Brush Soundmirror model BK 401 tape recorder
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- Опубликовано: 6 сен 2024
- This was a video i originally uploaded to Facebook but thought I'd put it on youtube. The sound is only coming or of the little 8" speaker in the front of the tape recorder and is not being piped thru a larger system. This machine was manufactured in 1948 and was the first tape recorder that was produced for the american public.
My dad bought one of these! First tape recorder in Kansas outside of a radio station. Quoted specs were frequency response, 100-5000 "cycles" (what they used in those days); signal-to-noise ratio, 35 db, wow and flutter, 1.0 per cent!
I'm a little late to this party 9 years since the OP.
My dad was a clergyman and in 1950, a wealthy parishioner gave him a Brush "Sound Mirror", BK401 on which to record his sermons. By the late 50s it was in my room, my friends and I having a great time recording our own "radio" shows. The 1/4" tape was paper, not polyester and very much prone to breaking, especially when re-winding. One had to be very careful when splicing that no tape glue residue was present or the splice would stick and cause a rats nest next rewind.
That's a nice tape deck. It's amazing how well it plays for how old it is, too.
It's in really good condition!
wow this is a really amazing tape recorder and it sounds amazing for it's age . the style is so very nice and I love the mechanism . it is so quiet . in my opinion this should be a keeper enjoy
I have an original Brush reel filled with Audiotape paper tape. Still has a recording on it.
That's cool. If you have a means of transferring it, maybe you should do it to preserve whatevers on it if there's anything worth saving on the tape.
love the Andrew sisters they always was a fave of mine
I remember my mum loved this song, and she used to sing it sometimes! Was it from a movie, or was it a hit song back in the day?
Is quite amazing the sound it produce
That is a prime specimen
Amazing piece of audio history. Hearing it sounding so good makes it easy to imagine how people reacted back in the day. I am very grateful you took the trouble to produce this.
Those reels look larger than 7inches. Has a tone like the vm triomatic consolette. Dandy.
A very nice sounding unit with a peculiar transport mechanism. I recorded JFK's inaguaration off TV with one of these Brush machines back in 1960
make sure you get this on cd before tape breaks
Never seen that tape recorder before, but this was one of the earliest reel to reel tape recorders ever existed. It was from about 1948 or so. At the time, Ampex, Akai, Sony or other companies that started making these reel to reel tape recorders including the earliest one must be the Scotch 111 reel tape. This was replacing wire recorders, but there was no speed selector at the time, but you only have 7 1/2 IPS, but the other speed might be 3 3/4 IPS.
Had one in the early '70s. Probably paid a couple bucks for it. Never worked quite right...the rubber belts were shot, and when I'd go to a shop looking for a replacement, I'd get laughed right out of the place! Used a rubber band chain, which didn't work so well. Wound up selling it, again for a couple bucks.
Great song for the BK-401! It was my choice for my 401 in 2009.
Love the way the reels turns
RAMON ORTIZ thanks Ramon. It`s one of my favorite recorders
this is a great tape deck and I have a friend that has one and he fixed it up and it is amazing how it works . it must be the first of many solenoid units . enjoy and I would really like to see if possible a video of what it looks like inside and of it working if possible all the best
What a dandy, is there an option for an extintion speaker in the rear?
Love seeing the Brush tape recorder. It sounds wonderful and looks great. I assume you did a complete restoration to get it going so well. "little 8" speaker" HA HA! Wonderful sound. I am off to part 2...
***** Thanks Tim, yes, I did a fairly complete restoration on the inner works, cleaning the motors, and recapping it. It was a pain in the ass to work on but I got it worknig fairly well. I know, a "little" 8" speaker, :) but it does pump out the sound.
***** I eventually will do a video of this machine when I get time. just alot of stuff gonig on. And this guy emailed me who saw my Akai videos and wants to see if I could work on his Pentron tape recorder, so hes going to send it to me to see if I can fix it so I might do a video of that one first if it turns out well
I am wondering how the speed is kept at the proper speed without a pinch roller applied to the capstan . so that the motor does not speed up the tape .
Sounds great. How thick is the paper tape? Do you have to play the entire reel in order to rewind it?
What was the source material for the Andrew Sisters recording on this tape machine, 78rpm record?
DandyDon actually, I connected my my cell phone to the input of the recorder, and recorded an audio clip of the song from a RUclips video of it
Do you get better sound quality if you use the whole width of the tape for one channel? Or is it just as good if you use just half, or one quarter of the width? I'm assuming it's 1/4" tape?
Interesting that it's got a cork-covered capstan, but no pinch roller..
I have one I just came into in fair shape but untested.. should I bother restoring it?
In search of this unit, where shall I find for sale?
Amazing sound for sure. 7 1/2 ips???
Ed, have some questions, about your BK 401.
My Dad had one of these and I recall seeing it in the house until about 1968 when we left Long Island, then I lost track of it, think he gave it away. Dad passed away in 2007, when I cleaned out his workshop after Mom passed in 2012, I found piles of the old Brush paper backed recording tapes, most were turning to powder, but he'd labeled the boxes as he'd been recording radio programs from the very late 1940's and through the 1950's with the BK 401, mostly just music that he liked and the occasional news broadcast.
I wondered if you'd cranked up the erase and recording bias currents to make the machine work better with modern magnetic tape oxide formulations, and if the cork capstan was giving you any slippage issues with Mylar backed tape?
That machine looks brand new, did you find it that way, or was it restored?
cpq2zqxv Smith no, the bias wasn't touched, but i did change out the capacitors , and tried to get it running correctly.... which was pain in the butt. And this is acetate tape I'm playing on the machine in this video, not a paper tape.
@@amberola1b Does the paper tape sound as good or better than acetate or mylar? I know paper doesn't stretch, so all other things equal, it should at least have the potential to sound better.
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