Unknown device - perhaps related to Tonschreiber

[Yuri D.]

Does anyone know what this device does? Is it war-time or post-war? If it connects to the Tonschreiber, which model?

The manufacturer's label states "bxo Werk-Nr. 103/43"

"bxo" is a Wehrmacht ordinance code for "Deutsche Telephonwerke und Kabelindustrie A.-G., Berlin SO 36"

[Yuri D.]

Control panel of device with secondary door closed.

Also details of the "Tonschreiber" connectors. Does anyone know what types of cables these terminals accepted?

[Yuri D.]

Details of one of the "channels". Each one of these was a "daughter-card" inserted into the backplane/motherboard of the primary device. Each one had it's own vacuum tubes and level controls, and could be pulled out separately. There is also a socket for a spare power vibrator. Here you also see an automatic wakeup control.

[Yuri D.]

These controls switch each daughter-card to either Tonschreiber, and to either set of headphones. There is also a mains power voltage selector with various other Tonschreiber controls. Headphone terminals can be seen here and are unusual since there are openings for 6 pins.

[Yuri D.]

Power connector. It can take utility power or battery power.

[Yuri D.]

When the internal cover is lifted, the rest of the daughter-card details can be seen.

[Yuri D.]

Closer detail showing the manufacturing data on each of the daughter cards. They all show "bxo Werk Nr. ***/42"

[Funksammler]

Nice find Yuri,

Looks very much like a five channel mixing table to me. The 30 pole plugs for the Tonschreiber connections appear to be standard 30 pole telephone plugs. Must be part of some field recording studio of a propaganda unit.

The only thing I can't work out is how the input channels are connected, are there plugs on the individual channels?

regards,

Funksammler

[Funksammler]

Ah, I figure the incoming signal must be coming in via the "Zuleitung" plug, the other plug being used to connect to the Tonschriebers. Given the telephone connectors, it might actually be equipment to record telephone conversations and it could be connected to a Grosser Feldklappenschrank....

regards,

Funksammler.

[Yuri D.]

The two 30-pin connectors are for two Tonschreibers, since the controls below allow the headphones to switch to either Tonschreiber 1 or Tonschreiber 2.

(This is incorrect. One 30-pin port is for the Tonschreibers, and the other one is for a telephone terminal board as Funksammler suggests)

The connectors that look like vacuum tube sockets "C/EM2" I think are the actual channel input terminals, hence the bakelite openings on the front of the secondary cover. What do you think?

(Also incorrect - these sockets are for the C/EM2 magic eye tubes)


Also, note the radio light base receptacle on top of the box.

Also, is there a port like this on a Tonschreiber b1? Any other type of Tonschreiber?

[Yuri D.]

I was wrong. The C/EM2 is a magic eye vacuum tube.

http://www.radiomuseum.org/tubes/tube_cem2.html

[Funksammler]

As far as I am aware there are no similar 30 pin plug used on the tonschreiber. They just need two leads, so that is why I think the 30 pin plugs could be connected to a terminal board similar to the one used with telephone exchanges. They could simply connect the Tonschreibers to the terminals on the terminal board. One 30 pin plug is plenty to connect two Tonschreibers.

Maybe you can pull one of the channel units and see where the input comes in, I would not be surprised if it links to a pair on the 30 plug "zuleiting" plug.

The more I think about it, the more it makes sense as a telephone intercept panel. Five conversations could be monitored, two could be recorded simultaneously. Perhaps the "Wecker" function alerted the operator that a conversation was starting on one of the channels so that he could start the recorder.

regards,

Funksammler

[Yuri D.]

As far as I am aware there are no similar 30 pin plug used on the tonschreiber. They just need two leads, so that is why I think the 30 pin plugs could be connected to a terminal board similar to the one used with telephone exchanges. They could simply connect the Tonschreibers to the terminals on the terminal board. One 30 pin plug is plenty to connect two Tonschreibers.

Maybe you can pull one of the channel units and see where the input comes in, I would not be surprised if it links to a pair on the 30 plug "zuleiting" plug.

The more I think about it, the more it makes sense as a telephone intercept panel. Five conversations could be monitored, two could be recorded simultaneously. Perhaps the "Wecker" function alerted the operator that a conversation was starting on one of the channels so that he could start the recorder.

regards,

Funksammler

Makes total sense. Now I just need the terminal board and a 2nd Tonschreiber :-)

I will pull one of the boards and take a photo tonight.

The "Wecker" function looks as you've described. I will be looking for tubes for this device. Interesting......

[Tornfuté]

hello very interesting unit , i have a picture of the whole station , a tonschreiber
which type is me unknow , looks like a big tonschreiber "a " then yuri unit and then 2 smaller control box . i know they are tonschreiber recording
"resistance messages may be they put listening frequency on one channel , or telephone number , and it start when people begin to speak ,
they can schedule "wecker " to start automatic record ?
on my picture some switches are in yellow , other in red ,and on tonschreiber there is a red control lamp and a green one .
pierre

[Yuri D.]

Pierre,

Please post these pictures!

Yuri