Categories: Magnecord

UPDATED: The Very Early Magnecord SD-1 Wire Recorder

Courtesy of PS dot com reader H. Layer come these images of his Magnecord SD-1 wire recorder. Magnecord ran a respectable second to Ampex in the development and proliferation of professional audio-tape recorders in the Unites States in the 1940s and 1950s. You can find a tremendous amount of information regarding the various Magnecord tape machines on PreservationSound.com (you might want to start here), as well as many recent recordings that I have made with my Magnecord PT6 machines. Anyhow, it is a small but important footnote in Magnecord history that their first attempt at a recording device was not a tape recorder but instead a wire recorder. H. Layer relates the following:

“Years ago I acquired Magnecord’s only wire recorder, the SD-1. After considerable research, I found out that Russ Tinkham (Ed: one of the four founders of Magnecord INC) was retired and living quite close to me …he was delighted to see the SD-1 after many decades and we became good friends. Photo of my SD-1 attached.”

Above: helpful reader Art Shifrin provides come additional information concerning the SD-1.

chris

Next The Williamson Amp, part one »

Previous « Low-Budget Ribbon Mic Listening Session

View Comments

BAF says:

04/05/2012 at 9:04 am

I read years ago, I believe in Audio Magazine, that, according to a Magnecord sales rep., the "SD" in the SD-1 name stood for "Super Duper!"
Gaylord Ewing says:

01/16/2013 at 8:02 pm

I just saw the picture of the Magnacord SD-1 wire recorder. Wish I had one in my vintage and antique recorder collection. I had contact with H.Layer several years ago.
I had sent him a Brush Wire Recorder. I've often wondered if he still has it. I finally was able to obtain a General Electric Model 51 Wire Recorder a few years ago. I was looking for the GE wire recorder for 25-years. I currently have 5-wire recorders in my collection of vintage and antique recorders.
Best regards, Gaylord Ewing
Jim Wood says:

08/01/2013 at 10:47 pm

I've undertaken the project of building a wire recorder, using the Webster Chicago mechanism and up-to-date circuitry and techniques. I am astounded at the quality one can get... and I'm not finished yet!
Listen to the first efforts (a dub to wire from vinyl) here:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/zbdcm7z4uewu30a/First%20Recording.mp3
Follow the link to the dropbox site, click: Download, then elect to open, rather than to save the file.
- chris says:
  
  08/01/2013 at 11:07 pm
  
  This is very intriguing Jim! gonna check that out, thanks! c.
- Pat "Foxy" Moore says:
  
  09/05/2017 at 9:37 pm
  
  That sounds amazing!
- Simon Walker says:
  
  02/17/2020 at 4:15 pm
  
  Hi Jim,
  I hope you are very well.
  A little late with this(!), but I am about to build a wire recorder from scratch using Meccano ('Erector' in the states), and I would so love to get hold of your brilliant circuit, which I saw was prototyped on breadboard, as it would be a huge 'leg up' for me. I'm not so hot on theory. It goes without saying that i am happy to pay. I'm expecting a 'no' response, so please don't think I'll be hurt if that is the case.
  Kind regards, Simon. kidmoses@hotmail.com
Matt McArthur says:

07/31/2014 at 11:02 pm

Hello all....I'm curious, does anyone have any knowledge of an SD-1 selling in recent history? These things seems to have fallen into a blackhole! I'm curious to know the approximate value seeing how rare they obviously are...thanks for any input!