[BC] RCA phono plugs - How far back?

[Gary Peterson]

Interesting you should ask.  The other evening, I was looking something up
in my "Frank C. Jones Radio Handbook," copyright 1937 and saw an ad for a
Mallory-Yaxley 1/4" T-R-S plug and jack.  It was listed as a "3-way
microphone plug and jack."  The drawing is unmistakably that of the modern
products.  That's as far back as I can take you.

As to the RCA "phono" connectors, I believe them to be post World War 2.
They appear on the rear apron of many old radios (phono input) that were
manufactured in the early 50s.  The quality of these old RCA connectors is
far superior to the garbage available today.  The jack (female) often had
ceramic insulation.  The plug (male) had phenolic insulation that didn't
have a propensity to melt during soldering and the metal was "springy" and
maintained tension when the connectors were mated.  Because of the abysmal
quality of almost all contemporary RCA-type connectors, I tend to avoid
them, when possible.

Gary, KØCX
CE KFXS, KOUT, KKMK, KRCS, KKLS & KBHB



" What I cannot remember is how old some of the radios were 
that had an RCA phono jack on the back for input...How far back does the
quarter-inch TRS go, and when did they become 
common in usage?
Vernon  Kuehn "