Category: Publications

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Publications Technical

Stancor Amplifiers and Full Transformer Data c.1937

The Stancor ‘306’ 6-watt PP audio amplifier

Download the 1937 (‘third edition’) of Stancor Transformers’ ‘Amplimanual,’ a 24pp publication which conveniently combines schematics for ten original audio amplifiers with full data for their entire line of transformers.  If you (like me) have some pre-war Stancors lying around and you are unsure what exactly what the specs are, this is a godsend (blogsend?  awful).

Split into two parts due to size:

DOWNLOAD SCHEMATICS:Stancor_Amplimanual_Schematics_1937

DOWNLOAD 1937 STANCOR  DATA: Stancor_1937_Transformer_Specs

Schematics are provided for Stancor’s own 303, 305, 306, 312, 318, 320, 325, 335, and 360 audio amplifiers.  The first ‘3’ in the designation seems to represent this ‘third’ edition of the publication, and the second two digits correspond with the stated audio-output of the particular device.   Looking through the schematics, you will see the following tube types most often:  6F5, 6C5, 6J7, 80, 6V6, 76, 6N7, 6L6, 6A6, and 6A3.

Above, the schematic and parts list for the ‘303,’ a microphone pre-amp.  I will be building one of these shortly.  I was most excited by this publication due to the 76 tubes in a few of the circuits.  I am close to completion on a novel microphone preamp design that uses a 76 tube as the input stage and I am in-general trying to get more into the early ‘two-digit-designation’ tubes: the 75, the 76, the 42, 80, etc…   we are looking back etc etc.

Above, an image of the Stancor factory which describes a certain transformer-manufacturing process which I will not put into text because I get enough porn spam as it is. 

Several completed Stancor amplifier units

Above, several transformer units photographed for the catalog with their model-numbers included via practical photography.  What a great design move this is.  I bet we see a return to this product-photography technique in the coming years.  ‘If you can find a way to do-it practically (rather than digitally), then do it practically!’

Categories
Guitar Equipment Publications

Selling Fender Kit In The Mid 1970s

Fender Stratocaster and Quad Reverb as characterized by Detroit-musician caricature ‘Bumpwell Blues’; note Strat-as-phallus reference.

The mid 1970s is the most maligned period of Fender’s history.  Musicians and collectors alike complain of such indignities as three-bolt necks on Stratocasters and Jazz/Telecaster basses, ‘high powered’ tube amplifiers which managed their impressive-on-paper ratings through the use of frequency-sucking suppressor caps, and of course the dreaded 70s heavy-guitar syndrome.

OK so how did Fender manage to sell so many of these instruments which we now regard as sub-par?  Could it be possible that the goofiest ad campaign in guitar history might have had something to do with it?  No disrespect intended to the illustrators/art-directors/copywriters who crafted these curiosities; I am sure that they were just doing what they were told, and the work is certainly of a consistent quality.  But really?  This was a good idea?

On a more serious note though: what does is mean exactly when a manufacturer creates an entire (expensive) ad campaign that does not show the actual products or even reference any concrete product specifications or claims?  Is this good marketing?  Hubris?  How do we feel about the products?  Does it make us more or less curious?  Do we accept that these products are in fact ‘icons’ by virtue of the fact that we are shown only icons that represent the products rather than seeing the products themselves?

Fender PA100

Fender Quad Reverb

Fender Stratocaster

Fender Twin Reverb Amplifier (presumably; this ad does not even reference a particular product)

Along similar lines…  ROGERS drums was the drum-division of Fender-Parent CBS musical instruments at the time.  Here’s an example of the very similar ROGERS campaign of the same era.  They chose a different illustrator (smart) and it seems like they used a different copywriter as well; we also see the actual product in a small window at the bottom, so there was probably a different marketing person responsible for this campaign. The overall effect is similar though.  Also consider the implicit statement that only males play drums.  Not surprising given the era; hell Dean Markley was still running sexist ads last week AFAIK. 

 

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Publications

Unusual Techniques In Sound Recording (1950)

Download a four-page article from ‘Radio Electronics’ magazine 5/1950 entitled “Unusual Techniques In Sound Recording” (Richard H. Dorf):

DOWNLOAD: Unusual_Techniques_Sound_Recording_Dorf_1950

The article is primarily concerned with studio-editing applications of the then-novel ‘magnetic tape recording’ technology, with some interesting bits regarding techniques for capturing greater dynamic range in disc-recording.  Article was researched at Reeves Sound Studios in NYC, a five-floor facility that seems to have been primarily a sound-for-picture studio but which hosted at least one commercially-released Coltrane session.  Reeves used Fairchild 30 ips tape machines which look very similar to the industry-standard Ampex 300s of the era.

Categories
Guitar Equipment Publications

Out-of-Print-Book-Report: “The Guitars Friend” 1977

Download a thirteen-page excerpt from “The Guitars Friend” (no author credited), Quick Fox publishers, ISBN# 0-8256-3072-X:

DOWNLOAD: GuitarsFriend_Elec

 

Billed alternately as a ‘Catalog’ and a ‘Guide,’ “The Guitars Friend” (h.f. “TGF”) is a charming artifact of the late-hippie-era.  From the self-description offered in the book, TGF began as a mail-order catalog begun by former (owners or employees – unclear) of ‘Music, Strings, and Things’  a Detroit-area music store.  Seems that these retailers wanted to move to the country, and they took their business with them.  A few years later, they had stopped the mail-order business and took to solely publishing this guidebook to current musical instruments.  We’re not trying to sell you anything, man.  Just sharing.  (Although they apparently will sell you much of the gear if you write to them?  it’s all very vague.) Check it out in their own words:

The entire 180-pp volume is entirely hand-lettered and largely hand-illustrated.  It’s a pretty fantastic relic of the post-woodstock-youth generation as well as the back-to-the-land movement.

The book features descriptions and advice concerning mainly acoustic instruments, but there is a good ten pages devoted to electric guitars (no mention of amps and effects).  I’ve included the electric bits in their entirety in the download link at the head of this article.  Guitars depicted and discussed include: Ibanez Firebrand, Rocket Roll, MoonLight 59, F.M. Jr, Howie Roberts, Rick Bass, Old-Style Strat, and Strato Model; Gibson Les Paul Custom, Les Paul Deluxe, ES 335, SG Custom, Standard, L6S, and the Gibson Ripper and Grabber Bass; Fender Stratocaster, Telecaster, Mustang, Precision, Jazz, and Mustang Bass (es); Rickenbacker 4001; The Seagull Guitar, described as being built by Bernardo Rico (better known in the 80s as B.C. Rich);The Travis Bean TB1000 Standard and Deluxe; The Sunrise Electric Guitar (no model name given; made in Kalamazoo MI); and finally the Alembic Long Scale Bass and guitar, a steal at $1750 (that’s $6200 dollars in today’s bread).

Anyhow.  DL the file and give it a look…  some of the writing is pretty amazing; as in the discussion of Ibanez, who were then churning out thousands of what we now term ‘lawsuit guitars’:

“The Ibanez people…can make a copy of almost any stringed instrument and make it as good but cheaper than the original…The only complaint people seem to have is status-wise – that it is a Japanese copy.  Once they get past their own ego and conditioning, they are amazed at the quality.”

Let go of yr hangups and order a copy of “The Guitars Friend.”  Four currently available on Amazon dot com.

Categories
Publications

QST Magazine in the 1940s

QST magazine is the monthly publication of the American Radio Relay league (h.f. ARRL).  ARRL has published QST since 1915.   The ARRL is the main membership organization for ‘Hams,’ otherwise known as amateur radio operators.  We discussed Hams a bit in this previous post on vernacular graphics.  I am not a Ham radio-operator, and I know next to nothing about radio-frequency broadcasting equipment.  But, since most Ham radio broadcast-chains begin with the human voice and a microphone, and it is largely a DIY-type activity, there is plenty of relevant content in these old magazines.

Above is the ARRL’s mission-statement as published in 1947. Anyhow, over the next few days I will post a few interesting bits from QST in the immediate post-WW2 era.  There was a tremendous surge in amateur radio activity at the time, owing to the return home of the servicemen who had learned radio-technology in the war.

These men had been given an introduction to radio and electronics in the most intense possible situation -the life-and-death struggle of global warfare – and it’s no surprise that this powerful link would fuel an intense post-war peacetime interest in Ham activity.

Above: a Tom-Of-Finland-esque advert for Solar Capacitors from a 1947 QST.

We’ll start today with a couple of interesting schematics for push-pull audio amps: a 6F6 15 watt push-pull amp, and a cathode-coupled 6L6 40 watt amp.  I have never used a 6F6.  Anyone?  And I don’t recall ever having seen a cathode-coupled push-pull driver circuit.  Check ’em out…

Tomorrow: Turner Ham mics of the 1940s.

 

 

Categories
Guitar Equipment Publications

Out-Of-Print-Book Report: “Electric Rock,” Richard Robinson 1971

“Electric Rock” (Pyramid Communications, 1971, 224pp) was written by Richard Robinson.  It’s a small paperback volume, mainly text, which offers an assessment of hundreds of the guitars, basses, amplifiers, and PA equipment that were available to the American public in 1971.

There is also ample text devoted to basic explanations of subjects such as ‘What is a piggyback amp?’

And in case you were wondering:

Try saying “The Shape Most Often Used For Rock Is Darkened In” 10 times.  It will assume a mantra-like quality.  And then you will know the shape of rock (darkened in).  “Electric Rock” is filled with plenty of such slightly-off prose.  It’s written in a circa ’70- streetwise-hipster voice, and this is not at all surprising once you learn a little about the author.  Richard Robinson is a fascinating character.  His slightly mean-spirited AllMusic profile tells most of the story.   RR is most famous for co-founding ‘Rock Scene’ magazine and for producing Lou Reed’s unsuccessful first solo album.  But he also produced a few of my personal favorite records of the era.  Check these tracks out…

Teenage Head by the Flaming Groovies

Sifting Around In a Haze by Andy Zwerling: 06 Sifting Around In A Haze

Reachin’ by Hackamore Brick

Anyhow.  Point is, RR had his finger on the pulse of a lot of music which would never amount to much commercially, but which has very much stood the test of time artistically.  Kinda like…  Reed’s first band the Velvet Underground.  Pretty interesting… this guy definitely knew what he was doing.

In case you’re wondering what ever happened to Richard Robinson, well…  apparently, here he is in 2007.  Different line of work. Life is funny, huh?  RR, if you are still out there, drop us a line.

Oh BTW one more thing to add about “Electric Rock”:  Lenny Kaye wrote the forward.  The-Lenny-Kaye as in, created ‘Nuggets‘ (basically the holy canon of Garage Rock) and also plays guitar (since the ’70s) for Patti Smith.

Check out ‘Electric Rock.’  One copy currently available at Amazon dot com.

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Magnecord Publications

Magnecord Historical Archive Material: Part IV

This week we’ll conclude our series of archival material courtesy of Magnecord founding partner John Boyers.  John’s son D. graciously scanned every page of every available issue of the company publication “Magnecord INC,” which was published between 1950 and 1954.

If anyone out there has any issues that we are missing, please chime in and let’s figure out a way to get them online.  Magnecord was a crucial developer of tape-recording and pro-audio hardware whose contributions have been largely forgotten in the modern era.  I use a Magnecord PT6 at our studio Gold Coast Recorders to make the occasional ‘old-time’ recording and it’s a testament to the skill of engineers like Mr. Boyers that the machine still works great SIXTY years after it rolled out the Chicago plant.

The ‘Magnecord INC’ publications are fascinating because they reveal the dawn of the high-fidelity audio-recording age.  Remember that these (and certain of the AMPEX machines of the era) were portable audio-recorders with 40hz- 15kz frequency response.  These facts opened up world of possibility for audio capture.   Reading through these old issue of “Magnecord INC” opens the door to a time when the world was first figuring out all of the things that could be done with a portable machine that could capture and playback sound to the near-limits of human hearing ability.  Many of the then-novel tape-recording tasks described in these publications may seem mundane; but many are surprising and quite odd applications which never really caught on past a few enthusiastic early-experimenters.

Without further ado, here are the issue from 1950.  More to follow tomorrow.  Download and enjoy.

Magnecord_INC_Feb1950

Magnecord_INC_Mar1950

Categories
Publications

Out-of-print Book Report: “Starting Your Own Band” (1980)

Ah salad days.

Making noise with some high-school bros

and/or chicks

maybe you were on the “wheels-of-steel”

or maybe you were the one who pushed ‘RECORD’ while others were in the lights

Good days.

“Starting your own band” (h.f. ‘SYOB’) was published in paperback by Weekly Reader Books of Middletown CT in 1980.  It’s the work of one Lani Van Ryzin, who also wrote several other books on subjects and near as “Cutting a Record in Nashville” and as far as one volume on creating magical spaces in your yard.  Anyhow, SYOB is a 64pp volume squarely aimed at high-school students.  Some of the suggestions on offer:

“To succeed, (a band) must flow together– not just musically, but in feelings, too. And it simply won’t flow if’s full of personality hassles…”

“It’s probably best not to start talking ‘Band Talk’ until after several jam sessions.”

“Extension cords are expensive and necessary…”

“Making music is making sounds, and the quality of the sound you make is critical.”

Could there ever really be a book of a sufficient length to offer the knowledge necessary to operate a rock-band smoothly?  The answer is no.  Lani, if you’re out there, tell us about the bands you were in…  send us some MP3s.

Back to the photos.  I am going to wishfully believe that these pics were shot in Connecticut, home of the publishing company responsible for this treatise…  prove me wrong (or right).   As I look at these images, which truly feel like they are from so-very-long-ago, I have to recognize that I was in a high-school garage-band in CT a mere 10 years later.  Trying not to cross the line from ‘historical research’ to ‘actual nostalgia.’  Wish me luck.


 

Categories
Publications

Audio Engineering Magazine Part 2: Cover Images 1947, 1948

Today we’ll look at some of the more interesting covers of Audio Engineering magazine from the first two years of publication.   As incredible and exotic as these interiors are, consider for a moment how similar they are in content to the cover of today’s Mix Magazine.  Get ready to enter a lost world of steel+glass….

Before audio engineers had a wide range of electronic equipment available to them (thanks to the introduction of the transistor), there was a tremendous emphasis on truly radical acoustic treatment and acoustic control devices.  Although some of the brighter minds in audio continue to achieve radical innovation in acoustics (i’m remembering sitting in Blackbird Studio C a few years ago and being totally blown away), we’ve largely abandoned complex acoustic experimentation because… well… it’s a lot cheaper and easier to buy machine made hardware/code written by outsourced programmers.  In the 1940s, you might have found that your cheapest way to improve hi-frequency response was to re-treat your entire room.  Now we might buy just buy another mic.  Or hang some pre-fab acoustic-treatment devices.

Follow the link below to see more..

Continue reading “Audio Engineering Magazine Part 2: Cover Images 1947, 1948”
Categories
Publications

Pro Audio in the 1940s: Audio Engineering Magazine, pt 1.

Over the next few days, we’ll be taking a look at the latest-and-greatest in pro audio circa 194_, courtesy Audio Engineering magazine.  In a previous post, we looked at Audio magazine, the venerable publication which advised legions of hi-fi enthusiasts between 1954 and 2000.  As we discussed then, Audio was published as Audio Engineering for the 7 years prior, 1947 though 1953.  It was only the introduction of The Journal of the Audio Engineering Society that precipitated the name change.

The changes went well beyond the name, though.  With the AES Journal in-play, Audio shifted its focus towards hi-fi and consumer audio.  Audio Engineering had sort of split the difference between home-fi and pro audio.

I’ve selected what I felt were the most interesting and relevant bits from the first 24 issues of Audio Engineering and I will present them here as follows:  a survey of covers; professional microphones of the 1940s; interesting pro audio equipment; schematics of worthy DIY audio projects; and Western Electric ads of the era.

BTW, pictured at the top of this page: CBS radio KNX broadcast control center; an Electrovoice INC microphone test chamber; and the dubbing/rebroadcast room of WENR Chicago.  Deco-mania.