OFF MARKET: EDISON OPERA
Posted: Wed Jul 27, 2022 9:48 am
I am offering this phonograph, which I acquired recently as part of a large bulk purchase. Neither I nor the collector who sold it to me was aware of it's provenance, or lack thereof.
What we have is an "Opera" with a "Concert" tag. It plays wonderfully as seen here: https://youtu.be/bXPp9iwZnOk
BUT, upon closer inspection, I discovered that there were no hold-down bolts securing the bedplate to the wood casing. Then underneath, there is the remains of the securing pin used on an Amberola III, whose mechanism easily lifts out of the chassis. Hmmmmm.........so I contacted a number of people who have been collecting and repairing phonographs since the Dark Ages, and they confirmed to me that back in the good old days, some people took the mechanisms out of an Amberola III, and converted them to Opera standards by removing the horn connection and installing a repro horn support and reproducer lift device, virtually indistinguishable from an original.
Why this was done, or who did it, is a matter of speculation. I suppose one could call it a "poor man's Opera". But it is what it is, and has a beautiful case with lid, horn and elbow. It obviously is not a piece for a collector purist, and I hope the Phonograph Police don't seek to have me indicted, as I have attempted to disclose everything that I know.
Contact me at [email protected] - No PM's please.
thanks,
Raphael
What we have is an "Opera" with a "Concert" tag. It plays wonderfully as seen here: https://youtu.be/bXPp9iwZnOk
BUT, upon closer inspection, I discovered that there were no hold-down bolts securing the bedplate to the wood casing. Then underneath, there is the remains of the securing pin used on an Amberola III, whose mechanism easily lifts out of the chassis. Hmmmmm.........so I contacted a number of people who have been collecting and repairing phonographs since the Dark Ages, and they confirmed to me that back in the good old days, some people took the mechanisms out of an Amberola III, and converted them to Opera standards by removing the horn connection and installing a repro horn support and reproducer lift device, virtually indistinguishable from an original.
Why this was done, or who did it, is a matter of speculation. I suppose one could call it a "poor man's Opera". But it is what it is, and has a beautiful case with lid, horn and elbow. It obviously is not a piece for a collector purist, and I hope the Phonograph Police don't seek to have me indicted, as I have attempted to disclose everything that I know.
Contact me at [email protected] - No PM's please.
thanks,
Raphael