I'm still trying to figure out how to fit a cylinder into the DVD drive in my computer without ruining the cylinder. Well, I guess it's not a complete waste. When a cylinder breaks, I just use the box to store acorns! Gold moulded acorns...what a delicacy.
If you really want to "hear" what is on those acoustic records with more balance make your Victrola, a Brunswick. I collected Victors of all sizes as well and many others of all brands but overall depth of sound the Brunswick wins in my opinion and I believe a number of others here. The motors are usually extremely quiet and the surface noise is noticeably less that a #2 or Exhibition Sound box due to the large size of the diaphragm and perhaps all wood horns. What won me over mostly was when I brought home my first Brunswick and as I always was prone to do, start playing though my favorite records and discovering that I was hearing some subtle difference in the music I had not previously heard. This might be a point some would never appreciate as the overall sound of the brunswick is not as loud, or should I say ear piercing as a large victor. But the response from the records to me at least were noticeably better and overall more balanced.
I will tell this since the old post of it is long gone on the other sites. Many Many years ago we hauled a very large Victor Upright to the Powell Symphony Hall in St.Louis. A friend was performing there and somehow got permission to play the machine on the stage to see what it sounded like. I had been used to Victors at that point and the fact that may times my ears were ringing from the intense overtones produced in the home.. So when we put some famous singers on the machine and got back and listened to it it was quite an experience. The soft parts and medium were nice and had plenty of tone, but when the singers reached a set of loud high notes it nearly took your breath away. The vocals rose and soared though the auditorium. None of that blasting effect with buzzing ears it could do at home. I was roundly impressed. A number of years latter when I finally purchased a Brunswick I discovered that in the home it recreated all the best parts of the Victors performance on that stage. Nice and listenable lows and mediums but when the singers need it the powerful sound came forth. That convinced me that besides the wider range of tone the brunswick produced that the sound as heard in the home was much more like the live performance in a hall of the artist.
That's very interesting larry. Although, I don't run accross to many Brunswick Machines, as I do Victor Machines. I never thought there was a difference between the machines. I thought it was the steel needels that would make the difference in sound, and not the horn. Guess I was wrong. The only reason why I have a victrola, was due to the fact that I can get a victor repaired more then any other machine. This was also on the advice of other collectors.
No doubt it is a personal decision. Many are drawn to the fact that Victor was the best known of the machines. But as to the sound quality, the Reproducer is more the key than the horn, but the two together is a plus. A larger reproducer gives a bit more bass response or perhaps mid range as some call it. So when some classical pieces are played you can detect a bit more warmth and depth to the music. If your not particularly in tuned with what you hear then it won't matter and they most likely would all make you happy. I wouldn't say that if a nice victor came along here I might not once again try one as many like them. But then like the records, I am always anxious to try various machines to see how they "sound". Many mainly collect to possess them, I collect to listen. Another advantage to the Ultona machines is being able to play Pathé and edison if you wish without having Three machines in the living room. On that argument though the Edison won hands down for the sound produced on its own brand of records. I have had others here to say that they prefer the Brunswick over the Pathé for playing Pathé Records.
Paul, the same happened to me with 16" radio transcription disks...I bought one outa curiosity, then another, and another an another...until I had a whole pile of them. Trouble was I needed a specialist deck to play them on....so I adapted one myself as a temporary measure until funds permitted me to buy a proper one. Glad I did as I can even play all my 78's and DD's on it too. The only thing I can't get it to play are those damm edison cylinders!
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