1939 Marble Radio - Will It Work? Let's See!

[@MrCarlsonsLab]

To learn electronics in a very different and effective way, and gain access to Mr Carlson's personal designs and inventions, visit the Mr Carlson's Lab Patreon page here: www.patreon.com/MrCarlsonsLab

[@ProfaneGod]

Repair the speaker please it will make a very interesting video and be educational for people who might be unable to find a replacement speaker for it plus its better to keep it as original as possible.

[@Daveyk021]

I want to how a speaker can be repaired/Rebuilt !

[@gerardcousineau3478]

Yes please Mr. Carlson repair the speaker, it's very exciting. 😍😊👍

[@lfraser7128]

Hi, I’m terribly sorry in attempting to contact you this way, I was advised to get in touch with you. I came across at least a hundred vacuum tubes for sale at my local value village, all BNIB. Most are Hit Ray branded and are TV/Radio tubes to the best of my knowledge.

[@thefixerofbrokenstuff]

You and Birt have really inspired me. The other day I got the nerve to reflow the joints where a pin header connected to a board that is part of the 4wd switch on a Chevy S10. It was in no way as complicated as the work you do, but a couple years ago I would have just have ordered a new one. I also knew to look for the cracked solder joints in the first place. Thanks and happy new year.

[@ralphj4012]

A speaker rebuild will be interesting. How to you mitigate the addition of your test speaker across the original speaker (change of impedance?)

[@NiHaoMike64]

Tube amps generally will handle lower impedance just fine.

[@gwesco]

I would like to see a speaker repair as well. Back when I was a teenager, I hung around my neighbors Radio-TV repair shop and he often sent speakers out for reconing. Back then it was no more than $2 - $4 for the typical car radio or TV speaker recone. I wish I could get 4 inch cones as I have a huge box of bad 4 inch speakers.

[@camelid]

Putting a relatively high impedance ( in comparison to a 4-12 ohn speaker) has a small effect on what the speaker is doing. It gives a good idea of whether the signal is making it thru the transformer without distortion.

[@camelid]

I think he was using a signal sniffer for the test, not just a speaker in parallel

[@camelid]

Oh ok last test was a speaker - wuick and dirty test with a good speaker won’t hurt anything though. I’d guess the original speaker cone paper distorted and the voice coil is dragging on the magnet.

[@anonymousarmadillo6589]

The marble plastic is absolutely gorgeous.

[@IkarusKommt]

Toxic and cancerogenous, though.

[@anonymousarmadillo6589]

@@IkarusKommt Yeah, but looks great!

[@jeppepedersen7006]

@@IkarusKommt what is it made of since it’s toxic?

[@IkarusKommt]

@@jeppepedersen7006 PF (phenol-formaldehyde resin)

[@invisableobserver]

@@IkarusKommt Being that old I figured it was bake-light, is that also toxic? I have been trying to free my home & vehicles from plastics & also EMF radiation, it is time consuming.

[@sixtoes2313]

Merry Christmas and Happy New Years everyone.

[@josephmagedanz4070]

Yes, a speaker rebuild would be very interesting...thanks!

[@billmoran3812]

Might be interesting to see if the speaker can be repaired, since electromagnetic speakers are no longer available.

[@BrianG61UK]

All loudspeakers are electromagnetic. Do you mean the type where there is no permanent magnet, rather just an electromagnet (which also works as the smoothing choke)?

[@billmoran3812]

@@BrianG61UK modern speakers use a permanent magnet that the voice coil reacts with to create physical motion of the speaker cone. These are normally described as permanent magnet speakers. Prior to the development of Alnico permanent magnets, an electromagnetic DC coil was used as the magnetic reaction source for the voice coil. These are normally referred to as electromagnetic speakers. The DC coil in the old electromagnetic speakers was normally used as a choke in the B+ power supply circuit.

[@DonovanChilders]

I would love to see the rebuild attempt of the speaker and also the full restoration of this radio!

[@barrydraeger1892]

I would like to see you repair the speaker's voice coil if possible. Thanks Paul!

[@ko2fjb]

Would love to see the speaker rebuild as I have a similar issue with one of my Philco radios. Always learning from you as well as enjoying your videos.

[@jamesvandamme7786]

You can replace the field coil with a choke or a resistor, and put a permanent magnet speaker in it.

[@ko2fjb]

@@jamesvandamme7786 I know, what I want to learn is how to recone a speaker.

[@sinus2220]

I don't know why but every time I see you fixing and testing these old radios, I'm really hoping that you'll find 50's or 60's radio stations. Thank you for the excellent videos Mr Carlson.

[@westsideratmarshall]

Paul has a mini transmitter he can use to play music. Might demonstrate music fidelity (he previously used it to play Christmas music)

[@olradguy]

Need to test on AM 740 CFZM from Toronto, one of the best Medium wave stations around, listen to it in Ohio. 👍

[@schroedingersdog7965]

Whenever he switches on one of these old radios, I expect to hear big band music, or maybe a "Little Orphan Annie" or "Lone Ranger" serial episode.

[@boilermaker7754]

Would love to see a re-build of an electromagnetic speaker, count me in!

[@thereare4lights137]

Anyone else go "damn!!" when Paul separated the Fluke?? Now that's a feature I can get behind! 😄

[@genestatler2514]

Yes Paul, I would really like to see you fix the speaker and restore the beautiful little radio.

[@gregorythomas333]

That case is very pretty...and being over eighty years old & still works is just amazing! I would love to see the speaker being rebuilt...I used to re-wrap headset coils back in the day :)

[@faxcapper]

You amaze me, Paul. Super interesting when you go into "Detective Mode". The way you worked through the schematic while showing us the bottom of the case was very very informative!!!

[@mrmike1972]

I've never seen a speaker rebuild, I'd like to see that process.

[@markoszouganelis5755]

Yes its nice to see the speaker being fixed! Thank you! 📻

[@NigelDixon1952]

Thanks for this one Paul, I'm eagerly watching now! From the UK to you and your family in Canada, have an absolutely wonderful Christmas and a fantastic new year. Keep safe.

[@MrCarlsonsLab]

Thanks! Same to you Nigel!

[@jimclark5617]

That marble radio ROCKS.. Thanks Paul.

[@volvo09]

Na, it usually talks :)

[@1700iDiGuy]

Mr Carlson, you have educated me very well in to be confident in repairing my sets. Have a very wonderful xmas! Greetings from the UK

[@MrCarlsonsLab]

Thanks for your kind feedback! Merry Christmas to you and yours as well.

[@unlokia]

Paul is a lovely man.

[@itsonlyme9938]

It would be interesting to see you repair the speaker and how would you prevent the speach coil from rubbing on the magnet.

[@bobvines00]

Paul, here's my vote for seeing the speaker being repaired/restored/rebuilt too. Many folks won't have a stockpile of old, but still good, speakers available to replace something like this, so this is a good opportunity to share good material that most channels don't or aren't able to share.

[@dunkirchen1940]

I would LOVE to see the speaker rebuilt/replaced and the final product. As always, awesome video!

[@area51audio]

I would definitely be interested to see a field coil speaker recone - super cool radio!

[@davidblake6889]

I would be very interested to see a speaker restoration when you do the radio restoration. Thanks for the great content. I find the full restorations of old tube equipment absolutely fascinating. Thanks, Paul.

[@chrisjayr]

From a distance looked like rust, what a beautiful radio!

[@jlucasound]

I Love Samoyed's.

[@TheB787heavy]

I love your videos Mr. Carlson! They are clear, concise and easy to follow. I studied electronics back in 2002. Unfortunately, I was never able to get a job in the field. I really enjoyed the course in telecommunications wherein we built a radio as well as Digital Electronics.

[@sharg0]

It looks like the label inside is set over the paint so I'm leaning towards that paint being original

[@mbwatson1000]

My first job - pre 1984 - was designing and building Automatic Test Equipment (ATE), so your videos bring back memories, with lots of enjoyment.

[@averagejoe845]

I'd like to see the rebuild of an electro-magentic speaker!

[@davidchapman2839]

Yes anxiously awaiting a full restoration video (kinda been a while) and even better if it includes a speaker restoration! This GEm looks like a perfect candidate..

[@Дмитрий-б7ъ2ю]

Красивый радиоприемник! Прекрасная работа! Спасибо! Привет из Украины!

[@geirendre]

Beautiful radio. Looking forward to the speaker repair. Merry Christmas, Feliz Navidad, God Jul, Fröhliche Weihnachten, С Рождеством to all watching this video.

[@docholliday3150]

"current limited isolation transformer and variac supply". WE GET IT! Nice radio reminds me of a nice catalin radio. Best, Doc.

[@Joe-KN4IFI]

What a beautiful looking catalin case radio. I know you will take care of this great radio. A catalin case radio from this time period is worth north of $1500.00. 73 Joe

[@RodBeauvex]

That meter is pure sorcery. :D

[@jamesdubois4425]

Thank you sir! I love all your videos, and all of the rare, oddball pieces you manage to find, but its great to see the small, simple projects are still not beneath you!

[@shnobi24]

Nice looking radio.

[@xenia5101]

Typically a speaker that distorts is caused by a warped cone. This can be caused by its getting wet at some point. Repair is to separate and recenter the cone.

[@MrJacob1981]

I would love to see the speaker rebuild, this really is a beautiful radio.

[@-yeme-]

beautiful radio, love the details, the shape of the dial pointer looks like an art deco skyscraper

[@thomashowe855]

Awesome! From the notification I got when you posted it looked like it was covered in mud. It’s the kind of patterning I’d expect to see on a puffy sofa! Merry Christmas and happy new year!

[@Henry-2106]

havn´t fully seen it yet, but I have the feeling its gonna be a great video again

[@MrLeejan]

We used to call that a frozen voice coil. Fixed a lot of speakers by hitting the frame with a hammer in the right place. This worked better than half the time

[@ariedekker7350]

Thank you for bringing me this video.

[@passenger6735]

Yes please for the speaker rebuild. On the back of watching your videos I have purchased an old Eddystone 840C receiver which isn't working (lots of mains hum). I have downloaded the circuit diagram and ordered some parts already for when it arrives after Christmas. I'm really looking forward to my restoration. Thank you for rekindling my interest in electronics. I like your methodology when it comes to fault diagnosis. I hope I have as much success as you do. Everything is fixable given the right amount of time and interest.

[@AlarusOne]

Your troubleshooting fascinates me. I always enjoy your insights. And I'd LOVE to see the workings and restoration of an electromagnetic speaker. Keep up the good work.

[@GroundControl204]

The work you do here is excellent, great demonstrations and awesome video editing. Keep up the great channel!

[@NigelDixon1952]

I've wished you a Merry Christmas, Paul, and now I want to send greetings each and every one of your World Wide family of viewers my very best wishes of the season. No matter what race, creed, or religion, whoever and wherever you are. From here in the heart of the UK, keep safe, and we'll all be part of the World Wide Mr. Carlson's Lab Fan Club for many years to come.

[@worldwarreenacting7688]

Thanks Paul this helped me a lot! Keep up your amazing Talent! Hope you and your family has a merry Christmas!

[@McTroyd]

The idea of a speaker being repairable is relatively new to me. Even allowing that, the only repairs I ever hear of anyone doing are to replace the rubber surrounds on the cone. Would love to see the details on troubleshooting/fixing a voice coil! 👍️

[@InsideOfMyOwnMind]

I've seen videos of voice coils being made and it's really not a big deal for a speaker like that. Something that can turn a piece of stock that matches the ID of the original. The materials are nothing special. Once you've seen it confidence will be high. That said, I haven't had to do it so let the comments begin.

[@McTroyd]

@@InsideOfMyOwnMind Of course. It's fundamentally an electromagnetic coil (or two, as is the case here). It probably doesn't take rocket science to figure it out. I'd still like to get Mr. Carlson's detailed view of how this works. I'm sure he'll have something to say neither of us would expect.

[@InsideOfMyOwnMind]

@@McTroyd Agreed. I wonder what speakers he has repaired beyond a cone patch. I would lke to see how he approaches it. I have re-coned quite a few from provided parts but never made my own VC or cone. I think the spider would be the most interesting part to fabricate.

[@doctorjohn-burgtekie]

Built to last several life times, thinks for sharing Mr. Carlson.

[@MrCarlsonsLab]

You are very welcome!

[@W1RMD]

I would like to see the speaker rebuilt. Also if you could do a video on here or Patreon on how to reverse engineer a circuit and how to draw schematics (without running out of room on the paper). I've learned a lot from you. One thing I've started doing is running your old videos in the background while working on other projects. Thanks and Merry Christmas and happy holidays to you and your family. Keep up the excellent work!

[@richardmassoth8237]

It would be very good to see how you rebuild electromagnetic speakers.

[@frankowalker4662]

What a loverly looking radio. And a big thumbs up for a speaker restoration.

[@DavidTipton101]

A really nice radio Paul, it deserves a full restore and a new home, Merry Christmas 🎄🙂

[@MrCarlsonsLab]

Merry Christmas to You and Your family as well David!

[@leandrisson]

Com certeza queremos ver o conserto deste falante!!! Excelente vídeo!!

[@greggaieck4119]

Mr Carlson's lab what a cool marbel radio receiver from the 1939

[@jessemontano762]

Dang that audio is flawless on here. Good work have a great Xmas, professor!!!

[@toltec13]

Wow! That's a beautiful radio!

[@ShainAndrews]

7:12 I'd say the paint is factory as the wiring diagram is on top of the paint.

[@colinrichardson23]

I just love the look of that little radio. Its a nice little thing.

[@jlucasound]

My father went on a Tuna fishing trip that year with my Grandfather. My Grandfather filmed it with 16mm color movie film. It was in Nova Scotia. It was the "Bon Voyage" before my father went into the Navy. 1939. He caught a 465 lb Tuna. He came back alive (from WWII). He was 16. He was 39 when I was born. The point is, my grandfather gave me a really cool radio that I listened to CBS Radio Mystery Theater on. It was tube and I don't even know the make. It was small and worked for years. I don't remember what became of it. I had it right next to my bed and it never shocked me. I guess I won the 50/50 "bet".😄💥

[@MrCarlsonsLab]

Thank you for sharing your story!

[@dr.detroit1514]

You have a good point about old tune radios taking a little time to warm up and make sound. I've run into occasional flea market dealers, estate sellers and such who had various solid state radios for sale. When I asked about any older radios, they said the older radios didn't come on right away, like the transistor sets they where apparently used to, so they threw them away. Grrrr.

[@davidg4288]

An electromagnet speaker, that's a blast from the past! My dad used to fix an old Admiral TV back in the 60's (the TV was from the 50's) that had one of those. They were obsolete even then and if you replaced it with a permanent magnet speaker you had to also find a choke for the power supply.

[@nathkrupa3463]

Hi Mr Carlson's Sir, Radio Fault Finding Is, Very Well Explained.

[@shrievy9923]

Very nice and quick trouble shooting to get to the problem. I would very much enjoy to see a speaker teardown and possible rebuild of the coil. Thanks for what you do!

[@unlokia]

Marble-ous video. Happy Christmas Paul and family, GOD bless you all. Thank you for your exceptionally hard work for us.

[@MrCarlsonsLab]

Thank You! Merry Christmas to you and yours as well.

[@unlokia]

@@MrCarlsonsLab Thanks mate 🤩

[@burningXtheXchip]

I'm a speaker enthusiast. I would love to see that repaired. You don't get to see the old drivers often. I once fixed my highschool theaters dual 18" JBL woofers that were original to the school.

[@grandpaduncan]

This radio reminds me of a radio my granparents had in my bedroom at their house. Many is the night I listened to Cousin Brucie on WABC while the radio glowed in the dark. Please do the speaker rebuild on it, I would love to see that!

[@jamesmdeluca]

That would be D. J. Bruce Morrow.

[@cjmarsh504]

Now, that's something you never see often. That's a nice radio.

[@JessicaTG2008]

The silver/gray paint sprayed inside was probably there to keep the light above the dial from showing thru the plastic.

[@mbak7801]

A thumbs up for a speaker rebuild. Thanks.

[@markd.nightingale4266]

Very informative video, you explain what you're doing so well. Enjoy your videos. Thank You

[@martinoakley6651]

As always Mr C, a really interesting and informative video. All your videos both off and on Patreon have given me a lot of confidence on tube radios and electronics as a whole. Keep up the fine work and have a great Christmas!

[@MrCarlsonsLab]

Great to hear!

[@matthiasmartin1975]

Speaker rebuild would be amazing!

[@zbaby82]

That's a very artistic radio.

[@solarbirdyz]

I'd definitely like to see a speaker rebuild. I've rebuilt a few myself, but they're all modern - not one was electromagnetic!

[@brianwood5220]

Love to see the speaker repaired. Thanks for sharing and Merry Christmas

[@occhamite]

Definitely rebuild the speaker if possible.

[@utubejeffo]

I love and pay close attention to your superb instructional videos. Everything seems to just fall into place, though, in defiance of statistics, probability and Murphy's Law. What I'd love to see is a blooper reel of smoke, unexpected sparks and exploding electrolytics...... the occasional "What just happened!! AAAGH!" or a roach scurrying out of a garage-sale radio would be fun. Heh heh! Merry Christmas from the sunny south, Mr. C. and best wishes for the new year!

[@chriscimino7854]

Hey Paul you're the greatest!!. I've been working with electronics for a very long time and I am impressed with your talent. I used to be a member of antique radio forms but I canceled my membership I was not at all impressed with them and I'm not the only one. There were a lot of others that noticed a lot of arguing on that forum. I believe that great minds think alike and agree with each other. They need to screen their members better. What really made me mad is when they criticized your capacitor leakage tester. The more they criticized the more they revealed how dumb they are. I stood up for you I know what you made was great. If a non polarized small value capacitor leaks at low voltage it should be thrown away its not necessary to test it at 400 volts if it leaks at low voltage duh!! like the EXPERTS there think. Take this .05uf 400volt wax paper capacitor and hold it with your fingers and apply 400volts. If it gives you third degree burns you know it's leaky. I'm sorry but they really ticked me off I'm glad I'm out of there I don't associate with them anymore

[@guitarmaniax]

Catalin is a very thin, often translucent material that was favored by tabletop radio manufacturers from the 1930s through the ‘50s. It was molded in many colors and today these very colorful radios are widely collected. Careful collectors know better than to actually play these radios, for when they heat up the Catalin can catch fire due to aging and fragility (this is not a problem with Bakelite radios which are practically indestructible). Use caution !

[@LarryDeSilva64]

That really is a nice looking radio and being from 1939 very nice indeed. Thanks for show us the radio Paul. You and yours have a Merry Christmas.

[@MrCarlsonsLab]

Thanks Larry! Merry Christmas to you and yours as well.

[@tomaszwota1465]

I'm looking at Mr Carlson's bench, look back at my own and weep. ;)

[@leradiodigiorgio-iu1edh]

Beautiful very original marbled radio

[@sguttag]

Reworking a speaker would be VERY interesting.

[@dwayneharris3874]

It would be interesting to know when it was last worked on. It could have been a long time ago. I have never tried to repair a speaker. I would find that very interesting. You are very methodical and have great expertise with tube technology.

[@peatmoss4415]

In the 50s and 60s if we as kids bounced and played too hard in the living room, sometimes we would blow out the vacuum tubes in the black and white TV ! Dad would get mad and the next day he would take the tubes out and put them in a paper bag and go to the grocery store. There was a tube tester there and a shelf with vacuum tubes. The tester would tell which tube to buy and the next day dad would put the tubes back in the TV and make sure we didn't play in the living room again...

[@MrCarlsonsLab]

Thanks for sharing your story!

[@jaycronen]

Hahaha, that's awesome!

[@jrsoares3074]

i'm always amazed by how these vintage electronics have a vast and well established database of circuit schematics for consultation. I often struggle to find it for modern ones. That's probably because back then we used to fix things instead of just replacing it.

[@VitoVeccia]

Appliances such as dryers, and refrigerators still have them tucked away inside. But those are big ticket items of course.

[@Joejoe-eo6yz]

I always enjoy your videos and a speaker rebuild would be great. One thumbs up for a speaker rebuild.

[@LakeNipissing]

Incredible work of art! Looking at the schematic, that little speaker has a lot going on... voice coil, field coil, hum neutralization coil...

[@LakeNipissing]

Interesting by the end of the video, said speaker was defective. I would be very interested to watch a video of you rebuilding the speaker! Even if it can't be done successfully, just watching the process involved would be awesome.

[@edwardhannigan6324]

Great little radio, what a looker..! Love the walk thru and the tech info. Lots to learn, but the fog is clearing..Thanks for sharing..Have a safe Xmas..Ed..UK..😀

[@MrCarlsonsLab]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@JohnDoe-es5xh]

Nice repair. Reminds me of my youth, when I did the same. Here in Europe there are no more AM Mid Wave stations, maybe some far away ones, one can listen to at night.

[@hestheMaster]

GE Canadian KM-51 early design with 12 volt tubes. Looks like the inside label went over the silver overspray so that was done at the factory. Replacement dual electrolytic capacitor and three plastic covered ones from mid fifties . Great troubleshooting there Mr. Carlson. Hope you can show us how to repair this speaker!

[@douzeTS]

Thanks a lot Paul for making us these fantastic videos this year as well, and I'd like to wish you Merry Christmas!

[@inspector1794]

I enjoy your vids, I learn alot that I once thought I knew but, I was a teenager then and thought I knew everything. I would like to see a speaker rebuild. In the late 60's I worked in a TV and Appliance store that would send speakers to be repaired by a local firefighter who did it in his down time. I recall that he rewound voice coils, replaced the cones and terminal strips, except for the frame they came back looking like new. Merry Christmas Thanks for sharing.

[@graemebrumfitt6668]

Big yeah for the speaker rebuild Paul! N a very Merry one to you n yours. TFS, GB :)

[@TeslaTales59]

Cool radio. I vote for the speaker rebuild.

[@fredmorton1631]

Too bad you do not live closer. I have a Marconi model 53a from 1926. A tuned radio frequency set with a very unusual speaker. All parts seem to be original apart from what looks like a small mod to run it on mains power. Great video and looking forward to seeing the restoration. 73s de G7WJJ