tags: mus-407 recording-technology

Phonograph

The phonograph is the first device capable of sound [recording] & playback.

• [sound]-vibrated stylus cuts into impressionable medium
• initial conception: tinfoil sheet wrapped around crank-turned cylindrical drum

Pressure variations translate as vertical cuts (variations in depth)

Low level and low quality reproduction, impression degraded beyond recognition after few reproductions

• improved with hollow wax cylinders
• acoustic horn for greater sound transmission efficiency
• stylus moves laterally instead of cylinder

Sources

• MUS 407 Recording Technology