5.10 - What is PCM-F1 format?
Description
This article is from the Audio Professional FAQ, by with numerous contributions by Gabe M. Wiener others.
5.10 - What is PCM-F1 format?
In the 1980s, before the DAT era, Sony produced a set of PCM adaptors
that enabled one to record digital audio using a video cassette
machine. These units had RCA audio connections for input and output,
as well as video I/O that could be sent to, and received from, the
VCR. At the time, these systems offered performance far in excess of
conventional analog recorders available in the price category.
Sony released many models, including the PCM-F1, PCM-501, PCM-601, and
PCM-701. Perhaps the most interesting is the PCM-601, which has
S/P-DIF digital I/O. These units are highly prized since they are the
only units that can be used to make digital transfers of F1 tapes to
modern hardware.
There are some engineers who insist that, despite the clunkiness of the
format by modern DAT standards, the F1 series was the best digital format
ever developed. To this day, it is not surprising to see an F1 encoder
on a classical recording session. [Gabe]
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