Gramophone

A gramophone is a device for playing sound recorded on flat discs known as gramophone records. It emerged in the late 19th century as a disc-based alternative to cylinder phonographs. Invented by Emile Berliner, the system used a stylus to trace grooves on a rotating disc and a horn to radiate the sound. Early gramophones required no electrical power and relied on purely mechanical amplification.

Acoustic gramophones used a diaphragm connected to the stylus; as the needle moved in the groove, the diaphragm vibrated and, through the horn, amplified the sound. The combination of disc format and horn made it possible to produce louder, clearer playback than earlier cylinders. Later models integrated electrical amplification, starting in the 1920s and becoming widespread in the 1930s, which improved volume and fidelity.

Disc formats and speeds: 10- and 12-inch discs were common, played at speeds of about 78 revolutions per minute. In the mid-20th century, 33 1/3 rpm long-playing records and 45 rpm singles expanded repertoire and duration. The term gramophone became associated with both the equipment and the disc format, particularly in the United Kingdom and some Commonwealth countries.

With the advent of magnetic tape, compact audio formats and later digital media, the gramophone's role declined from mass-market entertainment. Nevertheless, it remains a symbol of early recorded music and continues to be produced as antique or specialized hi-fi equipment; modern turntables for vinyl playback retain the same basic principle: a stylus reading a grooved disc and electronic amplification delivering sound.