Different size Batwing labels

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stetam
Victor II
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Different size Batwing labels

Post by stetam »

I have noticed there are at least three different size Victor Batwing labels. Any rhyme or reason for this? Length of the song? And how common are the small labels. This is the first one I have seen.

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OrthoSean
Victor V
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Re: Different size Batwing labels

Post by OrthoSean »

It's not at all uncommon, with acoustics it usually was because the song was longer.

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marcapra
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Re: Different size Batwing labels

Post by marcapra »

Also I think the wider batwing labels indicate an older recording. The last U.S. batwings in 1925 have an eccentric groove in the dead wax and a circle with VE to indicate it was electrically recorded. Also many acoustic batwing records that continued to be pressed, like Caruso, were given eccentric grooves so they would operate on the new Orthophonic phonographs with a shutoff mechanism. Canadian Victor records continued to use the batwing labels into the 1930s and maybe longer.

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