GP Desks - Early Versions - described by Mike Chessher

These BBC designed "General Purpose" desks were manufactured by Neve, Calrec and Audix. Apart from the paint colour there were a few differences between the products of the three factories but operationally they were much the same. Components varied considerably between the three and, over time, from the same manufacturer.

The first GP desk went into PP5, a studio used mainly for schools programmes. We haven't tracked down a picture of it. It was originally mono, but later converted to stereo. The style was similar to the small desk in B5, shown here, but with more local channels to the right of the script space. It was not well received especially by SMs involved with live progammes and if you compare it with the elegant and much photographed Type D desk in 3E, you can see why. The outcry led to the formation of a Technical Consultative Committee involving a group of SMs and the desks' designer. To be fair, as it also included the head of the department and the head of Radio Projects, it was more than "consultative", but much bargaining lay ahead.

Here then is B5, a small talks studio with its Mk 1 GP. The faders from the left are main, clipped together stereo group, 2 stereo echo returns, 4 outside source channels and beyond the script space, 6 local channels. Whilst there may have been some argument about script space, one thing SMs had always agreed on was that outside sources should be on the right! Incidentally, all the channel faders are closed. The keys above the faders are for cue lights.

The 4 modules at the far left are outside source cue send modules. The red button diverts the output to the jackfield for use with a cue line rather than a control line. The modules in the upstand are for channel gain and EQ and the channel routing modules are below with group/ind routing, 2 aux bus bars, echo and a (red) pan pot above locking PFL/AFL buttons.

To the left of the main PPMs are repeat "limiting db" meters for the com/limiters which are themselves located out of eye line away to the right. Below are tone send buttons, local red light, transmission/rehearsal and buzz back buttons and (green) power supply indicators. The prominently placed blue and white buttons to the left of the main monitoring panel are for telephone ring and answer. Tape remote starts are just above the script space. Talkback keys are Master, Studio, Aux, Slate and 4 Outside Sources.

It might not be perfect but it's strange to think that, before a bit of rebuilding work, there was a Marconi desk here.

The SM members of the Technical Consultative Committee enthusiastically set to work on the layout of a new desk to be known as the GP Mark 3. The new desk would have script space in front of the faders, a lower profile and redesigned EQ, monitoring and OS cue modules. Unfortunately there was not much effort available to turn these ideas into drawings to take to a manufacturer and time was running out for the many Type B desks around BH and especially so for S1 which was still Type A. So work on the new desk was delayed and a compromise desk was devised using the existing carcase and modules apart from a much improved OS cue module. This became the GP Mark 4.