Anyone have a victrola

No, but I would love to have one even if just as a show piece if I came upon one in good shape and not too expensive. Don't know how likely that is though.

I recently recorded all my families heirloom 78s that used to be played on a Victrola years ago when purchased to CD and ripped the CDs to my music server. I picked up a 70's vintage ceramic cartridge 4 speed player made by Admiral at a yard sale for $10 specifically for this purpose. I connected it up to my system via line level inputs and the results were quite good.

These old recordings have very sharp microdynamics that makes for a distinctive and overall pleasant listening experience, despite the background noise, limited frequency range, etc. On a few of the better recordings I found the sound to be actually quite good, at about the level of some of the better professional remasters of other old 78 recordings to CD out there, like say many of the older cuts on the Ken Burn's "Jazz" collection.

Hearing these old recordings designed for the technology of the day spinnning and playing on a good modern system for the first time was quite cool, a definite eye and ear opener.

The closest thing I have managed to-date with a Victrola is a rear lit clock on my wall behind my system with the RCA Victrola/Nipper logo on it. I found that from a vendor on Ebay for about $100.

" I love how they look and I am always amazed by both Edison and his genius and that something over 100 years old with no electric parts still plays so reliably"

I'm in that camp as well.

I remember Quentin Collins playing his soothing music on his ornate Victrola in the 1890's sequence back on the old daytime soap "Dark Shadows" when I was a kid. I think I"ve always been fascinated by them (and audio equipment in general) ever since.