The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Hello All,

Can anyone shed light on this machine? Does the DGAG stamp indicate that this was an actual, known model that is factory original?

https://www.ebay.de/itm/Schank-Grammoph ... 3099713277

Thanks!

Garret

It looks factory original in my opinion...

That's a Victor or HMV motor and it looks like a Victor tone arm turned upside down, and might be a cast Victor horn piece.

Phototone wrote:That's a Victor or HMV motor and it looks like a Victor tone arm turned upside down, and might be a cast Victor horn piece.

Not exactly Victor, but similar... it could be a Deutsche Grammophon (DG) motor, horn and tonearm, since they were a Victor clone...

D G A G... Deutsche Grammophon Aktiengesellschaft
The German word Aktiengesellschaft is a compound noun made up of two elements: Aktien meaning shares, and Gesellschaft in this context meaning corporation

The giveaway that it is a made up construction , probably using a "polyphon" or similar music box machine box sans mechanism and a DGAG cabinet gramophone is that the soundbox faces the wrong way , no original gramophone does that , does it ? should be in crapophone section

Ah yes. Something seemed off. However, what can be explained regarding the DGAG stamp?

Garret

soundgen wrote:The giveaway that it is a made up construction , probably using a "polyphon" or similar music box machine box sans mechanism and a DGAG cabinet gramophone is that the soundbox faces the wrong way , no original gramophone does that , does it ? should be in crapophone section

I might agree with you, IF this was being sold by the original seller/dealer/distributor in the 1900s. However, since it has been around for 100 years and passed to various different owners over that time, the J tube could have been reversed by someone in the past for some unknown reason... Who knows why people made changes to their machines...? In other words, the orientation of that J tube is merely circumstantial and doesn't indicate originality... at least in my opinion.

Curt A wrote:

soundgen wrote:The giveaway that it is a made up construction , probably using a "polyphon" or similar music box machine box sans mechanism and a DGAG cabinet gramophone is that the soundbox faces the wrong way , no original gramophone does that , does it ? should be in crapophone section

I might agree with you, IF this was being sold by the original seller/dealer/distributor in the 1900s. However, since it has been around for 100 years and passed to various different owners over that time, the J tube could have been reversed by someone in the past for some unknown reason... Who knows why people made changes to their machines...? In other words, the orientation of that J tube is merely circumstantial and doesn't indicate originality... at least in my opinion.

That gooseneck tube can be switched to either side by just unscrewing the plug. Perhaps someone found it easier to access the needle screw with their left hand? I vote for this being genuine- as in being something made in the period and not fitted up at a modern date

The soundbox is rather late looking - I wonder why no one has flagged it as incorrect?

"The soundbox is rather late looking - I wonder why no one has flagged it as incorrect?"

True... possibly an upgrade or a replacement for a lost reproducer...

Curt A wrote:"The soundbox is rather late looking - I wonder why no one has flagged it as incorrect?"

True... possibly an upgrade or a replacement for a lost reproducer...

Yup. Easy fix.

Again, I am wondering about the cabinet, and assemblage as a whole. It appears to be a rather high quality build, and the DGAG stamp is intriguing.