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Round-pin power cords for older equipment using PH-163 connector

The round-pin power cords used on older Hewlett-Packard and Dolby equipment  uses a connector called the PH-163. I think I have enough to last me. I bought my last batch in the early 2000s.

As of 2024 these cords are becoming more and more difficult to find…but they still keep appearing in small quantities.

In April 2024, Kazuo Iwase contacted me (out of the blue) from Tokyo, Japan, saying he had just received a box of these cords. His contact information is below.

Thanks once again to Rick Chinn (In 2021), there still is a USA source. These have European connectors, bare ends, or non-molded NEMA 5-15P plugs attached. As of April 2024, this USA link is still active Use your browser’s search function (<ctrl> F) to find HP Oval.

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Powering Wall-Warts

The regulatory climate and economics will support a wide variety of “wall-wart” power supplies for the foreseeable future. These are, at best, a headache to deal with. Some of the ways I’ve dealt with them are:

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File backup strategy and utilities

My storage systems have grown to keep up with storage needs. I am currently running two NAS units in RAID-5:

Unit #1 for client audio projects is a Netgear ReadyNAS NV+ with four 1500 GB drives, providing about 4.3 TiB of storage.

Unit #2 for personal projects and general data is a Thecus N5200 Pro with five 1000 GB drives, providing about 3.6 TiB of storage.

These two units are then duplicated off-site and connected by a fibre optic link (currently running at 100 Mb/s while the rest of the network is running at 1000 Mb/s).

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Introduction

I have made a variety of static pages for my tape restoration Web site, but thought it was time to add a more user-friendly, article-based location to discuss various topics, tools, tricks, and techniques that I have come across in various ways.

What is easier to use than ready-made BLOG software, so I guess Richard is finally Blogging!

I hope you like this and find it of interest. Please let me know of any changes or topics you might like addressed.

Enjoy!

Note: This post has been put in every top-level category because it appears that a post is needed in each top-level category if the sub-categories are to be visible.

Note 2: The Tips  & Notes blog and the  Formats & Resources  static pages of this  sub-site replace the Tips and Resources static pages on the Web site. And, there is integrated searching across both the blog articles and the static pages.

Protecting the container: Heritage Building Fire Safety

While this post does not specifically pertain to audio tape restoration, it does pertain to keeping originals and copies safe, especially in heritage buildings.

This article is prompted by a devastating fire in Aurora, Ontario, Canada, where I have lived for the last 10 years and also from 1981-1983. On Friday, April 11th, there was some roofing work being done on the 135-year-old Aurora United Church. Roofers were using hot tar and allegedly some sort of open flame. Humidity is not high in the winter and we had a cold one. The church roof structure (and much of the ceiling structure of the nave) was wood. Hot tar, flame, low humidity, wind, and very dry old wood do not mix well, and the results, sadly, were predictable. The church is now a ruin. The fire department spent 4-5 hours with up to maybe 7-8 master streams running into the attic and other parts of the structure.

2014-04-12_19.01.24

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