The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Hello all!
This is my first posting on this board although I have been watching it for some time and have posted some on the online edison phonograph board.
I wound up buying that Victor VV4-3 that was posted on the craigslist ad in Houston the other day for $100. The cabinet is great shape, although it appears that the tone arm is from a different Orthophonic cabinet. Can anyone post a picture of the what the correct arm should look like?

The reproducer that was on it was not an orthophonic one, so I'll need to get one off ebay and the crank was missing. Yeah, it sounded like a good deal even for as common a model as this, but by time it's all said and done I'll probably be back at market price.
Anyway, the spring was wound when I looked at it, so I let it wind all the way down and it ran very nice and was definately the 2 spring motor that was put in the later models.
Thanks in advance,

Eric

i have a reproducer for sale that would go perfectly with your machine. e-mail me [email protected]

Looks great!

Very nice machine you obtained. It would Not be originally supplied with a cloth lined Orthophonic reproducer....those were only meant to be used with the portable machines of that era. You'll find one, just be patient and one will turn up. that was a good all around machine in quality and sound.

Happy collecting,
ColoradoPhonograf

You picked up your machine for a nice price, & the cabinet looks good! I like the Consolette. It may be a small orthophonic, but it sounds very nice with those electric 78s.

To answer your question regarding the tone arm, the arm for this machine is similar in style to the one that you have but it should be nickel plated. Also, the felt should be gold. I'm thinking that the door knobs look to big too. Take a look at the picture in the Look For The Dog book or the Victor Data book and you'll see what I mean.

Sorry that this isn't a close-up shot, but here's a picture of my former Consolette for a little bit of reference.

The knobs are wrong- big wood instead of small metal-it also looks as if the top of the Tungs Tone needle holder is missing. The finish has been done over too and yes the felt is wrong. Still, these aren't important things- it's a Consolette and the sound is more important than the looks. If it's a Portable style orthophonic soundbox that's not necessarily bad- they can sound just fine. The arm is the wrong color finish but does it track properly?

ColoradoPhonograf wrote:It would Not be originally supplied with a cloth lined Orthophonic reproducer....those were only meant to be used with the portable machines of that era.

What is the difference between the reproducer on an orthophonic cabinet vs an orthophonic portable?

The portable models were built with an extra faceplate and a screen to prevent damage to the diaphragm, under the screen is a piece of felt to mute noise- it's similar to closing the lid on a regular machine. Many portable reprodicers did away with the spider and connected the arm to the diaphragm directly, again so there was less chance of damage. Some people say the diaphragm in portable reproducers has less bass response but there is considerable difference of opinion in that regard. All I can say is that I have a portable reproducer on my Credenza and get very nice sound from it. Sometime I'll get the original reproducer rebuilt and then I can compare.

For any new people out there that might not be familiar with the discussion in this thread here are a few pictures from my Colony which is basically a Consolette in a bigger cabinet.

For the Consolette, look for an orthophonic reproducer that looks like this



Estott mentioned that the tungs-tone needle tin holder was missing. This is what it should look like



Estott also mentioned that this machine's finish has been changed. The Consolette should have what I'll call a 2 tone finish that looks like this



Again, nice machine!
Sharon (3victrolas)

Thanks for the information. I had been wondering about the difference between the portable orthophonic reproducer and the full size cabinets' orthophonic reproducers.

I am buying a crank for it from the "Victrola doctor" Great Lakes Phonographs, so I don't know yet if the tone arm that is with it will work. The machine was mostly wound when I went to look at it but I didn't bring a needle or a 78 and I let it run all the way down to see how the motor sounded.

I can tell that it is not the correct arm though, as you can see from these pictures. This is why I would like to see a close up picture for the correct arm. If this one will work with this machine, I may leave it on and just keep an eye out for the correct one.

Thanks,

Eric