Phonoland

Hi everyone! Can anyone help me identify this? I couldn't find any tag or inscription on it. I only know it's old - my Grandfather got it from his parents... I'm a total ignorant, so... please help! Thanks!

Hi Charlie,

I'm not familiar with the cabinet style to identify the brand, but then I'm in Australia & we didn't get much from the USA.(I'm guessing you're in America?)
It might help if you can tell us what brand the motor is. There should be (probably) 4 screws that hold in the motor board- the board the turntable, brake & speed control is attached to. If you undo these, and unwind the handle, the board should lift out, and usually there will be a brand marked on the bottom of the motor. Some motors are however un-branded, or may have a trademark symbol like an anchor or something.
Also have a good look at the soundbox- the round think the needle goes in. These usually have either a brand name, model number or symbol on them somewhere too. If the front of the soundbox has a mica diaphragm (looks like a round bit of glass) have a look at it in good light through the mica, as sometimes information can be seen on the inside surface behind the glass, which can be difficult to read at times.
If you can't find a brand etc on either the motor or soundbox, see if you can take a picture of the motor board showing the turntable, brake & speed control, as these parts can also offer a clue to who manufactured a machine at times.
See what you can find & let us know.

BTW: While you've got the motor board out, have a look at the top surface of the horn underneath where the motor sits. Occasionally you will find a paper label which shows patent numbers &/or dates, or even numbers stamped into the surface of the wood or metal.

Hi Shane!

Thank you so much for the detailed instructions! It might take me a while to actually do the dismantling though, because I don't have the "object" handy, due to the lack of space in my home. I was kind of hoping someone would recognize the cabinet or something (I told you I was ignorant!). But nevertheless, your information is very valuable and I promise to take action as soon as possible and keep in touch. Thank you again very much! Oh, and I'm in Romania, not in the US.

There was another reply here, beside Shane's. Has its author removed it? I can't find it anymore and I really needed that information too...

Yeh there was - by Joe. He must have removed it I think. It had a picture of a similar cabinet to yours made by Victor in the USA.
I can't remember now what he wrote, but you'd find the picture on the Victor Victrola website. You'd also have to wade through the different models to find the right model. Being in Australia, we didn't get our machines from america, but from HMV in the UK, so I'm not real good with the US model designations. It might have been something like a VV-XIV. Heres the link to the site anyway.

http://www.victor-victrola.com./

You might want to try sending him a PM if he doesn't repost it.
His user name is Joe_DS

Charlie39 wrote:There was another reply here, beside Shane's. Has its author removed it? I can't find it anymore and I really needed that information too...

Hi Charlie:

Sorry about that. I was editing the post to add some information and then the site went down when I clicked on submit. (This has happened three times today, so far, while attempting to post this response!)

In any event, the machine you have is similar in appearance to most Gramophones--produced by the Gramophone Co. Ltd., and Victor Victrolas--manufactured by the Victor Talking Machine Co., from the period of 1906-1925. One of the cabinet's design features--two small doors covering the horn and used for volume control--was protected by patent in the US and the UK. (Though some manufacturers ignored this fact.)

Of the Victor-Victrola models, this one is nearly identical to the very rare VV-XIII, which is described on this page:

http://www.victor-victrola.com/XIII.htm


VV-XIII

Unlike most Victrolas/gramophones, the VV-XIII did not have curved side posts, nor were there carvings on the legs. The cabinet style was relatively plain. (I don't know if this was offered exclusively by Victor, or if the Gramophone Co. had a similar model.)

If you have a chance to do an on-site inspection, look carefully for a manufacturer's name plate, which would have been mounted near the turntable. (If a Gramophone Co. product, there may be a tag under the turn table.) Also, if the original finish is in tact, there should be a logo under the lid with Nipper the Dog listening to an early Gramophone.

What I tried to add to my original response to your post was that there appears to be some major differences between the components Victor used and the ones I can spot in your photo. For instance, Victor never used red fabric on their Victrolas. In addition, the tone arm on your machine looks different -- a later style, perhaps, but I can't tell for sure by the photo. This may have been produced in Europe by an outside manufacturer who simply copied the cabinet's style, or the components may have been changed over the years.

HTH,
Joe_DS

Thank you again! You rock, both Shane and Joe! I hope I'll get a chance to "investigate" tomorrow. I'll let you know when I do.