Recent HMV Compact Record Player purchase - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum

Kevmitchell · 14th May 2018, 12:29 am

Hi,

A new venture for me, having loved music all my life I've decided to purchase and restore an old classic. I found this fabulous compact HMV record player in a local vintage store and decided to try and bring it back to life.

I don't know anything about it so any information would be very welcome. Surprisingly there is no I. D. on the case so I have little to go on.

Any thoughts please let me have them

Best wishes

Kev Mitchell

ms660 · 14th May 2018, 9:09 am

Looks like an HMV 2126

https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...ad.php?t=95676

Lawrence.

Paul_RK · 14th May 2018, 9:35 am

An older thread includes what may prove a very helpful note on repairing the 'Double C' cartridge:

https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...ad.php?t=40489

It doesn't much resemble any other cartridge, so unless you're minded to perform major surgery on the unit you'll be restricted to 78s and mono microgroove.

Paul

Audio1950 · 14th May 2018, 10:18 am

Sorry to say that for a first restoration project, you couldn't have chosen a worse model. The cartridge, which is the bit that holds the stylus (needle) is almost certain to be dead, it's well over sixty years old. Replacements have been obsolete for years, as have the conversion kits that were available when the original cartridges became obsolete. No other cartridge will fit, unfortunately. By all means have a go at repairing the cartridge if you get no sound from it, but even if you do get it to work, you cannot play stereo records on it ,as they would be ruined. I hope you didn't pay a lot of money for it, and I'm sorry to be the bearer of discouraging news!

peter_scott · 14th May 2018, 10:42 am

If it is the same as the one highlighted by Lawrence then you will need a radio with a "gram" input or some other means of amplifying its output.

Peter

Aerodyne · 14th May 2018, 2:52 pm

Well, I personally wouldn't give up on it. It surely would be possible to remove the old cartridge and head assembly and replace it with a headshell from, say, a Garrard deck (assuming one can be found - I haven't looked) or at worst, make some form of carrier to take a stereo cartridge.
I guess it depends upon personal ability, toolkit, patience and ingenuity - and whether it is worth the effort, in the end. Needs its own amp, of course, like so many add-ons of its vintage.

Tony

Audio1950 · 14th May 2018, 4:26 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aerodyne

Well, I personally wouldn't give up on it. It surely would be possible to remove the old cartridge and head assembly and replace it with a headshell from, say, a Garrard deck (assuming one can be found - I haven't looked) or at worst, make some form of carrier to take a stereo cartridge.

When the headshell assembly is removed all that's left will be a hollow tube with a small hole in it. Other headshells are easily obtained (if somewhat expensive), but adapting it to fit that tube would be difficult. If it could be done though, there remains the problem that there is no weight adjustment on the HMVs' arm, so the combined weight of the new headshell, plus the replacement cartridge would have to less than that of the original, existing cartridge, which is unlikely. All these potential problems would hardly seem worth the trouble for this particular record deck.

Hartley118 · 14th May 2018, 5:14 pm

This was one of the earliest means of playing LPs, so is certainly of historical interest. In addition to your 'accessory turntable' for plugging into a radio, the same deck with its 'Double C' head was incorporated into a rather good HMV self-contained record player which featured on Columbia 78 record sleeves. See the attached 1950s picture for period interest from the 'ponytail era'.

You'll find various threads here on the Double C head. In this thread
https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...d.php?t=136587 I describe a successful repair.

In its favour is the fact that the element is robust ceramic and not short-lived Rochelle salt crystal. Problematic is the fact that the foil connections give trouble. I did actually succeeed by quickly soldering thin wires to the copper plated ends of the ceramic element instead of struggling with foil.

If you're reasonably handy with careful mechanical dismantling and reassembly, you may well be able to bring yours back to life.

Martin

Aerodyne · 14th May 2018, 7:24 pm

Martin, your link doesn't work for me.

Tony

Paul_RK · 14th May 2018, 7:36 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aerodyne

Martin, your link doesn't work for me.

Tony

Me neither, but copying its thread number into a working link gives

https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...d.php?t=136587

Paul

Hartley118 · 14th May 2018, 8:07 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paul_RK

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aerodyne

Martin, your link doesn't work for me.

Tony

Me neither, but copying its thread number into a working link gives

https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...d.php?t=136587

Paul

Yes, that's the one. Must attend a course on copying & pasting best practice!

Martin

Station X · 14th May 2018, 10:18 pm

You cannot copy a link directly from a post. It appears in truncated form and will not work.

You need to navigate to the actual thread, copy the contents of the address bar, paste them into your post and let the forum software do the rest.

Hartley118 · 15th May 2018, 7:51 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by Station X

You cannot copy a link directly from a post. It appears in truncated form and will not work.

You need to navigate to the actual thread, copy the contents of the address bar, paste them into your post and let the forum software do the rest.

Well well. Thanks for that Graham. There's always something to learn!

I hope that my link blunder and its fix might be of value to others too.

Martin

14th May 2018, 12:29 am	#1
Kevmitchell Diode Join Date: May 2018 Location: Stockport, Cheshire, UK. Posts: 3	Recent HMV Compact Record Player purchase Hi, A new venture for me, having loved music all my life I've decided to purchase and restore an old classic. I found this fabulous compact HMV record player in a local vintage store and decided to try and bring it back to life. I don't know anything about it so any information would be very welcome. Surprisingly there is no I. D. on the case so I have little to go on. Any thoughts please let me have them Best wishes Kev Mitchell Attached Thumbnails

14th May 2018, 9:09 am	#2
ms660 Dekatron Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Cornwall, UK. Posts: 13,454	Re: Recent HMV Compact Record Player purchase Looks like an HMV 2126 https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...ad.php?t=95676 Lawrence.

14th May 2018, 9:35 am	#3
Paul_RK Dekatron Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Fakenham, Norfolk, UK. Posts: 4,259	Re: Recent HMV Compact Record Player purchase An older thread includes what may prove a very helpful note on repairing the 'Double C' cartridge: https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...ad.php?t=40489 It doesn't much resemble any other cartridge, so unless you're minded to perform major surgery on the unit you'll be restricted to 78s and mono microgroove. Paul

14th May 2018, 10:18 am	#4
Audio1950 Dekatron Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Whittlesey, near Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, UK. Posts: 3,763	Re: Recent HMV Compact Record Player purchase Sorry to say that for a first restoration project, you couldn't have chosen a worse model. The cartridge, which is the bit that holds the stylus (needle) is almost certain to be dead, it's well over sixty years old. Replacements have been obsolete for years, as have the conversion kits that were available when the original cartridges became obsolete. No other cartridge will fit, unfortunately. By all means have a go at repairing the cartridge if you get no sound from it, but even if you do get it to work, you cannot play stereo records on it ,as they would be ruined. I hope you didn't pay a lot of money for it, and I'm sorry to be the bearer of discouraging news!

14th May 2018, 10:42 am	#5
peter_scott Dekatron Join Date: May 2003 Location: Edinburgh, UK. Posts: 3,274	Re: Recent HMV Compact Record Player purchase If it is the same as the one highlighted by Lawrence then you will need a radio with a "gram" input or some other means of amplifying its output. Peter __________________ http://www.nostalgiatech.co.uk https://www.youtube.com/c/PeterScott/videos

14th May 2018, 2:52 pm	#6
Aerodyne Octode Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Hampton Vale, Peterborough, UK. Posts: 1,698	Re: Recent HMV Compact Record Player purchase Well, I personally wouldn't give up on it. It surely would be possible to remove the old cartridge and head assembly and replace it with a headshell from, say, a Garrard deck (assuming one can be found - I haven't looked) or at worst, make some form of carrier to take a stereo cartridge. I guess it depends upon personal ability, toolkit, patience and ingenuity - and whether it is worth the effort, in the end. Needs its own amp, of course, like so many add-ons of its vintage. Tony

14th May 2018, 5:14 pm	#8
Hartley118 Nonode Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Cambridge, Cambs. UK. Posts: 2,198	Re: Recent HMV Compact Record Player purchase This was one of the earliest means of playing LPs, so is certainly of historical interest. In addition to your 'accessory turntable' for plugging into a radio, the same deck with its 'Double C' head was incorporated into a rather good HMV self-contained record player which featured on Columbia 78 record sleeves. See the attached 1950s picture for period interest from the 'ponytail era'. You'll find various threads here on the Double C head. In this thread https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...d.php?t=136587 I describe a successful repair. In its favour is the fact that the element is robust ceramic and not short-lived Rochelle salt crystal. Problematic is the fact that the foil connections give trouble. I did actually succeeed by quickly soldering thin wires to the copper plated ends of the ceramic element instead of struggling with foil. If you're reasonably handy with careful mechanical dismantling and reassembly, you may well be able to bring yours back to life. Martin Attached Thumbnails __________________ BVWS Member

14th May 2018, 7:24 pm	#9
Aerodyne Octode Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Hampton Vale, Peterborough, UK. Posts: 1,698	Re: Recent HMV Compact Record Player purchase Martin, your link doesn't work for me. Tony

14th May 2018, 10:18 pm	#12
Station X Moderator Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Ipswich, Suffolk, IP4, UK. Posts: 21,289	Re: Recent HMV Compact Record Player purchase You cannot copy a link directly from a post. It appears in truncated form and will not work. You need to navigate to the actual thread, copy the contents of the address bar, paste them into your post and let the forum software do the rest. __________________ Graham. Forum Moderator Reach for your meter before you reach for your soldering iron.