Ctc-1 - Videokarma.org TV - Video

Geist · #1 12-25-2012, 09:37 AM

Hi All;
Is/Was there a CTC-1 or CTC-2 ?? I have seen mentioned a CTC-5, But Don't know the History of the CTC series, nor of What RCA put out as far as Color sets.. I know that their tri-gun color system is what was adopted over the CBS color wheel system.. But, don't know what model was the first RCA color set released by them.. If, I remember right it would have been around 1955 or 1956, Am I right ?? When I was a kid, I had some black and white sets that had plug in for the CBS Color system.. And later saw an article about it in a Popular Electronics article..
THANK YOU Marty

Dangler · #2 12-25-2012, 10:15 AM

I don't believe there was a CTC-1. The first RCA color set was the CT-100 using a CTC-2 chassis. If I'm wrong, please correct me. I believe there is a CTC-4, and know there is a CTC-5.
The CT100 was offered for sale somewhere around April of 1954. I think they only made around 4,000.
I had a chance to get one several years back for nothing, but kept forgetting about it. I checked early this spring about the set, but the lady had already given it away to a rancher that I know. I don't really know if they would sell it or not. Might have to do some checking.
That's about all I know about the CTC series.

Merry Christmas.
Dan

kx250rider · #3 12-25-2012, 10:18 AM

There isn't any production CTC-1, but hypothetically that would have been the chassis number in the RCA Models 1 through 5 developmental limited preproduction sets. CTC-2 was the first commercially-sold RCA color TV (CT-100; 1954), and the second was the CTC-2B (21CT55; 1954 1/2-1955). Little do most collectors know, but there IS a CTC-3. It's the designation of the dynamic convergence subchassis in the 21CT55 ;-) . From then on, the chassis numbers were CTC-4 (1956), 5, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20, etc etc. Not sure why some were skipped, unless they're foreign market models, or were just bombed off the drawing board....

Charles

Pete Deksnis · #4 12-25-2012, 12:29 PM

CTCn is a reference that lasted throughout the domain of analog television. CTC numbers 1 through 16 are indeed considered vintage. Click a CTC number at this link to my again-available CT-100 site:

http://www.earlytelevision.org/Deksnis/lastpage6.html

Pete

wa2ise · #5 12-25-2012, 05:21 PM

I had a CTC-101 from around 1980. It had the then new comb filter for better chroma-luma separation. Only problem is that the flyback had a design flaw, and would fail. And mine did fail.

I think RCA got as far as CTC 18something.

Jeffhs · #6 12-25-2012, 07:14 PM

RCA/Thomson did have a lot of trouble with the onboard tuner in the CTC-17x-18x series chassis (as you probably knew if you were working for RCA in the '90s), but once they changed the design to separate the tuner from the main PC board, the sets became more reliable. Unfortunately, that change did not happen until the CTC203 chassis. (My RCA CTC185 did not give one bit of trouble, from that source or any other, except for a loose antenna port that snapped off the tuner PC board, from the time I bought it in late 1999 until I got a flat screen 12 years later; who knows, maybe I was just incredibly lucky, considering all the trouble that onboard tuner was -- and the callbacks it generated -- for RCA in the '90s.)

I don't know how the tuners in today's "RCA" branded flat screens are mounted, but I hope they didn't go back to the onboard design. The problems the onboard tuners in RCA's CRT sets caused should have sent a loud and clear message to RCA's R&D (research and development) department never again to use that design in future sets from the CTC203 going forward.

BTW, "Ctc-1" (the title of your post)? I didn't know RCA even made a CTC-1 chassis; I was always under the impression that their chassis numbering system started with CTC2, then CTC2a, CTC2b and so forth. I don't remember ever seeing or hearing of an RCA CTC-3 chassis, either.

miniman82 · #7 12-25-2012, 08:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeffhs

I didn't know RCA even made a CTC-1 chassis

They didn't- before the CT-100 there was only prototypes called 'model x', where x was a number. The model 5 is a well known example, and the precursor to the production model CT-100. I have a prototype chassis from earlier on, but no one has yet nailed down exactly what it is. Near as anyone can tell, it was a lab only experimental chassis used to explore the possibility of CPA for color transmissions.

Tidbit: CTC-x only refers to the chassis, sets normally had actual names. See the picture in my signature- Director 21 using CTC-4 chassis, Wingate using CTC-5 chassis, Anderson using the CTC-7 chassis... Ed Reitan has a good site that explains all of this with pictures, he has most of the early RCA stuff up to CTC-10. Check it out:

http://www.novia.net/~ereitan/Galler...1-20-2006.html

Quote:

I was always under the impression that their chassis numbering system started with CTC2, then CTC2a, CTC2b and so forth. I don't remember ever seeing or hearing of an RCA CTC-3 chassis, either.

I'm not aware of a 2A, but the 2B is the chassis belonging to the model 21-CT-55 receiver that replaced the CT-100 and actually uses a modified CT-100 chassis. The changes include a different high voltage and scanning section to drive the larger 21" round picture tube.

Is there a CTC-3? Now there's a trick question you can pull on your friends!

Early color trivia time: In the 21-CT-55 receiver, the main chassis was the CTC-2B, and the convergence panel was called CTC-3 since it was a seperate chassis connected to the main one with a harness. Technically, there is no such thing as a receiver chassis with the designation CTC-3. So it exists, just not as a set by itself.

kx250rider · #8 12-26-2012, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by miniman82

Is there a CTC-3? Now there's a trick question you can pull on your friends!

Early color trivia time: In the 21-CT-55 receiver, the main chassis was the CTC-2B, and the convergence panel was called CTC-3 since it was a seperate chassis connected to the main one with a harness. Technically, there is no such thing as a receiver chassis with the designation CTC-3. So it exists, just not as a set by itself.

Correct! (And nobody noticed that I had mentioned that in my earlier post

)...

Charles