Edison's Impression: Laying Sound into a Groove

Bell's invention, the telephone, was the first device capable of reproducing sound. But it couldn't record it. Thomas Edison's invention of the phonograph brought us the first device capable of capturing sound to be played back later.
How did Edison figure this out? By combining one of his earlier ideas with the ideas in the telephone, Edison was able to bring a revolutionary product to market (well, sort of). This week, we're exploring how Edison thought up his device.
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[@Narokkurai]

I love how formal Alec is in these older videos. It's like he's trying his best to be a PBS show but he still can't quite hide the manic exasperation of video production.

[@MikaelKKarlsson]

That and the hair! He's come a long way the good man.

[@lilbro93]

I"ve watched more than a dozen of his recent videos and this the first time I've heard his name.

[@zulfikarzulkarnaenalhaq3594]

This is when he is still young and energetic🤣

[@nathanjack86]

@@lilbro93I’ve noticed that too. Was curious. Now I can think of him as Alec, rather then, “the Technology Connections guy.”

[@kershlennaidoo4430]

Nah , I think he just loosened up alot. I quite enjoy him as he currently is ....He's a brilliant "presenter" I think he just found his natural state. Especially with the hair and bubbly vibes.

[@unitedunitedunited_]

In the 1900s: “hey jimmy! Go to the store and pick up a can of music!”

[@jesspace4069]

do da doo da da doo DOO!

[@Jeffari1]

Hahahahahaha

[@drewgehringer7813]

supposedly John Phillip Sousa himself came up with that term, and intended it derisively; he really did not like the very limited dynamic range of early phonograph recordings

[@StephenGillie]

Whoa, it's true - in his 1906 essay "The Menace of Mechanical Music", Sousa warned that recorded music could be a "substitute for human skill, intelligence and soul."

[@KairuHakubi]

oh man, this whole time I thought the can WAS the wax cylinder. it looks very waxy...

[@HardyRyan]

Ive been watching Techmoan and 8-bit Guy for a while. For whatever reason KZbin just now let me know your channel exists. I wish it had come earlier, these vids are great!

[@notlocalhorst]

yup, same here ... working through the videos now :-) KZbin recommended the VCR one and it is nice to see that quality went up compared to the earlier ones. Subscribed, thanks!

[@tomservo5007]

same here ...

[@Doman2000]

Another same here from the VCR episode. Really amazing to see how much stuff is going on inside that "humble VCR" machine.

[@Dragonfire511]

same here. Nice channel is this one

[@PK1312]

Yep, same. Got recommended the VHS tape one.

[@spacemissing]

Edison's original patent for the phonograph included a disc version. The reason for the cylinder was to keep the speed of the groove constant under the stylus.

[@agungpriambodo1674]

79th thumbs up

[@IDoNotLikeHandlesOnYT]

Which is the topic of the next video!

[@draconic5129]

Yeah, although admittedly it was totally unnecessary since the machines couldn't reproduce sounds high enough pitch to matter anyway.

[@lucasRem-ku6eb]

Edison filed patents, not the inventor.

[@user-xg8yy7yl1d]

Its crazy hearing a recording that old. Even people who were newborns when that was new died of old age

[@fiedom92]

@debaser they're not as uncommon as you think. I was just randomly given one by my aunt and then researched it and found that you can purchase them online for around a thousand dollars

[@dguy0386]

the phonograph itself can run you for around 600 dollars for a complete working one on ebay but the cylinders themselves are rather inexpensive. i remember seeing a deal on ebay that was 2 cylinders for $10

[@toreadoress]

​@@dguy0386 Yeah I just checked and they arent that expensive, I even found one for 450$ (+35 for shipping), it's really weird that they could be found just for few hundreds in working condition. I thought something vintage like this would have more value and will be in the thousands, but aparently they're quite cheap.

[@fun_ghoul]

_"Do you have Prince Albert in a can?"_ "Sorry, we only have Thomas Edison left."

[@rufust.firefly2474]

Actually, medicine made only one recording that was a semi-available commercially and it was a diamond disc giving out to retailers in the early twenties.

[@filanfyretracker]

interesting fun fact about that style of governor, its where the term running "Balls out" comes from. Stationary steam engines commonly had one of a similar design except instead of sliding a disc against a brake they controlled a steam valve and were weighted with big iron balls. a steam engine at its max speed had the arms with these weights all the way out.

[@compzac]

not just steam engines, old otis elevators had the same idea, two large balls ontop of the car would spin as the car got going if they spun too fast cause the elevator had lost control or the cables snapped the balls would drag out the emergency brakes which would bring the elevator to a stop then a technician would have to come and reset the emergency brake after fixing the elevator and the passengers had been rescued it wasnt so much of a governor as much as a fail safe speed control

[@SquishyZoran]

zachary carlson i think there was an episode of mythbusters where they destroyed one by removing the pin and that let the elevator free fall for the experiment.

[@unherolike]

The mechanism you are thinking of is called a Governor.

[@mrb692]

unherolike So called because it holds the highest governmental office in a state!

[@unitedunitedunited_]

Mm, balls of steel

[@RichardServello]

Recording sessions were amazing! The whole band had to gather around a cone to capture the sound.

[@babyinuyasha]

I can only imagine what this was like when it first came out, it must have been fantastic. The audio quality isn't up to par compared to our modern standards, on top of the thing being over 100 years old, but imagine what it must have been like having an entire band playing form a little box in your living room.

[@raydunakin]

Years ago my wife and I were checking out the collection of antiques in Knott's Berry Farm, and they had an early juke box that played wax cylinders. It still worked, and they even let us try it. It was pretty amazing. It was called the Edison Multiphone. It had 24 wax cylinders mounted on a Ferris wheel sort of thing. When you put in your nickel and selected the song you wanted to hear, the Ferris wheel would rotate to move the correct cylinder into position to be played. By the time we returned a year or two later, they no longer allowed anyone to operate it due to its age.

[@jasperdegroes5756]

16:12 "I'm not counting on my iPod working in 2115." My iPod didn't even live past 2015

[@morsteen]

No shit. That's why mechanical stuff will always win eventually.

[@CoffeeTheDragon]

Cause Apple Designed this way,so you need to buy the newest one every year. Shitty brand.

[@zachaliles]

My iPod that I had in Iraq in 2006, the OG 80gig one, still works to this day. It still has all the shitty music I listened to back then and I can't change it because the password for it is long forgotten.

[@avenged110]

I so wish I had a time capsule iPod to perfectly re-live my shitty music library of years past.

[@sarah8383]

People in 2020 already: What's an iPod?

[@Jimorian]

When I used to work at Borders (remember them?), I had a customer bring back an Enrico Caruso CD complaining that the "sound was horrible". I tried explaining to him that there was only so much that could be done to recordings made nearly a century ago, but he insisted that is only sucked because the record label was lazy with the transfer and didn't care. In my years of retail, it's a tie between him and a lady that didn't understand what fiction was as my stupidest customers of all time.

[@foodfoodfood8898]

I want to hear about this lady who didn't know what fiction was.

[@jerrygrimes8813]

I made a brief attempt at helping people with old reel-to-reel tapes, or old records, to transfer them to CDs. It was futile for the same reason. People expected CD audio from the transfer, even if the source material was severely limited. I just gave up in frustration.

[@ferociousgumby]

People generally refer to non-fiction as "novels". Does that clear it up?

[@Piterdeveirs333]

That guy better watch himself or Fitzcarraldo is gonna punch him in the face

[@skizzik121]

@@ferociousgumby if people refer to fiction or non-fiction as a novel then they need to be re-educated China style...because I am a prick

[@KC9KEP]

I was told that when these recordings were made, they'd line up a dozen or so recorders, side to side to most efficiently make multiples copies at one time. The cylinders were also numbered as to which machine they were recorded on. Much later, it was discovered that if you were to play back a cylinder from the first and last recorder simultaneously, you witness a true stereophonic playback!

[@Kennephone]

Later on they would use a pantograph, basically a reproducer/recorder combination head so they could be copied in better quality.

[@ahtaimo]

"This one looks interesting slash it's conveniently placed in front of me!" ... excellent videos... and quite funny from time to time

[@2Cerealbox]

I like that his background 5 years ago was still conceptually similar to current one, despite being quite different in implementation.

[@user-co4xl7wx3q]

I just can't get enough of these videos. You are incredibly thorough, but not at all dry. The ability to take apart seemingly complex subjects and make it not only palatable, but interesting to the layman, is a unique skill and the hallmark of a great teacher.

[@Zenkai76]

New to your channel and going back to watch old stuff, love it. One thing you missed out on to tell people was that if they didn't like how loud the music was they would muffle it by "sticking a sock into it" which is where you get that phrase that we still use today.

[@Legxnd]

This is amazing, the genius, and I just imagine the people who heard a recording like this for the first time thinking it was magic lol

[@Tacospaceman]

The most interesting thing about this to me is the fact that these people are no longer with us and essentially we’re listening to ghosts play music

[@wtmayhew]

Thanks for the great video. I have a portable (20 pounds or so) Edison machine for two minute cylinders from about the 1900 - 1910 decade. The cylinders still sound surprisingly good even though many are well over 100 years old. I had a couple of cylinders deteriorate. One Edison wax cylinder was attacked by mold and another shattered when I slid it on the mandrel. The careful engineering in the machine is quite evident and there is a lot of attention to detail, even in the spring motor. The reproducer is very interesting. The stylus is a very carefully ground sapphire, and it is sort of club-shaped with a ball point. I have no idea how the stylus was machined, but it is probably one of if not the most expensive components in the machine. Over all it is a fascinating machine and nowhere as simple as you’d think at first glance. As far as I know, everything on the machine I have is original and it still works almost like it did 110+ years ago with essentially zero maintenance.

[@walttholomew]

I got through most of this video before it dawned on me that you just have an antique phonograph. I mean, I've been binging your channel so I realize you've got a lot of cool stuff, but, just, "Hey, I'll whip out my antique phonograph and tell everyone about it." That's a level of cool that most of us will never reach, and I could never dream of.

[@stampedetrail2003]

But does he have jams? I've been searching high and low for Blue Danube.

[@cursedcliff7562]

Wow its crazy how good even his old videos are

[@QDRTV]

Have you ever considered doing a video on player pianos? The world of mechanical music is, in my opinion, part of the story of sound recording.

[@donweatherwax9318]

Seconded.

[@babyinuyasha]

Old technology will never fail to amaze me

[@dogoneshame]

I was listening to this via earbuds and I was confused at the presentation and sound quality. "Is this an old one I haven't seen before?" I asked myself. 4 years ago, says the details page. Still fantastic, but very noticeable. Good job on improving so much over the years!

[@chuckaluck123]

Wow! I just rewatched this from several years ago. Amazing how much your hair has grown and to see how well your production value has stayed top notch!

[@marklafrance8141]

I stumbled across one of your videos this morning about the vcr....an I was hooked. After 3 hours of viewing the evolution of home video media I had to leave for work. I could not get your presentations out of my head. Very educational and extremely enjoyable, they most certainly, have been! You remind me of a favorite Science Teacher I had in High School. Passionate in explaining, Brilliant in personality! I immediately found your show again upon returning home and immediately subscribed. Thank you for these videos. OUTSTANDING job! I've enjoyed each one immensely. ✌❤😊

[@skizzik121]

Yeah he is kinda awesome isn't he?

[@MarianoLu]

You Tube algo brought this to my home screen. awesome to see your earlier videos!!! Always fun and always something to learn.

[@DeadKoby]

I just found your channel today, and have checked a few things. I already knew about most of it, but at least I can say you did a fine job of explaining it to someone new to this old technology. Keep up the good work.

[@JohnGunn-]

I come back to this playlist from time to time. Its remarkable how you can relay information to make it easily understandable. You make great productions. Thanks

[@nampyeon635]

Awesome video. I was dismayed to see the number of views. Your VHS vid was recommended when I watched one of Techmoan's vids, and now I'm watching this.

[@okbridges]

Alec, Do not use a 4-minute reproducer to play 2-minute wax records. The 4 minute stylus is too small for the larger 2 minute record grooves and will damage them. You can safely play 4 minute wax and celluloid records with the H reproducer, but you need to have a model C reproducer to play the record demonstrated in the video

[@SayedRezha]

I like old Alec, his haircut seems like tech geek, plus the studio seems more like classy & feels like warm environment. Hope sometimes in the future he will create a video in his old studio & old haircut again.....for nostalgia sake of course

[@mikelexp]

I've seen a lot of videos explaining the phonograph but yours is the most detailed and complete. Nice job! And I'm also enjoying all your other videos too!

[@KevinRay_man]

The minutia of your channel/videos in general is astounding. Love it.

[@Punchy361]

Edison should have put his name on the cylinder case a few more times. There was almost an angle I could hold it at and not see his name, I never would have remembered who made it...

[@poughkeepsieblue]

Loved the talking Edison cylinder, I still have an old Edison cylinder cover, which displays Edison's face all over my kitchen I think there's only so many people on earth who can appreciate that old techno nostalgia

[@rautamiekka]

Considering this is the 2nd format for replayable audio it sounds pretty damn good.

[@linwill1720]

I had to go waay back to middle school lessons of how sound waves work to wrap my head around how that reproducer works lol. Excellent videos and humor!

[@MrKieronrose]

Some of the best videos on KZbin, great work and so informative.

[@paugh846]

Going through your back logs, great content. Thank you for delivering this information in a interesting way.

[@04dram04]

The fact that this is 100% analog, makes it more impressive to me, than modern devices

[@cyrollan]

It's so impressive because those folks were inventing devices in real time. Nowadays, new inventions are just a re juggling of circuits and components. Not as exciting, huh?

[@bemorewantless]

Your humour is on point. Keep it up!

[@jjcadman]

Fantastic explanations! This channel has been consistently great for years. Keep up the good work! 👍 👏

[@marcurelio]

I had to pause at 4'40" because I begun imagining the sound of a stylus dragging through tinfoil. I CAN'T GET OVER IT

[@thatonegayfurry4177]

i hate you I JUST FORGOT ABOUT IT

[@radionicpowers5938]

haha your Creepy Edison Face and Talking is brilliant, well done

[@ProstMeister]

All your videos are so freaking amazing. Keep going, Alec!

[@TD-oc6vs]

You have come so far from these older videos. You are one of my favorite channels. Good job!

[@ryanbrown5499]

I love your contextually orange wall mate. Beautiful.

[@nacabaro3737]

Is fascinating to hear voices from people that existed 100 years before us

[@ANDRSNS]

The quality of your videos is exemplary, man! I wish you had more viewers, you certainly deserve them :)

[@cyrollan]

Oh he blew up all right!

[@nabman11]

Tin foil is the answer to everything

[@paulcestmoi6987]

lol -- light em' up!

[@theshamanite]

Duct tape disagrees

[@nabman11]

@@theshamanite Tried to use duct tape on my moped after an accident a year ago and it all fell off. It isn't good for vibrating or moving parts. The scotch tape on my headlight is there to this day.

[@MyUnquenchableThirst]

i bet you've never touched tin foil

[@theshamanite]

@@nabman11 Nice, I did not know that.

[@johnmacward]

When I like a channel I go right back to the first videos to see how they started...

[@kkupsky6321]

Omg the analog quality. It’s so great. I love being a snob about it. Like a cat screeching in yer ear. Analog. Gold.

[@mikeklaene4359]

My MCS tape deck from Penney's is a bit older than is yours. Mine has analog meters. Alec, you have come a long way!

[@trevormatthews7981]

There was also the automatic piano (my name). It worked on a scroll of paper with holes of various lengths. The scroll passed over a mechanism that was pedal powered. The mechanism linked in with the piano levers and reproduced the movement to move the levers and hammers that hit the piano strings. The scrolls were stored in boxes about 12” long by around 1” and 1/2.

[@UXXV]

What an amazing channel! Seriously good work and like others now subbed along side Techmoan and 8 Bit Guy

[@mtt3870]

Great videos, thank for all the information, very interesting and well versed, thanks for sharing. And I love the dry humor on them :) , thanks again, and keep doing the videos, they are a blast.

[@mjoet731]

WHOA! This is an "old" one~! I've recently started watching Alec's videos for a year now and just came across this one. The production is just as good.

[@fulkthered]

You didn't explain what the cat hair was for.

[@Abou47Pandas]

I thought it was the stylus at first, then realized it was hair. Should have figured that concept was too advanced for edision.

[@hagerty1952]

Obviously a cat's-whisker diode for his crystal set

[@skizzik121]

Snack?

[@Dargonhuman]

Cats were commonly used for pest control at the time, so the inclusion of a cat hair made the machine smell like a cat, which kept vermin like rodents from damaging the sensitive mechanics.

[@notmychairnotmyproblem]

@@Abou47Pandas I'm not gonna lie, I thought the same thing

[@macronencer]

I'm so glad I finally started looking at your earlier videos. You began your channel in fine style, though I also like the way it developed later on. This is amazing, though - how did you get access to an original phonograph? Was it borrowed?

[@jasonhaman4670]

Brown-painted wall in the background - foreshadowing! The early years... before "the magic of buying two of them", but still with that exquisite dry humor - "slash conveniently placed in front of me".

[@BigChungusthe3rd]

This channel is gold. So glad I found it today.

[@clydesight]

Excellent video! I really enjoyed it and the information is priceless! Thank you for making the video and posting it!

[@JEMHull-gf9el]

Thats impressive! Just found your channel and I'm watching it allllLllll

[@pluxauag7555]

Tech Moan channel has the pleasure of owning a 2022 released cylinder by a current band which is a 4 minute cylinder. Awesome to watch these older videos. In 100 years they'll be looking back at KZbin and its place in tech history.

[@CynicalBastard]

This channel is one of the best channels on KZbin.

[@evolor]

A treasure trove of information on how things work there, marvellous.

[@BaptistJim]

Great presentation!

[@therealhardrock]

2:01 Clutch Cargo animation

[@tilleye3774]

Recording sessions were amazing! The whole band had to gather around a cone to capture the sound.

[@mikoajp.5890]

This channel has sure changed in last 5 years

[@doctornick666]

Love the talking Edison graphics! 😁

[@srideepprasad]

Another excellent video.. Definitely deserves more views

[@robfriedrich2822]

13:40 the phonograph concept was initially a recorder/player, so they have to differ between the recording and the playback stylus.

[@joeybuddy96]

"Vinyl? Pssht. You can't call yourself a true hipster if all your music isn't on wax cylinders."

[@jeremytravis360]

Yes I'm just trying to find all your videos, that are fantastic with such with such knowledge

[@froderickalabaster]

his videos from 2015 were better than his videos in 2018 but his videos now are best

[@glossophone]

Holy f these videos are so damn delightful!

[@donaldvincent]

My younger brother lived in Savannah, GA and made extra money for years restoring old Edison's, Victrola's and even player pianos. Some years ago he gave me a Victrola & a 1905 Kimball Player Piano. Pretty great kid brother. We are adopting a 9 year old girl and just played the piano for the first time over Skype about two hours ago. She moves in in November and I cannot wait for her to hear the Victrola. Thanks for these videos. The presentation is great.

[@Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

_KZbin_ being _KZbin,_ I am surprised you not get a copyright strike when you began playing that cylindrical record. 😊😊😊

[@cslack813]

Woah that description of push and pull on our ears by the sin wave was so simple but so effective

[@williampalenik7306]

A very good video you made here on the phonograph

[@DavidLindes]

7:54 - well played, Alec. Dragging that paper along gives a very cool effect (both as its happening, and the line so produced). Was that something you had to practice, while waving your other hand back and forth, or was it easy to do? Either way, cool. :)

[@allaboutflying]

comparing this to what the channel has become now... simply amazing.

[@brycevo]

That is so fascinating. To think that this how we had to first hear music.

[@Andrei2000PC]

I know these are a lot of work but I could watch for hours on a day.

[@beanondaddy3397]

Great this channel has been here 5 years!

[@user-mi7vo6mz1n]

Damn, I’m thrilled!! Thank you so much

[@MattyRedPants]

Thomas Edison, you crazy lipped beauty

[@lansleyONE]

Great vid, I learned a lot!

[@abrahama2643]

Thanks for taking me back Love your channel Whatever happened to 8-tracks? Why did they disappear for awhile before cassettes came out?

[@cameronwhitaker3509]

Loved the video... But that's the wrong reproducer. The Model H was designed for 4 minute cylinders. The stylus is too small for a 2 minute cylinder (though it will kinda work). Should have been using a Model C. It would have sounded better :)

[@Jasonificatiation]

i feel we need more of 2:00 type content LMAO

[@ManuelBTC21]

7:30 I was fully expecting the hand to move, but moving the paper is much more cleverer.

[@notmychairnotmyproblem]

Omg you just gave me a new idea on how to introduce my trig students to sinusoids!! Bless this channel!

[@Wizard-ol6vw]

I love how your videos have no ads

[@dilipdas5777]

Your knowledge about human technology from beginning unimaginable.

[@Hymnalysis]

Bring back this intro! It's so cool!

[@ajwindmeyer2272]

HEY! A COPY OF PEG O' MY HEART! I have the original 78. I also have several of Fiore's original Chord Harmonicas used to record Peg over the years.

[@saintmichael1779]

I have an LP of Jerry Murad and the Harmonicats "Peg o' My Heart."

[@cheasea]

keep making great videos, please.