1901 Victor Type 'A' Top Wind Phonograph Playing 1900 Zonophone Record
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- Опубліковано 16 січ 2025
- Here is my 1901 Victor Talking Machine Type 'A' playing a 7-inch 1900 Universal Talking Machine Company record "A Little Bit Off The Top" By Edward M. Favor. This particular label is very scarce and represents the earliest recordings in late 1900 by Frank Seaman's Universal Talking Machine Company for his Zonophone machines. The record is announced by Edward M. Favor. I hope that you will forgive my temporary departure from recording my music box videos. I also enjoy early phonographs as well. Thanks for stopping in and I hope you enjoy this video.
Thanks for your comments! The machine that is depicted with Nipper in the famous Victor logo is a Berliner machine which is a bit earlier than my Victor Type A seen here in the video. Many of the very earliest disc records had the delightfully primitive announcement as heard in this record. It almost certainly was a "carry over" from the very earliest days of recording. I do indeed have a Berliner machine and over one hundred American Berliner records. Thanks again for stopping in.
Over 100+ years old, and this machine is still amazing, incredible and wonderful. Another one of the great inventions of human kind.
These vintage disc and cylinder machines have fascinated me for years. Thanks for posting your videos. you have quite a collection.
Something quite remarkable about watching a machine from 115 years ago using technology that the folks back then couldn't even dream of
Thanks for the comments, retro! I've also for many years been impressed by these delightful early music machines as they serve as a time machine to takes us back to a more peaceful era. And they were so well made that many (like mine here) still operate perfectly and continue to delight us more than one hundred years later. Stop back again anytime!
Thanks so very much for your gracious comments! I totally agree with you that these early external horn machines were not appreciated during their relatively short lifespan. The sound was crisp and clear from these external horn machines. The Victor I that you own was a great choice. Thanks again for visiting and for your comment!
Seems like an awful scary lot of weight balancing over that needle. Amazing how it doesn't dig into the record and gouge the grooves right on through. Fantastic!
I've seen similar machines in my 1902 Sears catolouge. I always wondered what they sounded like.
I do too! That's one of my FAVORITE things about the Type A Victor (and the Type B) as well as most of the Berliner Gramophones. That vertically mounted crank and the very simple, very primitive revolving of the crank during play is just fantastic. How wonderful it must have been to be alive during that delightfully "low-tech" era when this little machine was state-of-the-art for making music. Thanks for stopping in and do come back anytime and often!
@sheffmb Thanks for the nice comments. I looked for a long time before I found this machine and it was well worth the wait. You may find one when you least expect it.
Thanks for your comments. I'm pleased that you enjoyed this.
@gmmix You are very welcome. Thank you very much for the nice comments.
Very quiet motor and great sound for such an early victor. Theat record also sounds good. Very nice phonograph.
Thanks
Thank you SETman007 for the nice comments. Stop back again anytime.
Ha Ha! Great comment! You are absolutely right on that! I never thought about it like that! I've always enjoyed this particular Zonophone record played on this Victor. Thanks for your comments and please stop by again anytime!
When I was a teen about 50 years ago I got hooked on buying old wind up Victrolas, Thomas Edison Machines, Brunswick machines and a lot of off brands. I once bought 300+ 78rpm records off an old woman for 20 bucks. I had at least 10 different vintage wind-up record players. You could pick them up for a few bucks back then. My favorite band was Harry James and His orchestra.....and my favorite drummer "Gene Krupa". I also loved the group "The Pied Pipers"........and really like Rose Mary Clooney too.
wow, what a beautiful machine. It`s too bad people did`nt appreciate them back then, thinking that the external horn machines were just not all that attractive. I love them. The only Victor external horn machine I own is a Victor 1, but I love it.
This was one of the very first phonographs made by Victor when it was introduced in 1901. Eldridge Johnson was the founder of Victor Talking Machine Co. since it first introduced the phonograph, and this phonograph's design was used as part of the logo's mascot, Nipper the dog which was dubbed "His Master's Voice".
A victor machine playing a zonophone record. Frank Seaman would have loved it... :)
Greetings,
Rolf
Thanks for posting video of this fascinating little phonograph!
Thank you so much for your wonderful comments, Richard!! Stop back again anytime!!
Thanks for your comments. I'll be the first in line to admit that my phonographs and music boxes featured in my videos are not perfectly set or pitched. I do try my best to post interesting looking and good sounding videos but I surely realize that my machines may not always be set perfectly for the selection being played. I do appreciate your stopping in and sharing your comments. Hopefully you will find some that are enjoyable in spite of the imperfections.
Sick machine, so simple and classic looking
Simply FACINATING!!
What a wonderful machine and a very nice record! Thanks for sharing this treasure with the world. 5*****
I'm truly moved by your wonderful comments. You're very welcome and I thank you so much for stopping in to view and comment on my video. Please come back anytime!
Thanks for your comments, Idelia412! Having collected early phonographs for more than twenty years (among them this Type 'A' Victor, a very early Eldridge Johnson Type 'C' with celluloid plate, Berliners) I certainly recognize and agree with you that Eldridge Johnson's early single spring motors were not and should not be expected to maintain perfect speed or pitch. In my reply above to m2esectr I was trying to imply that but I didn't explain it well I guess. Thanks again for your comments!
I love the old wind up ones that change key like 50 times as it slows down XD
Thank you so much for your gracious comments!
Great Machine, It's beautiful and a great record,
What a great piece! Thank you for sharing!
i really like your collection!
I love this, though could someone explane how to work the machine? I'm totally blind, and this stuff facinates me. I own a hmv portable gramophone and tons of early jazz records, king oliver and the likes and collect them, but historically their nothing compared to this wonderful sounding machine!
A very nice machine Thank you for posting
Richard :)
You are very welcome. And thank you for subscribing to my videos!
love Edward M. Favor thanks for posting this
Plalys surprisingly well for its vintage. Great video. Thank you.
I'm jealous. I wish I had for my collection. Awesome piece.
Thanks for your comments! The story of how I got this machine and the very early 7 inch Victor records that came with it may not be that interesting to everyone else so I'll share it with you via PM when I get a chance. Good to hear your comments!
I didnt realise the “collar” was leather?! Thanks for posting this
Son of the Edison phonograph and granparent of the wonderful Credenza, what a nice machine
I have learned that old 78 RPM discs rotated anywhere between 70 & 90 RPMs. It wasn't until electric motors came into play that the 78 RPM speed could be standardized. My collection dates back to 1903, and I have a machine to play them (Garrard LAB80) I'm still looking for a wind-up machine.
I have recorded a wind-up machine by placing an electret-condenser mic in front of the horn, in a totally quiet room. The results were outstanding.
WOW!!! Before iPods there were those and wind up phonographs that have better sound too!!!
I have a handful of records from 1901 & 1902 (disc type) on the Columbia label and on the Victor "Monarch Record" label and none sound as crisp and clear as your Zonophone record. I always throught from what I've researched that the Zonophone records were inferior to the Victor records but your demonstration seems to negate that. My family loves these old recordings. Thanks for sharing and perserving a little history here. Larry from Peoria, IL
Awesome unit.
This is like a time tunnel. It so strange to hear the voices of long dead human beings..
To my understanding, just like old films, these old recordings were impossible to maintain a standard speed throughout playback. It's not as though the speed is computer-controlled or calibrated perfectly. In fact, they didn't even maintain the 78 rpm back then that shellac records eventually became. Isn't it possible near the center of the record the device recording it slowed down, thus causing a highly-distorted faster sound on playback?
I have this record. I played with my phonograph. really good and nostalgic
I wondered why did those early 7-inch players have that screw-on clamp, but now I see that pressure from the tonearm would make the record slip without the clamp in place. Nice recording!
@MrNightOwL100 Thanks!!
@djoutrage18 also if you collect modern 33 and a third RPM and also 45 RPM vinyl get a pioneer or technics automatic turntable from the early 1980s, my friend who is blind has a technics one and absolutely loves it since I set it up for her and showed her how to handle vinyl, by the edges and center only! They are great sounding turntables and very easy to use once set up properly.
Great song and very nice victor A! I never thought I would get hear one of these play. That concert reproducer sounds great! Where did you get this machine?
Thanks
I love how well this early machines can sound. I've heard around three different variations of the Berliner gramophone model A/B/C (from 1895 to 1901) and they all sound like shit, but I've never seen a Victor Gramophone in good condition that doesn't sound 20 years made too early. Marvelous!
Just for your information, this phonograph was made in 1901, the first year That Eldrige Johnson broke away from Berliner. The machine was never designed to be absolutely perfect in pitch. These early and quite scarce machines were aimed at competing against Edison phonographs. Don't expect a $12 machine to have perfect pitch not then or hardly today being over 100 years old. Nice machine and in a quite all original state. Great Posting!!!
Nice Machine. The quality of the record also has to do with the fact that Edward M Favor began his career in 1889, so he became a master at singing for the talking machine, he would cup his hands over his ears to hear where to project his voice into the recording horn, so all of his records are of first grade.
@emrys820 Thanks!
wow now theres something you dont see everyday.
ALL THAT WEIGHT: THE HORN, ETC...HOW MANY PLAYINGS WOULD RESULT IN GROOVE DAMAGE? DID THE INSTRUCTIONS EXPLAIN USING A NEEDLE ONLY ONCE? WERE
CACTUS NEEDLES YET RECOMMENDED? WOULD A WOOD HORN YIELD DISCERNIBLY
SUPERIOR SOUND QUALITY? WOULD THEN CONTEMPORARY USERS CARE?
A ONE WORD REPLY? VERY ARTICULATE...
Super
Pretty insane that we today are still able to play records issued over 100 years ago..
I want one
Is that little screwed bit on top so that the record doesn't go flying off?
It's almost difficult to grasp that the audio recorded on that record is over 100 years old. Historically, these machines and their records are incredibly important to remember where we come from, musically.
Sam Tenuto You're confusing vinyl and shellac. Vinyl scratches more audibly than CD, shellac cracks easier than both of them.
I believe the proper speed for this record corresponds to G minor, as it is at the start. But then your phonograph accelerates and goes to A minor at the end, distorting the vocals.
Yeah, I heard somewhere that Edison also thought of disk records when he invented the phonograph, yet he never tried it because the cylinder was a more stable support for the records.
The closest thing between the Edison and the Berliner gramophone would be the Pathé vetical groove records for saphir I guess.
Regards.
Well, Edison did invent a disc phonograph as well. It used a lateral cut like the Pathé records, but the record starts from the edge rather than the center.
Tune: When Johnny Comes Marching Home
@MusicBoxBoy where did you find this phonograph/gramophone?
Nice machine. Is that the one that Victor used in the logo with Nipper? I am surprised they had the announcement at the start of the song with the info on the disc. Do you have any Berliner's?
I can imagine what Thomas Edison would think of that statement: "Bell & Tainter's... oops, my wax cylinder phonograph, giving birth to Berliner & Johnson's lateral cut disc gramophone? Unthinkable!!" Back when this record was made in 1900, I don't think Edison would have belived you if you said he'd some day make "needle type" records.
(As you probably figured, that is meant in a joking manner. Just having fun with history. You could well say that cylinders are the prior generation to discs.)
Are these types of gramophones at a fixed speed or can the go at diferente speed depending on the crank? I am new to this that is why I ask.
@djoutrage18 your best and easiest to use bet would be to get a 1940's era record changer for playing those, since all you really need to do is stack them on the changer and hit the switch. West tech services is the best place to have them restored, they did an amazing job with rebuilding the cartridge on mine but they will restore the whole unit for you to 100% working. I have a friend who is also 100% blind and she loves records as much as I do.
Pack 301
Hallo sar g pack 301
Do you know where I could buy one of these? I've always been interested in getting one... Or attempting to build one.
TheTraitorToTyranny V1 i sell for you 😃
Gergely Greendog what condition?
Repent and trust in Jesus. He's the only way. We deserve Hell because we've sinned. Lied, lusted stolen, etc. But God sent his son to die on the cross and rise out of the grave. We can receive forgiveness from Jesus. Repent and put your trust in him.
John 3:16
Romans 3:23❤😊❤❤
I hope that in the many years since you first put this on UA-cam, you have never played this record on this machine again. All these old machines really chew the hell out of old records. Stick to playing them on a modern adjustable speed turntable if you can find one. The phonographs will be around for ages, but the records won't age well if played on early equipment. Was told 60 years ago is that the pressure from an old reproducer and needle is something like a thousand pounds per square inch. The only reason they sound scratchy is because they were played on equipment guaranteed to destroy them. 🐸
can this machine play 1950~1960s 78 rpm records？
thats not a phonograph
Semantics. Any record player can be called a phonograph. The early Edison machine are now called graphophones
THEN WHAT IS IT????????????????????????????????????????????????