On Mar 2, 2006, at 8:56 PM, Richard Rubin wrote: > ... That, to me, is the whole point of restoring something like this > -- to keep it as close as possible to original, not "improve" it. > Just my opinion, though. > --RR
"It's only original once" -- common collector's phrase, heard particularly often among car restorers, where even a somewhat deteriorated original example is fast becoming more prized than award-winning restorations (particularly on the rarer models). Also note that that the goofy looking 1920s loop antenna is a seriously sought-after styling element among seasoned vintage radio collectors (especially when standing in plain view as on the Radiola 28), and the engineering behind it is as sound today as it was in the '20s. In later years they figured out how to miniaturize them by using ferrite cores, but otherwise, the original loop will give you decent results, not to mention that it is correctly electrically matched to the signal-input section of the receiver. Also note that a built in antenna was rare until much later (about 1939 or 1940), and is found in the 20s usually on only the most expensive radios and/or state-of-the-art superheterodynes. The tone arm on your machine probably has a cast-metal base with a gold plated brass tone-arm. As for the type of speaker, serial number chronology may be only part of the story. There would have been a choice offered at the same time in history, for going with the permanent magnet speaker or the dynamic speaker. The buyer's choice of speaker determined the final price, with the 104 type of speaker installation being much more expensive (the equivalent of a few hundred dollars extra in today's money). Chronology still figures in, in that the later the run got, the more established the 104 became, and dealers as well as buyers realized that if you're going to spend the money for such a grand radio/phonograph, that it makes sense to go all the way and get the best sounding apparatus as well. You have to keep in mind that the dynamic speaker technology was so new that buyers had to be trained to realize there was a significant difference in the sound. Until then and for some years prior, they had never heard bass notes reproduced with decent fidelity, so it was literally a brand-new way of listening, that ultimately created higher expectations for up-and-coming technologies. Most of the radio buying public were completely unaware that such improved sound was a reality, and didn't become aware of the vastly improved fidelity until a few years later when the dynamic speaker was reduced enough in cost to be installed in middle grade radios. You can bet that the original owners of sets such as your 104-equipped Hyperion raised quite a few eyebrows when demonstrating it to their friends, much the same as well-to-do proud owners of the new color televisions did in the mid to late '50s. Andy Baron
