Like Beocord VHS 91 and VHS 66, this video tape recorder was fully remote controlled through the Beovision keypad. A touch of the button activated record, playback, fast forward and rewind, single frame, freeze frame and picture search which operated at 4 times normal speed.
This a fairly basic Philips video recorder, little disguised for its role as a B&O machine.
To the unwary, this machine looked remarkably similar to the Video 2000 machines which preceded it. But as the name suggested, it was a VHS machine though supplied by Grundig again. Not sold in the UK.
The last Video 2000 made by B&O, this again was based on a Grundig machine. The format had however not managed to get a foothold in the rental market and therefore had lost out to the inferior VHS system. As a European format, it did last longer in the core market but gradually B&O realised that they had to serve all their markets and so introduced a VHS machine.
A development of the VCR60, changing due to changes in the donor Grundig machine. Not sold in the UK.
The next stage in B&O’s foray into the V2000 technology, this machine was based on a Grundig machine and was not sold in the UK.
For serious music lovers whose major interest was in recording their own professional-quality tape library, Beocord 9000 offered even more facilities and higher performance capabilities than Beocord 8004. It could therefore be chosen as an alternative in Beosystem 8000 when its primary playing and recording functions could be operated via Beomaster 8000’s remote control Terminal.
While Beocord 9000 shared all of Beocord 8004’s advanced engineering techniques and microcomputer intelligence, its superior sound quality was achieved by the addition of a unique tape calibration system. This computerised system measured the four vital recording parameters of each individual tape – bias, equalisation, sensitivity and distortion level – and actually adjusted the deck’s own recording characteristics to match them exactly.
As a serious recordist, you no doubt had your particular favourites among the many brands and types of cassette tapes available when Beocord 9000 was released. And your particular hates too! Good results are partly a measure of how closely the tape’s technical characteristics match the ‘average’ recording parameters for which your machine is adjusted during manufacture. The tape brand you have identified as ‘the best’ may, on another type of recorder, sound quite poor. The fact is that tape manufacturers design their tapes for use with as many different recorders as possible, while the equipment manufacturers design their decks to use all brands and all types of tape. So both industries rely on a set of ‘average’ specifications.
But with Beocord 9000 microcomputer technology freed Bang & Olufsen from this hit and miss approach. B&O gave Beocord 9000 the ability to monitor the tape and set its own recording characteristics accordingly, thereby creating a perfect partnership within very fine tolerances.
What is more, Beocord 9000 could show you on a digital read-out panel what those settings were, and could store them in its computer memory. Calibration data for each of the three tape types – ferric, chrome and metal – could be stored in this way.
The tape calibration process was fully automated and took about 9 seconds from the touch of a button. Beocord 9000 featured a new type of Sendust/ferrite tape head, specially designed for Bang & Olufsen. It had separate tone-gaps for recording and playback, housed in a single casing. Compared to a combination head, this arrangement afforded wider frequency response and constantly correct azimuth between recording and playback.
The real-time counter was similar to that used in Beocord 8004 but had an additional feature. Beocord 9000 could calculate and display the time remaining on the tape, as well as the time already consumed. In other respects the operation, facilities and dimensions of Beocord 9000 are as described for Beocord 8004.
Beocord 9000 could be used as a stand-alone tape cassette recorder or as part of Beosystems such as Beosystem 6000 or Beosystem 8000.
With improving specifications of cassette recorders, tape manufacturers also made progress in the formulation of tape. Standards committees decided to classify tapes into three main categories: oxide tape, chrome tape and metal tape. The newer categories allowed improved recording performance, but also required different recording bias levels to achieve the improvements. Manufacturers of cassette recorders incorporated switches to adapt the recording characteristics to the tape, and later a system of slots at the back of the cassette were standardised, so that the recorder was set to the correct type of tape during recording. It should be added that once recorded, replay conditions were identical for all tape types, so that once the cassettes were recorded, they could be replayed on any machine.
While the categories were standardised, manufacturers did not strictly adhere to the standards, in an effort to offer improved performance from their tapes. This meant that bias needed to be set differently for the tapes from each manufacturer, even within each tape category. In addition, the maximum recording level was different for each tape category, and for tapes within each category. As if this were not enough, tapes from any particular manufacturer also proved to be slightly variable from time to time, and from batch to batch. This meant that for the best recording performance, not only that bias needed adjustment for every single tape that was used, but that the level meter also needed calibration to show the optimum maximum recording level.
To take these factors into account and allow the best recording on tapes of all types and manufacture, Bang & Olufsen decided to incorporate auto calibration in its top-of-the-line cassette recorders. Operation had to be as simple as possible in order to allow maximum performance even for those who were not technically-minded. Finally, a system was developed where the user needed to press a single button, when the recorder automatically performed the calibration and set itself to be ready to record. The recorder remained adjusted for the tape until it was removed from the recorder.
The auto calibration process worked as follows:
Beocord 9000
There’s a story behind the development of this remarkable cassette deck and it’s one and the same time a sobering one, highlighting our lack of understanding of what we fondly believe are well-understood physical processes; and something of a fairy tale – albeit of the modern, technological variety.
If there is one outstanding characteristic of the Beocord 9000 that stands out above all others, it is paradoxically its all round balance in every area of performance. The tape mechanics no less than the computerised tape‑handling facilities, have been thoroughly thought out from scratch and the same applies equally to the ergonomics and the signal-handling electronics of the beast. There is literally no sign of the usual commercially inspired compromises that ensure that the most brilliant pieces of laboratory work come out as shadows of what they could have been.
In my opinion, this is simply because B&O have made the decision to pursue a specific requirement for an up‑market recorder in all its facets, without letting their marketing department bend the project towards an imagined maximum public acceptability. The result may be the finest up market cassette deck made, it is certainly the most practical and nicest to use. The price to be paid for all this is heavy – £675 in fact, but in my judgement this is as inevitable as it is justifiable and the recorder remains good value.
The story referred to relates directly to the Dolby HX Pro circuit used in the B&O, a circuit that was developed by B&O, is marketed by Dolby Labs (hence the name) and will be seen on a wide range of cassette decks from all sources as soon as B&O’s arranged year of grace has elapsed. According to the company, HX Pro had its genesis when they built an automatic adjuster/tester for the cassette deck production line.
This machine was intended to optimise record bias, equalisation and tape sensitivity adjustments on each machine down the line, and as part of this function it was to feed several frequencies at different levels simultaneously onto a tape, which would then be played back for measurements. When the machine was tested, it was found that the readouts from measurements were different from the predicted values, sometimes by as much as 10dB, a very significant amount.
It soon became apparent what was happening. The signal, especially that at high frequencies, was itself partially biasing the tape and when high levels of high frequencies were recorded, the effective bias current was high enough so that the tape was severely over biased, and high frequencies significantly suppressed. In effect, the self-biasing effect was making a signal dependent compressor out of the mechanism of recording itself. Once identified, the solution was easy enough and the HX Pro circuit consists of just a couple of ordinary op‑amps and a few other components, which have the effect of altering the bias fed to the record head so that the effective (or dynamic) bias stays constant. This contrasts to the situation with every other tape recorder, where only no‑signal (or static) bias stays constant.
I said above that HX Pro is the only system that keeps dynamic bias constant However, the original Dolby HX circuit had many of the same properties. But the facts are that while Dolby HX restores some of the dynamic range available on cassette tape that is otherwise lost by the automatic compression mechanism referred to above, it does so in a convoluted fashion with for example a control signal derived from a Dolby B circuit, and is simply not as effective. In addition, the Dolby circuit is mono, where the B&O circuit, which works quite independently of any noise reduction circuit in the system, is a true stereo device, operating quite independently on each channel.
Now let’s look at taping from another angle. The history of improvements to tape formulations has been a dramatic and rapid one over the last ten years, but has been characterised by one common factor The coercivity and bias requirements of the best available types, has progressively increased with the years. Raw measurements of such tapes dynamic range – the chrome slot and metal ones in particular shows them to have improved performances at the top end of their operational envelopes – that is higher frequency saturation has been less of a problem and because signal/noise ratio performance of tapes is critically dependent on what happens at high frequencies, they have shown a greater effective dynamic range. But this doesn’t explain why such tapes invariably sound sharper more dynamic and clearer than ordinary ferric tapes even on material which lacks any great measured dynamic range.
B&O findings do explain this fact Quite simply, what is happening is that because the signal is much smaller compared to the bias signal on such high energy tapes, the amount of compression caused by the mechanism explained above is reduced. And that’s it. The extraordinary thing is that all the facts here have been well known for many years, but no one seems to have put two and two together and made an effective circuit to eradicate this distortion producing mechanism. Now that it has been done it turned out to have been a small, European company, with no great reputation or special involvement in tape machines which has made the discovery – which in its way is akin to discovering the audio equivalent of the wheel.
To summarise then, the advantage that HX Pro gives is to restore the inherent high frequency dynamics to material recorded on low-bias tapes. The circuit requires no lining up and can be used in addition to Dolby or any other noise reduction system and gives an effective increase in high frequency headroom of up to 10dB on cooking ferric tapes, reducing on high-bias tapes. In effect, HX Pro should make the type of formulation used more or less immaterial, so that the choice can be made on other more important grounds – like the uniformity and finish of the tape coating and the quality of the tape mechanics.
To make the freedom of tape choice point even stronger, the 9000 has an automatic tape calibration system on board, which sets bias equalisation and sensitivity. In contrast to other such systems, the B&O operates very quickly (never more than about nine seconds) and, it seems, very accurately. The sensitivity is set by measuring the inherent distortion of the tape itself, and setting +5dB on the meters to correspond to five per cent harmonic distortion, which puts OVU at 2 ;0.2dB in theory. In consequence, there is no need for the wide ranging meters most metal equipped recorders have, and the OVU point really is near the limits of all types of tape – even those which have a lot of headroom above the normal OVU point, which is usually 200nW, but which may correspond to only half per cent or so distortion. So a couple of button pushes, and any tape should be properly catered for.
Of course, the B&O accepts all normal tape groups, sensing the type inserted by the lugs on the backs, but there is an override switch, and in any case, the lug sensor is ignored by the calibration process should the latter discover the tape to have characteristics inconsistent with what the lugs say. The sensor only controls playback equalisation and nothing more. One small additional refinement is that the recorder will store the characteristics of up to four types of tape if so required, thus bypassing the calibration procedure. But this is only the beginning. The 9000 is equipped with a small built in computer, with 41k of RAM and 2k of ROM and in this relatively small amount of processing space B&O has managed to cram in a number of quite sophisticated programs which can operate on the transport as well as the bias, EQ and so on needed for record calibration. Space is insufficient to detail all of them, but a few examples will give the flavour, as well as explaining some of the capabilities of the machine.
The record calibration sequence outlined above. As part of the calibration ‘package’, the programme will identify the leader and wind on to about one minute into the tape. Its job done, it will rewind, then go forward to the end of the leader to wait for the command to start recording. Further, if the tape gives anomalous readings, it will repeat the procedure up to three times at different places on the tape and if still in doubt it will set an average value for the type of tape identified by the lugs at the back of the cassette. The calibration signals are short pulses, spaced 0.5dB apart i.e. logarithmically. The recording done and the tape then passes the replay head about 80ms later, by which time the recorder has switched to replay: and this is repeated until all the required values have been identified. The machine can, if required, be ‘interrogated’ to determine what settings it has chosen.
The prime method of locating tracks is by using a counter scaled in minutes and seconds. The recorder will measure tape thickness if so instructed, by timing the slowing down of the tape-up spool as its diameter increases with added tape – but it does this using just a few turns only. From the tape thickness, the tape length can be inferred and when the end of the tape is neared in record mode, warning is given. It does all this with extraordinary precision, and another even more complex programme comes into play to get the same end result should a tape be inserted which has not been fully rewound.
You can ask the recorder to commence play at, say 12 minutes and 25 seconds into the tape. It will seek out this spot with a repeatability of about one second per 45 minutes playing time and switch to play, but with the output muted, just a few seconds before the required spot. It then looks for a gap between musical segments, and stops in the gap when found. If there’s no gap, it simply carries in to the 12 min 25 sec point.
The record head is demagnetised at the end of each recording, automatically. The playback head doesn’t require demagnetising.
The recorder will find the beginning of the last recording made with just one key operation – and will switch itself into standby (effectively off) after a period of inactivity, Memory contents are protected from unplugging from the mains by a built-in lithium rechargeable battery.
And so it goes on. As noted above, this is a three head recorder, but there is no facility to monitor off-tape, which the head construction chosen would have meant certain compromises to performance according to B&O The reason for two heads is simply to optimise the record and playback heads for their own tasks and to facilitate the record calibration sequence.
Noise reduction systems available to the user are Dolby B and Dolby C – with switchable MPX filtering to protect the frequency response of Dolby recordings. Inputs and outputs are via DIN socketry, but the levels are adjustable between true DIN and normal phono type levels and the output can be continuously varied. The HX Pro circuit is permanently connected, which is sensible enough given its function.
In practice, the results from the recorder will be dependent on partnering equipment, to an even greater extent than usual because the machine itself is so inherently good. The listening was done using the best hi‑fi system at my disposal: a Linn/Naim/Linn Sara one. Pre-recorded tapes sounded as good as I have ever heard them – the ability to be able to adjust azimuth easily helped here, but even at their best such cassettes are rather poorer than records – good records anyway. Records still give the widest dynamics and frequency responses available in the home, and therefore stress the cassette medium to it utmost ‑ even though some of this extension, in the form of LF rubbish from the record deck, is unwanted.
‘Fine’ here is the operative word. I used a variety of tape types, ranging from TDK D to TDK Metal and some in between, and found that metal gave the best account of itself sounding Iivelier and sharper in musical definition, but without any sings of being tonally bright. At the same time, the gap between the tape varieties was narrower than would have seemed reasonable from any other deck I’ve tried, and anyone wishing to economise with one of the mid-price pseudo-chromes or low bias ferrics will not have to accept much compromise.
I also tried the effect of listening with the two noise reduction systems and without noise reduction at all. Unquestionably the best results were to be had with the Dolby systems switched out, and the signal/noise ratio available was still wide enough to make hiss unobtrusive with most programme material. The differences were similar to the kind of differences found by changing tapes, with the recordings made without noise reduction seeming much livelier and more detailed, and better able to hang on to the very low level ‘clues’ such as the ambience surrounding the musical event on tape. By contrast, Dolby B sounded slightly dried out and lifeless; Dolby C more so, but the sound remained tonally flat and certainly with very low levels of hiss using Dolby C especially. For best results without noise reduction it is advisable to use Metal tapes if possible, because of their better signal/noise performance and for their ability to handle high frequency dynamics.
But even using, say, TDK SA or Maxell UDXLII and Dolby C, there was little of the usual sound signature of the cassette medium. Apart from one errant tape which gave a little dropout near the beginning, there was no noticeable dropout and a superb mechanical performance in such areas as stability, absence of the roughening effects of flutter and so on. Equally, there was little of the lack of tunefulness at frequency extremes, of compressed dynamics or of the usual two dimensional, mechanical sound cassette decks usually impart to the music. The Beocord 9000 must come highly recommended and is the first cassette deck I have heard of which I am temp ted to say that it approaches good open reel tape recorder standards and not just on paper, which cassette decks have been doing for years, but in practice.
Beocord 9000 Test Results
Comments: will match European and Japanese equipment
Comments: OK with headphones tried – adjustable output
Note: The results area little difficult to compare to those of other machines because the measurements are referred to ‘O’ on the meter but this varies automatically from one tape formulation to another in the B&O 9000. For ‘0’ level responses the results below 30Hz are suspect because the input caused clipping at low frequencies.
Source: Adapted from ‘Practical Hi-Fi’ October 1982. Written by Alvin Gold
Beocord 8004 had its own microcomputer which took care of most of the tasks involved in recording and listening to cassette tapes. The microcomputer was also responsible for one of Beocord 8004’s most advanced and unique features – the real-time tape counter. Actual minutes and seconds were used to measure elapsed time so you always knew how much recording time was left to fill.
Selection between chrome, ferric and metal tape characteristics was automatic. So was the operation of the HX-Professional recording system – a technique developed by Bang & Olufsen to expand the peak ceiling level of all types of tape. The provision of Dolby B and Dolby C Noise Reduction improved the sound quality of your recordings even further.
Signal input levels were indicated on electronically-controlled Peak Programme Meters that performed to standards set for professional studio and broadcasting recorders. The signal level was monitored on both recording and playback.
The tape head of Beocord 8004 was a single combination head of superb technical quality. Both the poles and the beddings were made of Sendust alloy. As with all Bang & Olufsen recorders, a special additional circuit automatically demagnetised the head each time the STOP function was used at the end of a recording.
Locating particular recordings was quick and easy using the Beocord’s computerised tape address system. Just key in the track’s start time – in minutes and seconds – press GO, and wait a few seconds. The tape automatically wound to that location and began to play.
For recording an important broadcast while you were out of the house (or when you didn’t want to spend the evening clock-watching) there was a twenty-four hour electronic timer. With a few touches to the programming buttons you could store the station, start time and stop time in the microcomputer’s memory. It then carried out your instructions at the appropriate hour – regardless of how you used the recorder in the interim.
Beocord 8004 could be used as a stand-alone tape cassette recorder or as part of hi-fi systems such as Beosystem 6000 or Beosystem 8000.
A top-quality cassette recorder, perfectly matched to Beomaster 5000 as part of Beosystem 5000. When the two units were used together the cassette deck could be operated entirely by remote control.
Beocord 5000 was of very advanced design in both its technical features and in its control/operations systems. For the home recording enthusiast it offered superb standards of sound quality and precision engineering. Bang & Olufsen’s patented HX PRO recording system, Dolby B and Dolby C Noise Reduction and a 6-layer Canon combination head with a 1.8mm gap all contributed to a recording and playback performance that delighted even the most exacting technician.
For the novice or the non-technical music lover, Beocord 5000 represented a supremely straightforward way of making high-quality recordings and subsequently enjoying them in relaxing comfort.
Every possible convenience was built into the Beocord’s control system. There was a START/GO function that rewound the tape to its beginning and played it without further instruction. And an automatic ADVANCE function (tape search) that found the start of any required track from either end of the tape.
Selection between ferric, chrome and metal tapes was fully automatic, and setting the correct recording level was quick and easy using the input sliders and LED signal strength meters. You could switch instantly from one tape transport mode to another (e.g. from play to fast rewind) without any danger of tangling the tape or harming the mechanism.
The cassette tray and direct operation controls were housed in a motor-driven drawer which opened and closed at a touch. When used with Beomaster 5000, Beocord 5000 could, of course, be programmed to record or play automatically at any set time.
Connections: stereo microphone (DIN); Aux input DIN; data-link to Beomaster 5000 (one socket, 3-way switchable)
Beocenter 7007 (also known as Beosystem 7007)
Top quality sound and maximum listening comfort were the main features of this integrated hi-fi system. Records, radio, cassette tapes and a 2 x 40 watts RMS stereo amplifier could all be controlled from anywhere in the room using the slim remote handset. Without moving more than a finger you could select any sound source, adjust volume level, fast wind the tape and even make recordings. This supreme ease of operation was made possible by microcomputer technology. In addition, there were two user-programmable microcomputers which allowed you to make unattended recordings at any time within a 24-hour period, or to play any sound source automatically at a pre-selected time – day after day, if you wished.
A further advantage was easy access to cassette recordings: just key in the appropriate counter reading (address) and the cassette would fast wind to the required passage of music. Ferric, chrome or metal tapes could all be used and Dolby B Noise Reduction was included to ensure clean, hiss-free recordings.
The automatic record deck had an ultra-lightweight arm carrying the MMC 4 pickup cartridge. The radio section covered Long, Medium and FM bands with facilities for pre-setting 6 favourite stations.
The recommended speakers were the Beovox S55 . Speaker pedestals or the SC70/ SC77 hi-fi cabinet could be added optionally if required.
In 1982, Bang & Olufsen introduced a completely new way of living with music. The company was then the only one in the world to fulfil the desire for perfect sound from attic to basement – from just the one central music system.
With the Beolink® system – around which Beocenter 7700 was based – you could enjoy and control you music system in several rooms. From acorns great oak trees spring, and most of the the current (2002) range of TV and hi-fi systems can be equally controlled to give you ’round the house music’ using the latest MasterLink system.
The very advanced (for its time) Beocenter 7700 system brought an entirely new range of possibilities to the serious music-lover. For the very first time ever, round-the-house hi-fi became an option, in whichever room you wanted to listen to it.
Beocenter 7700 featured Long, Medium and FM radio, automatic record deck, microcomputer controlled cassette recording and 2 x 40 watts RMS stereo amplifier. Two user-programmable 24-hour timers were included, and all sound sources are accessible by infra-red remote control.
From this comprehensive and desirable foundation, it was possible to build up (either immediately, or room by room) a sound system that could be enjoyed and operated from anywhere in the house ( a forerunner to the later Beolink® system).
But in addition, it also had three digital read-out panels on which your instructions were confirmed every time you pressed a button. So you had your means of “talking to” your Beocenter 7700, and it had a means of “talking to” you – right there in your hand.
Your instructions were carried to the Beocenter’s microcomputer by infra-red light, and confirmatory signals were returned to the remote control Terminal in the same way – in a fraction of a second.
This two-way communication could be extended to other rooms by fitting those rooms with a pair of speakers and an electronic Master Control Link, all available as optional accessories. When you wanted to listen to music or radio in a room away from the Beocenter, the remote control Terminal was taken with you. By directing it at the Master Control link (which you had fixed on the wall or on a shelf) in just the same way as you would normally direct it towards the Beocenter, you could control all primary functions and receive confirmation that the Beocenter was doing what you want.
The Master Link equipment could be fitted in up to four different rooms, and you could choose which speakers were to play and which were to be silent. It was like having a complete, top-quality hi-fi system in every room, but paying for only one (plus as many loudspeakers and Master Links as you needed). You could, if you wished, buy additional remote control Terminals if you didn’t want to carry one around the house. But this was not strictly necessary.
Beocenter 7700 offered top quality sound from records, radio and cassettes. Operation was fast, easy and foolproof because of a built-in microcomputer which blocked mistakes, automating many boring, repetitive operations – like switching off one sound source before switching on another. Two timers, each with a 24-hour memory and automatic repeat function, allowed you to record or play any programme at specific times – day after day if you wished. The digital clock could be displayed or not – it was up to you.
You could pre-set 6 favourite FM radio stations, or 5 FM and one AM (Long or Medium wave) for instant press-button recall – either by direct or remote control.
The cassette section had many advanced features to make recording easier and more accurate. Replay, too – it was necessary just to key-in the appropriate counter reading and the cassette would fast wind to any point on the tape. It was as easy as finding a particular track on a record.
Metal, ferric and chrome tapes could be used, and the Dolby Noise Reduction circuits ensured clean, hiss-free sound.
The record deck was fitted with the (then) very latest type of tone arm and miniature MMC 3 cartridge. This pick-up carried a tiny naked elliptical diamond and weighed only 1.6 grams. It had superb tracking ability and ensured the minimum of record wear.
The safe handling of records was also the idea behind the turntable light – fitted inside the hinged lid – which switched on automatically whenever the lid was opened, and stayed alight as long as the deck was in operation.
Beocenter 7700 was available in natural teak or rosewood finish. It measured 72cm wide x 9.5cm high (37.5cm with the lid open) x 38cm deep and could be accommodated in either SC.50 or SC.70 System Cabinet, available separately.
Your choice of loudspeakers for use with Beocenter 7700 was really a matter of listening and comparing the various Beovox models. Different households had different requirements – in size, in quality and in cost. Fortunately, with the Beovox range the choice was a wide one. Advice on speakers for the Beocenter 7700 included Beovox C40, C75, S45, S55 and S80.
Beocenter 7700 was introduced as a completely new way of operating a hi-fi system. A way which gave individuals the freedom to enjoy top quality sound all over the house; at the same time to control the music from anywhere in any room.
This was the world’s first high fidelity system that could be operated from another room. With the Beocenter 7700’s master Control Panel and and optional Master Control Link, you could control radio, record deck, cassette recorder and stereo amplifier even though you were in the kitchen or bedroom and the set itself was in the lounge.
So when you want music in another room, don’t move the hi-fi – just move the music!
A Master Control Panel (above) was supplied with every Beocenter 7700. It was used just like an ordinary remote control handset when you were listening in the lounge, close to your hi-fi system. It let you operate all sound sources and adjust volume levels without moving from the comfortable armchair.
Master Control Link was an optional accessory, like the additional loudspeakers you needed in order to enjoy your music in other rooms. The Link equipment consisted of two units – a discreet black box containing a mass of sophisticated electronic circuitry (which could be fitted out of sight behind furniture etc.), and a transceiver unit that was placed on a shelf or wall where it could pick up the infra-red signals from your Master Control Panel. The transceiver unit also let you switch the speakers in this room on or off, and gave access to programmes that were due to be played via the Beocenter’s automatic timers.
You could buy extra stereo speakers and Master Control links for one, two or three additional rooms, as well as enjoying the hi-fi system itself which you probably installed in the living room or the lounge.
The Master Link equipment was connected by cable ‘in series’, i.e. only the first extra room is connected direct to the Beocenter; the second extra room was connected to the first and so on, so wiring was kept to a minimum. And you could add each room one by one – as your needs changed or your budget allowed.
