|
Vintage Radio (domestic) Domestic vintage radio (wireless) receivers only. |
|
Thread Tools |
11th Feb 2018, 9:33 pm | #1 |
Triode
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: Tamworth, Staffordshire, UK.
Posts: 19
|
Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
Hi - I'm new here and have joined because no amount of searching the internet has thrown any light on a radio I was looking at the other day. I'm hoping someone on this forum will know something about the 'Charles Amplifiers' radio in the pics I have attached. So far I have no information at all.
|
11th Feb 2018, 9:40 pm | #2 |
Moderator
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Oxford, UK
Posts: 27,966
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
It looks a bit repro/fake to me - a touch of the Steepletones about it.
|
11th Feb 2018, 9:57 pm | #3 |
Moderator
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Exeter, Devon and Poole, Dorset UK.
Posts: 6,878
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
Well the tuning scale is probably real.
So I suspect the whole thing is, a few more pictures of the Chassis would help https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Charles_Amplifiers Cheers Mike T
__________________
Invisible airwaves crackle with life or at least they used to Mike T BVWS member. www.cossor.co.uk Last edited by Cobaltblue; 11th Feb 2018 at 10:23 pm. |
11th Feb 2018, 10:03 pm | #4 |
Triode
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: Tamworth, Staffordshire, UK.
Posts: 19
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
I know what you mean Paul but I don't think so as it was very heavy - almost of military strength. Thanks Cobaltblue that's fantastic to know the company actually did exist - and so quick too.
|
11th Feb 2018, 10:07 pm | #5 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Wigan, Greater Manchester, UK.
Posts: 9,433
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
Advert for their amplifiers, WW 1948.
__________________
Frank |
11th Feb 2018, 10:27 pm | #6 |
Dekatron
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Greater Manchester, UK.
Posts: 18,724
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
The R.A tuning unit is superficially, similar, and apparently available in superhet and TRF versions, so I would expect a different scale layout for each. Perhaps the industrial rack mount version was a special. A TRF option seems strange for a 1949 domestic set from a manufacturer with, shall we say, elitist leanings.
https://reader.exacteditions.com/issues/32825/page/44
__________________
-- Graham. G3ZVT |
11th Feb 2018, 10:54 pm | #7 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Surrey, UK.
Posts: 4,398
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
Hi Frank and welcome to the forum. There were a small selection of radio tuners made for professional/industrial use and various situations such as distribution around schools/institutions, Forces "morale receivers", shipboard use etc. over the years. Quite often, they were based around a good-quality domestic tuner- e.g. the BBC used Chapman S6 tuners built into a 19" panel with peripheral circuitry- and your device with its apparently domestic radio tuning scale but grey-painted panel and chromed handles would very much seem to fit into this category. For professional use, features such as an RF stage (better sensitivity and spurious rejection) and/or 2 IF stages (better selectivity and AGC performance) were often deemed desirable- is it possible to post some pictures of the topside and/or under-chassis gubbins? That would give some more clues,
Colin |
11th Feb 2018, 11:00 pm | #8 | |
Nonode
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Cambridge, Cambs. UK.
Posts: 2,198
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
Quote:
Martin
__________________
BVWS Member |
|
11th Feb 2018, 11:27 pm | #9 |
Rest in Peace
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Basildon, Essex, UK.
Posts: 4,100
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
The knobs on that radio are the same pattern as used on KB radios from about 1934 to about 1938.
Mike |
11th Feb 2018, 11:54 pm | #10 |
Nonode
Join Date: Nov 2016
Location: Aberaeron, Ceredigion, Wales, UK.
Posts: 2,887
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
Nuvistor posted a reply, which seems to indicate it origin, yet no one seems to comment on that ? How he managed to research that info is very impressive!
Cheers John |
12th Feb 2018, 12:03 am | #11 |
Triode
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: Tamworth, Staffordshire, UK.
Posts: 19
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
Cobaltblue's tip helped me find the following info
Charles Amplifiers Ltd. British valve amplifiers believed to have been in production from 1946 to 1951 although this is not for certain, there were probably three models made all in all but we only have information on 2 of them; the Concerto a 12 watt amplifier that features 8 triode valves plus an AC rectifier valve, priced at 27 pounds & 10 shillings in 1948 and a smaller 5 watt push-pull amplifier with negative feedback that was called the KI, that featured 7 valves in total and was sold for 17 gns., or in kit form where it retailed for 13 gns.. Both amps had output transformers that offered taps with 15, 7 and 3 ohm impedance outputs, phono and radio inputs and bass and treble controls but in addition the Concerto had a 2 level bass boost available. These amps are rare, and notable for a number of reasons, these are integrated amplifiers in the modern sense while at the time most amplifiers were power amplifiers since they were intended either to hook radios to a larger loudspeakers or like the products from Quad Electroacoustics et. al. were actually designed for PA systems and were commonly not shipped with output transformers but rather you got them wound to match your speakers and in the case of PA applications the transformers actually came with the speakers, not the amps. The Charles Amplifier models had an especially flexible phono input that could accommodate anything from a radio level (line level) signal from a crystal pick-up, any sort of magnetic cartridge or even a moving coil pickup, but the support for MC's is interesting since they were as rare as hens teeth at the time in the UK, being a specialist and expensive import form Denmark (Ortofon). In other words the Charles Amplifier products are probably the first UK examples of such specifically designed as home hi-fi amplifiers making the company one of the first hi-fi companies in the UK. |
12th Feb 2018, 12:09 am | #12 |
Moderator
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Fife, Scotland, UK.
Posts: 22,901
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
I just googled 1e Palace Gate, Kensington.
That is an unbelievably posh address. Maybe an office, perhaps a demo and sale room. Very likely not the factory. I'd never heard of them before, and I suppose many other people also hadn't. David
__________________
Can't afford the volcanic island yet, but the plans for my monorail and the goons' uniforms are done |
12th Feb 2018, 12:09 am | #13 | |
Dekatron
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Wigan, Greater Manchester, UK.
Posts: 9,433
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
Quote:
http://www.americanradiohistory.com A really excellent store of information.
__________________
Frank |
|
12th Feb 2018, 12:52 am | #14 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Croydon, Surrey, UK.
Posts: 7,578
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
As has been suggested, I think it is a 'tuner unit' to complement one of their amplifiers. Please....lets see some photos around the back or even inside if possible. If it is just a tuner it won't have an output stage which means it has to be connected to an amplifier to hear anything
__________________
There are lots of brilliant keyboard players and then there is Rick Wakeman..... |
12th Feb 2018, 12:53 am | #15 |
Dekatron
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Greater Manchester, UK.
Posts: 18,724
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
Another tip Frank, when you do a Google search on anything, it's always worth selecting the "Images" option at the top of the page.
__________________
-- Graham. G3ZVT |
12th Feb 2018, 1:04 am | #16 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Surrey, UK.
Posts: 4,398
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
Peripheral to the thread, but the first radio I recall seeing with the Oulu 433kHz allocation marked on the dial- beyond the LW tuning range of most radios! Having a 600m (500kHz) mark on the LW scale would imply an IF outside the mainstream 450-470kHz range.
|
12th Feb 2018, 1:36 am | #17 |
Dekatron
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Greater Manchester, UK.
Posts: 18,724
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
Or perhaps an IF of zero, as previously discussed.
__________________
-- Graham. G3ZVT |
12th Feb 2018, 1:42 am | #18 | ||
Dekatron
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Fakenham, Norfolk, UK.
Posts: 4,259
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
Quote:
Quote:
Paul |
||
12th Feb 2018, 2:17 am | #19 |
Dekatron
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Greater Manchester, UK.
Posts: 18,724
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
Now, this is getting interesting.
The wording in the advert says "High fidelity superhet or TRF performance", I must admit that I did not consider they might be talking about both on the same chassis. Also, as Martin, Hartley118 pointed out, if it's a trade-off between fidelity (bandwidth) and "performance" (selectivity), haven't they got the marketing spiel the wrong way round?
__________________
-- Graham. G3ZVT |
12th Feb 2018, 2:32 am | #20 | |
Dekatron
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Fakenham, Norfolk, UK.
Posts: 4,259
|
Re: Mystery radio - Charles Amplifiers
Quote:
Jonathan Hill's "Audio! Audio!" lists five models of Charles amplifier from the period 1947-52, with the first to appear, the Concerto, offering output of 13 watts from two PX25s and "Designed for quality reproduction of records in the home". There's no mention of tuners, which fall outside the scope of the book. Paul Last edited by Paul_RK; 12th Feb 2018 at 2:45 am. |
|