10 September 2018

AKAI X-500VT - Audio / Video Tape Recorder (1968)

Audio / Video Tape Recorder

The AKAI X-500VT is a unique machine that combines a 4-track Stereo Autoreverse Audio reel to reel recorder and a Black and White Video recorder using a 1/4-inch video tape. Under the large head cover there are two sets of heads. In the upper part there is the Video section using a twin rotary video head and audio head for linear audio while the lower part includes a head set in traditional 4-track stereo recorder format in autoreverse and 3 head configurations. Depending how you thread your tape you will have a video recorder (upper head) or a Hi-Fi stereo audio recorder (lower heads). This unique machine was first introduced in 1968 at the 17th Japan Audio Fair. A rebranded version was advertised in the USA in 1970 as the ROBERTS 1000 while in Europe the AKAI X-500VT system was shown in a 1972 AKAI brochure. The AKAI X-500VT was advertised as the right home entertainment system for preserving a family's golden moments. The whole system consisted of the recorder itself a monitor and a camera. The image and its sound are put on 1/4 - inch tape, with the monitor you are able to see the picture you're taping. The tape can be played right away and you can erase it and re-record it. For Video recording a special video tape was available however recently collectors have discovered that you can achieve far superior video performance using a more recent good quality Audio tape.

Audio / Video Tape Recorder

Audio / Video Tape Recorder

Audio / Video Tape Recorder

Audio / Video Tape Recorder