2" Quad Format
2" Quad Format was introduced in 1957 as a broadcast medium. It was used in the industry until approximately 1975. VTRs were produced by Ampex and RCA Corporation. Sony and IVC also produced their versions of 2" VTRs, but they were designed primarily for industrial use, not broadcast. Their hub styles were also different and were not interchangeable with each other.
1" Open Reel Formats
The first 1" open reel format was introduced approximately in 1965 by Sony Corporation and later by IVC and Ampex in 1967 and 1968. The type of reel hub style can identify some of these. The Type A format was the most popular, later evolving into the the Type C format. The Type C format was used by the broadcast industry as a standard recording medium, and is still in limited use today by some production companies. There was a Type B produced by Bosch Corporation in 1974 which also used a NAB hub. These first VTRs were only in black and white. Color did not become available until later.
1/4'' Open Reel AKAI Format
The 1/4" open reel Akai was produced in about 1967 and used until 1972. It was offered in black and white as well as color. Its running time was 20 minutes per reel. It is often difficult to distinguish the video tape from the 1/4" audio tape. The video tape is almost black in color, while the audio tape is a light brown color.
CVC Format
Fuji, or Technical Corporation, produced the CVC format. They came in a small cartridge style. This format had a very short production life and was in use only a few years from 1978 through 1980.
Quasar/Magnavox Format
These tapes were also in cartridge style and were produced at about the same time as the CVC format. It was a color format and had a maximum recording time of 2 hours.
Sanyo V-Cord
The V-Cord was produced around 1974 was the predecessor to the Betamax format. Its production run was also very short.
Betamax
The Betamax was most popular in the consumer market. It was introduced in 1975 and ran for a good 7-year period. The Betamax was also a cartridge style, slightly smaller than VHS. Its demise was caused by the VHS format, which was produced at about the same time.
1/2" Open Reel Formats, EIAJ and Pre-EIAJ
These formats were first produced from 1965 through 1972. Sony, Panasonic and Concord produced these tape machines, but they were not compatible with each other. They also did not conform to the EIAJ standard of the time in 1969. Because the reels have the same spindle size, it is often difficult for the customer to distinguish which format was used to make the recording.
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