The Stylophone - Cheap Synthesizer

The Stylophone is one of the earliest consumer electronic instruments; is a little thin on features. Besides the two volume settings of... er... "on" and "off", the pictured model also features a "vibrato" switch. Other effects were suggested by the helpful leaflet of directions, including such nuances as cupping your hand over the internal speaker to change the sound.

That's pretty much it, but it was enough to get serious artists like David Bowie and Kraftwerk to use it in several famous compositions of the 1970's. The little beeps may seem unimpressive, but once you slide the stylus into a nice beepy glissando, you'll see what all the fuss is about.

The official site still selling Stylophones

Very nice history of the Stylophone

An interesting site from Ukraine about vintage audio.

Vintage Audio.

Vintage Fisher gear site :

The Fisher Radio Corporation

Cardboard Records

Cardboard records were light and cheap enough to be mailed or included in magazines or on the back of cereal boxes...
Today DVD's and CD's are cheap enough to include in countless promotional campaigns, and are sturdy enough to last almost indefinitely. Cardboard records are much more vulnerable to the ravages of time than conventional discs. They were designed only to be played a few times and then forgoten, since they often cashed in on some fad or were part of a current sales pitch. Due to their obscurity, and the low value placed on them by collectors, it's unfortunate to think that many of these unique recordings are probably lost forever...

Picture from WFMU's Museum of Odd Records

Some great photos of cereal box records

The 78rpm Record Home Page

The place on the web to learn about 78 RPM Records - the original since 1994.

Wyatts Musical Americana

Victrola, Edison, ... All windup Phonographs, Parts and Service. One of the Largest selections of original and reproduction Parts. 64 page illustrated CATALOG available. Serviceing Motors, Main springs, Reproducers, All types of repairs and restorations...

International specialist phonograph needle tins

A specialist site offering international needle tins, HMV and gramophone accessories, Gramophone postcards, radio crystal tins, ephemera and varied steel needles.

Dave's Crystal Radios

A beautiful site dedicated to crystal radio that's packed with photos.

Quad World

For Quad fan's a must !

The Computer Museum is a past-forward tour through hardcore hardware. The ghosts in these machines keep moving - fast.

A postmodern historian with advanced degrees in the history and philosophy of science, Spicer believes his storehouses of dead technology will always have something to tell us. "We don't want these huge slabs of iron to be mute objects," he says, flipping through an old issue of Datamation, an early computer magazine that ran surreal advertisements of mainframes straddled by pinup girls. "We want to explain how they fit into the time scale for the history of computing - which is only 50 years. Aspects of how we got from there to here are extremely important."

Computer Hystory Museum

We all need hears to listen ....here's some interesting site :

"deafness in disguise"

Trying to ID your radio? There are over 6,100 radio's pictured and ID'd here!

Radio Attic's Archives

Type in a manufacturer's name & then select model. Schematic's are clear & print beautifully! Go to :

Radio Schematic's On-Line

Capacitors & Electrolytics, Dial Cord, A/C Power Cords & Pilot Lamps and more...

Bob's Antique Radio's & Electronics

Vintage Amp Doctor

Great site for sales & Information regarding early radio and television. Take a nostalgic trip through the Virtual Museum & be sure to visit Sonny's incredible links page, but don't get lost!

Radiola Guy

Based in Switzerland, the largest vintage radio site I know of - 20,000 pages! A wealth of information.

Radio Museum

From Argentina
http://www.antiquesboedo.com.ar/

Antique Art Deco Radios
http://www.radiocraze.com/

Land of Antique Tube Radios
http://www.tuberadioland.com/

Radio Fun Homepage
http://www.radiofun.homestead.com/

Plastic Radios
http://www.plasticradios.com/

Radio Museum Rottenburg / Laaber
http://www.rmrl.de/home_e.htm

Japanese Design Database...

http://my.reset.jp/~inu/ProductsDataBase/index2.htm

For comic relief, see his "Failed Audio Projects" page. Also some good DIY plans and other info to be found on his site.

http://www.dself.dsl.pipex.com/ampins/failproj/failproj.htm

Thorens TD 124/TD

http://www.soundfountain.com/amb/td124page.html