16 RPM speed on turntable - why?

Bryan Bradfield · Post by **Bryan Bradfield** » 24 Jan 2007 8:36 pm

I've always kept some turntables with 4 speeds: 16, 33, 45, and 78 RPM. I've had discs that played at the 3 higher speeds, but I've only used the 16 RPM for slowing down LP's to half speed in order to learn licks.

What was the original purpose for the 16 RPM speed?

Were records available at that speed?

Jon Moen · Post by **Jon Moen** » 24 Jan 2007 9:05 pm

More info than you probably need here

Blake Hawkins · Post by **Blake Hawkins** » 24 Jan 2007 9:32 pm

The 16 2/3 rpm speed is for "talking books." You could get discs and players from the Library of Congress. It was mainly used for vision impared people to give them access to books and newspapers.
This speed will give about 93 minutes on an 8 inch disc.
It was used only for speech as the frequency response is not good enough for music.

David Doggett · Post by **David Doggett** » 24 Jan 2007 11:29 pm

I seem to remember the 17s being used for Muzak in department stores. The poor quality didn't matter much when they were played quietly as background music, and they played a long time between changes. But maybe I'm just imagining that.

Ray Minich · Post by **Ray Minich** » 25 Jan 2007 11:19 am

I still think the aliens that find that cover to the Voyager spacecraft will probably try to eat it first...
Oooohh... look, it's a big gold cookie...

Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 25 Jan 2007 2:31 pm

we used to listen to the Mothers of Invention on 16..man it was great sometimes we couldn't tell the difference...

those were great days !!!

uh..well..maybe they weren't

Andy Sandoval · Post by **Andy Sandoval** » 25 Jan 2007 3:09 pm

Susie... Susie Creamcheese.....

Bryan Bradfield · Post by **Bryan Bradfield** » 25 Jan 2007 3:13 pm

Jon -

That Wikipedia stuff is fascinating. Thank you.

And for the rest of you - all of this stuff is so obscure, and I suppose that is to be expected with such a little used format.

One thing that struck me in reading the entries in Wikipedia is that the use of a needle in grooves to reproduce sound lasted for about a century.

Keith Cordell · Post by **Keith Cordell** » 25 Jan 2007 4:51 pm

I recall from my Army training that the training records were 16RPM. They were HUGE, too. We would all sit in a circle by platoon and listen to them. I think they were all recorded in the 50's, and our Sergeant had to make corrections afterward. Pretty funny stuff.

erik · Post by **erik** » 25 Jan 2007 5:44 pm

I used to listen to 33s at 16 to hear guitar solos. Also, the harmonics are different.

Ben Elder · Post by **Ben Elder** » 25 Jan 2007 11:14 pm

On the portable stereo for which I caddied the Summer of '65 to earn half of, I slowed some Doc Watson down--and learned one song in Bb (probably not an open string in the whole medley). In real life, Doc was playing in G capoed up to A. My "16-2/3" (thanks, Magnavox!) wasn't a perfect half of 33-1/3.

David L. Donald · Post by **David L. Donald** » 26 Jan 2007 3:37 am

They also used them for long form, voice only, radio transcriptions.
War bond rallys, political speachs and the like.

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16 RPM speed on turntable - why?

16 RPM speed on turntable - why?

radio transcriptions etc.