r/Phonographs•
church_ill

HMV 163 sound quality

Hey! I got an offer to buy a HMV 163, the smaller type re-entrant orthophonic.

I am working on building acustom external horn machine but that wont be ready for some time.

I am feeling the urge to buy it since Ive never had a gramophone of that caliber.

Ive never heard any re-entrant and the seller is in another country so I wont have the chance to before potentially deciding to buy it and driving over there.

How does the smaller 163 compare to the bigger 193/194 and 202/202 (or Victor equvialents)? Sound quality wise, i know the larger horns will have a lower cutoff frequency but how does it affect fidelity and detail?

Another question to those who have had the privilege to experience EMG/Expert machines. How do those gramophones compare to the re-entrants in general? Im interested in hearing your opinion about models from EMG mark IV all the way to Expert seniors.

Cheers

Posted Dec 3, 2025, 1:35 AM UTC

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