Innovations related to sound technology from wax cylinder records and antique phonographs to digital recording and MP3s.
The first great invention developed by Edison in Menlo Park was the tin foil phonograph.
In 1887, Emile Berliner patented a successful system of sound recording. Berliner was the first inventor to stop recording on cylinders and start recording on flat disks or records.
Poulsen's recorder used magnetized steel piano wire as the recording medium.
A pioneer in the early history of magnetic tape recording, Semi Joseph Begun's advancements in the magnetic tape field eventually provided the 3M company with a billion dollar industry.
The Philips Company of the Netherlands invented and released the first compact audio-cassette in 1962.
Microphones convert sound waves into electrical voltages that are eventually converted back into sound waves thru speakers. They were first used with early telephones and then radio transmitters.
William Lear invented the eight track tape.
In 1877, Ernst Siemens patented the first loudspeaker.
Hi-Fi or high fidelity recording began in Germany during the Second World War.
Radio owes its development to two other inventions, the telegraph and the telephone.
Sony and other companies began designing new compact and portable tape recorders and players to take advantage of the cassette tape's smaller size.
An audio oscillator is an electronic instrument used to test sound equipment.
The German company Fraunhofer-Gesellshaft developed MP3 technology and now licenses the patent rights to the audio compression technology.
Marvin Camras' inventions are commonly used in magnetic tape recording heads, magnetic sound for motion pictures and video tape recording
The history and impact of the inventions that changed the way we listen
A timeline of events in magnetic recording from 1878 to 1984.
From the first syllable of recorded time - this is the story of plastic that shook the world, a guide to the key players and events which shaped the record's development.
Explore early sound recording methods, two-minute wax cylinder records and antique phonographs. See rare vintage photos and enjoy listening to early recorded sounds taken directly from the original wax cylinders.
