The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Hi all,
A friend of mine said to me last week that he had a reproducer designed to fit the tone arm of a victor in place of the Exhibition reproducer that would play Edison DD. I asked him if he would dig it out as I would like to see it. To day I called and asked if he had found it and he answered "yes". I drove the 30 or 40 miles to check it out it is as I expected a Vicsonia he also has a Duo phonograph that can play Edison DD.
The Vicsonia is almost new and perfect in its original heavy tag board box with label. The diaphragm is Matte black and appears to have some what regular straight lines and on close examination the lines vary ever so slightly in spacing and the surface texture under light varies in the intervening spaces between the lines. I believe the diaphragm is a thin sliver of Quarter sawn spruce that has been sized or coated with a black sealant.
He played an Edison record on a Victola with it and it sounded very good to me. The next time I go there I will take a DD of the 52,000 series that I have played with both an Edisonic and a older Edison reproducer at my home and or may be at his place and then play it with the Vicsonia to compare them.
The Duo phonograph of course has a cork-rice paper diaphragm and also sounds very good.
Best to all out there and thanks to any one responding to my request for info on other diaphragms,
Allen

My Vicsonia diaphragm looks like some sort of fabric coated in lacquer or tar or something. The volume is very low.

A Ford 1 wrote:Hi all,
A friend of mine said to me last week that he had a reproducer designed to fit the tone arm of a victor in place of the Exhibition reproducer that would play Edison DD. I asked him if he would dig it out as I would like to see it. To day I called and asked if he had found it and he answered "yes". I drove the 30 or 40 miles to check it out it is as I expected a Vicsonia he also has a Duo phonograph that can play Edison DD.
The Vicsonia is almost new and perfect in its original heavy tag board box with label. The diaphragm is Matte black and appears to have some what regular straight lines and on close examination the lines vary ever so slightly in spacing and the surface texture under light varies in the intervening spaces between the lines. I believe the diaphragm is a thin sliver of Quarter sawn spruce that has been sized or coated with a black sealant.
He played an Edison record on a Victola with it and it sounded very good to me. The next time I go there I will take a DD of the 52,000 series that I have played with both an Edisonic and a older Edison reproducer at my home and or may be at his place and then play it with the Vicsonia to compare them.
The Duo phonograph of course has a cork-rice paper diaphragm and also sounds very good.
Best to all out there and thanks to any one responding to my request for info on other diaphragms,
Allen

Do you mean a Bush & Lane 'Duo-Vox'?

These Clarvox, Vicsonia etc. are nice if you have a few DD records you would like to play from time to time but a rebuilt DD reproducer will definitely outperform them, much fuller sound. I have a couple of them but rarely use them.

Better yet, especially valuable records, a modern turntable is better yet and the sound of the electrics on modern equipment is just fantastic, way outperforming the original Edison equipment.