The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, not that I can't bear it. I promise to play them all by the end of June.

Steve,

I like the idea, but I think that it might be best to leave doing it up to someone else who has some clue how many machines some of you guys have (or what are good ranges to pick as options). Right now we allow up to 20 options on a poll (although I could increase this if needed, and would be willing to do so, although I’ve no clue at what point we’d hit ‘far too many’ poll options).

If nothing else, these polls can be fun, and encourage people to talk about their collections or the machines in them, and there’s already some very good information in Marcel’s thread about servicing new purchases.

Plus, we may well get more inventive (and no doubt unpopular) new math (especially if you factor in the second half of the equation).

— MordEth

OK, I've been sitting back and reading the answers. Given my circumstances lately I can only play a small handful of my machines because I have good deal of my collection in storage at the moment. That will be changing soon, thankfully. Of the 25 or so machines I can easily access at the moment in my house, I play almost all of them regularly, only a few are more or less "for display". If I had to choose my "top five" played machines (another poll? lol), they'd be from most to least: 10-50, Credenza, 8-9, Actuelle, and the HMV 163. When I play cylinders, the Triumph D-2 with oak cygnet and Diamond B is a no-brainer.

Sean

I cannot even begin to imagine how many options that poll would require—it’d probably have to be entirely ‘write in your own top five’.

And then...would you poll cylinder machines and disc phonographs separately or together? What about 78s and Diamond Discs? Laterally- and vertically-recorded discs...?

Decisions, decisions, decisions...

And there’s always the question of whether you try to play records on a machine made around the same period as the record (instead of—for example—on an orthophonic machine)...and no doubt other factors.

I think we have quite a few future potential polls to entertain and discuss for quite some time to come...we haven’t even started talking about needles, yet.

— MordEth

I'd only use about 25% of my machines on a fairly regular basis, but mainly because 50% of my machines I can't get to easily. The other 25% are things like portables, kids machines & things like the Pixie-Grippa & Good News gramophone.
Having said that, the only machine I can think of, that I haven't played in the last 12 months would be my Peter Pan, and that's because I'm yet to find a soundbox for it.
Then again, if it came down to how many machines I use at least once a week, but every single week of the year without fail, I'm down to only 4 machines- 202 Re-entrant, Amberola 30, Home B with Triumph horn, and Standard B with cygnet horn.
The Amberola 30 & 202 are the real work horses though thanks to youtube
Up until Sept/Oct last year, I would have included the C19 too, but since then it's had new purchases playing musical chairs in front of it, in the front entry

I only have three machines here with three more in storage. The odd thing is I play the three I have reasonably often: the C200 Diamond Disc gets the most use with the Victor III and the Edison Standard coming in second and third. I play most of my 78's on modern equipment but every so often I play the Victor just for fun.
JRT

Hi
I voted all of them. There are of course some that get more of a work out than others, the 193 and the EMG get a thrashing but I try to use them all on a regular basis.
Regards Marcel

Hrmmm, my top 5 used, let's see...

1) Edisonic Schubert
2) VV-8-30
3) Standard DD (played on 3-C LP cabinet, but not "long play" mode)
4) HMV Model 103
5) Sony PS-FL99