All that glitters..ULTRA 17-70 - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum

Heatercathodeshort · 23rd Jun 2006, 9:02 am

Having a workshop tidy up I discovered this little ULTRA 17-70 hiding under the deep workbench. I have had it in my possession for very many years, but never managed to gain enough enthusiasm to have a go at it.

It was one of the last true Ultra receivers made in quantity before the disastrous downturn in business that saw the end of many famous makers during 1960/61.

It was Ultra's first 110 degree set, released in 1959 with an almost identical circuit to the earlier 90 degree chassis (the 17-53 series). The set had a completely different layout to accommodate the slim 17" Mazda CME1703 tube.
This 'wrap round' chassis let the set down in many ways and led to problems with heat, mainly in the frame output stage. It was frustrating to trace components, as they were dotted about in unnaccessible positions.

The circuit has some odd trends for the day including a volume control that operated on the sound I.F. valve rather than the usual audio amplifier (which on this set is the pentode section of a 30FL1). This just about provides enough 'sound' for a moderate living room.

The I.F. panel has a retaining screw at the top, and can be swung open for service. What a pity they did not do that with the frame output stage which is mounted on the top rail to the right above the line output stage and adjoining the huge mains dropper.....

The 30PL13 oscillator and output valve is inverted and the components are mounted both on top, and underneath, the plate connected through with pins pressed into PVC bushes.

The line oscillator valve is the triode section of the 30FL1 and this is the only set I can recall that has this arrangement with a 'double' valve.

On removing the back I was presented with an exploded frame bias capacitor and a mess of melted 'waxies'.
I removed the chassis and after replacing the frame capacitors, buffer cap, all resistors over 100k, the line timebase capacitors, the 30PL13, mains dropper, AGC clamp diode, and an o/c vision detector diode. I managed to get a fair picture.....

I serviced many of these sets in London during the mid 60's and had a love-hate relationship with them. I just had to prove I could still get a picture on one in less than two hours and I won!

When working correctly they gave a good picture and were well liked by the public due to their trendy styling and compact presentation but like most pretty things tended to come with a high maintenance tag....

The ULTRA companies' swansong was the very popular 'Bermuda' series that reflected the contemporary styling of the period. They were a much improved layout and sold well. Some models had a motor tuner a bit like a telephone dial and I still have a small aluminium coupling that used to fracture between the motor and the stiff turret tuner.

Ultra, one of radio's pioneers were taken over by THORN in 1961 and fitted with Thorn chassis from then on.
The pictures show the rear view of the chassis, the inverted frame output stage and the not-too-linear crosshatch!

Regards John.

ppppenguin · 23rd Jun 2006, 9:14 am

Looking at the 2nd picture it's difficult to say which way is up! I suppose they could have mounted some of the components at odd angles too.

The linearity may be poor but you must have ages getting the convergence that good

Seriously, what inspires the designers to do things in such a strange, almost perverse way? We all know that Philips radios were often rather unorthodox. Is it pressure from the bean counters? Trying to be clever and squeezing it into an ever smaller box? Pretending that it doesn't really get that hot?

FERNSEH · 23rd Jun 2006, 4:46 pm

I do remember the Ultra V17-70 was a truly horrid set. As HKshort says the circuit was almost identical to the V17-53 and V17-63 models.

It is obvious that the sales department wanted a slim compact set to compete with the offerings from other manufacturers.

Actually the 1958 V17-63 was a compact receiver, although the depth of the cabinet was dictated by the 90 degree CRT, the Mazda short neck CME1702.

Things did get better with the Bermuda series of 1960. Starting with the V1780 and followed in December 1960 with the V1980, the first TV set in the UK to employ the 19" "square corner tube" . The 114 degree 19" CRT was the Mazda CME1901.

DFWB.

Heatercathodeshort · 10th Jul 2006, 9:52 pm

Hello,
A final spurt of enthuiasm this evening has produced quite a decent picture on the screen of the ULTRA 17-70/72.
I had managed to put a feedback capacitor on the wrong tag and ended up with too much height.....This was soon corrected and a stable correct size picture has resulted.
The pictures are via 405 tapes [Rawhide on two shots] recorded in the late 1970's played back on a Ferguson [JVC] video recorder model 3V29 and a David Looser modulator.
Glitters..well no but maybe just a glint...Regards John.

23rd Jun 2006, 9:02 am	#1
Heatercathodeshort Dekatron Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Warnham, West Sussex. 10 miles south of DORKING. Posts: 9,147	All that glitters..ULTRA 17-70 Having a workshop tidy up I discovered this little ULTRA 17-70 hiding under the deep workbench. I have had it in my possession for very many years, but never managed to gain enough enthusiasm to have a go at it. It was one of the last true Ultra receivers made in quantity before the disastrous downturn in business that saw the end of many famous makers during 1960/61. It was Ultra's first 110 degree set, released in 1959 with an almost identical circuit to the earlier 90 degree chassis (the 17-53 series). The set had a completely different layout to accommodate the slim 17" Mazda CME1703 tube. This 'wrap round' chassis let the set down in many ways and led to problems with heat, mainly in the frame output stage. It was frustrating to trace components, as they were dotted about in unnaccessible positions. The circuit has some odd trends for the day including a volume control that operated on the sound I.F. valve rather than the usual audio amplifier (which on this set is the pentode section of a 30FL1). This just about provides enough 'sound' for a moderate living room. The I.F. panel has a retaining screw at the top, and can be swung open for service. What a pity they did not do that with the frame output stage which is mounted on the top rail to the right above the line output stage and adjoining the huge mains dropper..... The 30PL13 oscillator and output valve is inverted and the components are mounted both on top, and underneath, the plate connected through with pins pressed into PVC bushes. The line oscillator valve is the triode section of the 30FL1 and this is the only set I can recall that has this arrangement with a 'double' valve. On removing the back I was presented with an exploded frame bias capacitor and a mess of melted 'waxies'. I removed the chassis and after replacing the frame capacitors, buffer cap, all resistors over 100k, the line timebase capacitors, the 30PL13, mains dropper, AGC clamp diode, and an o/c vision detector diode. I managed to get a fair picture..... I serviced many of these sets in London during the mid 60's and had a love-hate relationship with them. I just had to prove I could still get a picture on one in less than two hours and I won! When working correctly they gave a good picture and were well liked by the public due to their trendy styling and compact presentation but like most pretty things tended to come with a high maintenance tag.... The ULTRA companies' swansong was the very popular 'Bermuda' series that reflected the contemporary styling of the period. They were a much improved layout and sold well. Some models had a motor tuner a bit like a telephone dial and I still have a small aluminium coupling that used to fracture between the motor and the stiff turret tuner. Ultra, one of radio's pioneers were taken over by THORN in 1961 and fitted with Thorn chassis from then on. The pictures show the rear view of the chassis, the inverted frame output stage and the not-too-linear crosshatch! Regards John. Attached Thumbnails

23rd Jun 2006, 9:14 am	#2
ppppenguin Retired Dormant Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: North London, UK. Posts: 6,168	Re: All that glitters..ULTRA 17-70 Looking at the 2nd picture it's difficult to say which way is up! I suppose they could have mounted some of the components at odd angles too. The linearity may be poor but you must have ages getting the convergence that good Seriously, what inspires the designers to do things in such a strange, almost perverse way? We all know that Philips radios were often rather unorthodox. Is it pressure from the bean counters? Trying to be clever and squeezing it into an ever smaller box? Pretending that it doesn't really get that hot?

23rd Jun 2006, 4:46 pm	#3
FERNSEH Dekatron Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, UK. Posts: 7,444	Re: All that glitters..ULTRA 17-70 I do remember the Ultra V17-70 was a truly horrid set. As HKshort says the circuit was almost identical to the V17-53 and V17-63 models. It is obvious that the sales department wanted a slim compact set to compete with the offerings from other manufacturers. Actually the 1958 V17-63 was a compact receiver, although the depth of the cabinet was dictated by the 90 degree CRT, the Mazda short neck CME1702. Things did get better with the Bermuda series of 1960. Starting with the V1780 and followed in December 1960 with the V1980, the first TV set in the UK to employ the 19" "square corner tube" . The 114 degree 19" CRT was the Mazda CME1901. DFWB.

10th Jul 2006, 9:52 pm	#4
Heatercathodeshort Dekatron Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Warnham, West Sussex. 10 miles south of DORKING. Posts: 9,147	Re: All that glitters..ULTRA 17-70 Hello, A final spurt of enthuiasm this evening has produced quite a decent picture on the screen of the ULTRA 17-70/72. I had managed to put a feedback capacitor on the wrong tag and ended up with too much height.....This was soon corrected and a stable correct size picture has resulted. The pictures are via 405 tapes [Rawhide on two shots] recorded in the late 1970's played back on a Ferguson [JVC] video recorder model 3V29 and a David Looser modulator. Glitters..well no but maybe just a glint...Regards John. Attached Thumbnails