Mission Improbable - Concord F-20 Sound Camera

Video Title :	Mission Improbable - Concord F-20 Sound Camera
Description :	Mission Improbable: "I Am Concord!" This silly video is a "tongue-in-cheek" look at the Concord F-20 "Sound Camera" reel to reel tape recorder that was popular in the 1960's. It is similar to the little tape recorders used in the TV show: "Mission Impossible", hence the name of the video. The Concord F-20 is a reel to reel tape recorder with a rim drive (a motor spins against a rubber reel table to move the tape.) The video explains and demonstrates the drawbacks of a rim drive tape recorder, including speed instability and wow and flutter. The voice on the tape sounds very artificial, so as a "Sound Camera", we give the F-20 an "F". However, this model is a bit rare today, and a collectible item, especially if it comes in the original box with the extra tapes and microphone. (Have you tried to buy 2 -1/2 inch diameter reel tapes lately? They were hard enough to find when this unit was in production!) What makes this machine so "improbable" is that the quality and performance of this machine are so low, yet thousands of these units were sold in the 1960's - sometimes in high end audio stores! Perhaps it was the size, or look of the machine that made it appealing. Perhaps it was the TV show (also from that time period) that helped with sales because of the similarity of the appearance of the F-20 with tape recorders used on the show. Surely, the performance must have been disappointing. Concord did make better quality machines than this and had a growing reputation. Perhaps this F-20 was a good seller simply because of the Concord name. The unit featured in the video was bought at a yard sale for $2.00. The control switch was broken and the machine did not work. We repaired it so it is functional, but not particularly useful. We probably paid too much for it!
Views :	976
Rating :	5.00
Keywords, Tags :	clydesight mission impossible reel to tape recorder technology Concord F-20 vintage audio
Video Length :	3 : 27

Comments :

Great video

Interesting-I have one of these, got it new for my birthday in 3rd grade-1969. I was really psyched to get it, especially when I saw it was the same as the one on Mission Impossible! That was real cool for a 3rd grader! Interesting to learn that pinch rollers and capstans were not standard on everything. Thanks

Thanks! I remember seeing this tape recorder on TV and was pretty sure it was "Mission Impossible" but I couldn't be absolutely sure. I suffered as a kid with the "rim drive" tape recorders because the capstan drive machines were too expensive at the time. At least among the portables. I guess I am making up for lost time these days, thanks to E-Bay!

So, was this device before portable 8-track players?

I believe this machine came out just before 8 tracks became a common item, however, this machine was still being sold while 8 tracks were around. Not sure on this, would have to look up the dates. I don't know that much about 8 tracks, as I went the cassette route.

That's awesome! I definitely gotta see the insides!

Thanks! I'll be putting up more on this little baby. I made the vids, then lost them, will find them eventually.

I checked the circuit board on this little monster. The amp board is absolutely tiny and very hard to freee up to check. I see no AC Bias coil. It has no fast forward (rim drive) to test that way, and the sound quality is so "hissy" that I'm going to say: DC bias.

It's probably DC bias as it IS a rim drive model!

Thanks, I found it and left you a 5 star rating and a thank you comment. Very informative and explains why some TRs sound so bad when recording!