| The
2" Quad format was the first successful videotape format. By 1956 the
format was being used for television broadcasts. The machine used a headwheel
with four heads, which gave it the name "Quadraplex" or "Quad".
It rotated at 14,400 rpm or 240 times a second, scanning transversely across
2-inch-wide tape. In order to spin this fast, the headwheel was floated
on air bearings using an air compressor. "High band" recorders
were introduced in 1964 by Ampex, offering a greater frequency response
and a better signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). This allowed several generations
of duplications to be made without a discernible loss of quality. Super
highband was introduced by Ampex and RCA in 1972. The 2" Quad format
was widely used within the industry into the 1980s. |
