Philips VP380
Industrial Model
Philips
has added two new professional/industrial LD/CD players to its range, the VP 380
which lists for £1,395 and the VP 312 at £995 (both + VAT). The main
differences between the two players are that the VP 380 plays both PAL and NTSC
laserdiscs and offers Y/C video output too. The VP 380 is Philips' first
professional multistandard player though it has previously (and uniquely)
offered the ability to play both LD and CD discs in one unit. The specifications
given below are for the more interesting VP 380 but are the same for the 312
where it shares functions.
Video
bandwidth is specified at 5MHz for PAL, 4.2MHz NTSC (both at -8dB) via the RGB
output. Composite output is 3.3MHz (-6dB) which seems a little on the low side
but is a worst case spec when the player is in CAV still-frame mode, which is
always limited by PAL's 8-field sequence. In normal moving video the composite
performance is better. The 380 can also transcode NTSC to PAL and vice
versa. Video signal-to-noise is given at 40db. Digital audio over the 20MHz-20KHz
range is specified to within -3dB with a 93db S/N ratio, a 90dB dynamic
range and 84dB channel separation. Analogue signal-to-noise is 53dB or
70dB with CX and channel separation 53dB.
Rear
panel sockets include an RS-232, a 21-pin Scan, phono audio left and right,
phono digital out, video phono output, 5-pin Y/C and a socket for the
optional wired remote control.
Philips
claims high reliability for the player with a 25,000 hour MTBF (mean
time between failure). The player is finished in off-white. It measures 420
x 125 x 415mm (wxh x d) and weighs 9kg. Typical power consumption is
given at 50 watts.
A volume controlled headphone socket is provided on the front panel which has no status readout other than a handful of function lights and just an open/close and play/stop controls. The player incorporates a character generator that can overlay 8 colour text in 12 rows of up to 24 characters. Program sequences up to 16 steps can be compiled by the player without any external computer control.
The archive site has a copy of the Operation Manual for the VP-380. Please see the manuals page.