[78-L] Warner "Big Band" set - Go watch it! <vbg>

[Sean Miller]

You are correct, Jeff.  The later style arms were and are called "inertia"
tonearms.  They do have better balance.  I'm mostly with you on the play the
VG copies of non-rare stuff on one.  I keep two sets of shelves in my
phonograph room full of exactly that kind of stuff.  I routinely add to it
from collections I pick up.  My "good" records do not generally get played
on them, with rare exception.  I won't even play my Berliners on my front
mount Victor machine, it's more decorative than anything else, honestly, but
I will play a common acoustic on it for guests.  OK, I've never even played
a Berliner acoustically...tempting, but I won't, nor any Zonophones or a
Monarch or even a more "common" Grand Prize Victor, unless I've got an
"archive" copy as a spare or it's something already quite worn.

I hope you didn't take what I said before as an attack.  It wasn't meant to
be, but I've seen (and unfortunately participated in) major disputes here
over playing a record on a vintage machine.  To me, it's charming to hear a
machine play a record from it's own era, it's a major part of what
catapulted me into being the record collecting maniac that I am 25 years
later!

Sean

-----Original Message-----
From: 78-l-bounces at klickitat.78online.com
[mailto:78-l-bounces at klickitat.78online.com] On Behalf Of Jeff Austin
Sent: Tuesday, December 15, 2009 8:16 PM
To: 78-L Mail List
Subject: Re: [78-L] Warner "Big Band" set - Go watch it! <vbg>

Perhaps I should have been more specific:  I am led to believe, by an
informed and physic-minded source, that the initial Electrola straight black
arms exerted significantly more mass against the groove.  The more elaborate
arm assembly on other models was apparently a little better balanced.  I
have no reason to disbelieve him.  In playing my machine (before a plumbing
catastrophe befell it), I just stuck to the stack of not-unusual, VG and
downward dance and vocal stuff that I'd play on any acoustic phono.  

I was terribly fond of my RE-45, which was in really exceptional condition
until the ceiling, and a substantial amount of water came down on it.  A
cautionary tale:  never leave the house.

J.


________________________________
From: Robert M. Bratcher Jr. <bratcher at pdq.net>
To: 78-L Mail List <78-l at klickitat.78online.com>
Sent: Tue, December 15, 2009 5:26:45 PM
Subject: Re: [78-L] Warner "Big Band" set - Go watch it!  <vbg>

At 01:26 PM 12/15/2009, you wrote:


>Your machine has some interesting history:  it was produced just as 
>Victor was being acquired by RCA.  The record-playing aspect of it 
>is to be avoided... the arm and horseshoe magnetic cartridge were 
>record-killers.  The original speaker, however, in this unit was 
>designed by the engineers at Victor Talking Machine Company.  It was 
>far ahead of its time and superior to what RCA used in subsequent 
>Electrola models.
>
>J.

How many plays would it take to kill a record (wear it out) on that machine?


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