The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

There is a local who has an Amberola V1 for sale. It is SN 1901 and is in mahogany. I have only seen pictures of it and the lady says it plays fine. I was wondering what the difference between a V 1 and just a V is. Also, what would these value at? She wants $350, but I think that is a bit high, but I am going off gut instinct, not anything else. Any info or help would be very appreciated.
Dave

bruv wrote:There is a local who has an Amberola V1 for sale. It is SN 1901 and is in mahogany. I have only seen pictures of it and the lady says it plays fine. I was wondering what the difference between a V 1 and just a V is. Also, what would these value at? She wants $350, but I think that is a bit high, but I am going off gut instinct, not anything else. Any info or help would be very appreciated.
Dave

I'm guessing it's a VI, (Roman numeral six). If that's the case then whether it's a good deal or not depends entirely on condition. Without seeing some very good pictures it's very difficult to say.

Assuming the Edison Amberola in question here is indeed a "VI" with serial number 1901 it is likely a model A which are notorious for having noisy motors which, along with the cabinet, bedplate, etc. condition, also impacts its value. The noisy motors found in most Amberola VI model A's should not, however, affect the playing aspect, generally speaking, aside from the annoying motor noise. At $350 it's definitely worth going to look at since you indicate it is local. The Amberola VI was released in 4 models (A, B, C and D) and all are more interesting than the later Amberolas 30, 50 and 75. There are numerous differences between the Amberola V and Amberola VI models.

Doug

The last Amberola V was the V-B and assembles after the Edison fire in 1914. My ID tag actually says "B-5" they were assembled with the Amberola 50/75 mechanisms.

It sure looks like a 1 instead of an I. Here are a couple of pictures she sent. See what you think. If you click on the plate picture, it enlarges and is right side up.
Dave

This is definitely an Amberola VI model A as I had suspected based on the serial number. It appears to be in good original condition. If it was near me I would have it home already even though I have a nice original Amberola VI model A. As I also mentioned earlier it may have a noisy motor but you may be lucky and find it is acceptable in that regard. $350 is fair based on what I see.

Doug

That looks like a nice machine and well worth the asking price. The Amberola VI was really the last cylinder machine sold as a "higher class" machine. After that it was a series of more utilitarian machines utilizing mechanical parts from obsolete horn machines. Finally the Edison Company came out with the great Amberola 30/50/75 series. But even these machines were marketed towards rural America. This may be oversimplified but, I believed Edison expected company fortunes to be bolstered by the Diamond Disc machines and records. Jerry Blais

Thank you all for the info and help. I'll go take a look at it.
Dave

Hello,
Looking at the pictures it does seem to be in nice condition. Heck I think $350 is a bargain.
Pete

bruv wrote:It sure looks like a 1 instead of an I.
Dave

Not unusual. Some of those model stamps were weak. I once had an Amberola BVI that the seller described as an "RV1"