Playback & recording equipment
Edison Bell Commercial phonograph
Type
image
Duration
Unknown
Shelf mark
7 Frow 1989
Subjects
Cylinder players
Date
1895
Producers
Edison Bell
Description
The Edison Bell company had its origins in the late 1880s, as the first British talking machine company. It hired out Edison machines. This particular model was specially made by Edison for his British partner. It dates from 1893 to 1895. Whilst powered by the same 2.5 V DC motor, it differed from Edison-branded machines: the feedscrew, and thus the cylinders, were threaded at 200 tpi (threads per inch) rather than 100 tpi; and the feedscrew was positioned behind the mandrel, rather than in line with it. This machine was intended for dictation purposes. As well as the reproducer and recorder, it had an eraser blade, here seen protruding behind the mandrel. This shaved off wax so as to erase a recording. The swarf fell into the drawer at the side. Dimensions: Width: 430 mm Height: 350 mm Depth: 250 mm
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