The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

This came up for sale by me always wanted one just love the look and how they play . But if you notice in the picture there is no diaphragm on the reproducer. How hard is to find that really thin paper or whatever it is .
Thanks in advance
Chris

I did a simple web search and found this. http://www.thespeakershop.com/

Buford Chidester is the guy you want to re-cone that, it's not terribly costly and will look just like the original.

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Thanks for the response guys. Brandon I emailed Buford and he couldn't help me sounded like his wife is ill and he's not doing any repairs for now . Thanks again
Chris

I had one of these repaired a few years ago by Buford. It looked great and the cone had a yellowish color which is what the originals looked like, I think. I had another one that had been done in white and Buford said it wasn't his as he never used white for these. But when I compared the two, the white one was loud and clear, and Buford's was soft and fuzzy as far as sound. I'd go with the one George listed.

First off, you should grab that Actuelle if you haven't already. The cone is not a major factor - you can get that handled eventually.

There was a guy selling cones on ebay a while ago, made from a thick white paper, almost like blotter paper in consistency. They may not look great but they definitely sound good. I suppose one could spray paint them in a gold color to better match the original, but if you're like me, you have to glue macaroni to things before spray painting them gold, and that adds complexity.

As for sound quality on the different cone materials, I'm not sure there can be much variability there. More likely it has to do with the amount of tension on the stylus shaft, which is adjustable. Of course the shaft has to be free and unbent, and not touching the tonearm anywhere. The cone has to be mounted in a way that assures it isn't unevenly tensioned or wrinkled as well, of course.

The Actuelle is a great performer, and has a real oddball appeal. They are slightly lacking on the bottom end, of course, but almost make up for it on high end response.