Portable tube record player with batteries

[Jeffhs]

Originally Posted by damen

The adapter supplies 3 voltages, radio "A" and "B" supplies and phono motor.

I thought the AC adapter unit for this radio-phono would be quite large; the photo of the adapter attached to your post showed me it was. I still think an adapter could be built from scratch, if only three voltages are needed (as you said, A and B for the radio, the third for the phonograph motor). The transformer would be quite large, since it supplies all three voltages (unless, of course, the supply had a separate transformer for the phono motor), so I can see why the entire adapter would be the size it is. However, I would replace the selenium rectifier with modern rectifier diodes, as selenium rectifiers had a bad habit when they shorted of giving off a gas which smelled for all the world like rotten eggs (!).

If I had one of these players, I would operate it on AC power as much as possible due to the high current drain of the phono motor, not to mention the filament (A) and plate (B+) current drawn by the tubes. These players probably were the best available at the time but, as I said, due to the high current drain, I wouldn't think they were used as portables very much, except perhaps during power outages. I cannot quite imagine seeing anyone carrying one around as teenagers do nowadays with transistor portables (since those tube-operated RPs were so large), any more than I can imagine anyone having a large tube-operated RP with them at the beach, for instance.

BTW, I just saw the specifications for the AC adapter, and was amazed how short the output cable is (15 inches). That short cable did not allow the user much of a choice as to where to put the adapter; that is, the latter would almost have to be quite close to the player itself. I wonder if an extension cable was available so this wouldn't be a problem.

These players were not meant for high fidelity, RCA's "Golden Throat" logo of the 1950s notwithstanding, but that was probably just as well since the rock-and-roll music being played over the radio (and on records) at that time was nowhere near hi-fi to begin with. The phonograph cartridge was probably, almost certainly the cheapest available as well; after all, it would make little or no sense to to put a hi-fi cartridge in a record player which would be used to play rock and roll, not to mention other types of crazy music we hear these days.