The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Here's a pic of an early 1929 mixer panel. This is an illustration from The Shattered Silents by Alexander Walker. It's an excellent book about the transition to sound in Hollywood. It was first published in 1978 and it's an amazing piece of research by any standards, and especially one from the pre-internet days.
When I have a minute I'll go through a pile of Radio Craft magazines from the late 20's because I know I've seen an article about mixers. Or I think I have .

Jim

By the later 30s many companies were using 2 or more mikes. There's a number of Fats Waller sessions where you can actually hear that the technician is sometimes too late in turning up the volume for a solo. In Germany many companies used 3 mikes, 1 for the horns, 1 for the rhythm (including violins) and 1 for the singer. The recordings Miller made in England with his AAF band were made using 4 RCA PBs-44 mikes on booms above the orchestra.