[TheVinylRipper]

I'm not sure if here is the right place to put this..

I'm not even sure if it belongs on HeadFi at all..

But I wanted to share a little...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Pb3NN9fwcM

let me know what you think.

 

[Sir Nobax]

It certainly isn't qualified for Hi-Fi

.

Awesome looking none the less!

Is that a original one?!

 

[TheVinylRipper]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sir Nobax /img/forum/go_quote.gif It certainly isn't qualified for Hi-Fi . Awesome looking none the less! Is that a original one?!

Yes, it's original..

The record is already trashed, that's why I went ahead and played it with a used needle. You are supposed to use a new needle for every _side_ of each record.

 

[Sir Nobax]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheVinylRipper /img/forum/go_quote.gif Yes, it's original..

 

[TheVinylRipper]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sir Nobax /img/forum/go_quote.gif

Whenever I play it (every three or four years) it makes me think about whether any of today's state of the art gadgets will still be working eighty or ninety years from now.

I inherited it from my father in law who inherited it from his father in law.

Grandpa in law died at ninety two about twenty five years ago.. And he bought it as a young man..

 

[TheVinylRipper]

I shot another video, this one is a good bit longer and I did a lot better job processing it and shooting it too.

The light in my basement is truly crappy, that's why the video is not as good as it could be.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwljzfxABxo

 

[infinitesymphony]

Pretty cool. There's a used Victrola (later model from a different manufacturer) at a local antique store, and I was just imagining how it might sound. It had a reservoir that was filled with steel needles. I guess the one-needle-per-side rule explains that. A vinyl rig was probably just as expensive to maintain then as it is now.

It's hard to tell from the sound... Is this one of those orchestral recordings that was recorded dry so that it sounded realistic when played back in a reverberant room?

There's been a vinyl resurgence lately, so there has been a lot of discussion about turntables in the Dedicated Source Components sub-forum.

 

[TheVinylRipper]

Quote:

Originally Posted by infinitesymphony /img/forum/go_quote.gif Pretty cool. There's a used Victrola (later model from a different manufacturer) at a local antique store, and I was just imagining how it might sound. It had a reservoir that was filled with steel needles. I guess the one-needle-per-side rule explains that. A vinyl rig was probably just as expensive to maintain then as it is now. It's hard to tell from the sound... Is this one of those orchestral recordings that was recorded dry so that it sounded realistic when played back in a reverberant room? There's been a vinyl resurgence lately, so there has been a lot of discussion about turntables in the Dedicated Source Components sub-forum.

They were recorded the same way they were (are) played back, with a horn coupled to a diaphragm which moved the cutting needle. My shot of the diaphragm didn't turn out, I'll take a few flash pics later.

I may even carry a couple of lights down there and shoot the whole thing over with a lot better illumination, I had to adjust that one quite a bit in VirtualDub to get it to look as good as it did.

So I guess the answer to your question is that however they came out was how they came out. No retakes unless you did a whole new master.

The record is actually shellac and since the stylus pressure is about three ounces the record would only last a single playing except for one thing. When they made the records they put an abrasive in them that is harder than the steel needle, so the needle wears out rather than the record.

There were different lengths and thicknesses of styli available, both volume and tone could be controlled with different styli. Thicker and shorter styli were louder and sharper sounding while the longer and thinner styli were softer and less sharp sounding.

You could even get bamboo styli and someone on the headphones forum told me they used to use the long barbs off a certain tree when they ran out of styli..

The thumping noises during the playback were the spring unwinding inside, that spring is powerful and could probably do you some damage if it were to uncoil all of a sudden in your face.

 

[infinitesymphony]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheVinylRipper /img/forum/go_quote.gif So I guess the answer to your question is that however they came out was how they came out. No retakes unless you did a whole new master.

Ah, I just meant that sometimes the recording engineer placed the horn very close to the orchestra so that it didn't pick up the reverberation of the recording space. The idea was that when you played it back, you would place the Victrola in a corner of your room and the orchestra would sound in the reverberation of your own listening space, thereby making it much more realistic.

Your video of the recording sounded dry (lacking reverb) to me, so I wondered if it was recorded using this method.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheVinylRipper You could even get bamboo styli and someone on the headphones forum told me they used to use the long barbs off a certain tree when they ran out of styli.

Now that you mention it, when I opened the Victrola at the antique store, the needle looked like a twig and there were several other pieces of sharpened wood in there.

 

[TheVinylRipper]

Quote:

Originally Posted by infinitesymphony /img/forum/go_quote.gif Ah, I just meant that sometimes the recording engineer placed the horn very close to the orchestra so that it didn't pick up the reverberation of the recording space. The idea was that when you played it back, you would place the Victrola in a corner of your room and the orchestra would sound in the reverberation of your own listening space, thereby making it much more realistic.

I'm not used to people knowing anything about antique recording methods so I tend to explain things a bit too much sometimes.

One of the reasons for putting the Victrola in the corner is to enhance the bass, which is weak to start with. I do the same thing with my Altec multimedia sub.

Quote:

Your video of the recording sounded dry (lacking reverb) to me, so I wondered if it was recorded using this method. Now that you mention it, when I opened the Victrola at the antique store, the needle looked like a twig and there were several other pieces of sharpened wood in there.

They (whoever "they" are) say that necessity is the mother of invention.

In my experience that is very true.

I'm the kind of guy you want around after a nuclear war, I can kludge just about anything and make it work. Of course, that makes me of dubious value in today's throw away society.

Did I mention the time I glued a set of 750 Honda engine cases back together with JB Weld and a Foster's beer can?

 

[Hermitt]

I remember when i was about 12 or so, one of my friend's parents had a record player that used tubular records. I believe the records were also shelac as they were golden amber colored. Was way cool

 

[infinitesymphony]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hermitt /img/forum/go_quote.gif I remember when i was about 12 or so, one of my friend's parents had a record player that used tubular records. I believe the records were also shelac as they were golden amber colored. Was way cool

Wax cylinder records, maybe?

 

[Hermitt]

It was like this one

http://www.intertique.com/TriumphWithCygnet.html

 

[scompton]

I saw an Edison Wax Cylinder player in an antique store a few weeks ago. It came with a few wax cylinders. The sign said it didn't work though.

 

[TheVinylRipper]

Quote:

Originally Posted by scompton /img/forum/go_quote.gif I saw an Edison Wax Cylinder player in an antique store a few weeks ago. It came with a few wax cylinders. The sign said it didn't work though.

My dad was a jeweler and watch and clock maker. I grew up with real antique grandfather clocks taken apart, rebuilt and repaired all over his shop.

I actually watched dad cut a new gearwheel for a grandfather clock out of a piece of brass sheet with a jeweler's saw.

Just about any of that old technology can be repaired given the skill, patience and tools.

The story of John Harrison, the inventor of the first marine chronometer is fascinating, he started out making the most accurate clocks in the world out of wood.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marine_chronometer