Category Archives: Phonograph History

1927 “Phonoscope”

1927JuneRadioNews

This cover illustration from the June 1927 issue of Radio News is more or less self-explanatory. But unfortunately, there’s little in the way of explanation given in the magazine, and I’m not aware of this form of video recording ever having been done in practice.

The early mechanical television signals were indeed, sent over the audio channel of AM broadcast stations, so it’s not far fetched to think that the audio could be recorded on a phonograph disk. I think the main problem would be the frequency response of the disk recording. As far as I know, the upper frequency limit for 78 RPM records, especially during that era, was around 5 kHz. I doubt if much video could be packed into 5 kHz bandwidth.

The magazine mentions, with no technical detail, only that John L. Baird was then working on the system, which he called “Phonoscope.”



Mirrorphone, 1942

1942JuneNationalRadioNews

Shown here on the cover of National Radio News, June-July 1942, is the Mirrorphone from Western Electric. The magazine noted that the magnetic tape recording device was being used by radio announcers, actors, and in speech classes as an aid to speech improvement.

It recorded the subject’s voice onto a steel tape, which was presumably in n endless loop. A switch provided for immediate playback, allowing the speaker to detect and correct errors of pronunciation, emphasis, or tone.

The recorder automatically erased previous recordings.

The magazine noted that the device was in use by a number of radio stations, dramatic groups, and speech classes to train thousands of new telephone operators and secretaries in government agencies and war industries.

More information about the Mirrorphone, along with photos, can be found at this link.



Recording a Record for Servicemen, 1942.

1942June8ChiTrib75 years ago today, the June 8, 1942, issue of the Chicago Tribune carried this ad from the Marshall Field department store.

So that customers could express their gratitude to the men in the service, the store had a “canteen” on the second floor containing 576 different gift ideas that were, after “consultation with the War Department and the boys themselves,” were guaranteed to please the serviceman. The ad invited customers to “spend very little, or quite a lot, but send the boys something regularly.”

The store’s prices included free shipping by railway express to any military or naval post, station, camp, or ship.

One suggestion to include in the box to the boys was a phonograph record. For just a quarter, you could record five minutes on two sides of a 6 inch phonograph disk so that the boys could hear a voice from home.



1917 Dictaphone

1917June6ChiTribA hundred years ago today, the banner headline of the Chicago Tribune, June 6, 1917, reported that 308,809 Chicago men had registered for the draft. It predicted that the total for the country could pass ten million, with 640,000 of those in the State of Illinois alone.

Whatever the exact numbers, it was clear that many American men would soon be under arms, and that labor shortages would probably result. It wasn’t surprising then that one company made the best of the situation by promoting in the same paper its labor-saving device: The Dictaphone.

The ad (which was itself dictated into a Dictaphone, it was claimed at the bottom) proclaimed that “the man-power of the country is enrolling in defense of the flag–but business must go on.”

The ad reminded the businessman that “you have always needed The Dictaphone,” but these times of stress and pressure made the need even more acute.

The businessman who had already adopted The Dictaphone “knows where he stands. He has a flexible, efficient, provably better way to handle his correspondence.”

The ad promised that “The Dictaphone will more than make good your loss of experienced, able office personnel who may be called to the colors.”

 



1917 Edison Phonographs

1917May31ChiTribA  hundred years ago, a phonograph was within the price range of many Americans. For example, the ones shown in this ad started at $18.75, and most shops allowed weekly or monthly payments. However, that’s not to say that those interested in conspicuous consumption couldn’t show their wealth by spending a great deal more.

The ad shown here appeared in the Chicago Tribune a hundred years ago today, May 31, 1917.  The well healed could certainly display their wealth in the form of a phonograph, since the one at the bottom sold for $2000.  In today’s money, that would be something along the lines of $40,000.



1957 Hi-Fi Phono Oscillator

1957RadioTVExpCover

Maybe your MP3 player sounds a bit better than this gentleman’s hi-fi turntable from 60 years ago, but I bet you can’t build yours from scratch, like this guy did.  This one, shown on the cover of the 1957 edition of Radio-TV Experimenter, is entirely homemade, and despite the homemade appearance, probably did sound as good or better than anything on the market at the time, and would probably have sounded good even by today’s standards.

It was actually a phono oscillator, and transmitted the signal through an FM transmitter.  Since the audio quality of the FM signal was better than the recording technology of the day, the fidelity was limited only by the quality of the record.

Sound quality was paramount in every detail.  As is plainly visible, the tone arm is indeed made out of wood.  In particular, the wood is basswood, chosen because it had less mechanical resonance than other woods.  Metal would have been inferior, because of the capacitive effect with the leads running through it.

The pickup was homemade, not as a cost-saving measure, but because the design shown here was superior to the ceramic cartridges then commercially available.  It used a capacitive pickup.  The only commercial component was the sapphire-tiped needle, which was pushed into a rubber plug.  A copper plate was carefully positioned next to the needle to complete the capacitive pickup.

The tone arm was cut with a jigsaw, and the article contained precise instructions for balancing it.

The electronics, probably the easiest part to construct, consisted of a small FM transmitter employing a single 6C4 tube.  The example shown here was to be used for 45 RPM records, but the article noted that by adjusting the size and using an appropriate needle, it could be built for 33 or 78 RPM records.



1947 Portable Phono-Radio

1947MarPS

Seventy years ago this month, the March 1947 issue of Popular Science showed how to put together this portable radio phonograph.  It was by no means deluxe, but it was the epitome of portability.  The magazine noted that in most cases, the “portable” terminology meant only that a handle had been slapped onto the cabinet, and the set was still tethered by the need for electrical current.   But in this case, a crank-up phonograph motor and a one-tube battery powered amplifier meant that it was truly portable.

The electronics consisted of a 1D8GT tube powered by two batteries, a 1.5 volt cell for the filaments, and two 67.5 volt batteries providing 135 volts B+, although it noted that it would work with as little as 90 volts.

The magazine noted that the spring motor should be set to 80, which would result in it running at the desired 78 RPM with a record on the platter.

The radio was simply a crystal set with a fixed crystal, which could be switched in place of the phonograph’s pickup cartridge.  While the radio strength was not great, it would serve to pull in local stations, especially with an external antenna and ground of some sort.

1947MarPSschematic



1942 Popular Mechanics Phono Oscillator

1942MarPM11942MarPM2

Seventy-five years ago this month, the March 1942 issue of Popular Mechanics carried a construction article for this portable phonograph oscillator.  Mounted in the always available cigar box, the one-tube record player used a 117L7-GT tube to produce a signal that could be tuned in on any nearby radio.

The tone arm could be removed when not in use, and plugged in with two phone tip plugs to hold it in place and make the electrical connection.

Since the phono oscillator only required one tube, and didn’t need an expensive speaker or transformer, they were quite popular for playing records for those who already had a radio.

For use right next to the radio, no external antenna was required.  For a bit more range, a short piece of wire could be added.  The coil inside was wound on a one-inch piece of cardboard, and a variable condenser could be tuned to a blank spot on the dial.

1942MarPMschematic



Free Tape to GI’s: 1967

1967FebPE

Fifty years ago, sending an audio “letter” by tape was one way to keep in touch with servicemen overseas, but a home tape recorder was still a relatively rarity. So in this ad in the February 1967 issue of Popular Electronics, Radio Shack made an offer to send a tape to a GI anywhere in the world. The sender just had to come into the store, which would allow use of a recorder. They would even supply a free tape, mailer, and postage.



1947 Radio-Phono Service Call

1947FebRadioMaintIf you think something untoward is happening in this picture from 70 years ago, then you’re wrong.  This radio-phono serviceman is simply making an ordinary service call, and it was important for him to bring the right parts.  This ad from Astatic reminds him that it was always best to use exact manufacturer replacement parts, and that was especially true when it came to phonograph pickup cartridges.

To keep a service call from getting out of hand, the serviceman was advised to carry in his service kit a wide variety of pickups.

The ad appeared in the February 1947 issue of Radio Maintenance.