The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Yes, yes, another topic from me about Credenzas. But instead of me griping about not being able to get one in my area, I was wondering. What are the best and worst Credenza clone machines out there (not the Columbia 800 series or Brunswick Cortez) such as the Sears Tru-Phonic, Sonora philharmonic ,or the Player-Tone Sonnet? And how do they compare to the real deal?

One that I know of is the "cecilian melophonic". I cant find a good picture of one except this empty cabinet on facebook marketplace, but it may just be the only one. I've come to the conclusion that cecilian never really made phonographs, they just got the back-stock of phonographs from other companies and slapped their name on it, as I've never found two cecilians that are quite the same, and they tend to look fairly generic.

Martin

The Brunswick machine would be a good second choice to consider.

The beauty of some of the off-brand Credenza lookalikes is often only skin deep. They may look impressive from across the room, but close examination reveals that is where the similarity ends. I've seen some photos posted here over the years that reveal substandard equipment - a generic tonearm mated to a dinky horn and an almost empty cabinet. If you want the real deal, it's best to wait to find one.

This comment does not apply to the larger Sonoras and Brunswicks, which I do not consider off-brands.

AZ* wrote:The beauty of some of the off-brand Credenza lookalikes is often only skin deep. They may look impressive from across the room, but close examination reveals that is where the similarity ends. I've seen some photos posted here over the years that reveal substandard equipment - a generic tonearm mated to a dinky horn and an almost empty cabinet. If you want the real deal, it's best to wait to find one.

This comment does not apply to the larger Sonoras and Brunswicks, which I do not consider off-brands.

So the Sonora Philharmonic is up there with the Credenza and Viva-tonal 800s?

If you were closer to me, I have a Credenza that I would sell.

The Sears Tru Phonic line had generally good quality cabinets and some owners have gotten good performances out of them, mainly because they use metal diaphragm reproducers. The horns aren't anything scientific.

I know there were cabinet companies that made Credenza like cabinets that were sold to smaller phonograph manufacturers. I saw a large Pathephonic for sale on Craigslist in Alabama a few years ago. That's the only one I've seen made by Pathé. It must be very rare!