Edison Records
Thomas A. Edison invented the phonograph, the first device for recording and playing back sound, in 1877. After patenting the invention and benefiting from the publicity and acclaim it received, Edison and his laboratory turned their attention to the commercial development of electric lighting, playing no further role in the development of the phonograph for nearly a decade. Edison's original phonograph recorded on sheets of tinfoil and was little more than a crude curiosity, although one that fascinated much of the public. These earliest phonographs were sold mainly to entrepreneurs who made a living out of traveling around the country giving "educational" lectures in hired halls or otherwise demonstrating the device to audiences for a fee. The tinfoil phonograph was not fit for any real practical use and public interest soon waned.
Gábor Kornél Tolnai
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording. Analog (or analogue) recording ("Greek", ana = "according to" and logos = "relationship") is a technique used to store signals of audio or video information for later playback. In digital recording, the analog signal of video or sound is converted into a stream of discrete numbers, representing the changes in chroma and luminance values (video) orair-pressure (audio) through time, thus making an abstract template for the original sound or moving image. In 1967, the first digital audio magnetic tape recorder is invented. A 12-bit 30 kHz stereo device using a compander to extend the dynamic range.The history of sound recording can cover mechanical, acoustical, electrical, magnetic and digital recording. Methods and media for sound recording are varied and have undergone significant changes between the first time sound was actually recorded for later playback until now. Engineers at AEG, working with the chemical giant IG Farben a German chemical industry in Frankfurt am Main, created the world's first practical magnetic tape recorder, the "K1", which was first demonstrated in 1935. The three major firms BASF, Bayer and Hoechst produced several hundred different dyes, along with the five smaller firms Agfa, Cassella and some other companies.