Alice EP11/11 BBC Radio COOBE Mixer

[WHoops]

Hi Ted,

I’ve been trying to find some info on the Alice COOBE , it says model EP11/11 BBC Radio COOBE.

I can see it has 2 mic preamps, and some kind of effect, and a send,

do you have any info on it? or Manual?

what effects did it have built in? what year did it got released?

Thank you so much for your help

My best regards

Tiago

[Ted Fletcher]

I draw a blank at that one! I vaguely remember Mike Sells and/or Mike Law working on something called a COOBE (the ‘COOBE’ stands for ‘COmmentator’s Outside Broadcast Equipment) but I have no records of that at all. It would have been a couple of very high quality mic amps and probably a ‘flat’ effects return mixing into the output, and most likely a headphone amplifier facility with talkback input. The date would have been 1976 or thereabouts.

[markdg]

Whoops

Just out of interest, the part number number EP11/11 is actually a registered design from the BBC Designs Department. They sold the rights to produce their designs to companies like Alice etc

Info on the meaning of the various codes can be found here:

http://www.bbceng.info/Designs/RDCE/RDCE.htm” class=”bbcode_url”>http://www.bbceng.info/Designs/RDCE/RDCE.htm – look at the link “list of the code groups”

As a Beeb bod, this got me interested, but even after some “googling”, I couldn’t find anything about the EP11/11.

(Out of interest, Mike Law is now of BCD Audio)

[Ted Fletcher]

Thanks for that!

My memory is very hazy on this one…. and I certainly don’t recall building anything to designs by others…. all equipment we made originated from our own designs; we did have excellent engineers!

It’s entirely possible that the BBC adopted the design.

Yes Mike Law is BCD Audio and doing great things still for the Beeb.

[WHoops]

Thank you so much for the information, I am also trying to get more info on this gear, strange it seems quite rare.
here is a picture of the front of the unit

thanks

Attachments:

You must be logged in to view attached files.

[WHoops]

Back

Attachments:

You must be logged in to view attached files.

[Ted Fletcher]

Yes, now I remember it!

And I’m pretty sure that we designed it….. I was very into PO lines and manipulating ringing/answering/holding circuits in those days; we were good at getting decent audio down standard phone lines.

[sunsetyellow]

I’ve just managed to pick up two of these in the recent BBC TV Centre auction. Ted, you wouldn’t happen to have a schematic (or any other documentation) for these would you? I’m thinking that converting them for use as stand-alone mic pres might be useful.

If not I’m guessing I should try Mike Law at BCD…

[Ted Fletcher]

I think you are right! I don’t have any info on the Coobe at all, only a memory of it being made specifically for ‘rapid reaction’ outside broadcasts for BBC radio.

Certainly the mic amps will be good…. based on Sowter mic transformers and probably discrete transistor input circuitry. They were designed to interface directly with BT lines.

Sorry, can’t be of any more help than that.

[sunsetyellow]

I’m not sure if anyone is still interested but I thought I should update this thread.

I e-mailed Mike Law at BCD to ask him about the COOBE. He said that he “had a hand in the COOBE but final design and manufacture was undertaken by a Telecoms company as Alice went into receivership during the development of this product.” He doesn’t have any info about it and didn’t test any of them either.

The new Alice started as Broadcast Designs by Andrew Gemmell-Smith bought the name after the initial Alice went bust so aren’t anything to do with it either. Mike doesn’t know who to ask about it either, which he says is unusual for him.

The only direct technical reference about it I’ve found on the interweb is from http://www.bbceng.info (Thank you markdg)

Quote:

EP110011 EP11/11

Commentator o. B. equipment. The COOBE is a portable, 3 Mic & 1 replay input device for radio commentary at OB sites. It uses a Music & Control line as a link to the studio. Power requirements PP9 + 2 x PP3 Batteries. Equipment superseded: EP11/1. SCPD 1986.

http://www.bbceng.info/Designs/RDCE/part_I/101to200.htm” class=”bbcode_url”>http://www.bbceng.info/Designs/RDCE/part_I/101to200.htm

So the trail has gone cold for the moment. I’ll see if I can have a detailed snoop around my units at some point soon to see if I can find any further leads. If anyone else finds out anything could they post it here? Thanks!

[Author]

Posts