Old record players through the eras

1. 1877

   The phonograph

   Thomas Edison’s phonograph recorded and played sound on a cylinder wrapped in tinfoil. Later machines used wax cylinders. Everything was mechanical: a needle, a diaphragm and a horn, with no electricity at all.

2. 1887

   The gramophone and the flat disc

   Emile Berliner patented the gramophone, which played flat discs instead of cylinders. Discs were easier to mass-produce, and by the 1910s they had largely won. Many people still call any old wind-up player a “Victrola”, after the Victor Talking Machine Company’s famous cabinet models.

3. 1925

   Electrical recording

   Microphones and electrical cutting replaced recording into a horn, and records suddenly sounded fuller. Electric players with amplifiers and loudspeakers followed, often built into radio cabinets.

4. 1948–49

   Vinyl: the LP and the 45

   Columbia launched the 12-inch 33⅓ rpm long-playing record in 1948, and RCA Victor answered with the 7-inch 45 in 1949. Both used vinyl instead of brittle shellac and much finer “microgrooves”. Over the 1950s, 78s faded out.

5. 1950s–60s

   Portables, changers and consoles

   Record players became family furniture and teenage gear at the same time. Suitcase-style portables with a lid speaker went to parties; record changers stacked singles on a tall spindle; long wooden stereo consoles combined a changer, a radio and speakers in one cabinet. Stereo records went on general sale in 1958.

6. 1970s

   The hi-fi turntable

   Separate components took over: a turntable, an amplifier or receiver, and speakers. Belt drive and the new direct-drive designs competed on speed stability. Direct-drive decks later became the standard DJ turntable.

7. 1980s–2000s

   Cassettes, CDs and the long quiet

   The cassette and then the compact disc (launched in 1982) pushed vinyl into a niche. Record players hung on with DJs, collectors and anyone who never threw their records away.

8. Today

   The revival

   Vinyl sales started climbing again in the late 2000s and kept growing. In the early 2020s LPs outsold CDs in the US for the first time since the 1980s. Old players are collected and restored, and new ones are often designed to look old.

Quick answers

What is the difference between a phonograph, a gramophone and a record player?

“Phonograph” was Edison’s name for his cylinder machine, “gramophone” was Berliner’s name for the flat-disc player. In American English “phonograph” came to mean any record player; in British English “gramophone” did. “Record player” and “turntable” are the later, everyday words.

How old is my record player?

Look for a model plate or sticker underneath or on the back, plus the speeds it offers (a 78 setting suggests 1950s–60s or earlier), the cartridge type and the plug. Searching the brand and model number usually finds a date range.

Is an old record player worth anything?

It depends on the brand, condition and whether it works. Well-known hi-fi turntables and attractive consoles or portables sell to collectors; common, broken units are often worth more as parts. Completed sale listings are the best guide.

Keep reading: How an old record player works, Caring for an old record player (and your records), Buying an old record player: what to check.