The Vinten Merlin

On April 14, 2014 - TV History

The Vinten Merlin

Like in the ‘Tonight’ story just posted, I occasionally mention the Vinten Merlin. In case you have never seen one, here you go. This one is on the ‘Today’ set in 1A, but as I understand it, all of NBC’s large studios in New York have one. Beautifully compact and extremely versatile with only one operator needed, these pedestal mounted jib arms became available in the early 90’s but for some reason, did not catch on. I think Vinten quit making them in the early 2000s, so when you see one in person, take a good look because they are rare birds. Thanks to Dennis Degan for the photo.

Source

2 Comments

  1. Rob Balton April 15, 2014

    The Merlin never caught on because they are simply not very good. The bicycle cables that drive the pan and tilt are wonky at best. They stretch over time and require constant maintenance. When one is in perfect tune it’s not too bad… but keeping them in perfect tune is a chore! The Merlin is a copy of the Barber Baby Boom. They preceded the Jimmy Jib and CamMate as portable remote control cranes. They certainly had there place… but the servo controlled jibs were simply more reliable and eclipsed them. There are people that worked with them all the time that could really make them sing. Eddie Barber the inventor was one of them. Ronnie Smith from Nashville (now Branson MO) was another master. Rich Carter at The Tonight Show does an incredible job with his Merlin. But just talking to him last week he lamented to me that the key to working the Merlin is knowing it’s limitations and working around them.

  2. Dennis Degan April 14, 2014

    A lot of the equipment in the studios moves around; it’s not all dedicated to a particular studio. In the case of Studio 1A, this Merlin stays here all the time. 6B currently has a regular small jib (not a Merlin). 6A is now empty so it has no cameras at the moment. Studio 3A (MSNBC’s primary studio) probably does have a Merlin, as does Studio 3B (I’ve seen that one):
    https://www.flickr.com/photos/dennisdegan/13854453164/
    But obviously 8H does not have one since there’s a Chapman Elektra there. Studio 8G currently has a mini jib, not a Merlin:
    https://www.flickr.com/photos/dennisdegan/13854038603/
    And here’s another shot of the Merlin in Studio 1A:
    https://www.flickr.com/photos/dennisdegan/12657780573/