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CCJ connector

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CCJ connector
Close-up view of a CCJ connector manufactured by Hirose from a 1985 Sylvania video camera
Type DIN-style connector
Production history
Designer Sony
Designed c. 1969
Manufacturer Various, mainly Hirose Electric Group[1]: 63 
Close-up of the same Hirose-made CCJ connector with embossed numerical pinout

The CCJ connector (short for Camera Cable type J[2]), also known as a J-type connector[1]: 62–63  or an EIAJ connector,[3]: 192  is the specification for a 10-pin DIN-style connector established by member companies of the Electronic Industries Association of Japan (EIAJ) in the late 1960s to interconnect various pieces of video camera equipment.[3]: 192 [4]: 149 [5]: 193  Within Japanese-built video camera equipment built from the late 1960s to the mid-1980s, the CCJ connector was especially widely used to connect video cameras to video tape recorders (VTRs), especially battery-powered portable VTRs—so-called portapacks—which were common before the dawn of camcorders, which married both the camera and the VTR.[1]: 63 [4]: 149 [6]: 63–64 

History

The CCJ connector was developed in the late 1960s alongside the EIAJ-1 specification for open reel video tape. Both standards enabled non-broadcast-professional enthusiasts and industrial prosumers alike to use any competitor's consumer video camera equipment without having to worrying about interoperability in most cases, largely (but not entirely) escaping the vendor lock-in situation present in the field in the earlier portion of the 1960s.[4]: 149–150 [7]: 183 [8]: 81–82  Despite being used by many Japanese manufacturers—including but not limited to Sony, Panasonic, Akai, Hitachi, and JVC[5]: 193 [7]: 183 —for their video camera and tape equipment, the invention of CCJ is largely attributed to Sony.[2][5]: 193 

Specification

A typical CCJ connector for a video camera has a 10-pin DIN-style plug on both ends. All CCJ connectors are keyed with a notch on the north end of the connector preventing it from being plugged in upside-down.[5]: 193  For most black and white video cameras, a CCJ cable has separate conductors for the video signal, the audio signal, the horizontal and vertical sync signals, a remote control signal (for trigger the stopping and starting recording from the camera rather than the VTR), a +12 V DC power wire, and a ground wire.[7]: 183 [3]: 192  While most black and white video cameras conform to a standard pinout,[1]: 63 [3]: 192  not all do,[4]: 172 [9]: 24–25  and with the advent of cameras and portapacks that could record color signals onto EIAJ-1 tape, the pinouts began to diverge greatly.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Emmerson, Andrew (July 1994). "Making the Right Connections in Video". Maplin Electronics (79): 59–63, 69 – via the Internet Archive.
  2. ^ a b c Seifert, Tim (June 1, 2022). "Camera connectors". Camera Tim. Archived from the original on June 22, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d Heverly, Frank W. (1986). Handbook of Video Camera Servicing and Troubleshooting Techniques. Prentice-Hall. ISBN 9780133827897 – via Google Books.
  4. ^ a b c d Robinson, Richard (1983). The Video Primer: Equipment, Production, and Concepts (Third ed.). Perigee Books. ISBN 9780399506987 – via Google Books.
  5. ^ a b c d Bensinger, Charles (1982). The Video Guide. H. W. Sams. ISBN 9780672220517 – via the Internet Archive.
  6. ^ Murray, Michael (1974). The Videotape Book. Bantam Books. ISBN 080088020X – via the Internet Archive.
  7. ^ a b c Anderson, Chuck (1975). Video Power: Grass Roots Television. Praeger Publishers. ISBN 027526050X – via the Internet Archive.
  8. ^ Clifford, Martin (1987). Electronic Connections: Home and Car Entertainment Systems. Prentice-Hall. ISBN 0132504995 – via the Internet Archive.
  9. ^ Bishop, John Melville (1980). Making Home Video: How to Get the Most from Your Video Cassette Recording Equipment. Wideview Books. pp. 24–25. ISBN 9780872236301 – via the Internet Archive.