Berliner's Gramophone

Emile Berliner and the Gramophone

Lateral-cut disc records were patented in the U.S. in 1887 by a German inventor named Emile Berliner. The first gramophones recorded sound by using a horizontal modulation on a cylinder that was coated with a low resistance material. It was then covered with varnish, then copied by using a photoengraving on a metal playback cylinder. A year later, Berliner realized it was simpler to record sound if you use discs instead. These flat discs that were first marketed in Europe in 1889 were five inches and diameter and had to be played by a small hand-propelled machine. These records and machines were not considered good enough to be used for anything else besides a toy and to see how it works. The main problem with the records was getting a turntable to spin at a constant speed. To solve this problem, Berliner had the help of Eldridge R. Johnson to design a clock-work spring bound motor. This improved the sound quality tremendously.

Victor Talking Machine Co.

In 1895 Berliner was able to convince some business men to give him $25,000 to help him create the Berliner  Gramophone Company. The gramophone records being sold by this company were now seven inches and were no longer seen as a toy or an instrument for curiosity. However, they could not be sold in the U.S. due to an argument between Berliner and Frank Seamans, who Berliner had gave Seamans an exclusive right to sell his product in the U.S. Because of this, Berliner moved to Canada. Later in 1901, Johnson founded a company called The Victor Talking Machine Company. The products from this company would control the market for years to come.


Sources:
Knott, Michael. "Emil Berliner: Google Würdigt Den Schallplatten-Erfinder - NETZWELT."Computernews, Testberichte Und Software - NETZWELT. Netzwelt, 20 May 2011. Web. 06 Nov. 2011. <http://www.netzwelt.de/news/86810-emil-berliner-google-wuerdigt-schallplatten-erfinder.html>.
Wallace, Robert (November 17, 1952). "First It Said 'Mary'". LIFE (Time Inc): 87–102.