Early repoducer on Ebay $687.00

[fmblizz]

I give up. Can someone tell me what machine this thing goes to????

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... Sxr7I%253D



fmblizz

[SonnyPhono]

I haven't seen anything like it before. But my guess is maybe made by Columbia? But that just a guess as there are characteristics that resemble those of Columbia reproducers. Definitely interesting...

[Lucius1958]

Very weird! In fact, it looks rather home-made.......

Plus, it appears to be for lateral records: curiouser and curiouser......

[gramophoneshane]

I wonder if it's some sort of experimental recorder?
It does have a home made look about it, so I doubt it was ever a consumer item, but it may have been knocked up in the workshop of a record company?
It'd be interesting to see No's 1-6.
I think it's probably interesting enough to post the second picture from the listing for future reference though

[scullylathe]

It is a recorder; the thumbscrew seen at the front of the housing is for an advance ball which controls the cutting depth. The advance ball is missing and goes in the hole next to the stylus armature on the metal strip attached to the cutting assembly on the underside of the housing. My guess would be this is something Victor Emerson was experimenting with in his acoustic vertical/lateral "compatible" recordings. They had an odd groove geometry with the sound modulation at an almost diagonal angle that could (supposedly) be picked up by either a lateral reproducer like a Victor machine or a vertical reproducer like the Edison Diamond Disc. I don't think too many titles were released with this particular type of groove because I doubt they sounded good or tracked well on either type of machine.

[OrthoSean]

I don't think too many titles were released with this particular type of groove because I doubt they sounded good or tracked well on either type of machine.

You're quite right, they didn't release many of these, I think the number of releases was in the low hundreds. I have a dozen or so of them, never tried to play one acoustically, but electrically, they sound good with my EQ set to "lateral" then selecting the left groove wall. They were cut at a 45 degree angle.

Sean

[scullylathe]

Is there some sort of label distinction as to which were recorded this way? Or does it actually say on the label that they're compatible for vertical/lateral? I haven't ever actively looked for any of these or put the Emerson releases I do have under the microscope on my lathe and checked the grooving, but I have a couple of the blue 'lyre' label 8 inch discs and some of the 6 or 7 inch discs with the small yellow 'Americana' label - is either of these series this type?

Yes, judging from the angle of the stylus holder this recorder would be set up for recording on wax at a 45 deg. angle.

[OrthoSean]

As far as I know, all the "universal" grooved Emersons are 6 inch discs with the "Statue Of Liberty" label. I'd have to check my 7 inch Emersons at home to be sure. I don't think the labels actually say anything on them, but I know some of the early sleeves say something on them.

Sean

[OrthoFan]

As far as I know, all the "universal" grooved Emersons are 6 inch discs with the "Statue Of Liberty" label. I'd have to check my 7 inch Emersons at home to be sure. I don't think the labels actually say anything on them, but I know some of the early sleeves say something on them.

Sean

According to Allan Sutton's article -- http://www.mainspringpress.com/emerson1.html -- both six and seven inch records were released:

Emerson initially offered six-inch single-sided and seven-inch double-sided universal-cut discs (the latter priced at 25¢ each, or 30¢ each on the West Coast), but discontinued the six-inch series after approximately 200 issues....

Emerson introduced nine-inch (75¢) discs in January 1918, followed by ten-inch (85¢) discs in June 1919. The larger size was initially reserved for dance selections, standard instrumental music, and religious material, with current vocal hits and some ethnic material still issued on the cheaper nine-inch series during the first half of 1919. The policy changed in September 1919, when the nine-inch series was discontinued entirely in favor of standard ten-inch pressings for all categories. Twelve-inch discs were introduced in November 1919, although relatively few were produced. At about the same time, Emerson quietly abandoned the universal cut in favor of the standard lateral cut.

(Not sure if this implies that other sizes may have used the universal cut.)

[OrthoSean]

Thanks OF. I was certain about the 6 inch discs, in fact I had "Rabbit Hash" by Billy Golden out last night which I played but I never got as far as the 7s, so I couldn't recall, it's been awhile since I had any of these off the shelf.

I've never come across any larger Emerson discs with the "universal" cut groove, I'm pretty sure it was only used on the two small sizes.

Sean