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The Gramophone, September, 1923 71 what they are worth, the opinions of the local dealer -who may have other than merely resthetic reasons for his opinions-and those of THE GRAMOPHONE, which does not by any means claim to pronounce judgment e.7] cathedm. 'CELLO (Casals). AIgrette, 8; Cliftophone , 7; Decca, 7; H.M.V., 8; Orchorsol,7. All the machines tested were apt to give a smotbered sound to the 'cello. That this was not the fault of the record was shown by playing i t on the large Orchestraphone, when the tone came out beautifully round and open. The AIgrette and the H.M.V. machines suffered least from this tendency. LIST OF GRAMOPHONES TESTED HlS MASTER'S VOICE Cabinet Grand Model- in mahogany, with No.2 sound-box. £22 lOs. (The Gramophone Co.) ORCHORSOL Cabinet Tablc Grand Model C.8, with the new wooden tone-arm. £19 lOs. (The Orchorsol Gramophone Co.) ALGRF.TTE dark oak Cabinet, with Sonat sound-box and" Gramo­ l i th" tone arm . £15 15s. (Alfred Graham & Co.) CLlFfOPUONE Model 6 in oak, with Garrard double spring motor and twin reed Cliftophone sound-box. £10. (The Chappell Piano Co.) DECCA, compressed fibre portable. £6 6s. (The Decca Co.) Note.-It will be observed that this is hardly a representative l ist of different makes. It was intended to try eight or ten machines of about the same price, but when the t ime came i t was by uo means easy to coUect them all in one spot. A Kestraphone arrived just too late for inclusion, and the promised Itonia and Tretone Separaphone never turned up at all. The inclusion of a Decca has already been explained. Ne,,:t month we hope to use our experience for a better .organisation of the Portable tests. TESTS OF GRAMOPHONES SOPRANO (Scotney). AIgrette, 8; Cliftophone, 9; Decca, 8; H.lV1.V., 8; Orchorsol, 8 ; The results of this test are substantially the same as those of the violin record. The man whose taste runs exclusively to coloratura and violin records is to be envied; he need spend no sleepless nigbts wondering what machine he shall buy and after he has bought i t what sound-box and what need'\e he shall u,se. vVith reasonable care he will get a good result whatcver machmc or sound-box he uses. Of all the machines, no matter of what size or price, we are inclined to think that the Vocnlion gives ~he very / inest results with coloratura voices, but we have not trIed i t under test conditions. CONTHALTO (Dame Cla ra Butt). Aigrette, 8; Cliftophone, 7; Decca, 7; H.M.V., 8; Orchorsol,8. There was not very much difference in the rcsults of thcsc tests. The Cliftophone exaggerated the difference in quality of the registers of the voice. TENOR (Fleta). H.M.V. Medium Needle. AIgrette, 8; Clifto­ phone, 7; Decca, 6; H.M.V., 5; Orchorsol, 9. The Orchorsol was exceptionally free from any" gramophouic " quality, and i ts tone was extremely sweet. The H.M.V. machine was unable to cope with this record and thc result was penetrating and harsh, to the point of being unbearable. The Cliftophonc gave more volume of tone than any of the others. ORCHESTRA (Siegfried's Funeral March). Aigrette, 7; Cliftophone, 9; Decca, 5; H.M.V., 6; Orchorsol, 8. The Cliftophone gavc the best reproduction of the orchestra. The tone of the Orchorsol was very clear and agreeable. The H.M.V. machine sounded choked and the tone was rather harsh. The Decca made the orchestra sound like a brass band, though i t reproduced the detail pretty well . CHA~IBER MUSIC (Lener Quartet). AIgrette, 8; Cliftophone, 7 ; Decca, 6; H.M.V., 8; Orchorsol, 8 . The tone of the Orchorsol was as usual very sweet, and though not so rich and full as that of the Cliftophone we agreed in preferring i t . For reproduction of detail and discrimination of their tone qualities there was l i t t le to choose between the more expensive instruments. It is on this question of the discrimination of the instruments that portable gramophones like the Decca show their principal shortcoming; the strings sounded on the Dccca much more l ike brass. PIA~O (Darcwski). AIgrette, 7; Cliftophone, 7; Decca, 6; H.M.V ., 8; Orchorsol, 8. The great trouble with piano records is the banjo-like twang which is emphasised more on some instruments than on others. The Orchorsol and the H.M.V. machines were the most successful in reducing i t . No doubt by the use of other needles and soundboxes this twang could have been reduced still more, but i t did not enter into the scheme of these tests to try all possible combinations of machine, needle and sound-box. Any refcrences to combinations outside our present scheme are the result of previous unsystematic experimentation, a thing that often leads to happy discoveries. The editor in the course of trying over some old piano records hit on the combination of an Ultone sound-box with a Sympathetic Chromic needle, and we have been unable to discover anything else so good. VIOLIN (Heifetz). AIgrette, 7; Cliftophone, 9; Decca, 7; H.lVl.V., 8; Orchorsol, 7. A violin, like a soprano voice, is extremely easy to reproducemodern records of either of these instruments may be regarded as practically gramophone proof. The Cliftophone was astonishing in the faithfulness of i ts reproduction, and the l i t t le Decca . quite adequate. BARITONE (Stracciari). H.M.V. Medium Needle. Algrettc, 6; Cliftophone, 9; Decca, 7; H.M.V., 5; Orchorsol, 8. Stracciari's voice is evidently rather a test for a gramophone's capacity. The AIgrette and the H.lVl.V. machines were defeated by i t , the latter rather disastrously. The vibration was extremcly unpleasant. The Cliftophone and t.he Orchorsol wcre superb, and to our surprise the Decca, which we had thought would be impossible, showed i tself perfectly competent to deal with thc situation. BASS (Chaliapine). H.M.V. Medium Needle. Algrcttc, ( l ; Clifto­ phone , 9; Decca, 6; H.lVl.V., 5; Orchorsol,7. The Cliftophone gave immense volume and very good quality, and the reproduction of the last faint notes of the song was perfect. The sweetness of tone that is so striking a property oCthe Orchorsol, and is no doubt chiefly due to the wooden tonc-arm, did not give i t the same advantage as with some other records. 'Vith the Decca, as was expectcd, the sotl'lld was ratber thin, but what there was of i t was agreeable and open. CONCLUDING REMARKS I t must be remembered that, as in the case of sound-boxes, these tcsts were all made during the recent heat wave and t .hat some instrumcnts are affe cted more than others by weather conditions. The Cliftophone ccrtainly gave a very remarkable performance. We have heard the machine accused of giving a sound lacking in body, but our expcrience of i t was exactly the reverse. Considering i ts size it. gave a noticeably full, rich sound, competing indeed in this respect in one or two records with the vast Orchestraphone itself. The Orchorsol and the Aigrette arc on the whole sweeter and i t is on this point that they score somet imes over the Cliftophone. The H.M.V. machine failed on male voices and on the orchestra. Its tone with these records was inclined to be lifeless and there was often a good deal of vibration, otherwise i ts performance wa.s uniformly good. The Decca is bardly intended for the more exacting records, but in i ts more l imited sphere i t was excellent. For dance and band records i ts performance is admirable, and though i ts tone is not enormous, i t seems to carry exceptionally well.

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The Gramophone, September, 1923

71

what they are worth, the opinions of the local dealer -who may have other than merely resthetic reasons for his opinions-and those of THE GRAMOPHONE, which does not by any means claim to pronounce judgment e.7] cathedm.

'CELLO (Casals). AIgrette, 8; Cliftophone , 7; Decca, 7;

H.M.V., 8; Orchorsol,7. All the machines tested were apt to give a smotbered sound to the 'cello. That this was not the fault of the record was shown by playing i t on the large Orchestraphone, when the tone came out beautifully round and open. The AIgrette and the H.M.V. machines suffered least from this tendency.

LIST OF GRAMOPHONES TESTED

HlS MASTER'S VOICE Cabinet Grand Model- in mahogany, with

No.2 sound-box. £22 lOs. (The Gramophone Co.) ORCHORSOL Cabinet Tablc Grand Model C.8, with the new wooden tone-arm. £19 lOs. (The Orchorsol Gramophone Co.) ALGRF.TTE dark oak Cabinet, with Sonat sound-box and" Gramo­

l i th" tone arm . £15 15s. (Alfred Graham & Co.) CLlFfOPUONE Model 6 in oak, with Garrard double spring motor and twin reed Cliftophone sound-box. £10. (The Chappell Piano Co.) DECCA, compressed fibre portable. £6 6s. (The Decca Co.)

Note.-It will be observed that this is hardly a representative l ist of different makes. It was intended to try eight or ten machines of about the same price, but when the t ime came i t was by uo means easy to coUect them all in one spot. A Kestraphone arrived just too late for inclusion, and the promised Itonia and Tretone Separaphone never turned up at all. The inclusion of a Decca has already been explained. Ne,,:t month we hope to use our experience for a better .organisation of the Portable tests.

TESTS OF GRAMOPHONES

SOPRANO (Scotney). AIgrette, 8; Cliftophone, 9; Decca, 8;

H.lV1.V., 8; Orchorsol, 8 ; The results of this test are substantially the same as those of the violin record. The man whose taste runs exclusively to coloratura and violin records is to be envied; he need spend no sleepless nigbts wondering what machine he shall buy and after he has bought i t what sound-box and what need'\e he shall u,se. vVith reasonable care he will get a good result whatcver machmc or sound-box he uses. Of all the machines, no matter of what size or price, we are inclined to think that the Vocnlion gives ~he very / inest results with coloratura voices, but we have not trIed i t under test conditions.

CONTHALTO (Dame Cla ra Butt). Aigrette, 8; Cliftophone, 7;

Decca, 7; H.M.V., 8; Orchorsol,8. There was not very much difference in the rcsults of thcsc tests. The Cliftophone exaggerated the difference in quality of the registers of the voice.

TENOR (Fleta). H.M.V. Medium Needle. AIgrette, 8; Clifto­

phone, 7; Decca, 6; H.M.V., 5; Orchorsol, 9. The Orchorsol was exceptionally free from any" gramophouic " quality, and i ts tone was extremely sweet. The H.M.V. machine was unable to cope with this record and thc result was penetrating and harsh, to the point of being unbearable. The Cliftophonc gave more volume of tone than any of the others.

ORCHESTRA (Siegfried's Funeral March). Aigrette, 7; Cliftophone, 9; Decca, 5; H.M.V., 6; Orchorsol, 8. The Cliftophone gavc the best reproduction of the orchestra. The tone of the Orchorsol was very clear and agreeable. The H.M.V. machine sounded choked and the tone was rather harsh. The Decca made the orchestra sound like a brass band, though i t reproduced the detail pretty well .

CHA~IBER MUSIC (Lener Quartet). AIgrette, 8; Cliftophone, 7 ;

Decca, 6; H.M.V., 8; Orchorsol, 8 . The tone of the Orchorsol was as usual very sweet, and though not so rich and full as that of the Cliftophone we agreed in preferring i t . For reproduction of detail and discrimination of their tone qualities there was l i t t le to choose between the more expensive instruments. It is on this question of the discrimination of the instruments that portable gramophones like the Decca show their principal shortcoming; the strings sounded on the Dccca much more l ike brass.

PIA~O (Darcwski). AIgrette, 7; Cliftophone, 7; Decca, 6;

H.M.V ., 8; Orchorsol, 8. The great trouble with piano records is the banjo-like twang which is emphasised more on some instruments than on others. The Orchorsol and the H.M.V. machines were the most successful in reducing i t . No doubt by the use of other needles and soundboxes this twang could have been reduced still more, but i t did not enter into the scheme of these tests to try all possible combinations of machine, needle and sound-box. Any refcrences to combinations outside our present scheme are the result of previous unsystematic experimentation, a thing that often leads to happy discoveries. The editor in the course of trying over some old piano records hit on the combination of an Ultone sound-box with a Sympathetic Chromic needle, and we have been unable to discover anything else so good.

VIOLIN (Heifetz). AIgrette, 7; Cliftophone, 9; Decca, 7;

H.lVl.V., 8; Orchorsol, 7. A violin, like a soprano voice, is extremely easy to reproducemodern records of either of these instruments may be regarded as practically gramophone proof. The Cliftophone was astonishing in the faithfulness of i ts reproduction, and the l i t t le Decca . quite adequate.

BARITONE (Stracciari). H.M.V. Medium Needle. Algrettc, 6;

Cliftophone, 9; Decca, 7; H.M.V., 5; Orchorsol, 8. Stracciari's voice is evidently rather a test for a gramophone's capacity. The AIgrette and the H.lVl.V. machines were defeated by i t , the latter rather disastrously. The vibration was extremcly unpleasant. The Cliftophone and t.he Orchorsol wcre superb, and to our surprise the Decca, which we had thought would be impossible, showed i tself perfectly competent to deal with thc situation.

BASS (Chaliapine). H.M.V. Medium Needle. Algrcttc, ( l ; Clifto­

phone , 9; Decca, 6; H.lVl.V., 5; Orchorsol,7. The Cliftophone gave immense volume and very good quality, and the reproduction of the last faint notes of the song was perfect. The sweetness of tone that is so striking a property oCthe Orchorsol, and is no doubt chiefly due to the wooden tonc-arm, did not give i t the same advantage as with some other records. 'Vith the Decca, as was expectcd, the sotl'lld was ratber thin, but what there was of i t was agreeable and open.

CONCLUDING REMARKS

I t must be remembered that, as in the case of sound-boxes, these tcsts were all made during the recent heat wave and t .hat some instrumcnts are affe cted more than others by weather conditions. The Cliftophone ccrtainly gave a very remarkable performance. We have heard the machine accused of giving a sound lacking in body, but our expcrience of i t was exactly the reverse. Considering i ts size it. gave a noticeably full, rich sound, competing indeed in this respect in one or two records with the vast Orchestraphone itself. The Orchorsol and the Aigrette arc on the whole sweeter and i t is on this point that they score somet imes over the Cliftophone.

The H.M.V. machine failed on male voices and on the orchestra. Its tone with these records was inclined to be lifeless and there was often a good deal of vibration, otherwise i ts performance wa.s uniformly good.

The Decca is bardly intended for the more exacting records, but in i ts more l imited sphere i t was excellent. For dance and band records i ts performance is admirable, and though i ts tone is not enormous, i t seems to carry exceptionally well.

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