Antique Record Player: A Memento of History

As the period of the war ended, many people found solace in music. During the latter parts of the 1940s, up to the 1950s, even until the 1960s, music has been the favorite accompaniment of the weary souls, brought about by the war’s upheaval.

In this same period, the fame of the record players came in picture. It has been a sought-after home appliance as it provides entertainment to the user, as well as a sense of “status” to the owner of the prized-possession.

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During the popularity of these antique record players, buyers usually had the option to purchase a stereo record player which basically does the job of the modern CD player; or, opt for a radiogram which basically functions both as a disc player and a radio. Either way, both record players ensure that they are in synch with the popular music during the time which was commonly Chicago blues, rock mixed with jazz or bebop jazz or plain rock n’ roll. Today, antique record players, although most sold are not very functional anymore, remain as memorabilia of the past and an antique collector’s prized object.

Antique record players are the modern-day era collectible items. The famous brands of these antique record players include brands such as Dansette, Champion, Steeplestone, amongst many others. A company called Dynatron produced interesting designs which were inspired by classical historical periods – such as Queen Anne and Regency.

Antique Record Players are basically turntables which have mounted tone arms. The tone arms usually solve most problems in the players such as “tracking error” wherein there is sort of some wiggling on the record which affects the sound production.

Of course, the fame of the antique record players which rose during the 1950s, was all made possible through the long trial-and-error history of developing the instrument. The first ever recording was that of a human voice singing “Mary had a little lamb” played on the first-ever tinfoil cylinder phonograph. Edison made such possible in 1877.

Succeeding efforts were made by Charles Tainter who developed the first-lateral-cut records in 1881. The downside of this improvement was that the machine was not allowed to playback music.

By 1885, the so-called “Graphophone” was developed by Tainter and a partner named Chichester Bell. Then after, it was made into a “Gramophone” by Emile Berliner which used non-wax discs. More and more efforts were made until the instrument and discs came to its hyped popularity during the 1950s.

Evidently, there is a long history attached to the development of the antique record players which has paved the way to today’s very dynamic music industry. Hence, for those who have been able to acquire an antique record player, proper care is very essential. Apart from the antiquity of the record player, the history of the records should also be equally important as they are historical elements of the past.
Therefore, it is very important that the players are made to run well to ensure protection of the records, and production of good sound quality. Regular stylus check-up is one important consideration.