78s were acoustical until around 1925 IIRC, and then switched over to electrical. The electrical 78 rpm recordings have excellent sound quality, if you don't mind a little surface noise. (the surface noise on 78s from the late 30s is nearly inaudible);) I have tons of wonderful old performances that predate the advance to 33 rpm and hi fi, and they are priceless in terms of the artistry and technical wizardry of the likes of Rachmaninoff, Artur Schnabel, and Josef Hofmann. Among the great pianists of the era, the career of Vladimir Horowitz spanned all the audio tecnhologies and fortunately he still played like a demon into his 60s and the advent of stereophonic sound.
On Dec 29, 2007 8:54 PM, Kaleb C. Striplin <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > I have not been able to find 78's at thrift stores anymore, they just > never seem to turn up. Although I cant say I have been looking hard > either but I just dont see them, or really LP's either. > > Dan Weeks wrote: > > My dad, a retired physicist and life-long audiophile who built most > > of his own hi-fi stuff from the 40s to the 70s--including big tube > > amps that sucked enough juice to heat the whole room--is unconvinced > > that tube sound is better. He terms enthusiasm for tube amps and > > their harmonic distortion "misplaced nostalgia," and prefers the more > > accurate reproduction of solid state amps. Back when his tube > > oscilliscope still worked, he'd show you the difference. > > > > I, however, have at this count 6 tube hi-fis--4 of them late fifties/ > > early sixties German sets that have incredible sound--a combination > > of many speakers and very solid cabinets, among other things. Even my > > dad admits that my Grundig and Telefunken table radios have sound > > that blow away his Koss Model 88 and Bose wave tabletops, for all > > their much-lauded fidelity--probably because the Grundig, for > > example, has six speakers in its cabinet instead of the Koss' 3. I've > > found them at thrift shops for 75 bucks a piece or so. > > > > My other hi-fi is a 1942 Capehart console record player with an > > automatic changer that will play 20 consecutive 78s--both sides > > sequentially--completely automatically. It has a HUGE speaker in a > > solid walnut case, weighs close to 300 lbs, and has what my dad > > termed a "40-amp push-pull amplifier" that will make your pants flap > > in the breeze. VERY powerful. I love listening to big band jazz on > > the original-release 78s with it, tho I do miss stereo reproduction. > > I've picked up a pretty good collection of Jazz on 78 at thrift and > > antique shops dirt cheap--as in $3 per box of 120 or so disks. Nobody > > wants 'em anymore. Filled my SD with 'em on one trip. > > > > Dan > > > > > > > > _______________________________________ > > http://www.okiebenz.com > > For new parts see official list sponsor: http://www.buymbparts.com/ > > For used parts email [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > > http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > > > > -- > Kaleb C. Striplin/Claremore, OK > 94 E420, 92 300SD, 92 300D, 92 250D Turbo, 92 300E 4Matic, > 91 300D, 90 420SEL, 89 560SEL, 89 260E, 87 300SDL, 85 380SE 5.0 Euro, > 84 190D, 84 300D euro manny, 81 240D, 81 380SLC, 80 240D, 76 240D, > 76 300D, 72 250C, 69 250 > http://www.okiebenz.com > > _______________________________________ > http://www.okiebenz.com > For new parts see official list sponsor: http://www.buymbparts.com/ > For used parts email [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com For new parts see official list sponsor: http://www.buymbparts.com/ For used parts email [EMAIL PROTECTED] To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
