The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Marco Gilardetti wrote: Right on the front cover it is pictured a cylindrical-shaped object that happens to be an HMV needle tins dispenser. There's a more clear picture inside, where the writings are perfectly readable. The needle tones available are marked "Soft", "Half Tone", "Full Tone" and "Extra Loud Tone". What I desume is that, having all other needle types (soft, half and extra loud tone) a specific compartment, the only place where the tins labeled "Loud Tone" can be put is in the "Full Tone" compartment. Hence, the "loud" tones were HMV's "full" tone type.

That's precisely what I'm saying, Marco. HMVs' "soft" are exactly that, their "Half -tone" are medium, "Full-tone" are loud, and "Extra loud tone" are again, exactly that.

Barry

Marco, half and medium can mean essentially the same thing in English in this context.

Clay

FloridaClay wrote:Marco, half and medium can mean essentially the same thing in English in this context.

Clay

They do indeed mean the same thing. "Half Tone" was Victor/HMV's term for what everyone else called "Medium Tone".

I have just written the exact opposite: that everything, from needle tin stands to gauge to ears, seem to conspire against the equation "HMV half tone = rest of the world medium tone", but nevermind.

What Marco Gilardetti is saying is there is not a mathematically halved decrease in volume output as you step down from a Loud-Tone to a Medium-Tone needle. Whereas if stepping down from a Full-Tone to a Half-Tone you are literally halving the acoustic volume output, say from 80db to 40db.

So Medium-Tone is the volume between the loud and soft tone needles (average of the two), but not a true mathematical half increment of the loud needle.

And Half-Tone is the mathematical ½ the volume output of a Full-Tone needle (meaning if it were halved again you would have 0 volume).

Therefore the Medium-Tone would not be equal in volume to a Half-Tone needle.

^I have no idea if that's really the case or not as I have never looked into it personally, I'm just elaborating on what Marco was saying.

My current understanding is that 'Half-Tone' simply means half way between the 'Soft-Tone' and 'Full-Tone' needles, rather than an indication of the related volume output. That would then make it equal to the 'Medium-Tone' needle as others have said.

I have received the needles I bought from Mike Child in the menwhile, and thought I could post here some comparative pictures.