The Queen's Christmas Message. GEC 2028. - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum

FERNSEH · 25th Dec 2017, 5:11 pm

Here are the pictures taken from the screen of the GEC 2028 colour TV set.
This set is now fifty years old, built August 1967.
The Queen's Christmas Message 25-12-2017.

DFWB.

kalee20 · 25th Dec 2017, 5:18 pm

What we need is for a member to say they still have the set which they saw her first televised message on, the excerpt she showed this afternoon!

FERNSEH · 25th Dec 2017, 5:29 pm

This picture was taken from a rather aged Kodak camera.

DFWB.

Dave Moll · 25th Dec 2017, 7:37 pm

I can't claim to have seen the broadcast on the set I have (Regentone TR20), but the broadcast very probably was watched on it - by my grandparents, whose set it was then.

System A · 25th Dec 2017, 10:41 pm

Hi David
What a good picture, the colours are always nice and rich on these CDA sets.
Regards.
Gary.

regentone001 · 25th Dec 2017, 11:13 pm

watched it on a Regentone Ten-17 from 1959

Philips210 · 26th Dec 2017, 12:08 am

Great pics David. The GEC 2028 was one of my favourite d/s colour sets, not an over complicated set, but gave a very decent quality picture on the Mullard 'Panorama' CRTs.

Regards
Symon

FERNSEH · 26th Dec 2017, 1:44 am

Hi Symon, Of course the GEC 2028 was really a product of the original Sobell design team, in fact a Sobell 1028 was available. Also, I'm sure the set was available as the Masteradio 4028, had to mention that. Also supplied to Radio Rentals as the model 705.

DFWB.

raditechman · 26th Dec 2017, 8:17 am

The GEC's that I remember had a red colour beacon light which came on during a colour transmission. I cannot see it in the photos, was it too dim to see or has the lamp failed?

John

Focus Diode · 26th Dec 2017, 10:16 am

It's not uncommon for the feed resistor to the colour beacon to be the wrong value. I seem to recall it's 390R situated close to the LT bridge rectifier. Sometimes they are very dim, other times they don't light up at all. I once found a 3K9 resistor in that position. It looked original suggesting the beacon never worked!

It's a useful feature as it won't light up in the event of a decoder fault or maladjustment. If a fault on the CDA side occurs resulting in a black and white picture the beacon will illuminate.

These are the best of the dual std colour receivers, being the first hybrid model to employ a tripler in place of the often troublesome shunt stabiliser/EHT rectifier and overwind arrangement. Pictures are superb too. The LOPT has been known to fail but is a lot more reliable than some other sets from the era I could mention.

Over on the VRAT forum a 25" 2030 has turned up. The set actually worked without work done to it but suffers from poor frame sync (a common fault) and bad convergence.

wd40addict · 26th Dec 2017, 11:13 am

This looks like the set my parents rented as soon as colour came out, or maybe slightly before! It was rented from 'good listening', a rental company you never hear about, but the name suggests they started in radio.

I was fascinated by the glowing things in the back (and still am!). I'd get a better view every few months as it needed pretty regular maintenance. I used to have a 'Man from uncle' toy car which fired a plastic orange missile from under its bonnet. One day I fired the missile and couldn't find it. A few months later the TV engineer produced it from the back of the set and said 'is this yours?'!

When I was about 11 my parents let me stay home and watch kids TV whilst they went shopping. Halfway through a 'Rowntree's fruit pastel' advert the picture disappeared! I switched off quickly, when my dad returned he turned the set back on and there was a big bang and a load of smoke! Presumably a capacitor had failed.

Finally in 1977 the picture went green and my parents replaced it with a Pye set bought from Currys. The rental company implored us to rent again, but actually disappeared soon after. I think Joe public had decided that TVs were now reliable enough to buy

FERNSEH · 26th Dec 2017, 12:11 pm

wd40addict wrote: "This looks like the set my parents rented as soon as colour came out, or maybe slightly before! It was rented from 'good listening', a rental company you never hear about, but the name suggests they started in radio."
From post #40 the topic "What happened to DER?" https://vintage-radio.net/forum/show...t=10070&page=2 MarconiMPT4 wrote: "Not many remember Good Listening and I have difficulty remembering it now. In size it was nothing like DER or RR but had 250 branches across the UK. Originally formed c.1944/1946 renting radio sets and later TV, it was acquired by Rediffusion in around 1978 and there were plans to keep Central Works in Wallisdown Bournemouth going refurbishing rental sets etc."

In 1967 the GEC 2028 was the only 19" colour TV set available and was a clever piece of marketing by GEC Radio and Television Ltd. Retailing at £259 it undercut the opposition by a wide margin.

DFWB.

Andy Green · 3rd Jan 2018, 10:01 pm

I remember our next door neighbour had one, I was aged about 7and I was always trying to get my parents to get a colour set but to no avail for about 5 years when they eventually got a Mitsubishi which was one of the last of the triad tube sets, I preferred the picture on a well aligned one to the up and coming PIL tubed sets

25th Dec 2017, 5:11 pm	#1
FERNSEH Dekatron Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, UK. Posts: 7,444	The Queen's Christmas Message. GEC 2028. Here are the pictures taken from the screen of the GEC 2028 colour TV set. This set is now fifty years old, built August 1967. The Queen's Christmas Message 25-12-2017. DFWB. Attached Thumbnails

25th Dec 2017, 5:18 pm	#2
kalee20 Dekatron Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Lynton, N. Devon, UK. Posts: 7,088	Re: The Queen's Christmas Message. GEC 2028. What we need is for a member to say they still have the set which they saw her first televised message on, the excerpt she showed this afternoon!

25th Dec 2017, 5:29 pm	#3
FERNSEH Dekatron Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, UK. Posts: 7,444	Re: The Queen's Christmas Message. GEC 2028. This picture was taken from a rather aged Kodak camera. DFWB. Attached Thumbnails

25th Dec 2017, 10:41 pm	#5
System A Pentode Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: County Durham, UK. Posts: 234	Re: The Queen's Christmas Message. GEC 2028. Hi David What a good picture, the colours are always nice and rich on these CDA sets. Regards. Gary.

25th Dec 2017, 11:13 pm	#6
regentone001 Heptode Join Date: Sep 2014 Location: Coventry, West Midlands, UK. Posts: 519	Re: The Queen's Christmas Message. GEC 2028. watched it on a Regentone Ten-17 from 1959

25th Dec 2017, 7:37 pm	#4
Dave Moll Dekatron Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: West Cumbria (CA13), UK Posts: 6,130	Re: The Queen's Christmas Message. GEC 2028. I can't claim to have seen the broadcast on the set I have (Regentone TR20), but the broadcast very probably was watched on it - by my grandparents, whose set it was then. __________________ Mending is better than Ending (cf Brave New World by Aldous Huxley)

26th Dec 2017, 12:08 am	#7
Philips210 Nonode Join Date: May 2007 Location: Redruth, Cornwall, UK. Posts: 2,580	Re: The Queen's Christmas Message. GEC 2028. Great pics David. The GEC 2028 was one of my favourite d/s colour sets, not an over complicated set, but gave a very decent quality picture on the Mullard 'Panorama' CRTs. Regards Symon Last edited by Philips210; 26th Dec 2017 at 12:09 am. Reason: typo

26th Dec 2017, 1:44 am	#8
FERNSEH Dekatron Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, UK. Posts: 7,444	Re: The Queen's Christmas Message. GEC 2028. Hi Symon, Of course the GEC 2028 was really a product of the original Sobell design team, in fact a Sobell 1028 was available. Also, I'm sure the set was available as the Masteradio 4028, had to mention that. Also supplied to Radio Rentals as the model 705. DFWB. Attached Thumbnails

26th Dec 2017, 8:17 am	#9
raditechman Heptode Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: West London, UK. Posts: 867	Re: The Queen's Christmas Message. GEC 2028. The GEC's that I remember had a red colour beacon light which came on during a colour transmission. I cannot see it in the photos, was it too dim to see or has the lamp failed? John

26th Dec 2017, 10:16 am	#10
Focus Diode Octode Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Borough of Gateshead, UK. Posts: 1,420	Re: The Queen's Christmas Message. GEC 2028. It's not uncommon for the feed resistor to the colour beacon to be the wrong value. I seem to recall it's 390R situated close to the LT bridge rectifier. Sometimes they are very dim, other times they don't light up at all. I once found a 3K9 resistor in that position. It looked original suggesting the beacon never worked! It's a useful feature as it won't light up in the event of a decoder fault or maladjustment. If a fault on the CDA side occurs resulting in a black and white picture the beacon will illuminate. These are the best of the dual std colour receivers, being the first hybrid model to employ a tripler in place of the often troublesome shunt stabiliser/EHT rectifier and overwind arrangement. Pictures are superb too. The LOPT has been known to fail but is a lot more reliable than some other sets from the era I could mention. Over on the VRAT forum a 25" 2030 has turned up. The set actually worked without work done to it but suffers from poor frame sync (a common fault) and bad convergence.

26th Dec 2017, 11:13 am	#11
wd40addict Octode Join Date: May 2009 Location: Stevenage, Herts. UK. Posts: 1,518	Re: The Queen's Christmas Message. GEC 2028. This looks like the set my parents rented as soon as colour came out, or maybe slightly before! It was rented from 'good listening', a rental company you never hear about, but the name suggests they started in radio. I was fascinated by the glowing things in the back (and still am!). I'd get a better view every few months as it needed pretty regular maintenance. I used to have a 'Man from uncle' toy car which fired a plastic orange missile from under its bonnet. One day I fired the missile and couldn't find it. A few months later the TV engineer produced it from the back of the set and said 'is this yours?'! When I was about 11 my parents let me stay home and watch kids TV whilst they went shopping. Halfway through a 'Rowntree's fruit pastel' advert the picture disappeared! I switched off quickly, when my dad returned he turned the set back on and there was a big bang and a load of smoke! Presumably a capacitor had failed. Finally in 1977 the picture went green and my parents replaced it with a Pye set bought from Currys. The rental company implored us to rent again, but actually disappeared soon after. I think Joe public had decided that TVs were now reliable enough to buy Last edited by wd40addict; 26th Dec 2017 at 11:21 am.

26th Dec 2017, 12:11 pm	#12
FERNSEH Dekatron Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, UK. Posts: 7,444	Re: The Queen's Christmas Message. GEC 2028. wd40addict wrote: "This looks like the set my parents rented as soon as colour came out, or maybe slightly before! It was rented from 'good listening', a rental company you never hear about, but the name suggests they started in radio." From post #40 the topic "What happened to DER?" https://vintage-radio.net/forum/show...t=10070&page=2 MarconiMPT4 wrote: "Not many remember Good Listening and I have difficulty remembering it now. In size it was nothing like DER or RR but had 250 branches across the UK. Originally formed c.1944/1946 renting radio sets and later TV, it was acquired by Rediffusion in around 1978 and there were plans to keep Central Works in Wallisdown Bournemouth going refurbishing rental sets etc." In 1967 the GEC 2028 was the only 19" colour TV set available and was a clever piece of marketing by GEC Radio and Television Ltd. Retailing at £259 it undercut the opposition by a wide margin. DFWB.

3rd Jan 2018, 10:01 pm	#13
Andy Green Hexode Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Waterford, Republic of Ireland Posts: 259	Re: The Queen's Christmas Message. GEC 2028. I remember our next door neighbour had one, I was aged about 7and I was always trying to get my parents to get a colour set but to no avail for about 5 years when they eventually got a Mitsubishi which was one of the last of the triad tube sets, I preferred the picture on a well aligned one to the up and coming PIL tubed sets