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70 The Gramophone, Septembe1', 1923 Both the Lenthall and the Sonat were a trifle blurred. The B.R.O.S. was exceptionally clear and gave a beautiful reproduction of the violin tone. The H.M.V. Exhibition gave a poor tone. LO (Casals). Columbia medium-tone needle: Astra, 8; B.R.O.S. I); H.M.V. Exhibition, 5; H.M.V. No.2, 7; Lenthall, 9 ; Saturn,7; Sonat,9. The B.R.O.S. and the Sonat resembled one another very much, 'lnd were in sharp contrast to the Lenthall. I t is, however, i ifficult to say that the reproduction was better in one case than the other. There is something very agreeable in the looseness of the former two. The Lenthall has a much severer quality. The Astra was particularly good for the lowest notes of the accompaniment. CHA<'1BER MUSIC (Lener Quartet). Columbia medium-toned needle : Astra, 10; B .R.O.S., 9; H.M.V. Exhibition, 6; H.M.V. No.2, 8; Lenthall, 10; Saturn, 6; Sonat,9. The best discrimination of the instruments from one another was given by the Lenthall . The Astra was almost as good in this respect and the tone was rather sweeter. The B .R.O.S. and the Sonat were as usual very much alike. No detail was lost by either. The H.M.V. No.2 gave great brilliance. SOPRANO (Scotney). Vocalion needle: Astra, 7; B.R.O .S., 9; H.M.V. Exhibition, 4; H.M.V. No.2, 8; Lenthall,8; Saturn, 5; Sonat,8. There was a particularly charming loose, open quality in the voice as reproduced on the B.R.O.S. The H .M.V. No.2 and the Lenthall were almost as good but the voice was not quite so sweet. The Sonat resembled the B.R.O.S. pretty closely. The Astra was excellent for the detail but a tI'ifle harsh. CONTRALTO (Dame Clara Butt). Columbia medium needle: Astra, 7; B.R.O.S., 9; H.M.V. Exhibition, 5; H.M.V. No . 2, 8 ; Lenthall, 7 ; Saturn, 7; Sonat, 8. There is not very much to be said about the results of the contralto test. The B.R.O.S. seemed rather to smooth out the difference of quality in the di'fferent registers which to many is so unpleasant a feature in contralto records. TENOR (Fleta). H.M.V. medium needle: Astra, 8 ; B.R.O.S., 9 ; H.M.V. Exhibition, 6; H .M.V. No.2, 7; Lenthall, 7; Saturn, 8; Sonat, 9. The B.R.O.S. and the Sonat were very sweet though not very loud. The Saturn was surprisingly good, and resembled the H.M.V. No.2 but gave a more agreeable tone. The H.M.V. No.2 was very brilliant but the result was a l i t t le overpowering. The Astra was very full but lacking in subtlety. BARITONE (Stracciari). H.M.V. medium needle: Astra, 8; B.R.O.S., 9; H.M.V. Exhibition, 4; H.M.V. No.2, 5; Lenthall, 7 ; Saturn, 8; Sonat, 8. Stracciari's voice is one which on this instrument is very apt to prove too much for the sound-box, and a great deal of vibration is l ikely to occur. The H.M.V. No.2, which usually will take anything, failed here conspicuously. The result with the Lenthall was heavy. The B.R.O.S. and the Sonat were as usual l ight and elegant. BASS (Chaliapin). H.M.V. medium needle: Astra, 10; B.R.O.S., 6; H.M.V. Exhibition, 7; H.M.V. No.2, 8; Lenthall, 7 ; Saturn,7; Sonat,7. The surprising thing in this test was the failure of the B.R.O.S. to cope with Chaliapin's voice. There was a distinct lack of body throughout, though the last faint notes of the song were good. By far the best result was given by the Astra which gave a beautiful open tone and reproduced the last notes well. With the Saturn the last notes were very faint; the tone was good though i t sounded somewhat throttled . Both the H.M.V. boxes gave adequate renderings,~especially No.2. CONCLUDING REMARKS A sound-box is an instrument that is extremely sensitive to weather conditions. The quality of sound from a mica diaphragm might almost be used by anyone with a sufficiently sensitive ear as a barometcr. I t will then not be beside the point to repeat that these tests were made during the recent heat wave and represent the performances of the instruments under i ts influence. Doubtless i t would have been preferable to have made the tests under different weather conditions and to h ave compared the results , but t ime was l imited. The B.R.O.S. is a sound-box that none of us had heard before. As will be noticed from the description i t is very large and very l ight. It is probably this combinatiqn of size with l ightness that gives i t a peculiarly sweet and refined tone. There is a certain looseness in the sound that is palticularly agreeable with some records. The Sonat though heavier and smaller often resembled i t closely in tone. The Astra is probably not suited to any machine that has not a large amplifier. The Lenthall being entirely of metal is probably less influenced by weather conditions than any of the others. It is exceptionally good for Chamber music. The H.M.V. Exhibition did not de) very well in the tests and we are all surprised at the result. It must be remembered that sound-boxes are delicate instruments and i t may weIl be that the particular example we used was not in perfect condition. We did not consider i t part of our duties to adjust any of the instru· ments before testing them. We put ourselves in the position of ordinary members of the public who might be supposed to go into a dealer's and buy a sound-box across the countcr and use i t just as they found i t . I t is true that some enthusiasts take a delight in "tinkeririg" with sou'nd-boxes and machines, and get a principal part of their pleasure from gramophones out of such H t inkering," like some motorists who regard a motor car almost more as an object capablc of being taken to pieces than as a means of locomotion. Most of us , however, prefer to have the mechanical work done by the manufacturers, and trust them to give us something as nearly fool-proof as may be. It is possible that the Exhibition box has a constitution peculiarly sensitive to heat waves. We feel that in fairness to this instrument, we must say that our previous impressions of i t were much more favourable, and that although for most records we have always preferred the No.2, yet for some things, notably for piano records, the Exhibition has been found distinctly superior. GRAMOPHONES In consulting the following tests of gramophones i t must be noted that in most cases the needle used was that which 'would presumably be chosen by the manufacturer of the record, while the sound-box was that supplied by the maker of the gramophone. Possibly these could have been replaced with advantage by, for instance, a Petmecky needle and a Nom-y-ka sOUIld-box (about which we hear for the first t ime from our correspondent E.S.G. on p. 72 of this issue). Possibly independent research has produced a needle and a sound-box definitely preferable to those recommended by the record and gramophone makers. This may transpire hereafter, but for the present i t is obviously only fair to those gramophone makers whose wares we are comparing to test them under their own chosen conditions. From t ime to t ime we receive letters from our readers asking us for advice in the purchase of a new gramophone, and are hard put to i t to give an answer which will satisfy them as well as ourselves. But these reports on practical tests will probably prove to our readers how necessary i t is for the individual to form his own judgment after due deliberation in the music saloon of his local dealer, after taking, for
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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.

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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