Edison Opera phonograph, 1912

The Opera was introduced in 1911 in the US, 1912 in Britain. It plays four minute Amberol cylinders only. This model has the Diamond A reproducer for playing the celluloid Blue Amberols introduced in 1912. It is beautifully made, and gives possibly the best sound of any contemporary instrument, cylinder or disc. One reason for this is that the horn is fixed, not moving. Thus it could be made much larger than on most other phonographs. This was made by possible by the complex engineering solution of making the entire mandrel and cylinder traverse under the reproducer as it revolved. Priced at $90, the Opera only remained in production until 1913. Dimensions: Width: 450 mm Height: 940 mm Depth: 310 mm