Wolfe wrote:
I've also been seeking a good source of info that rounds up all the quirks of the Pathé company, all the various disc and cylinder formats, recording processes, etc.
Unfortunately I don't think such source exists. While a number of books have been written about the US (and some of the UK) manufacturers, there is nothing published on individual French or German companies other than more generic books with photos of the machines and very little information about them. You can find Pathé record catalogues, but these do not give away any info on how or when the records were done.
About the Actuelle's issuing cylinder dubs, I have a number of French and US issues that are not dubbings, being later songs, so the production may have started with dubbings, but certainly included dedicated recordings.