The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

According to the 1972 article which accompanied this picture, the gentleman was operating an Expert gramophone made in 1920. It is of course an EMG Mk.IX, and was probably a machine later known to the late Frank James.
In his final postscript to "The EMG Story", published in CLPGS FtR No.18 (Summer 2006) he wrote, "An eccentric machine turned up last year in Kent. A Mk.IX with a Xb horn which was made to point at the ceiling. All quite genuine and original, and this prompts the question of what other freaks may yet be out there".

Is Charles Aldous still alive? If not, what happened to his collection?

Wonderful to see, thank you Roger! Graham and I visited, saw and heard this instrument, probably 6 or 7 years ago! I hope the owner (no longer Mr Aldous) still has it - I haven't heard from him for a few years.

And how good was the sound of it? It just sends to point the horn towards the ceiling seems to have for the idea of having the ceiling and walls acting as a horn extension to the center of the room...

Inigo wrote: Fri Jul 11, 2025 9:46 am And how good was the sound of it? It just sends to point the horn towards the ceiling seems to have for the idea of having the ceiling and walls acting as a horn extension to the center of the room...

Excellent, as expected! But with a diffuse sound in the room - whereas, part of the magic of EMGs and Experts is that, if one listens more-or-less 'on-beam' in front of the horn, there is a sort of 3 dimensional sound-stage effect which some of us describe as holographic.

Orchorsol wrote: Fri Jul 11, 2025 1:00 pm But with a diffuse sound in the room - whereas, part of the magic of EMGs and Experts is that, if one listens more-or-less 'on-beam' in front of the horn, there is a sort of 3 dimensional sound-stage effect which some of us describe as holographic.

I agree, to get the full experience of the EMG/Expert I need to be in front of the horn. I tried once to point it to the wall and, as I suspected, the realism I get when sitting in front of the horn all but disappeared, on top of the mushiness created by the out-of-phase reflections from the room.

Here is the original discussion over 10 years ago. Such a shame the photos have been lost. I shall search my computer files and MAY be able to re-post......

viewtopic.php?t=18654&hilit=Vertical+horned+EMG

My computer will not allow reproduction of the full article with photos but here are a couple of shots showing what Andy and I saw and experienced in September 2014.

Would that EMG machine have been made for a room with a domed ceiling? I would think the orientation of the horn would couple nicely with a dome ceiling.

Perhaps a school assembly hall. Ginn is known to have sold machines to schools.