The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Hello everyone. This may be a stupid question. I just bought my first Edison Home Phonograph to join my tiny "collection" of 4 cylinder phonographs. It set me to wondering why? Why did they build and sell the larger, heavier Home & the less intrusive Standard models at the same time? I'm really eager to know.

Different price points to attract different customers. Edison had a range of machines, from the Gem to the Triumph (and later the Amberola line). As the price went up each was a bit larger and more powerful.

I own two edison home model Bs. I've always found them simply being more substantial and better looking. I just assume people wanted something that was less awkward than a standard, mainly so it wouldn't look ridiculous with a large horn.

I believe the home had a longer playing time which was a selling point I would rather play my home than the standard. Tom

With Edison products it is always a mix of technical development and market demand it The Home is obviously a reengineered Triumph but the Standard is a little more out of left field in design at the time.

The Home model has one other advantage over the Standard (and later the Fireside, and others): the topworks are much simpler, and there is only a single shaft driven by a belt instead of the extra set of gears on the Standard. I do not like how those make a lot of noise every time the machine is started. The Home is generally a quieter machine, and with the longer fine-thread feedscrew that makes for a more substantial carriage too.

The Firesides & Standards are really cute but can be somewhat noisy depending on the condition it's in.

I'm happy to own an old 1905 Home Model B, which was "Amberolized" after 1908. The visible 2/4 lever is more attractive than the Model D Home set-up, and the planetary gearing is much smoother and quieter than the buzzing add-on Standard gearing. Also, it's much more visually elegant than the lumpy Model B Standard conversion. The Standards of the D and F models are a more refined solution to the 2/4 problem, with a conversion much like the Fireside Model A, but they're something of a latecomer to the cylinder era. At least they are not rare.

I wish Edison had designed the gear drive Amberola mechanism a little earlier & put that in some external-horn phonographs; the Amberola 30/50/75 mechanisms are perhaps the smoothest-running of the cheaper Edisons. With no pot-metal bearing to seize up, and no belt to slip, rot, or break, the Amberola design would have been lovely if introduced about 1905 and built in 2m and 4m variations.

Thanks for all of the great info. I had just assumed that as a "new" model was released, the older models were phased out. I have been educated. Thanks again. Erich

Edison would produce a home A and B with a standard A and B after the initial square box and the suitcase home which had a weak crank spring .Then after a law suit it produced a standard C and a rarer home C. That was followed by the standard and home D, standard and home E , and there final standard and home F. Most of the D,E,F are very similar except for some gearing changes and different reproducers. The E will only play 4 minute cylinders. Production basically ceased at around 1913 on the home and standard after a factory fire Then you now had the Amberola series. Edison was late getting into the disc business also and his records basically are not interchangeable with the victrola disc records for playing on a phonograph. Very short history Tom