U-matic
Encyclopedia : U : UM : UMA : U-matic
U-matic is the name of a videocassette format developed by Sony in 1969. It was among the first video formats to contain the videotape inside a cassette, as opposed to the various open-reel formats of the time.
The videotape was 3/4" wide, so the format is often known as 'three-quarter-inch' or simply 'three-quarter'. U-matic was named after the shape of the tape path when it was threaded around the helical video head drum, which resembled the letter U. Betamax used this same type of "U-load" as well.
In the early 1980s, Sony introduced the semi backwards-compatible High-band or BVU (Broadcast Video U-matic) format, and the 'original' U-matic format became known as 'Low-band'. This High-band format had an improved colour recording system and lower noise levels. BVU gained immense popularity in ENG (Electronic News Gathering) and location programme-making, spelling the end of 16mm film in everyday production. By the early 1990s, Sony's 1/2" Betacam SP format had all but replaced BVU outside of corporate and 'budget' programme making. Sony made a final improvement to BVU by further improving the recording system and giving it the same 'SP' suffix as Betacam. First generation BVU-SP and Beta-SP recordings were hard to tell apart, but despite this the writing was on the wall for the U-matic family.
U-matic would also see use for the storage of digital audio data (as opposed to analog video) for the Sony PCM-1600 PCM adaptor, which used a special U-matic recorder as a transport. The PCM-1600 was the first system used for mastering audio compact discs in the early 1980s. The later PCM-1610 and 1630 units also used U-matic cassettes as a storage medium also.
U-matic is no longer used as a mainstream production format, yet it has such a lasting appeal as a cheap, well specified, and hard-wearing format that almost every television facility the world-over still has a U-matic recorder. 37 years after it was developed, the format is still in daily use for the menial tasks of the industry, being more highly specialized and suited to the needs of production staff than the domestic VHS.
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.