Mike Gibson said:
Getting there, you have to include Westinghouse, maybe GE. Most of what was invented in the electrical world came from those labs.
And I agree, many nameless, faceless individuals.
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Hell of a Compliment
- Thread starter Toasted Almond
- Start date
Getting there, you have to include Westinghouse, maybe GE. Most of what was invented in the electrical world came from those labs.
And I agree, many nameless, faceless individuals.
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mhardy6647
Lunatic Member
Oops, forgot that! -- well, actually it looks like it was the second post.
And I even forgot HIM! :-O
Toasted Almond
RIP 1952-2016
I think Kostatsos did time at either AR or KLH. Probably AR.
Grainger, I got to meet Edgar AND Hank (Ken Kantor too) at the 40th anniversary of the founding of AR. It was a gala event held in Oct 1994 at New York's Grand Central Station, where AR had a listening room for years. I think someone mentioned that Roy Allison was recovering from some type of surgery, or he would've been there too.
Then I was traveling through the mountains of Utah near Park City around 1987 or so. Hit a place called Heber City. FOSGATE CENTRAL is what it was. Found his little shop downtown, but Mr. Fosgate wasn't there, a guy named Charlie McShane was minding the store. I asked him what his main claim to fame was. "When I worked at AR, I engineered the AR-3a. That was MY baby." I almost hit the floor.
Grainger, I got to meet Edgar AND Hank (Ken Kantor too) at the 40th anniversary of the founding of AR. It was a gala event held in Oct 1994 at New York's Grand Central Station, where AR had a listening room for years. I think someone mentioned that Roy Allison was recovering from some type of surgery, or he would've been there too.
Then I was traveling through the mountains of Utah near Park City around 1987 or so. Hit a place called Heber City. FOSGATE CENTRAL is what it was. Found his little shop downtown, but Mr. Fosgate wasn't there, a guy named Charlie McShane was minding the store. I asked him what his main claim to fame was. "When I worked at AR, I engineered the AR-3a. That was MY baby." I almost hit the floor.
Nice:
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Paul Klipsch?
Manitoulin
A proud member of AK
Did Dr. Bose make the list?
Acoustic suspension principle.
I was reading an old Hi-Fi News mag and in John Crabbe's column there was a discussion of a speaker seen by him in about 1950 to '51 which was acoustic suspension.He also discusses the possibility of it being done perhaps 20 years or so earlier than that.
I was meaning to bring details with me(no computer at home)but off hand I think the issue of the mag was June 2002.There was a picture of the Sonus Faber Cremona on the front cover if anyone has the mag to hand and can post more info.
I was reading an old Hi-Fi News mag and in John Crabbe's column there was a discussion of a speaker seen by him in about 1950 to '51 which was acoustic suspension.He also discusses the possibility of it being done perhaps 20 years or so earlier than that.
I was meaning to bring details with me(no computer at home)but off hand I think the issue of the mag was June 2002.There was a picture of the Sonus Faber Cremona on the front cover if anyone has the mag to hand and can post more info.
I don't think that Vilchur actually claimed to have invented something absolutely new -- Olson had described something rather like an acoustic suspension speaker years before, but I think it was Vilchur who connected the small box, which raised the very low resonance of the driver, the damping to absorb the backwave, and the very powerful magnet (to compensate for the heavy cone) and the long voice coil and long excursion. It was Vilchur I believe who realised that amplifier power was cheap, and speaker volume expensive.
But its also worth noting that Vilchur contribution was not just technical -- it was in marketing also -- he is incontestably the person who created the market for the acoustic suspension speaker, and he did it by creating a company with progressive labor relations, which was research oriented, and advertised more effectively than practically any audio company ever has. Their ads were graphically attractive, appealled to the intelligence of the consumer, and were convincing, both technically and domestically. And don't forget the booth in Grand Central. There is a reason they once had something like a third of the entire speaker market.
But its also worth noting that Vilchur contribution was not just technical -- it was in marketing also -- he is incontestably the person who created the market for the acoustic suspension speaker, and he did it by creating a company with progressive labor relations, which was research oriented, and advertised more effectively than practically any audio company ever has. Their ads were graphically attractive, appealled to the intelligence of the consumer, and were convincing, both technically and domestically. And don't forget the booth in Grand Central. There is a reason they once had something like a third of the entire speaker market.
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soundweasel
Super Member
Excellent interviews! Incredibly informative. Thanks for sharing.mhardy6647 said:
chicks
Lunatic Member
Looks like this list was never filled in here. Found this partial list over on CSP.
#46 Amar Bose (Bose Corporation0
#45 John Bowers (B&W)
#46 Paul Klipsch (inventor of the Klipschorn corner speaker)
#40 Nelson Pass (Threshold Amplifiers)
#37 Raymond Cook (founder of KEF)
#36 Harry Olson (upon whose patent E-V challenged AR)
#34 Joseph Grado (Grado Laboratories)
#21 Guy Fountain (founder of Tannoy Loudspeakers)
#32 H.H. Scott (founder of H.H. Scott)
#30 Paul Voigt (inventor and researcher in early days of loudspeakers)
#26 Thomas Stockham (inventor of soundstream digital recorder)
#13 Peter Walker (renowned Quad electrostatic designer)
#15 D.T.N. Williamson (Williamson amplifier fame)
#11 Gilbert Briggs (founder of Wharfedale Wireless Works)
#12 Edwin Howard Armstrong (made the first FM broadcast)
#08 David Hafler (Dynaco)
#03 Ray Dolby (inventor of noise reduction and surround-sound processes)
#07 Avery Fisher (founder of Fisher Electronics)
#05 Akio Morita (Founder of Sony!)
#04 Henry Kloss (co-founder of AR, KLH, Advent, Cambridge Sound, Tivoli)
#02 Peter Goldmark (introduced the first 33-1/3 rpm long-play record)
#01 EDGAR VILLCHUR (founder of Acoustic Research)
#46 Amar Bose (Bose Corporation0
#45 John Bowers (B&W)
#46 Paul Klipsch (inventor of the Klipschorn corner speaker)
#40 Nelson Pass (Threshold Amplifiers)
#37 Raymond Cook (founder of KEF)
#36 Harry Olson (upon whose patent E-V challenged AR)
#34 Joseph Grado (Grado Laboratories)
#21 Guy Fountain (founder of Tannoy Loudspeakers)
#32 H.H. Scott (founder of H.H. Scott)
#30 Paul Voigt (inventor and researcher in early days of loudspeakers)
#26 Thomas Stockham (inventor of soundstream digital recorder)
#13 Peter Walker (renowned Quad electrostatic designer)
#15 D.T.N. Williamson (Williamson amplifier fame)
#11 Gilbert Briggs (founder of Wharfedale Wireless Works)
#12 Edwin Howard Armstrong (made the first FM broadcast)
#08 David Hafler (Dynaco)
#03 Ray Dolby (inventor of noise reduction and surround-sound processes)
#07 Avery Fisher (founder of Fisher Electronics)
#05 Akio Morita (Founder of Sony!)
#04 Henry Kloss (co-founder of AR, KLH, Advent, Cambridge Sound, Tivoli)
#02 Peter Goldmark (introduced the first 33-1/3 rpm long-play record)
#01 EDGAR VILLCHUR (founder of Acoustic Research)
How about Jensen who invented the dynamic loudspeaker?
I've wondered if he has any relation to the Jensen speaker manufacturer, but I suspect if there was one, it would be part of their advertising. Actually, it's kind of a relief that there probably isn't any relationship -- I haven't been a big fan of the Jensens I've heard. Okay, but didn't billow my sails.
I've wondered if he has any relation to the Jensen speaker manufacturer, but I suspect if there was one, it would be part of their advertising. Actually, it's kind of a relief that there probably isn't any relationship -- I haven't been a big fan of the Jensens I've heard. Okay, but didn't billow my sails.
ken kantor
Fowl Humor
Armstrong was transmitting FM in NYC in the 1930s. RCA deserves to be extinct today for their outrageous thievery.
Poultrygeist
Lunatic Member
Edison gets my vote.
Grado lives up the road from me.
Grado lives up the road from me.