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Thomas Edison became the first person to ever record and play back the human voice.
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A German immigrant by the name of Emile Berliner, settled in the city of Washington, D.C. and also took an interest in recording technology. In 1888 he filed and patented a talking machine which also recorded and played back sound. It was called the Gramaphone.
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The Ediphone and subsequent wax cylinders used in Edison's other product lines continued to be sold up until 1929 when the Edison Company Folded.
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The first demonstration of the Tefifon technology was in 1936 at the "Radioexposition" in Berlin, Germany, the brainchild of Karl Daniel. The Tefifon was a belt recorder, somewhat similar to the Sonaband Recordall that came out much later in 1957.
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Introduced in 1945 by the Gray Manufacturing Company of Hartford, Connecticut, the Audograph used technology similar to the Soundscriber and Dictabelt, in that the modulated grooves were embossed onto soft vinyl.
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Up until even the late 1960's or so, most electronic stores (Radio Shack's & even the local corner drugstore) had tube testers on their premises - most of which you could use yourself.