Wyatt Marcus has a success, the figure 6 Edison Diaphragm.

[larryh]

Just for the record, mine is recorded with a Rode Stereo Pro microphone and is set manually to a volume level. No auto record levels used, so your hearing what I am hearing here so far as volumes relative to the record. And remember as loud as it is, the mute ball is half closed! The Camera is a cannon EOS Rebel T6i, which is rather good quality with the microphone mounted on the top.

Larry

[marcapra]

Who would have thought that a $2 bill would be the next Edison diaphragm! Wyatt could cut his costs in half by using a $1 bill! But I guess he used a $2 bill because the bank is more likely to have them in mint condition.

[larryh]

Who would have thought that a $2 bill would be the next Edison diaphragm! Wyatt could cut his costs in half by using a $1 bill! But I guess he used a $2 bill because the bank is more likely to have them in mint condition.

I guess if the chicken meat tray could be a pretty decent sound producer if handled correctly, then the dollar bill isn't too outrageous. That is what makes trying varous things fun to make, one never knows what you might find.

Larry

[audiophile102]

I recently obtained a second diamond disk reproducer, and I thought it would be a great opportunity to buy a Figure 6. It came in the mail today, (thanks Wyatt) and I switched between the two playing different passages. I noticed the biggest difference when I played The Golden Gate Orchestra's rendition of "Up And At EM". I don't have any way of recording the sound between the two with any fidelity, but I did it anyway using a cheap Canon power shot camera. I then downloaded the sound files into my computer. I opened the files with Goldwave software and played the most distinctive passages. The top wave file is the Figure 6 and the True Tone goes first on the bottom. Even with the low fidelity of my camera, the listener gets an idea of how the two diaphragms performed. The actual sound from both is much better and WAY better than Edison's cork and rice paper originals. If you don't have a Figure 6, get in touch with Wyatt right away.

(Double-click the video above or click this link to go to the video on YouTube.)

[gunnarthefeisty]

It sounds very similar to my original Edisonic. I think if you have a good original diaphragm it's best to keep it, but this is probably the best option if you must replace it.

[audiophile102]

It sounds very similar to my original Edisonic. I think if you have a good original diaphragm it's best to keep it, but this is probably the best option if you must replace it.

I can't agree about keeping it original. My little video demonstration doesn't do the diaphragm justice. I wish I had better recording equipment. I have an original diaphragm and the difference in sound quality is really very noticeable. My Edison records sound so much better and yours could too.

[gunnarthefeisty]

It sounds very similar to my original Edisonic. I think if you have a good original diaphragm it's best to keep it, but this is probably the best option if you must replace it.

I can't agree about keeping it original. My little video demonstration doesn't do the diaphragm justice. I wish I had better recording equipment. I have an original diaphragm and the difference in sound quality is really very noticeable. My Edison records sound so much better and yours could too.

I suspect diaphragms age differently. Like I said, some might need replacing. Attached is my video of my C-250 with original Edisonic playing "A Cup Of Coffee, A Sandwich, And You" by Mike Speciale's Orchestra. It was loud, and quite clear- I don't intend to get the diaphragm replaced. I would like to note that the cabinet was severely water damaged (probably a product of having been stored in a garage and thus affected by the harsh Minnesota winters), but all the mechanical parts work wonderfully. Quite the testament to Edison's engineers!

[Django]

Not no diminish the efforts made, and speaking only for myself, I want my listening experience to take me back in time, not bring the experience into the 21st century. I want it to sound just as it did in the early part of the 20th century. Maybe I am missing something.

Unfortunately, we have 21st century expectations. I was playing my guitar and my daughter said, “I love to hear you play, but I hate hearing your fingers”. Most modern recording filters out the true sound of an acoustic guitar. You lose the less than pleasant process sounds, but to me, they are a part of the authenticity, (for the record, I don’t get a lot of squeak).

Unless it ruins the experience, I will take authentic over enhanced. I am with the feisty one on this one. There may also be issues stemming from defacing US currency if that is really happening here. Wouldn’t commercially available 75% cotton, 25% linen material work?

[52089]

Not no diminish the efforts made, and speaking only for myself, I want my listening experience to take me back in time, not bring the experience into the 21st century. I want it to sound just as it did in the early part of the 20th century. Maybe I am missing something.

Unfortunately, we have 21st century expectations. I was playing my guitar and my daughter said, “I love to hear you play, but I hate hearing your fingers”. Most modern recording filters out the true sound of an acoustic guitar. You lose the less than pleasant process sounds, but to me, they are a part of the authenticity, (for the record, I don’t get a lot of squeak).

Unless it ruins the experience, I will take authentic over enhanced. I am with the feisty one on this one.

I don't know that I would say one should replace a good original one, "just because", but at this point there are fewer and fewer good originals every day. I'm just glad that someone is making competent replacements.

I'm also glad that those makers aren't limiting themselves to only making original-style diaphragms. Edison doubtless tried hundreds of materials in various combinations to get to where he was comfortable. He probably made the best diaphragm he could at the time with the resources available to him. Had the DD continued to be a successful business, I have no doubt he would have tried to improve the reproducing system further, as he did by releasing the Dance and Edisonic reproducers.

[gunnarthefeisty]

Not no diminish the efforts made, and speaking only for myself, I want my listening experience to take me back in time, not bring the experience into the 21st century. I want it to sound just as it did in the early part of the 20th century. Maybe I am missing something.

Unfortunately, we have 21st century expectations. I was playing my guitar and my daughter said, “I love to hear you play, but I hate hearing your fingers”. Most modern recording filters out the true sound of an acoustic guitar. You lose the less than pleasant process sounds, but to me, they are a part of the authenticity, (for the record, I don’t get a lot of squeak).

Unless it ruins the experience, I will take authentic over enhanced. I am with the feisty one on this one. There may also be issues stemming from defacing US currency if that is really happening here. Wouldn’t commercially available 75% cotton, 25% linen material work?

Oh I fully agree. I also don't want any sort of yet-untapped fidelity from my Edisons. If I want that I'll buy a new cartridge for my turntable. Not to discredit Markus- he's done great with the styli and some other projects that I just can't quite remember at the moment. On a side note, I suppose I'm living up to my username in this thread!