1" Type C - 1 Inch Type C  (1978)

Instead of 4 heads used for reading/writing in the Quad machines, only one head was used to read/write the video in one full helical sweep. The design encompassed an  Omega wrap, where the tape wrapped nearly around the entire head drum...This made it possible to obtain smooth slow motion, picture shuttle and a viewable stable still frame, none of which were possible in the Quadruplex systems.

1 inch Type C quickly became the de-facto standard in the broadcast and high end production markets. All network feeds were soon coming off 1" type C, and all but the smallest TV stations had at least several. The ideal editing format of its time; it would withstand multiple generations incurred in creating multi-layered effects. 

Evolving technology plus high cost of its tape stock resulted in it's demise.  (A 1 hr reel of Ampex  tape cost approx. $120 (and that was in 1980 dollars !).   This format was widely used by the broadcast industry into the early 1990's at which time it was replaced by the BetaCam and MII half inch component format machines.

To this day, 1" inch Type C by far, offered the highest image quality of all the analog formats.  It's wide track pitch and wide tape, makes it a very robust tape format...