[mythtv-users] Mechanical cable splitter

[David Brodbeck]

On Nov 21, 2007, at 10:02 AM, Jay R. Ashworth wrote:
> IR remotes were common around 1975 or so, I believe; they were  
> preceded
> by ultrasonic remotes with tuning bards; I have in my possession the
> first TV set to *have* a remote control; a 1950s Zenith with a pistol
> shaped flashlight and 4 CdS cells; channel-up, channel-down volume
> low-medium-high, and... I don't remember what the 4th one did.  Power;
> I think.
>
> I wonder if anyone can still repair it.

Probably.  There are old TV enthusiasts just like there are old radio  
enthusiasts, although they're not as common -- the technical  
challenges involved in TV repair are a little tougher, and a lot of  
people who don't blink at working with +450 volt B+ supplies are a  
little wary of multi-kilovolt CRT anodes.  (Justifiably so -- tube  
sets have a lot more capacitance in that circuit than solid-state  
ones.  A solid state set, treated incautiously, can throw you across  
the room.  A tube set can be lethal.)  Replacement parts for TVs are  
also harder to come by, especially CRTs -- their bulk means they were  
a lot less likely to survive in storage, I think.