rca victor introduced an early version of a long-playing record for home use in september 1931. these "program transcription" discs, as victor called them, played at  rpm and used a somewhat finer and more closely spaced groove than typical 78s. they were to be played with a special "chromium orange" chrome-plated steel needle. the 10-inch discs, mostly used for popular and light classical music, were normally pressed in shellac, but the 12-inch discs, mostly used for "serious" classical music, were normally pressed in victor's new vinyl-based victrolac compound, which provided a much quieter playing surface. they could hold up to 15 minutes per side. beethoven's fifth symphony, performed by the philadelphia orchestra under leopold stokowski, was the first 12-inch recording issued. "the new york times" wrote, "what we were not prepared for was the quality of reproduction...incomparably fuller."