll check on Monday.
DE
If you visit the excellent TV Studio History website you'll find a great description of how special wipes were created at the BBC TV Centre in the early days. [url]http://www.tvstudiohistory.co.uk/tv%20centre%20history.htm#stage 3[/url] Each studio gallery was equipped with an 'Inlay Desk' where a graphic artist could use black and white shapes, often cut out on card, to create clever luminance wipes which could be presented to the vision mixer to effect a transition from one source to another. Remember that until the early 90s, TVC used the BBC design vision mixer which had faders for each vision source rather than buttons.
Later on, this was redesigned so that CSOs could be done on a similar desk (Colour Separation Overlay, a BBC term that nowadays is superceded by ChromaKey but still a lot of BBC staff refer to it as a CSO). Eventually it was replaced with offboard electronic DVEs from like Quantel and Abekas Charisma and keyers based within commercially produced vision mixers from the likes of GVG.
Back to the black and white 'inlay desk' - the website recalls an interesting sounding wipe where the operator would cover the screen in tea-leaves, then blow them off on cue...
I love the comedy "clunk" that we can hear on every cut whilst in the gallery! I assume it's the actual noise of the vision mixer. How annoying!
On a boring technical note do any of the boffins here know how those "special" wipes were done back in those days? I'm assuming it is too early for a DVE to be involved?
On a boring technical note do any of the boffins here know how those "special" wipes were done back in those days? I'm assuming it is too early for a DVE to be involved?
If you visit the excellent TV Studio History website you'll find a great description of how special wipes were created at the BBC TV Centre in the early days. [url]http://www.tvstudiohistory.co.uk/tv%20centre%20history.htm#stage 3[/url] Each studio gallery was equipped with an 'Inlay Desk' where a graphic artist could use black and white shapes, often cut out on card, to create clever luminance wipes which could be presented to the vision mixer to effect a transition from one source to another. Remember that until the early 90s, TVC used the BBC design vision mixer which had faders for each vision source rather than buttons.
Later on, this was redesigned so that CSOs could be done on a similar desk (Colour Separation Overlay, a BBC term that nowadays is superceded by ChromaKey but still a lot of BBC staff refer to it as a CSO). Eventually it was replaced with offboard electronic DVEs from like Quantel and Abekas Charisma and keyers based within commercially produced vision mixers from the likes of GVG.
Back to the black and white 'inlay desk' - the website recalls an interesting sounding wipe where the operator would cover the screen in tea-leaves, then blow them off on cue...
BA
I think Sony only sold two of those [MVS-8000 mixers], not sure why it wasn't more popular. Maybe it was a bit before it's time (do you think?) I quite liked the MVS8000 series.
Perhaps only two in the UK, Welsh facilities house Barcud bought one I think ?, and I've got a feeling one or two ended up in Soho. However, they sold a respectable number outside of the UK, I'll check on Monday.
Theres a name I'd forgotten. My old Mac G4 came from them when they went under, bargain auction price
Bail
Moderator
I think Sony only sold two of those [MVS-8000 mixers], not sure why it wasn't more popular. Maybe it was a bit before it's time (do you think?) I quite liked the MVS8000 series.
Perhaps only two in the UK, Welsh facilities house Barcud bought one I think ?, and I've got a feeling one or two ended up in Soho. However, they sold a respectable number outside of the UK, I'll check on Monday.
Theres a name I'd forgotten. My old Mac G4 came from them when they went under, bargain auction price
BL
I think Sony only sold two of those [MVS-8000 mixers], not sure why it wasn't more popular. Maybe it was a bit before it's time (do you think?) I quite liked the MVS8000 series.
Perhaps only two in the UK, Welsh facilities house Barcud bought one I think ?, and I've got a feeling one or two ended up in Soho. However, they sold a respectable number outside of the UK, I'll check on Monday.
We had a fault on the 8000 PGM/PST bus one day for a particular source and I managed to narrow it down to a suspect Sony 1602 chip on some pcb or other. I took the board to the workshop and decided to change the chip. You'll be familiar with that particular multipin chip I'm sure, and I had changed a number of them before over the years on various bits of kit. Using a selection of soldering irons I couldn't get it out, but by now it was half in/ half out and it wasn't going in either direction. A bit of a sweat did develop on my brow as the mixer was required in a couple of hours time and we had no spares and I was fearful I may have damaged the pcb terminally. Failure, as they say, was not an option.
Looking back it was a foolish thing to attempt, but I had desoldered and replaced quite a few of these chips before. I blamed my tools of course.
In the end I got the chip out, cleaned up the pcb and soldered in a replacement chip and put the board back in the mixer. I was literally shaking slightly as I powered the mixer back up for fear it was going to be 100% duff. It worked. I breathed a huge, huge sigh of relief and vowed from that day onwards I would never work on the 'internals' of that particular mixer again!
I think Sony only sold two of those [MVS-8000 mixers], not sure why it wasn't more popular. Maybe it was a bit before it's time (do you think?) I quite liked the MVS8000 series.
Perhaps only two in the UK, Welsh facilities house Barcud bought one I think ?, and I've got a feeling one or two ended up in Soho. However, they sold a respectable number outside of the UK, I'll check on Monday.
We had a fault on the 8000 PGM/PST bus one day for a particular source and I managed to narrow it down to a suspect Sony 1602 chip on some pcb or other. I took the board to the workshop and decided to change the chip. You'll be familiar with that particular multipin chip I'm sure, and I had changed a number of them before over the years on various bits of kit. Using a selection of soldering irons I couldn't get it out, but by now it was half in/ half out and it wasn't going in either direction. A bit of a sweat did develop on my brow as the mixer was required in a couple of hours time and we had no spares and I was fearful I may have damaged the pcb terminally. Failure, as they say, was not an option.
Looking back it was a foolish thing to attempt, but I had desoldered and replaced quite a few of these chips before. I blamed my tools of course.
In the end I got the chip out, cleaned up the pcb and soldered in a replacement chip and put the board back in the mixer. I was literally shaking slightly as I powered the mixer back up for fear it was going to be 100% duff. It worked. I breathed a huge, huge sigh of relief and vowed from that day onwards I would never work on the 'internals' of that particular mixer again!
GE
thegeek
Founding member
Thanks for the vision mixer lesson, bluecortina - I'd never considered how it would have been done before DVEs. They never taught us that at Wood Norton!
The man on camera 2 is wearing quite some cardigan. And interesting to see the floor manager in an Ariel Sailing Club jumper - it's a section of the BBC Club.
The man on camera 2 is wearing quite some cardigan. And interesting to see the floor manager in an Ariel Sailing Club jumper - it's a section of the BBC Club.
BL
I never worked for the BBC so I've learned something there!
So any takers on the shape of the 'wipe' of a pyramid rotated through 45 degree around it's base would be? ...
Thanks for the vision mixer lesson, bluecortina - I'd never considered how it would have been done before DVEs. They never taught us that at Wood Norton!
The man on camera 2 is wearing quite some cardigan. And interesting to see the floor manager in an Ariel Sailing Club jumper - it's a section of the BBC Club.
The man on camera 2 is wearing quite some cardigan. And interesting to see the floor manager in an Ariel Sailing Club jumper - it's a section of the BBC Club.
I never worked for the BBC so I've learned something there!
So any takers on the shape of the 'wipe' of a pyramid rotated through 45 degree around it's base would be? ...
ST
...................
When the technical ‘bloke’ refers to ‘slaving a camera’ he means that camera will be recorded on a separate VTR to the one recording the main studio output. It’s a very common procedure on shows where the ‘action’ may be somewhat difficult to pre-judge. In this case you imagine it would be difficult to pre-judge when Frankie Howerd is going to ‘mug’ to camera so if you tell Frankie that a particular camera is going to be permanently on him he should have enough sense to always ‘mug’ to that camera.........
would a more up to date example be on TV Burp when Harry Hill makes a quip to the camera on his left
When the technical ‘bloke’ refers to ‘slaving a camera’ he means that camera will be recorded on a separate VTR to the one recording the main studio output. It’s a very common procedure on shows where the ‘action’ may be somewhat difficult to pre-judge. In this case you imagine it would be difficult to pre-judge when Frankie Howerd is going to ‘mug’ to camera so if you tell Frankie that a particular camera is going to be permanently on him he should have enough sense to always ‘mug’ to that camera.........
would a more up to date example be on TV Burp when Harry Hill makes a quip to the camera on his left
GS
I'm not sure it would be. Harry's "comments off" shots are tightly scripted. Mugging is usually (although not always) when one veers off script or steals the moment from another performer. Certainly in the case of Frankie Howerd, who would often ad lib.
Gavin Scott
Founding member
would a more up to date example be on TV Burp when Harry Hill makes a quip to the camera on his left
I'm not sure it would be. Harry's "comments off" shots are tightly scripted. Mugging is usually (although not always) when one veers off script or steals the moment from another performer. Certainly in the case of Frankie Howerd, who would often ad lib.
:-(
A former member
Only current people I know who goes off script is Paul O'Grady, or Dama edna, but neither mugs the camera I dont think?