Columbia first employed lacquer discs (referred to as "instantotiles") in
lieu of beeswax in 1936. Victor seems to have used them as of 1940 although
not consistently.

DDR

On Wed, Jun 6, 2012 at 4:05 PM, Steven Smolian <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> A few years ago I had (and subsequently sold) a group of 16" lacquers that
> RCA had used for recordings sessions- just postwar.  They had multiple
> takes
> for what became 10 and 12" sides.  They included out-takes.  I remember a
> phone ringing- "It's your wife" type events.
>
> They sure sounded better than the 78s  I wonder if this method was used for
> their big band records as well.  When did RCA begin using these in lieu of
> discs intended to be plated?  Columbia certainly did from 1939 or 40 on.
> There was an article in, I think, High Fidelity, by David Hall describing
> the process.
>
> Steve Smolian
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of David Weiner
> Sent: Wednesday, June 06, 2012 3:55 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Who needs vinyl?
>
> None of the Miller "Secret" recordings are from tape - most are taken from
> vinyl pressings of the original transcription discs.
>
> Dave Weiner
>
> On 6/6/12 3:12 PM, "DAVID BURNHAM" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> >Nope, that's not it entirely;  the most awesome sounding set, "The
> >Secret Broadcasts", were studio recordings made between March and June of
> 1944.
> >A mystery, though, is that these recordings are described as "orginal
> >tapes" which were lost for over 50 years.  I didn't think tape was
> >being used yet, at least not in the allied countries, until after the
> >war.  But there is no sonic evidence of a disc surface so who knows.
> >
> >db
>



-- 
Dennis D. Rooney
303 W. 66th Street, 9HE
New York, NY 10023
212.874.9626