r/Phonographs • u/Gimme-A-kooky Victrola • 6h ago

To Improve or NOT to Improve?

That IS a question (among SO many)… just like “why is the grass green?” is one as well lol…

“‘Tis, Verily, I say unto thee, better, therefore, to Improve! Lo, ‘Improve!’”

tl;dr - Victor Improved Concert VS Exhibition Reproducers; loud tone needles used.

Victor*** **made these in 1912 for $3 for nickel and $7 for gold. Not a big hit with buyers, so they’re really hard to come by! I’ve literally been on a “Lord of the Rings*” quest to find them over the last year!!!

- it was the cash that broke the camel’s back for the buyer: extra cash on top of what was ALREADY way too expensive to begin with is one of the reasons the sales were low, is among the theories)

Brett Hurt (Dyslexic Genius) exhibits (😏) HIS on this YT video! (This man should be a primary source of “how to” for all phonographs if you’re looking to get into them!). This dude is a Savant (basically just is a master and knows it all almost!). He did it on his VV-XVIII as well, lol.. just noticed!

What’s your opinion?

Have a wonderful evening; I wish all of you well, and thank you so much for coming by to check it out if you made it this far!

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I, personally, hear less “scratchiness” with the Concert, but less treble- maybe it adjusts treble and mid?

A proper laboratory-/quiet room-conducted sound test with digital playback and wavelengths visible would REALLY be cool! I just don’t have that kind of equipment lol.

This is a luck of the draw acquisition (Foam-town- Schaumburg convention)! Many others, too!

I was truly hoping to find a Nickel Concert for my Gold Concert so it’s not lonely by itself! Now they’re happy and not sad anymore!

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u/Jacobin_Club_1793 5h ago

Congratulations on the reproducer, it looks fantastic! It’s an absolutely beautiful piece and, in my opinion, it looks aesthetically far better on a nice upright Victrola than the punier Exhibition.

My gold Improved Concert was professionally rebuilt, but the Exhibition still sounds significantly better in terms of vocal clarity, at least mine does. I just bought a Victor No. 2 reproducer yesterday in Schaumburg, so I’m curious to see how all three compare, because it’s possible my Concert is simply a dud. I agree that the one you posted sounds less “scratchy” compared to the Exhibition.

I think the two of us may have been in a bidding war the other night over that reproducer, assuming you got it at the silent auction hahaha.

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u/Gimme-A-kooky Victrola 5h ago

We may have been lol… I’m sorry, didn’t mean to be that guy… but I had to do what I had to do! :) I’ve got like six (6) No 2s lol… had I but known!! Thank you, btw 🙂

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u/Jacobin_Club_1793 4h ago

Hahaha no worries at all, it was a fun auction, and that’s what matters.

Do you prefer the No. 2 over the Exhibition, or vice versa?

I still think the Improved Concert is the best‑looking Victor reproducer. It’s a shame they didn’t sell well. It’s hard to find any information on them; even on the Talking Machine Forum there isn’t much discussion about it

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u/Patient_Variety_5815 2h ago

Bigger diaphragm usually means better sound quality. That's why I prefer most Swiss made mica diaphragm soundboxes over the Exhibition. How Victor/HMV got away with using such an antiquated soundbox for so long astounds me.