The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

If they were made with a strong motor , well fitting tonearm and back bracket, and a quality reproducer , would you still dispise them

Personally speaking, yes!

I think that it is a shame that so much effort is put into making these machines. I know that they are cheap and called 'crap-o-phones' but they work and some of them actually look good - well I think so. However, that's not saying that I have ever or would ever buy one

Before I got my first gramophone I did some research and I was glad I did.

Now I'm looking for my first phonograph - can anyone recommend a good all round machine to fit the bill?

Cheers
Charley

whoopinola wrote:There does seem to be a universal distain for these Indian made facsimiles...Is it because they are so poorly made , or because they attempt to be what they are not , or just because they exist ? If they were made with a strong motor , well fitting tonearm and back bracket, and a quality reproducer , would you still dispise them ?

From the ones I have seen, pretty much all of the above. Some sellers try to pass them off to the unsuspecting as genuine. I have seen some cases that are appealing, albeit that a tip off that they are not genuine is that they often have a hand-made quality vs. factory made. Also sometimes the wood is not properly cured, which means it will crack and split over time. The metal parts on the ones I have seen are generally very flimsy. OK for decorator items or stage props seen at a distance, but not for much else.

Clay

By the way, for those visiting this thread in the future and wondering what machine touched off this thread long after the link has died, here is its picture.

Clay

If someone knowingly buys a crapophone and pays a crapophone price, they will probably be happy to own an item which looks ornamental and might be a talking point among non-collectors.

If however they actually use it, they will find that the tracking alignment and the soundbox are so bad that their records will quickly be ruined.

Now I'm looking for my first phonograph - can anyone recommend a good all round machine to fit the bill?

Cheers
Charley [/quote]

My first cylinder machine was an Edison Amberola 30, which has the benefit of a gear driven mandrel i.e. no belt to slip or break.

It plays Blue Amberol or other 4-minute celluloid cylinders, which are more durable than the wax variety and are not eaten away by mould growth.

It served me well for years until I upgraded to an Amberola 50. This looks like a large version of the 30, but has a better quality cabinet, a slightly larger horn and a much better motor which will play 4 or 5 cylinders on one winding.

Either would be a good starter machine, being reliable and easy to operate.

It's NOT a reproduction because nothing like that was ever made.
It's NOT a fake because it's a real phonograph.
It IS poorly made, as they all are.
It IS new.

The worst part about them is the quality, followed very closely by the shady marketing tactics employed by 95% of the sellers.