The
Quote:
Originally Posted by zeno
If you just decide to get an other RCA of this vintage add the CTC169 to your list. Its the top of line at the time & IMHO the best RCA ever built. I loved
working on them cause they always came out so good.
73 Zeno 
LFOD ! |
Here's a true (and truly boring) story:
Back in 1991, the 169 was first introduced as a high end chassis in the 31" and 35" table and console models. These chassis featured Invar mask CRTs, twin focus, digital pix in pix, and a digital comb filter.
I sold three of these and hated the picture. It's hard to describe but they just had a "dirty" picture to them. One of my customers constantly complained about it and I made several house calls (he was close to my store) and I adjusted the two focus controls and set the customer adjustments best I could. I blamed it on the "blown up" picture on the big 35" tube.
Next year, RCA changed the chassis a bit (there's probably two dozen variants of the 169) the picture on these were drop dead gorgeous. Smooth video very well detailed. No hard edges, no ringing - just sharp detail and smooth as well. I ordered two more, and brought one home and gave the other to my dad.
I pulled the schematics and noticed that RCA had replaced the digital comb filter sub board for an analogue one. About this time my customer with the 1991 called again and this time I called RCA about procuring a 1992 169 chassis to swap into my customer's TV - no dice.
I had my customer call RCA customer relations and RCA called me back. I explained what happened and how this guy called at least half a dozen times, and I never billed RCA for the calls because there was nothing wrong. RCA ended up having me field-scrap the whole TV, and they shipped a 1992 model in it's stead. I had to send the chassis back to RCA along with the model/serial tag cut off the back cover.
My customer loved the new model. My point of is that anyone looking to get a 169 must watch out for that first year.
Some more boring stuff:
About 5 years later I pulled a 169 in for repair that had the original digital comb filter, and I had a later 169 scrap chassis. I ended up swapping in the analogue comb filter for the original digital, but this was a bigger project than I thought. There were probably 10 or more SMD parts that had to be added or removed on the main board to get the comb filter sub board to work, but the picture was great when I finished.
Lastly, I took the original TV that RCA had me field scrap home to store in my basement. I figured I'd run into a chassis someday and have a perfect low hour (8 months) CRT in a beautiful oak cabinet, or use the tube if my 35 upstairs ever got weak. It did finally get weak, but but the time my original 35 tube went bad, we were into the flat screen era, so I never moved the chassis to the console.
So, if anyone in the Connecticut area wants a mint 35" Invar dual focus tube with the bonded yoke, you're welcome to come get it.
John