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From: larry@kitty.UUCP (Larry Lippman)
Newsgroups: misc.wanted,sci.electronics,rec.audio
Subject: Re: Magnetic Wire Recorders
Summary: Early history...
Message-ID: <3849@kitty.UUCP>
Date: 15 Jul 90 02:48:57 GMT
References: <1990Jul14.044030.6001@swbatl.sbc.com>
Organization: Recognition Research Corp., Clarence, NY
Lines: 56

In article <1990Jul14.044030.6001@swbatl.sbc.com>, adams@swbatl.sbc.com (Tom Adams - 235-7459) writes:
> I'm looking for information about magnetic wire recorders.
> I'm also curious about the history of this technology.
> 
> Is anyone aware of any controversy on the subject?
> The National Inventors Hall of Fame apparently credits Marvin Camras
> with inventing wire recorders in the 1930's, while "Magnetic Recording",
> by S.J. Begun, 1949, Rhinehart, credits Vladimir Poulsen with inventing
> a wire recorder called the Telegraphone in the late 1890's [!]. 

	There were *several* people working with magnetic recording
technology before 1900.

	Waldemar Poulson, a Danish electrical engineer, is generally
credited with the invention of wire recording during the mid-1890's.  His
invention has been referred to by various [now archaic] names, such as:
telephonograph, microphonograph, magnetophonograph and telegraphophone.
I don't know of any controversy with respect to giving Poulson credit
where credit is due for this invention.

	Poulson's device employed hardened steel piano wire of a diameter
around 0.040 inch which was wound around a cylinder about a foot long.
The overall appearance of his device is similar to that of a cylinder
phonograph.  In Poulson's original design something like 200 turns of
wire were used, providing somewhat less than one minute of recording time.

	Poulson and others made various design improvements to increase
recording time and sound quality.  One variation which emerged was
referred to as the "band microphonograph", and employed two reels which
used a steel band approximately 0.3 inches wide by 0.087 inches thick.
The magnetic pickup/recording head was fixed.  This device could provide
over one hour of recording time.

	There were various bizarre schemes proposed during the 1890's
which used this technology.  One was called the "Talking Newspaper",
and involved distributing a daily newspaper via wire recording.  I
believe it was actually tried on a small scale in Europe. 

	Magnetic recording technology did not come into serious use until
after World War I when vacuum tube amplifiers were well established.  While
the devices produced by Poulson and others did in fact work, their sound
recording and reproduction ability was seriously hampered by the lack of
amplification. 

	For the most authoritative and reliable information on this topic,
one should consult books written between 1895 and 1915.  A good example
from my personal collection is "Electricity in Every-Day Life", a 3-volume
set written by Edwin J. Houston, PhD and published in 1905 by Collier & Son.
The title is rather misleading in that these volumes contain 1700+ pages
with a wealth of specific technical detail, and were not intended for the
lay person.  There are profusely illustrated with drawings, photographs
and color plates.

Larry Lippman @ Recognition Research Corp.  "Have you hugged your cat today?"
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