The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

My favorite machine is my Aretino front mount which was owned by my Great Grandmother. My Edison Concert Polyphone is very close in rank!

De Soto Frank wrote:

Orchorsol wrote:"Favourite" is so difficult! So limiting! So confusing! For which reasons, for which purposes/contexts, and how to weigh them up? Comparing apples with pears...

OK, if pressed, my EMG Mk Xb.

But for sentimental attachment, and the one I'd let go last (but hopefully never will, and neither will my sons) my grandparents' HMV 111 which nurtured my love of all this and of music from a very tender age.

Holy Moses, that's an enormous horn !!!

These are even bigger! http://forum.talkingmachine.info/viewto ... 11&t=15076

The Trombophone still has a larger diameter bell though!

I'm really enjoying this topic, immensely! It's nice to see the family heirlooms (past and future) and know that, for many of us, we have saved a bit of history that will possibly live on for additional generations.

"Parents; teach your children well..."

Fran

Having read all the responses under this topic, I keep going through my collection to see whether I can isolate one as my favorite.....but alas I can not. I feel much like George P. Each machine is special to me in its own way....where I obtained it, how it has entertained me and my family over the years, its quirks and particular sound, its place in history. Even those machines that I rarely play because they are "record eaters" are my favorites. On the other hand, even those machines that I usually go to to play my best records are no more favorites than the rest. Sorry.
John

I love the machines that I got from the late Jerry Donnell,the C-250 Diamond Disc that was bought by Minerva Witz in 1919.It came from E.F Droop and Sons in Washington,DC.Inside the horn compartment there's a paper tacked inside with the history.I have a picture of Minnie.I also love the Credenza,the P-1 Edison portable,the Triumph E,and the little Yale Bluebird.Jerry gave that one to my mom,and I inherited it after she passed away in 2011.edisonplayer

pughphonos wrote:

Lenoirstreetguy wrote:My faithful C 200 trumps any other machine I own. I was given it when I was 16 and I've had it with me ever since...like, over 40 years! I play it virtually every day. It came with the original owner's records all in original sleeves. All the recordings date between 1914 and 1921.It's in very good original shape except for the grill cloth..which I replaced.The cabinet is dated March, 1915 which means it's an early C200. And it came with a sample of Edison grease and a smashed lateral adapter. All those reproducers nestled under the lid are for my "second best friend," the Model D Standard which faces the C200 across the room. ( That Exhibition snuck in there somehow.)

Jim

Jim, I've always liked those mid-range Edison models from the ca. 1915 class of phonos; the C-200 (Adam) is cool especially. I can see why you like it. The C-250 Chippendales are monsters, whereas the Adams are more compact with a curious mix of elegance and simplicity.

Me too. Frow says that the C200 wasn't a big seller because the public wasn't crazy about the
cabinet.
I've always thought that odd because I think the design quite pleasing. And in Canadian terms, on3 sees them surprisingly often up here. The last one I saw was in Montreal....in English oak ironcially

My favorite, not because of its relative scarcity, but because of the way I found it and the fact that it was a basket case in a box that took months to restore, is my Fairy Phonograph Lamp. I never thought I would find one and this came to me from a collector that had given up on it... It plays needle cut records, vertical cut records and Diamond Discs all without winding... plus it provides light as a bonus.

I can't possibly single out one. Way too many candidates. I've occasionally tried to think about what I'd do if I were to cut my collection down to a dozen. But even then I have a few more than that which I can't imagine letting go.... Some are wonderful and fun rarities, a couple are modest but I've owned them for more than 50 years so how could I even dream of selling those?

If I were to be really ruthless I might be able to draw up a list of 20 that I can't live without. Less than that would be like slicing off my leg with a pen knife.

While buying a machine you really want is rewarding , sometimes the story of events leading up to that purchase are equally fun. The story of acquiring My favorite machine was a total fluke. About 20 years ago I had just returned home from visiting the magical kingdom of Jasper San Flippo , I had seen many wonderous machines I had never seen before. Later that week I was talking on the phone to a music box collector/ dealer who I might communicate with once or twice a year, at the end of his call, I just light heartedly mentioned, if you ever hear of this certain machine for sale to let me know. Not really expecting any positive response, much to my surprise he said he had just received a call a couple of hours earlier from a collector whom he had brokered said machine for several years ago and he was going to sell it. Well I had no idea what one was worth, I had only ever seen the one at Jaspers. Anyway I nervously committed on the spot to buy the machine sight unseen, for his clients,( whom I did not know) asking price.I immediately sent him a cashiers check and drove 16 hours a couple of weeks later to pick it up. Later I found out if I would have delayed but a few hours I would have missed the sale. If I could only keep one machine this would be it.