Bought a collection of 78s the other day and something to play them on... 60s valve record player not a wind up horn thing.
I'd last heard one many years ago and it's interesting how some of the music is excellent and delivered with surprising clarity. Some very odd song titles and non PC lyrics in the vocal recordings though.
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Funnily enough, after, as I mentioned here, setting up my turntable again, I was in a moment of enthusiasm prodding about the net for "vinyl talk". This is probably all old hat to you, but in case it's of interest:
I discovered that there are enthusiasts who as you say, think that 78s were in fact the best format ever, it was just the kit at the time couldn't hack it, but with four million quid you can make them sound amazing.
I also discovered that if you think you can use any old needle on them then forget it - there are at least 30 different standards about, depending on date of production and company, and unless you know which is which you have to poke about with a microscope to establish the best one of your expensive and often replaced needle collection to use.
And I also found out that Mr Tom Waits has (just?) produced a record on a 78, and for $300 you get the record and a player for it, in a limited edition.
So there is a glimmer of life in the format yet.
I should take my chance. As a kid we had a 78 called "Kate and Henry Lion" and I've not seen it since of course. If you ever stumble over it...
Last edited by: Crankcase on Wed 23 Oct 13 at 15:01
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You can get 78 kits for my Project Debut II but 78 is a bit before my time! My taste of music starts from the rock roll years and beyond so 33 and 45 RPM discs are all I need.
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Yes I guess it's all about age. I remember from around the time I was 4 the radio (light programme?) being on in our house... that would be from 1960. Many of the tunes that are on these 78s, and some early 45s that came with them, have a very familiar feel of that era even if they are 10+yrs earlier.
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We have a large collection of 78s and two machines, both with variable pitch because the records were often recorded at up to 80rpm, to play them with - a Fons CQ30 and a Lenco GL78.
I used to know a guy in the radio business back in Somerset who had the most amazing 78rpm replay device in his workshop. It was an electric turntable with an acoustic pick-up that was connected to a carefully calculated horn that ran down one wall, under the floor across the room and opened out on the opposite wall. He used thorns for 'needles' and had a machine that could sharpen them at different angles for playing different types of music. I kid you not. The sound was remarkable.
On a recent visit to the UK I discovered the place is now an antiques shop. The (female) proprietor had heard of the guy I knew but had no idea what is now hidden by the walls and floor.
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I have two friends who still play 78s. I don't know what they use for needles but they have proper valve amps (which give a better sound with more depth) in series with other stuff.
I can remember many years ago some of our 33rpm vinyl being spoilt by being played with the 78 stylus... you can't trust women or children, or yourself come to that. There's something strangely dispiriting about a clump of plastic choking an old stylus.
Hi-fi buffs have kittens if anyone even breathes on their kit.
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>>>Hi-fi buffs have kittens if anyone even breathes on their kit.
Indeed. When our girls started to walk I realisd it would be such a stress keeping them off the record deck it spent long periods in the loft with just the occasional outing.
Spoilt my enjoyment so I swapped that cherished item of 20yrs with its featherweight arm for a Panasonic linear tracker where you push a button and the lid opens with no sign of an arm... put the record on and close the lid then push start and it does the rest. Only 90% of the quality but at least it's there 100% of the time.
Bit like a compact digicam really.
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There are two entirely different kinds of needle, depending on whether you have the old traditional kind of player with a heavy arm and a screw for holding the steel or thorn needle, or a more modern cartridge kind.
The latter needs to be a specific kind for a 78 - the grooves are cut differently, and although a 33 or a 45 will play, it won't sound so good and it damages the record.
I recently bought some old-fashioned needles for a wind-up horn type gramaphone. The leaflet from the supplier explained that needles are always a compromise between volume and longevity of the record. If you use a steel needle it will be loudest but you wear out the record fairly quickly. There are softer kinds made out of thorn, or perhaps synthetic plastics, and an intermediate sort which is kinder to the record but still gives reasonable volume.
Keeping the grooves clean is apparently very important. Because of the heavier weight of the arm compared with other formats, any dirt will act like grinding paste and wear out the record.
It's funny how winding up an old portable horn gramaphone and playing a scratchy record instantly makes one think of hot summers, picnics, and punting on the river.
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>> You can get 78 kits for my Project Debut II but 78 is a bit
>> before my time! My taste of music starts from the rock roll years and beyond
>> so 33 and 45 RPM discs are all I need.
Rot!! www.goldminemag.com/article/rock-n-roll-78s-are-a-hot-but-sometimes-overlooked-commodity
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Interesting article. Agree with how easy they are to break. I've lost about 20% of the ones I'm going through due to finding cracks or chunks out of the edges. Posting them is risky.
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I'm 78 in December and I hope still to be playing!
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Anyone still playing 78s? - Crankcase
