The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Here is a page from The Voice of the Victor about servicing the new Orthophonic Victrolas that some of you might find interesting. After all the hype of Victor Day and the public demonstrations Victor wanted to make sure that the machines in the dealer’s stores were in perfect conditions to demonstrate the Orthophonic wonder!

Mark

“The public is often heedless and thoughtless,
and no amount of advertising or plainly printed directions will entirely overcome the inertia of the public mind.“

Wow, what a universal truth. Applicable today, in spades - albeit in a somewhat different context!

"Be sure the turntable revolves at 78 revolutions per minute," urges the company that kept right on regularly recording at 75 or 76.5 for another 3-4 years.

Many records I've found that are inconsistent with speed.
HMV and Victor were already known. Odeon is another, Spanish recordings, both acoustic and electrical. There is a famous zarzuela, La Verbena De La Paloma, some of whose parts on electric Odeon are done at no less than 88rpm!! Go figure... I discovered that by playing the records, and later confirmed by later repressings on Spanish Parlophons that carried the correct speed information printed on the labels.
And I've found several US Decca pressings from early forties that sound right at 80 or 81 rpm, no less...

Pathé was more practical and assumed that their record speed would be all over the place. The instructions are clear: it's up to the listener's ears to choose the most harmonious between 90 and 100 rpm.

That's why they developed speed controls... choose your own speed.

This has been a good discussion so far but rather than nit-picking about record speeds which we all know were variable although a bit more stable by 1925, I suggest that we focus on the larger picture. Victor was run by businessmen intent on making a profit, the article published in the house organ, The Voice of the Victor, it was sent to all dealers, not the general public. The article was a gentle reminder for the dealers to keep the machines on display in their stores in top shape so that they could present the best possible impression. This advice is relevant even today, how many broken and dusty store demonstrators have you seen? Advising dealers to keep their machines regulated, dusted, lubricated and scratch free on a daily basis affected everyone’s bottom line. This was promoted by forward thinking businessmen. Have any of you encountered similar articles by Edison, Brunswick, Columbia and Pathé offering these same suggestions to their dealers?

MarkELynch wrote: Mon Sep 16, 2024 9:48 am Have any of you encountered similar articles by Edison, Brunswick, Columbia and Pathé offering these same suggestions to their dealers?

Both the Edison Phonograph Monthly and The Columbia Record are full of similar suggestions, along with sales tips. The latter is so full of retailing suggestions that its value to modern-day historians is limited, since changes within models were usually ignored in favor of more suggestions for getting customers through the door. The Edison people did a better job with keeping their dealers up-to-date on changes to machines and records.

George P.

George, thanks for your reply and insights!

I’d be most happy if you could post references to the similar Edison and Columbia notices. I think that many of us have the Wendell Moore reprints of the Edison Phonograph Monthly and also the Columbia Record so just indicating volume and page would be sufficient if you don’t want to scan and post the pages.

I can’t quite agree that Victor did not keep its dealers abreast of changes and new models. They published The Voice of the Victor monthly for every dealer from nearly the beginning into the 1930’s. It is more likely that most collectors are not as familiar with information in the VoV as they are with the Edison Monthly so I asserts that the Inertia of the Collector’s Mind is that Edison did a superior job based on the greater availability of Edison’s supporting documents. How is this for stirring up a debate?

Hope to see you in Wayne.

Mark

MarkELynch wrote: Tue Sep 17, 2024 3:25 pm George, thanks for your reply and insights!

You're welcome!

MarkELynch wrote: Tue Sep 17, 2024 3:25 pm I’d be most happy if you could post references to the similar Edison and Columbia notices. I think that many of us have the Wendell Moore reprints of the Edison Phonograph Monthly and also the Columbia Record so just indicating volume and page would be sufficient if you don’t want to scan and post the pages.

I regret that due to current demands on my time (including finishing up a book and researching articles for the APS magazine) I cannot take on additional research projects at this time. Sounds like a good project for you, Mark!

MarkELynch wrote: Tue Sep 17, 2024 3:25 pm I can’t quite agree that Victor did not keep its dealers abreast of changes and new models. They published The Voice of the Victor monthly for every dealer from nearly the beginning into the 1930’s.

I must have been unclear in my post, as I never mentioned Victor. It was Columbia that was spotty in keeping dealers abreast of changes and new models via The Columbia Record. I've found The Voice of the Victor to have been pretty informative of the company's products.

George P.