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Philco Model 90 Lowboy Console (1931)
Philco introduced the model 90 Lowboy in June of 1931 as part of their
1931/32 line-up. This attractive console was originally priced at $89.75,
complete with tubes. It sold almost as well in its day as did that other
contemporary Philco offering, the model 90 Baby Grand, which has gone
on to become a veritable icon in the vintage radio community today.
Both models utilized the same 9-tube Philco Balanced Superheterodyne
chassis type, which at first appeared without automatic-volume-control
(AVC) and with push-pull 45s in its output circuit. The text of a June 1931
Philco newspaper advertisement featuring this version of the lowboy is
reproduced in the box below. By late September of 1931, all versions of
the 90 were being promoted as having AVC and as using a new pentode
power tube (the type 47), as seen in the advertisement below right. The
price remained at $89.75.
1931/32 line-up. This attractive console was originally priced at $89.75,
complete with tubes. It sold almost as well in its day as did that other
contemporary Philco offering, the model 90 Baby Grand, which has gone
on to become a veritable icon in the vintage radio community today.
Both models utilized the same 9-tube Philco Balanced Superheterodyne
chassis type, which at first appeared without automatic-volume-control
(AVC) and with push-pull 45s in its output circuit. The text of a June 1931
Philco newspaper advertisement featuring this version of the lowboy is
reproduced in the box below. By late September of 1931, all versions of
the 90 were being promoted as having AVC and as using a new pentode
power tube (the type 47), as seen in the advertisement below right. The
price remained at $89.75.
NEW in Design. NEW in Principle. NEW in Performance!
| "What a set! Superheterodyne... for bringing in distant stations sharply and separately! Balanced Units... to give you sparkling life-like tone - without distortion! Four-point tone control... so you can interpret each station as you like it - brilliant, bright, mellow, deep! This magnificent lowboy cabinet comes in American black walnut and figured butt walnut with arch of V-matched Oriental wood. Decoration in pin-stripe walnut and quilted maple. Hand-rubbed lacquer finish. Two 245 power-tubes - push-pull. Long-distance switch. Oversize electro-dynamic speaker. Illuminated station recording dial. Complete with 9 tubes" |
Marvelous distance and wonderful tone!
Back in the summer of 1930, when the model 20 was introduced, Philco
priced their sets without tubes. That they did so at the time was not a
sales ploy, as some might suspect, but was because the tubes were
then considered insufficiently robust to be shipped from the factory
mounted in the radio. However, by late 1930 Philco was claiming that
their tubes were "so rugged that they could be shipped mounted in the
receiver sockets". Thus ended their practice of pricing sets minus the
tubes and from thence forward they priced and sold their radios
"complete with [Philco balanced] tubes".
The schematic for the model 90 can be found here, courtesy of
NostalgiaAir. The tube line up for my model (second configuration) is 24
(RF), 24 (mixer), 27 (LO), 24 (IF), 27 (detector rectifier), 27 (detector
amplifier), 27 (1st AF/driver), 47 (output pentode) and 80 (rectifier).
Note that the lowboy console uses a larger (type H2) loudspeaker than
that used in the Baby Grand (type K2).
priced their sets without tubes. That they did so at the time was not a
sales ploy, as some might suspect, but was because the tubes were
then considered insufficiently robust to be shipped from the factory
mounted in the radio. However, by late 1930 Philco was claiming that
their tubes were "so rugged that they could be shipped mounted in the
receiver sockets". Thus ended their practice of pricing sets minus the
tubes and from thence forward they priced and sold their radios
"complete with [Philco balanced] tubes".
The schematic for the model 90 can be found here, courtesy of
NostalgiaAir. The tube line up for my model (second configuration) is 24
(RF), 24 (mixer), 27 (LO), 24 (IF), 27 (detector rectifier), 27 (detector
amplifier), 27 (1st AF/driver), 47 (output pentode) and 80 (rectifier).
Note that the lowboy console uses a larger (type H2) loudspeaker than
that used in the Baby Grand (type K2).
Text extracted from a June 1931 newspaper ad.
Clipped from an early 1932 newspaper ad.