One of the oldest west-coast manufacturers of radios and TV sets, Packard-Bell, has joined the growing ranks of color-receiver producers with a line of four cabinet styles, each using the same chassis and 21-inch color picture tube. While not in the lowest price range, all four models are competitively priced. The mahogany table model with legs has a list price of $595 and the blonde oak version lists at $625. Consoles range from $695 for the mahogany to $725 for the colonial maple finish. Since Packard-Bell stresses quality cabinet work and produces most of its own cabinets, the various list prices reflect mainly the difference in wood crafting and finishing. The sound system of the table models has a single, side-mounted 6" x 9" oval speaker, while the two console models use two 6" x 9" speakers mounted side by side on the conventional front baffle board. Aside from this, all four models are identical in circuitry, construction, and adjustments.
Controls
Only two dual controls are available for normal manipulation by the set owner, and these can be seen from the illustrations. At the upper left is the "on-off," volume, and brightness control, while the channel selector and fine tuning are at the upper right. Just below the screen, a hinged subpanel gives access to six more controls which the customer can adjust if necessary. These are the horizontal and vertical holds, contrast, tone, and the hue and color gain controls. In the manufacturer's instructions to the set owner, it is anticipated that, once the controls under the subpanel are set, they are not likely to require adjustment for long periods of time. Because of the various automatic control circuits used in the chassis, some of the color adjustments, such as background, gray balance, and color balance, may indeed be rarely used.
The full array of conventional color adjustments for installation and servicing by qualified technicians is available, but the customer would have to remove the back cover and the sub-panel in order to get at the secondary controls. Adjustment of all these controls must be made very carefully and with reference to the manufacturer's instructions. The service technician will check these settings under all signal conditions encountered in the particular installation because the various automatic circuits can only function properly when carefully adjusted. Especially sensitive are the noise threshold controls, the a.g.c. threshold, automatic color-gain controls, and the color-killer threshold setting.
