I wish you had uploaded that tape's contents somewhere. It saddens me to hear what I would call a fascinating glimpse into the past being erased. I love watching and learning about old technology - particularly audio equipment - but I think the human interest and history aspect of old media is just as important as what that media was stored on etc. Thank you for your great channel.
The 800B is the Sony recorder that Richard Nixon used in the Whitehouse. He used it to record conversations in the Oval Office to use for future reference when he wrote his memoirs, didn’t work out so well for him.
The UHER Universal machine was used by Rosemary Woods, Nixon’s secretary, to transcribe the tapes made on the 800B. The UHER was the one used to create the ominous “blank section” of tape that caused all the fuss. Experts proved that the erase bias signal was left by the UHER and not Nixon’s 800B, which led to the preposterous notion that Ms. Woods “accidentally” erased the tape on her UHER Universal by resting her foot on the remote switch while twisting her body the other way to answer the phone. This is all very well documented plus I lived through it and remember it clearly, not unlike the bullshit going on today.
@@mjg263 Yes, that is what the entry says. Just wanted to complete the collection. That recorder also appeared on the cover of Time magazine's report on the "missing time." There is also a photo of her desk with the Uher and her IBM typewriter next to each other and her reaching for the phone given as an illustration of how it could have happened.
I have a Sony 800B, plus the same model Uher Rosemary Woods had. I think it's a Universal 5000 - a heavy AC-only metal-cased recorder that takes up to 6-inch reels. I got the Sony at a Goodwill-store in the mid-80s for $5, and still use it regularly to check 3 and 5 inch tapes that I run across, either loose or on other recorders I pick up. The variable-speed also lets me play tapes from old rim-drive recorders. Finally, I use it to make 3-inch music demo-tapes for some of my better 3-inch machines. My Sony has a sticker on the bottom showing it was the property of RKO-WGMS radio - the local Washington DC classical music station. I recall seeing an 800B in an audio store in 1974. IIRC, the price was around $300!
@@sunbeam8866 yes, that price sounds about right. My 800B works marginally but I need to go through it and give it a good refresh. Rosemary Woods recorder was a UHER Universal but I don’t remember the model (5000 sounds right). I still remember the hilariously contorted pose she struck while trying to convince investigators that she left her foot on the control pedal for the UHER recorder while she swung around to answer the phone in an attempt to explain the infamous tape gap.
I own this machine's predecessor. Not sure of the model number, it's in storage right now. Same basic design, but only external mike, and I have an external speed control which plugged into the side and 3 speeds. Also have a 12v adapter. We got ours around 1965 or 1966 to record live sound to add audio to dad's 8mm movies. I suspect yours is from the late 60's. Whoever recorded those first couple of tapes didn't know how to use the mike. I have a lot of very high quality recordings. Going to dig the machine out in February to copy all my old tapes to digital. This was the first recorder on the market for consumers that used a speed feedback circuit to control speed. The advertisements my dad used to chose my machine indicated the motor had extra poles inside used to feedback to the electronics for speed regulation.
Frequency generator. Generates a tone that is compared to an external oscillator to generate an error voltage. Same thing used on vcrs to control capstan and drum speed.
All reel to reel recorders sound good on 7 1/2 or 15ips. The last generation of open reel had very good sound on 3 3/4, especially the cross field head units.
lol you should have taken that and transferred that to MP3. that would have sounded cool and depending on the school or individual that taped it, u could return it on CD to them and they'd be shocked that you could restore such an old recording lol.
I found Montgomery Ward 5" feel to feel tape recorder a few months back and I haven't done anything with it yet but t was $1. It is really good condition for it age and did come with a tape and the original mic. I will soon try it out and see what it needs to be fixed.
I have had several of their Airline models (made by Sharp) and they were decent if not spectacular. I currently have a couple of nearly identical VM units also made by Sharp. They also sold other brands in those days, including Mayfair. In 1964 they sold a Mayfair portable with 7.5 and 3.75 speeds. It was made by JVC (some early versions used the Japanese NVS logo - Nippon Victor Seiki) and it was the worst-performing recorder I have ever seen.
The model 800b was made famous by President Richard Nixon. He recorded all his conversations with this deck. Over two years of every conversation. Because he chose not to destroy the tapes, he felt he would loose the impeachment trials so he resigned. Very trippy history.
Would never do that either. A criminal could use that info to steal identity. I also don't share my cell phone number with anyone. I don't use messaging apps that are linked to cell phone. The only one I use is BBM enterprise as it is not linked to the SIM or phone number. On my cell I have a disposable IP phone number along with the real number. About 10 people know my real number, everyone else only knows my magicjack or fongo number and I can shut those off in an instant.
Goodday to you sir.Been a suscriber for a few years now.Just aquired one of these great machines that runs we but I dont have a power cord so running on batteries.The socket for the power cord is unusual as it contains four pins.Have you any idea what two pins are the mains voltage. In my case 220v.Dont want to blow it up.Your help will be greatly appreciated.John in Yorkshire England.
The upper two pins - the pair closest together are for the "mains" - AC voltage. The lower two are for an optional 12 volt car cigarette-lighter power cord. The same power-cords were used on Sony's small B&W transistor televisions throughout the '60s and into the '70s.
Sony TC800B is called model No.TC-4805,in Japan.the same design. The TC-4805 sold 1969,in Japan.Almost late model,pahaps last Reel To Reel handy model? I like this model because 4speeds-type,servo motor adjustable speed and,Hi-Fi,so useful. I have 4sets
Unfortunately that is not possible as I do not know the history of this machine or the tapes. It was given to me from someone that got it from someone else that bought it off ebay. For all you know the tape was copied to CD before the machine was sold. I always think that way that the tape would have been copied. I would never give away a tape with personal stuff on it myself. After I have archived, I wipe my old tapes before disposing of it and that is precisely why I wiped this one, and didn't post the entire tape as some were wishing I did. I wouldn't want any old tapes or me floating around on the net unless I posted them and I would be dam sure to edit out any identifying or private material before doing so. People trust me with their personal tapes, movie film and video recordings to archive to digital for them, and that means I wipe any backup files made on the computer as soon as the material is offloaded onto the customers media and they take possession of it.
Had the same feelings when I came across recordings of weddings and other life events. Some are probably dead but many just got separated from their owners. Nothing to be done in most cases but still a shame.
I figured out what i have here, Says 1965 Made in Japan for Concord electronics in California,seems this may have some history behind it, but i got it from the dump as some one dumped it off with alot of nice stuff and me and my dad went and picked alot of it up, got a lot of good stuff that day and the Recorder was in the box of stuff, worked fine, all it needed was fresh batteries. As it had the tape in it still.might have to listen to the tape that came with it ,as that may give clues to where it came from too, but these are interesting type recorders but as i say best for speech than music. On E-Bay they only run like $45.00 so probably not worth much. but its interesting as never seen one like it till we found this one.
I have a few working Reel to reel portables and one older tube one here too the portables i have from concord,similar to those small compacts one would see on the older police shows one i have is called a Concord sound camera, not sure of year, but i'm sure its an early unit Model is F-20,.. gonna look it up and see, it is best as voice recording though than music.,but it works good,rim drive type Reel to Reel .gonna see what the oldr ones are as soon as i clean my storage as they still in there, concord is in the apt with me as that i still use.
Most of Concord's catalog was made by Matsushita (Panasonic) but other makers slowly crept in. The Sound Camera was very popular and even was advertised in photographic magazines. The thought was that many photographers, especially those making movies would like to have sound of the event too.
I have a stack of recorded "letters home from Vietnam" from relatives on reel tape. So now I have the unenviable task of throwing them away or buying a reel-to-reel recorder. On Ebay, you just can't seem to tell if they're operational or not. No one has the ability to test them.
@@fododude That is what I do. I am kept constantly busy archiving various tape formats. That is one of the reasons I maintain my machines is i always have stuff to do. I archive on average 200 video tapes a month. I have all the formats. Audio 1/4" mono half track, stereo quarter and half track inline head, 8 track, cassette. R2R speeds 15/16 to 15ips. Video VHS Beta Video 8 Hi8 Digital 8 miniDV, HDV, 3/4" umatic.
I wish you had uploaded that tape's contents somewhere. It saddens me to hear what I would call a fascinating glimpse into the past being erased. I love watching and learning about old technology - particularly audio equipment - but I think the human interest and history aspect of old media is just as important as what that media was stored on etc. Thank you for your great channel.
For privacy reasons I could not upload the contents of this tape without permission, and I have no idea who this is.
But since we are hearing the recordings, privacy doesn't matter anymore.
Sony's are always great. This is an amazing model! even a pitch control.
Great video and nice Sony tape recorder too.
I have repaired many of these, great machines
"Kids singing, Wonderful ill have to erase this"
i just had to laugh :-D
Sounds great at the top two speeds, as i expected.
To protect whomever was on this tape's privacy I was obligated to wipe it.
Have a Good Christmas Dave!
The 800B is the Sony recorder that Richard Nixon used in the Whitehouse. He used it to record conversations in the Oval Office to use for future reference when he wrote his memoirs, didn’t work out so well for him.
prologue.blogs.archives.gov/reel-to-reel/
The UHER Universal machine was used by Rosemary Woods, Nixon’s secretary, to transcribe the tapes made on the 800B. The UHER was the one used to create the ominous “blank section” of tape that caused all the fuss. Experts proved that the erase bias signal was left by the UHER and not Nixon’s 800B, which led to the preposterous notion that Ms. Woods “accidentally” erased the tape on her UHER Universal by resting her foot on the remote switch while twisting her body the other way to answer the phone. This is all very well documented plus I lived through it and remember it clearly, not unlike the bullshit going on today.
@@mjg263 Yes, that is what the entry says. Just wanted to complete the collection. That recorder also appeared on the cover of Time magazine's report on the "missing time." There is also a photo of her desk with the Uher and her IBM typewriter next to each other and her reaching for the phone given as an illustration of how it could have happened.
I have a Sony 800B, plus the same model Uher Rosemary Woods had. I think it's a Universal 5000 - a heavy AC-only metal-cased recorder that takes up to 6-inch reels. I got the Sony at a Goodwill-store in the mid-80s for $5, and still use it regularly to check 3 and 5 inch tapes that I run across, either loose or on other recorders I pick up. The variable-speed also lets me play tapes from old rim-drive recorders. Finally, I use it to make 3-inch music demo-tapes for some of my better 3-inch machines. My Sony has a sticker on the bottom showing it was the property of RKO-WGMS radio - the local Washington DC classical music station. I recall seeing an 800B in an audio store in 1974. IIRC, the price was around $300!
@@sunbeam8866 yes, that price sounds about right. My 800B works marginally but I need to go through it and give it a good refresh. Rosemary Woods recorder was a UHER Universal but I don’t remember the model (5000 sounds right). I still remember the hilariously contorted pose she struck while trying to convince investigators that she left her foot on the control pedal for the UHER recorder while she swung around to answer the phone in an attempt to explain the infamous tape gap.
Another cool video of you. Nice one player.
I own this machine's predecessor. Not sure of the model number, it's in storage right now. Same basic design, but only external mike, and I have an external speed control which plugged into the side and 3 speeds. Also have a 12v adapter. We got ours around 1965 or 1966 to record live sound to add audio to dad's 8mm movies. I suspect yours is from the late 60's.
Whoever recorded those first couple of tapes didn't know how to use the mike. I have a lot of very high quality recordings. Going to dig the machine out in February to copy all my old tapes to digital. This was the first recorder on the market for consumers that used a speed feedback circuit to control speed. The advertisements my dad used to chose my machine indicated the motor had extra poles inside used to feedback to the electronics for speed regulation.
Frequency generator. Generates a tone that is compared to an external oscillator to generate an error voltage. Same thing used on vcrs to control capstan and drum speed.
How did the internal mic sound? most sound bad due to they pick up every noise the machine is making
Actually the sound on the fastest speed wasn't bad at all for that old recorder
All reel to reel recorders sound good on 7 1/2 or 15ips.
The last generation of open reel had very good sound on 3 3/4, especially the cross field head units.
Impressive quality recorder !
Too bad not stereo.
7.5ips was the start of decent quality for tapes.
lol you should have taken that and transferred that to MP3. that would have sounded cool and depending on the school or individual that taped it, u could return it on CD to them and they'd be shocked that you could restore such an old recording lol.
I found Montgomery Ward 5" feel to feel tape recorder a few months back and I haven't done anything with it yet but t was $1. It is really good condition for it age and did come with a tape and the original mic. I will soon try it out and see what it needs to be fixed.
I have had several of their Airline models (made by Sharp) and they were decent if not spectacular. I currently have a couple of nearly identical VM units also made by Sharp.
They also sold other brands in those days, including Mayfair. In 1964 they sold a Mayfair portable with 7.5 and 3.75 speeds. It was made by JVC (some early versions used the Japanese NVS logo - Nippon Victor Seiki) and it was the worst-performing recorder I have ever seen.
I called this the Watergate tape recorder. This was the same tape recorder that president Richard Nixon was used back in the 1970’s.
Correct
The model 800b was made famous by President Richard Nixon. He recorded all his conversations with this deck. Over two years of every conversation. Because he chose not to destroy the tapes, he felt he would loose the impeachment trials so he resigned. Very trippy history.
I remember the political cartoons of nixon with a reel of tape shoveling it into his mouth like speghetti.
@@12voltvids If had destroyed those tape and pardoned the acused he would have served out his second term. For some reason, he never did.
I didn't know you were so famous.surprise
have you ever had to repair an electronic where the controls broke and fell inside?
Do they still make the tape used for those machines?
Yes, ATR and Recording the Masters still produce several types of reel to reel tapes, as well as cassettes.
Great. Where did you get your belts please? I can only seem to find ones for the TC800. Are these the same please? Cheers
Shop died. Seriously . Well the owner did and his son didn't want to continue the business so he pulled the plug.
Find 'Turntable Needles' in Oregon, online. I just got a large belt for a 1951 Eicor reel machine, for $11, with free shipping.
Here in the States, people would put their driver's license number on equipment.
Would never do that either. A criminal could use that info to steal identity. I also don't share my cell phone number with anyone. I don't use messaging apps that are linked to cell phone. The only one I use is BBM enterprise as it is not linked to the SIM or phone number. On my cell I have a disposable IP phone number along with the real number. About 10 people know my real number, everyone else only knows my magicjack or fongo number and I can shut those off in an instant.
Goodday to you sir.Been a suscriber for a few years now.Just aquired one of these great machines that runs we but I dont have a power cord so running on batteries.The socket for the power cord is unusual as it contains four pins.Have you any idea what two pins are the mains voltage. In my case 220v.Dont want to blow it up.Your help will be greatly appreciated.John in Yorkshire England.
The upper two pins - the pair closest together are for the "mains" - AC voltage. The lower two are for an optional 12 volt car cigarette-lighter power cord. The same power-cords were used on Sony's small B&W transistor televisions throughout the '60s and into the '70s.
Sony TC800B is called model No.TC-4805,in Japan.the same design.
The TC-4805 sold 1969,in Japan.Almost late model,pahaps last Reel To Reel handy model?
I like this model because 4speeds-type,servo motor adjustable speed and,Hi-Fi,so useful.
I have 4sets
日本からでした（笑）
This was the infamous Pr "Tricky Dick" Nixon WATERGATE recorder.
ua-cam.com/video/o23Sh8rwxTE/v-deo.html
I always feel a little bad when I erase family memories on tape. I wish somehow I could find out who they are and send them a copy on cd.
Unfortunately that is not possible as I do not know the history of this machine or the tapes. It was given to me from someone that got it from someone else that bought it off ebay. For all you know the tape was copied to CD before the machine was sold. I always think that way that the tape would have been copied. I would never give away a tape with personal stuff on it myself. After I have archived, I wipe my old tapes before disposing of it and that is precisely why I wiped this one, and didn't post the entire tape as some were wishing I did. I wouldn't want any old tapes or me floating around on the net unless I posted them and I would be dam sure to edit out any identifying or private material before doing so. People trust me with their personal tapes, movie film and video recordings to archive to digital for them, and that means I wipe any backup files made on the computer as soon as the material is offloaded onto the customers media and they take possession of it.
Had the same feelings when I came across recordings of weddings and other life events. Some are probably dead but many just got separated from their owners. Nothing to be done in most cases but still a shame.
29:50 what is that song?
I figured out what i have here, Says 1965 Made in Japan for Concord electronics in California,seems this may have some history behind it, but i got it from the dump as some one dumped it off with alot of nice stuff and me and my dad went and picked alot of it up, got a lot of good stuff that day and the Recorder was in the box of stuff, worked fine, all it needed was fresh batteries. As it had the tape in it still.might have to listen to the tape that came with it ,as that may give clues to where it came from too, but these are interesting type recorders but as i say best for speech than music.
On E-Bay they only run like $45.00 so probably not worth much. but its interesting as never seen one like it till we found this one.
Concord electronics?,Matsushita Electric(Panasonic)made perhaps.
If you actually sell this, how much do you want for it? But I would have it shipped to me.
I have a few working Reel to reel portables and one older tube one here too the portables i have from concord,similar to those small compacts one would see on the older police shows one i have is called a Concord sound camera, not sure of year, but i'm sure its an early unit Model is F-20,.. gonna look it up and see, it is best as voice recording though than music.,but it works good,rim drive type Reel to Reel .gonna see what the oldr ones are as soon as i clean my storage as they still in there, concord is in the apt with me as that i still use.
Most of Concord's catalog was made by Matsushita (Panasonic) but other makers slowly crept in.
The Sound Camera was very popular and even was advertised in photographic magazines. The thought was that many photographers, especially those making movies would like to have sound of the event too.
I have a stack of recorded "letters home from Vietnam" from relatives on reel tape. So now I have the unenviable task of throwing them away or buying a reel-to-reel recorder. On Ebay, you just can't seem to tell if they're operational or not. No one has the ability to test them.
Or send them to be archived to digital.
@@12voltvids Wow. Great idea! Thank you.
@@fododude
That is what I do. I am kept constantly busy archiving various tape formats. That is one of the reasons I maintain my machines is i always have stuff to do. I archive on average 200 video tapes a month. I have all the formats. Audio 1/4" mono half track, stereo quarter and half track inline head, 8 track, cassette. R2R speeds 15/16 to 15ips. Video VHS Beta Video 8 Hi8 Digital 8 miniDV, HDV, 3/4" umatic.
Best thing about this is its direct drive capstan. Everything's better with direct drive.
Would be nice if it was stereo.
@@12voltvids - Definitely.
What is 'eletret'?
A type of microphone, called an electret condenser microphone, and used for the built-in mikes on most recorders.
@@sunbeam8866 Thank you.