Keep a Columbia Grafonola or a VV-VI

[theoldlefthander]

No brainer: KEEP THEM BOTH!!!

[De Soto Frank]

My experience has always been that Columbia machines are far harder on records than Victor machines.

Sean

Any particular style Columbia machines, Sean ?


I am curious... I have a c. 1915 Columbia "Favorite", with what I assume is the "standard" Grafonola taper-tube, and a Columbia # 6 soundbox. It sounds very nice when playing, so I would be inclined to use it frequently...

Is it a matter of the tracking weight of Columbias, or the stylus to record geometry ?

I have not checked the tracking-weight on any of my machines, but it is on my mind to do-so, when I find an accurate scale...

[ImperialGuardsman]

What a shame, the Columbia reproducer sounds rather nice and can handle even loud records well.

[OrthoSean]

Columbia reproducers DO sound good. The real drawback with them is the pivot system. I'm certainly not anti-Columbia, but I prefer Victors for playing because of the wear factor. While "Spring Cleaning" my workshop / storage area last night, I came across a Columbia Favorite I'd completely forgotten I had. Picked it up at a farm auction for $15 about 10 years ago and it's been buried under a pile of other stuff ever since . It's a perfect candidate for a complete restoration since the finish on the outside is basically gone from the oak cabinet and it's a cute little machine. I think in the next few weeks I'll start tearing into it and using it for some side by side wear tests with some duplicate junk records.

Sean

[ImperialGuardsman]

Columbia reproducers DO sound good. The real drawback with them is the pivot system. I'm certainly not anti-Columbia, but I prefer Victors for playing because of the wear factor. While "Spring Cleaning" my workshop / storage area last night, I came across a Columbia Favorite I'd completely forgotten I had. Picked it up at a farm auction for $15 about 10 years ago and it's been buried under a pile of other stuff ever since . It's a perfect candidate for a complete restoration since the finish on the outside is basically gone from the oak cabinet and it's a cute little machine. I think in the next few weeks I'll start tearing into it and using it for some side by side wear tests with some duplicate junk records.

Sean

A comparison would be great! Be sure to post your findings.