Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum

Richard_FM · 14th Jul 2018, 5:57 pm

I was wondering what was the last colour TV sold in Western Europe with a rotary tuner, especially sets with a screen 16" or more.

Sony were using them into the mid 1970s on the KV series, but by the 1980s they only seemed to be common on portables, & even some small B&W sets had push button selectors by them.

I mentioned Western Europe as American market sets seemed to have them well into the 1980s, & I wouldn't be surprised if some from East Europe still used rotary tuners quite late on.

Nuvistor · 14th Jul 2018, 6:17 pm

Are looking for sets with rotary VHF tuners as well as UHF tuners?

G6Tanuki · 14th Jul 2018, 6:29 pm

They seemed to persist longest in either the small Sony/Sanyo/Panasonic TVs (which were generally OK), or some of the Eastern European budget imports, which appeared under a proliferation of now-forgotten brands but where popular as bedroom/kitchen-sets or as 'monitors' for the Sinclair ZX80/81/C64 generation.

I always refused to touch these things even if the fault seemed obvious.

Richard_FM · 14th Jul 2018, 9:25 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nuvistor

Are looking for sets with rotary VHF tuners as well as UHF tuners?

I was mostly thinking of UHF rotary tuners, but the ones with a rotary VHF tuner & UHF selection buttons are interesting, as are the sets with an obviously blanked off space for a VHF tuner.

Richard_FM · 14th Jul 2018, 9:30 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by G6Tanuki

They seemed to persist longest in either the small Sony/Sanyo/Panasonic TVs (which were generally OK), or some of the Eastern European budget imports, which appeared under a proliferation of now-forgotten brands but where popular as bedroom/kitchen-sets or as 'monitors' for the Sinclair ZX80/81/C64 generation.

I always refused to touch these things even if the fault seemed obvious.

I was wondering if the likes of Cap10 & Prinztronic had made colour sets, as their larger B&W ones had rotary tuners well into the 1980s.

Nuvistor · 14th Jul 2018, 9:41 pm

The only colour TV’s I can remember with a rotary UHF tuner are much earlier, 1967, so not a lot of use to you. These were both Dual Standard CTV’s, one a Baird the other a Ferranti. The Ferranti although rotary was a six position VHF/UHF tuner.

Other than those the only UHF rotary tuners were on BW portable sets.

Something in the back of my mind thinks there may have been a very early 70’s small screen Toshiba CTV with a six position UHF rotary tuner but I cannot be certain.

Anything later I saw were pushbutton on touch selectors.

Red to black · 14th Jul 2018, 10:24 pm

There was also a Philips NC3 colour portable with a rotary channel switch (actually a multi-turn pot), although not the tuner directly per se in the very late 80's

AJSmith625 · 14th Jul 2018, 10:34 pm

Hitachi CSP-680 which if I remember correctly was a 16 inch from the early 1970s. It had a 6 or 8 position rotary switch UHF tuner with tuning knob around the outside. See-
https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/hitachi_csp_680csp68.html

Alan

Pieter H · 14th Jul 2018, 10:44 pm

Philips introduced its last standard VHF valve-based rotary tuner AT7650 (PC900-PCF801) in 1966 models, together with the UHF transistor-based rotary tuner AT6381. All CTV chassis from 1967 introduced the push button channel selection and pre-set mechanism, with the exception of the French TVC3 that started with separate rotary VHF and UHF tuners. In fact I think the introduction of the push button tuners was a key element of the CTV introduction, since some form of consumer convenience needed to compensate for the very high introduction prices of colour TV. At least Philips considered the rotary tuner as outdated and not to be used in combination with CTV.

The rotary tuners continued for a while in transistorized form (the VHF AT7652) but only in 11" portable models and an occasional 19". By say 1968 all Philips TV's, with exception of the odd old model still in production, had converted to the push buttons.

So to answer the first question: there have not been Philips CTV's with rotary tuners. For much more details see here.

Cheers, Pieter

Richard_FM · 15th Jul 2018, 12:01 am

Thanks for the feedback so far:

The Sony KV1800 is a good example of what I'm looking for.

I'm guessing rotary tuners stopped being used on larger TVs as they tended to be used as a main set & might need the channel to be changed a few times during a busy evening. A little bit more fiddly than just pressing a pre-set!

Nuvistor · 15th Jul 2018, 12:09 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by AJSmith625

Hitachi CSP-680 which if I remember correctly was a 16 inch from the early 1970s. It had a 6 or 8 position rotary switch UHF tuner with tuning knob around the outside. See-
https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/hitachi_csp_680csp68.html

Probably the Hitachi rather than Toshiba I was thinking of, we sold both makes.

G8KBG Tony · 15th Jul 2018, 12:13 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nuvistor

Other than those the only UHF rotary tuners were on BW portable sets.

The ITT (KB) CVC1 had a rotary UHF tuner.

Nuvistor · 15th Jul 2018, 8:09 am

Quote:

The ITT (KB) CVC1 had a rotary UHF tuner.

Heatercathodeshort · 15th Jul 2018, 10:04 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nuvistor

Something in the back of my mind thinks there may have been a very early 70’s small screen Toshiba CTV with a six position UHF rotary tuner but I cannot be certain.

The first Toshiba colour TV released in the UK was the C81B 18". Rotary UHF tuner as you describe. Sold quite a few with only one fault. Dry joint print links, easily dealt with. The following release, the C800B had a touch tuner. J.

Nuvistor · 15th Jul 2018, 11:11 am

Thanks John, so much of the trade is a distant memory for me these days.

chriswood1900 · 15th Jul 2018, 11:23 am

The last ones that I remember in the UK were as mentioned earlier the Sony ones, but also the early Baird CTV M701/2 had them. Rotary Tuners continued much longer in countries like the US as late as the mid 80s where 4 or 6 channels were not enough. An example would be Panasonic 1984 Color Portable CT-3003.
Chris

EdWilliams · 15th Jul 2018, 12:08 pm

My parents rented their first colour TV in the early 1970s, a JVC model, which had a rotary tuner. It's the one described in this link:

https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...ad.php?t=97284

For the ten or so years they had it it was utterly reliable; in the end it was returned after my father worked out how much he had paid out over the years. I rember he tried offering the shop a nominal sum to buy it outright but they were having none of it.

Ed

electronicskip · 15th Jul 2018, 1:10 pm

JVC Pilot had a rotary tuner, I think the screen size was 20"
I think its the one described above, we rented them out in the 70s and early 80s as decontrolled sets.
We also used to flog them off for £99 with 3 months guarantee or sell an extended one.

Richard_FM · 15th Jul 2018, 1:24 pm

I presume decontrolled means something different to not having a remote control

Nuvistor · 15th Jul 2018, 1:31 pm

Decontrolled, no deposit rental TV’s. Sets under 3 years old*, had to have a deposit of a percentage of the selling price or so many months rental in advance.
Decontrolled sets older than this we not covered by the regulation and very often only 1 months deposit was required.

I think I have the age correct.

14th Jul 2018, 5:57 pm	#1
Richard_FM Nonode Join Date: Sep 2017 Location: Stockport, Cheshire, UK. Posts: 2,002	Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner I was wondering what was the last colour TV sold in Western Europe with a rotary tuner, especially sets with a screen 16" or more. Sony were using them into the mid 1970s on the KV series, but by the 1980s they only seemed to be common on portables, & even some small B&W sets had push button selectors by them. I mentioned Western Europe as American market sets seemed to have them well into the 1980s, & I wouldn't be surprised if some from East Europe still used rotary tuners quite late on.

14th Jul 2018, 6:17 pm	#2
Nuvistor Dekatron Join Date: Aug 2013 Location: Wigan, Greater Manchester, UK. Posts: 9,433	Re: Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner Are looking for sets with rotary VHF tuners as well as UHF tuners? __________________ Frank

14th Jul 2018, 6:29 pm	#3
G6Tanuki Dekatron Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Wiltshire, UK. Posts: 13,998	Re: Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner They seemed to persist longest in either the small Sony/Sanyo/Panasonic TVs (which were generally OK), or some of the Eastern European budget imports, which appeared under a proliferation of now-forgotten brands but where popular as bedroom/kitchen-sets or as 'monitors' for the Sinclair ZX80/81/C64 generation. I always refused to touch these things even if the fault seemed obvious.

14th Jul 2018, 9:41 pm	#6
Nuvistor Dekatron Join Date: Aug 2013 Location: Wigan, Greater Manchester, UK. Posts: 9,433	Re: Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner The only colour TV’s I can remember with a rotary UHF tuner are much earlier, 1967, so not a lot of use to you. These were both Dual Standard CTV’s, one a Baird the other a Ferranti. The Ferranti although rotary was a six position VHF/UHF tuner. Other than those the only UHF rotary tuners were on BW portable sets. Something in the back of my mind thinks there may have been a very early 70’s small screen Toshiba CTV with a six position UHF rotary tuner but I cannot be certain. Anything later I saw were pushbutton on touch selectors. __________________ Frank

14th Jul 2018, 10:24 pm	#7
Red to black Nonode Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, UK. Posts: 2,475	Re: Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner There was also a Philips NC3 colour portable with a rotary channel switch (actually a multi-turn pot), although not the tuner directly per se in the very late 80's __________________ I don't suffer from Insanity. I enjoy every minute of it. Last edited by Red to black; 14th Jul 2018 at 10:46 pm.

14th Jul 2018, 10:34 pm	#8
AJSmith625 Pentode Join Date: Nov 2017 Location: Birmingham, West Midlands, UK. Posts: 171	Re: Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner Hitachi CSP-680 which if I remember correctly was a 16 inch from the early 1970s. It had a 6 or 8 position rotary switch UHF tuner with tuning knob around the outside. See- https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/hitachi_csp_680csp68.html Alan

14th Jul 2018, 10:44 pm	#9
Pieter H Tetrode Join Date: Sep 2017 Location: Waalre, Netherlands Posts: 67	Re: Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner Philips introduced its last standard VHF valve-based rotary tuner AT7650 (PC900-PCF801) in 1966 models, together with the UHF transistor-based rotary tuner AT6381. All CTV chassis from 1967 introduced the push button channel selection and pre-set mechanism, with the exception of the French TVC3 that started with separate rotary VHF and UHF tuners. In fact I think the introduction of the push button tuners was a key element of the CTV introduction, since some form of consumer convenience needed to compensate for the very high introduction prices of colour TV. At least Philips considered the rotary tuner as outdated and not to be used in combination with CTV. The rotary tuners continued for a while in transistorized form (the VHF AT7652) but only in 11" portable models and an occasional 19". By say 1968 all Philips TV's, with exception of the odd old model still in production, had converted to the push buttons. So to answer the first question: there have not been Philips CTV's with rotary tuners. For much more details see here. Cheers, Pieter

15th Jul 2018, 12:01 am	#10
Richard_FM Nonode Join Date: Sep 2017 Location: Stockport, Cheshire, UK. Posts: 2,002	Re: Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner Thanks for the feedback so far: The Sony KV1800 is a good example of what I'm looking for. I'm guessing rotary tuners stopped being used on larger TVs as they tended to be used as a main set & might need the channel to be changed a few times during a busy evening. A little bit more fiddly than just pressing a pre-set! Attached Thumbnails

15th Jul 2018, 11:11 am	#15
Nuvistor Dekatron Join Date: Aug 2013 Location: Wigan, Greater Manchester, UK. Posts: 9,433	Re: Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner Thanks John, so much of the trade is a distant memory for me these days. __________________ Frank

15th Jul 2018, 11:23 am	#16
chriswood1900 Octode Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Dorridge, West Midlands, UK. Posts: 1,483	Re: Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner The last ones that I remember in the UK were as mentioned earlier the Sony ones, but also the early Baird CTV M701/2 had them. Rotary Tuners continued much longer in countries like the US as late as the mid 80s where 4 or 6 channels were not enough. An example would be Panasonic 1984 Color Portable CT-3003. Chris

15th Jul 2018, 12:08 pm	#17
EdWilliams Triode Join Date: Jan 2017 Location: Hampshire, UK. Posts: 24	Re: Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner My parents rented their first colour TV in the early 1970s, a JVC model, which had a rotary tuner. It's the one described in this link: https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...ad.php?t=97284 For the ten or so years they had it it was utterly reliable; in the end it was returned after my father worked out how much he had paid out over the years. I rember he tried offering the shop a nominal sum to buy it outright but they were having none of it. Ed

15th Jul 2018, 1:10 pm	#18
electronicskip Nonode Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Gloucester, Glos. UK. Posts: 2,150	Re: Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner JVC Pilot had a rotary tuner, I think the screen size was 20" I think its the one described above, we rented them out in the 70s and early 80s as decontrolled sets. We also used to flog them off for £99 with 3 months guarantee or sell an extended one.

15th Jul 2018, 1:24 pm	#19
Richard_FM Nonode Join Date: Sep 2017 Location: Stockport, Cheshire, UK. Posts: 2,002	Re: Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner I presume decontrolled means something different to not having a remote control

15th Jul 2018, 1:31 pm	#20
Nuvistor Dekatron Join Date: Aug 2013 Location: Wigan, Greater Manchester, UK. Posts: 9,433	Re: Last Colour Sets with Rotary Tuner Decontrolled, no deposit rental TV’s. Sets under 3 years old*, had to have a deposit of a percentage of the selling price or so many months rental in advance. Decontrolled sets older than this we not covered by the regulation and very often only 1 months deposit was required. I think I have the age correct. __________________ Frank