One of our regular inventory checks at Ward-Beck turned up an interesting old tool that was in popular usage during the console era, helping to repair and maintenance of audio consoles.
What you see above is an R2K console extender board, a simple board that was placed in between the console chassis and the console modules.
This helps to extend the circuitry on the module out of the chassis, allowing technicians to easily access both sides of the circuit board, in order to connect testing equipment. This made for easier maintenance and repair, and less chance of any circuitry being accidentally damaged because the technicians couldn't properly see the card they were working on.
These extenders boards provided a practical solution to the physical limitations of testing and troubleshooting in the crowded and enclosed space of a console.
Extender Boards are not in wide use anymore. These days, when a module from a console, such as our R2K console needs to be repaired, it is simply taken out of the console and sent in for repair, while a replacement is used in its place. However, we do have a modern version of the extender board for the Ward-Beck 8200 series of cards.
This extender board helps to extend the card out of the cage rack, so that testing on the card can be done without dismantling the whole thing, or have to poke inside the card cage. Again, a handy way to ease up the repair and maintenance process.
Our extender boards are still being used by technicians in broadcast stations around the country. The little things keep the old ways going :)
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