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Driven by a mainspring

Gramophones in the early 1900s were mainspring driven. We have recreated that. The turntable spins for about three minutes.

Governor uses centrifugal force and
keeps rotation steady

The governor is a device that adjusts the force of the mainspring to keep the turntable spinning at a steady speed. It uses the centrifugal force of weights you install and the frictional relationship between flange and pad to adjust RPM.

Independently-developed sound box,
the core of the gramophone,
translates needle vibration to a diaphragm

The sound box includes a stylus bar that translates needle vibration to the diaphragm, a metal diaphragm, an air chamber that increases sound quality using the suspension effect, and other parts the same as those used in old-time mechanisms. You can also experiment with sound quality by changing the material of the diaphragm.

Bamboo stylus serves as the record needle

Many different materials were used as record needles in the early 1900s. Bamboo was one of them. It provided good sound quality and volume with the SP records of the day without scratching the record. The stylus had to stay sharp when you listened to records, so the stylus came with a bamboo stylus cutter. We have done the same with this kit.

The special bamboo stylus cutter

Experiment with making and playing recordings
using the provided recording sheets or unwanted CD-ROMs

Experiment with recording yourself speaking or singing on the provided recording sheets or on unwanted CD-ROMs and playing the recordings back. To record, move your mouth close to the horn and use a loud, clear voice. The sound plays back when the stylus traces the groove you created.

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