How many remember when phonographs had needles that needed to be replaced every few weeks?
Good morning Melismus,
I still have (and use quite frequently) two turn tables. One is a fairly new Technics with the other being my beloved Dual 1019 - at over 50+ years of age (purchased in 1965) and continuing to function flawlessly. Yeah, I'm bragging a little bit. As I'm sure you are aware they both use styli (needles) with only occasional / infrequent replacement required.
You can probably guess I am a big fan of "vinyl" and honestly believe there IS a significant, noticeable and pleasant difference between vinyl and any other reproduction format. At 72 years of age I grew up with vinyl and still have > 500 "albums". Lots of 45's also.
So, yup, I am, indeed, familiar with needles.
Thanks for bringing back some great memories.
All the best to you and yours,
Terry
dancers
Loc: melbourne.victoria, australia
we use a turntable too....gifted by a friend... the new needle require cost just on $100 Aust.
I was mainly recalling 78's, made of shellac, not vinyl.
I agree that vinyl sounds better than all other formats and also love tube amps.
rlv567
Loc: Baguio City, Philippines
melismus wrote:
I was mainly recalling 78's, made of shellac, not vinyl.
And the needles you're talking about were steel, eventually replaced by diamond styli.
Loren - in Beautiful Baguio City
melismus wrote:
How many remember when phonographs had needles that needed to be replaced every few weeks?
The phonograph cartridges still have stylus and they have to be replaced too. Not every few weeks as they are almost as expensive as the entirely new cartridge.
Yes I did use pins on shellac 78s, BUT I used to buy the needles by the 1000s, they were used to score 9x9 asphalt
tile, then just snap to fit along the walls . Used in what we called a pin vice you held in hand, size of a small pen. One job that comes to my mind is Ebbets Field housing project when Brooklyn Dodgers left. Bit of info if your interested, the amount of floor tile used on that job was 1 million 5 hundred square feet. {1,000,500}
How this subject got into Photo I don't know but I chimed in anyway. Sad part is I had hundreds of BW photos of
the job start to finish, all lost in my house fire.
melismus wrote:
How many remember when phonographs had needles that needed to be replaced every few weeks?
Was that before they came out with sapphire needles?
I think I've read that some of the very early needles came from cactus.
DirtFarmer
Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA
Some early needles were bamboo. You could sharpen them when they got dull.
melismus wrote:
I was mainly recalling 78's, made of shellac, not vinyl.
DEtAILSNOW we're all talking the same language.....
Maybe.
(Our 78 needles for the crank Victrola are steel of some sort.)
I still have a packet of needles (the old style). I use them in my old style scriber. A needle lasts about 10 years.
I made the scriber as a project about 55 years ago probably when I got the needles.
I have tried to get back into vinyl...but the modern digital gear has simply gone past it all.
I can now hear...everything...no compression.
Vinyl is still wonderful...but...limited.
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