Vintage Electronics - Record Players & Turntables Repair Service

Phonographs

While radio provided the means of transportation of the awesome music and cool stories over the airwaves, it was the invention of the record player (phonographs as they were originally called) that was the storage device that made it all possible! Radio stations would have been at a serious handicap if all they could do was live broadcast. Imagine the demand for the musician's time & travel needed. They could only be at one radio station at a time and the changing acoustics between locations, and the various equipment requirements would have been prohibitive to quality live-radio performances. But along with radio technology, came new storage devices known as records. They made the recording and replaying of music with true quality and audio control, a true possibility.

Phonographs emerged in various stages just like early radios. First there was a tube-shaped record that was the original prototype. After that came the first flat disk (records) that were made of very heavy plastic and were extremely brittle! Drop one of your 78 RPM records and it would shatter in a bunch of pieces. Yet again, technology advanced and a better, more durable and forgiving plastic was developed for the records. Many 78's were produced with this new plastic.

Later, as radio sound amplification and recording quality abilities were increased, records were improved and resized from a 10" 78 RPM record to a 12" 78 RPM record. It was a short jump from there to the 33 1/3 RPM records that we affectionately called albums came on the scene. These were made of much better grade plastic and were able to hold a lot more data in a smaller area. The speed was decreased to reduce "wow and flutter", distortion from bouncy, fast spinning 78s and to allow the needle to move in the grooves more smoothly. In time, the actual sound-grove technology was also improved as well. Sound was recorded in what came to be called Hi-Fidelity, or Hi-Fi for short. This was mostly a marketing ploy as true hi fidelity was not achieved until many years later. From there, these amazing storage devices were shrunk again down to a 7" disk that was vamped back up in speed to provide a higher volume to the amplifier. This disk, called a 45 (RPM), was the heart-beat of the newly arriving rock and roll music age. The screaming electric guitars and ear-pounding drums could be well captured and reproduced on this small little disk. Each 45 held a single song on front and back. This changed the way the music industry promotion the albums by releasing one of the songs off the corresponding album. These 'singles' as they were called would obtain a certain level of sales above and beyond the album. If a record reached a million sales, it was called a 'hit'. Most of artist songs became popular on the radio station airwaves which now played the 45s as opposed to tracks off the album.

Records are an iconic staple of the 20th Century recording and radio broadcast industries. However, it was the invention of the phonograph (record players & turntables) and not the record that made this all possible. The ability to read and reproduce as well as amplify the signals recorded on the disk was the work of the record player. It was by far the best invention in the music recording industry. Today's digital sound is inferior to the actual sine waves recorded on records and reproduction by phonographs. If you have one of these vintage devices, don't let it die! If it is not working, or you would like it enhanced to work better, contact us! We can restore and/or improve the sound quality of your record player.