The Astatic Corporation is a commercial audio products manufacturer founded in

Youngstown, Ohio Youngstown is a city in Mahoning County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Ohio, 11th-most populous city in Ohio with a population of 60,068 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Mahoning ...

in 1933. Astatic formed CAD Professional Microphones in 1988 as a division of Astatic. The company reorganized as Omnitronics LLC in 2000, and later combined CAD, Astatic and Omnitronics under the CAD Audio brand. DAS Companies purchased the rights for Astatic

Citizens Band Citizens band radio (CB radio) is a land mobile radio system, a system allowing short-distance one-to-many bidirectional voice communication among individuals, using two-way radios operating near 27 MHz (or the 11-m wavelength) in the high f ...

hand microphones and is one of their acquired brand names.

History

In 1930, two

amateur radio Amateur radio, also known as ham radio, is the use of the radio frequency radio spectrum, spectrum for purposes of non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, private recreation, radiosport, contesting, and emer ...

operators, Creed M. Chorpening, W8WR (later W8MJM) and F.H. Woodworth, W8AHW began experimenting with different types of

microphone A microphone, colloquially called a mic (), or mike, is a transducer that converts sound into an electrical signal. Microphones are used in many applications such as telephones, hearing aids, public address systems for concert halls and publi ...

s for their "ham" stations. Their mutual friend, Charles Semple, worked for

Brush Development Company Brush Development Company was a manufacturer of audio, phonographic products and magnetic recording technologies located in Cleveland, Ohio. It was absorbed into Clevite in 1952. History The business was founded in 1919 by Alfred L. Williams as ...

where he had been experimenting with

Rochelle salt Potassium sodium tartrate tetrahydrate, also known as Rochelle salt, is a double salt of tartaric acid first prepared (in about 1675) by an apothecary, , of La Rochelle, France. Potassium sodium tartrate and monopotassium phosphate were the fir ...

crystal A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macros ...

s. Semple demonstrated some crystal pick-ups that Brush was working with, leading Chorpening and Woodworth to found The Astatic Microphone Laboratory, Inc. in

in 1933. Semple was brought into the company as general manager to manufacture and market the company's model D-104 Crystal Microphone as well as other crystal microphones, crystal phonograph pickups and recording heads. In early 1944, Astatic moved operations to

Conneaut, Ohio Conneaut ( ) is the northeastern most city in Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States, as well as the entire state as a whole. Located in the Greater Cleveland, Cleveland metropolitan area, it is settled along Lake Erie at the mouth of Conneaut Cre ...

and supplied microphones, pickups and crystal cartridges as well as

hydrophone A hydrophone () is a microphone designed for underwater use, for recording or listening to underwater sound. Most hydrophones contains a piezoelectric transducer that generates an electric potential when subjected to a pressure change, such as a ...

and

sonar Sonar (sound navigation and ranging or sonic navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater, as in submarine navigation) to navigate, measure distances ( ranging), communicate with or detect objects o ...

devices to the military during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. After World War II, Astatic Microphone Laboratory became The Astatic Corporation. The commercial audio product division of Astatic became CAD Professional Microphones in 1988. After a merger with Omnitronics LLC in 2000, CAD, Astatic and Omnitronics combined under the CAD Audio brand. The company offers audio products for recording, live performance, commercial and personal audio, and is located in

Solon, Ohio Solon ( ) is a city in southeastern Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 24,262 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. A suburb of Cleveland, it is part of the Cleveland metropolitan area. History In 1820, the first ...

. In 2012, the Citizens Band (CB) product division of Astatic that had been acquired from Omnitronics by Barjan LLC in 2006 was sold to DAS Companies, a communications product distributor for interstate truck stops. DAS expanded the Astatic name to non-microphone accessories including coaxial cables, meters and antennas.

JT-30 microphone

Astatic also manufactured bullet style microphones, which are extremely popular among

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica incl ...

players. The original Astatic model JT-30 was introduced in late 1939. There were many variations in different colors such as the JT-30-C, W-30, 31, JT-31, JT-40, JT-50, and Model A. It is one of the most popular microphones for blues harp players. Production of the mic continued in different versions such as the JT-30VC and the CAD HM-50 that were marketed to harmonica players before being discontinued in 1999. In 1999 Hohner bought the molds to the JT-30 shell and Astatic's very last batch of crystal elements and it was sold as the Hohner 1490 Blues Blaster. The Blues Blaster elements were Astatic MC-151 Crystal elements until 2001. Later versions of the Blues Blaster used a Japanese element. The Astatic JT-30 Roadhouse was the same as the Blues blaster except with a different connector. Both microphones were discontinued in 2013 marking an end of production for the JT-30 after 74 years. The JT-30 is still popular among harmonica players. It was lightweight, cupped in the hands easily and distorted the sound when run through a Tube Amplifier. The JT-30 was used by,

Little Walter Marion Walter Jacobs (May 1, 1930 – February 15, 1968), known as Little Walter, was an American blues musician, singer, and songwriter, whose revolutionary approach to the harmonica had a strong impact on succeeding generations, earning him ...

James Cotton James Henry Cotton (July 1, 1935 – March 16, 2017) was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, who performed and recorded with many fellow blues artists and with his own band. He also played drums early in his career. ...

Big Walter Horton Walter Horton (April 6, 1921 – December 8, 1981), known as Big Walter (Horton) or Walter "Shakey" Horton, was an American blues harmonica player. A quiet, unassuming, shy man, he is remembered as one of the premier harmonica players in the hi ...

Junior Wells Junior Wells (born Amos Wells Blakemore Jr.; December 9, 1934January 15, 1998) was an American singer, harmonica player, and recording artist. He is best known for his signature song " Messin' with the Kid" and his 1965 album '' Hoodoo Man Blues ...

Carey Bell Carey Bell Harrington (November 14, 1936 – May 6, 2007) was an American blues musician who played harmonica in the Chicago blues style. Bell played harmonica and bass guitar for other blues musicians from the late 1950s to the early 1970s be ...

George "Harmonica" Smith George "Harmonica" Smith (born Allen George Smith, April 22, 1924 – October 2, 1983) was an American electric blues harmonica player. Apart from his solo recordings, Smith is best known for his work backing both Muddy Waters and Big Mama Thornt ...

, William Clarke,

Gary Primich Gary Primich (April 20, 1958 – September 23, 2007) was an American blues harmonica player, singer, guitarist and songwriter. He is best known for his 1995 album, ''Mr. Freeze''. Biography Gary Alan Primich was born in Chicago, Illinois, b ...

, Dennis Gruenling

Kim Wilson Kim Wilson (born January 6, 1951) is an American blues singer and harmonica player. He is best known as the lead vocalist and frontman for The Fabulous Thunderbirds on two hit songs of the 1980s, " Tuff Enuff" (which was the group's only Top ...

and countless others. Many players modify them by putting in Shure Controlled Magnetic Transducers after the original elements fail.

D-104 microphone

Introduced in 1933, the Astatic model D-104 became known for its high frequency response that contributed to better communications audio quality. Early D-104 mikes used a 1" thick case, a large ID tag, and holes for "ring & spring" mounts. The design was modified in April 1937 with smaller tags and reduced thickness. A black "grip" switch stand ("G" Stand) with a metal ID tag was manufactured in January 1938. A solid-state amplifier was incorporated into the "G" stand in the 1960s. A

US Bicentennial The United States Bicentennial was a series of celebrations and observances during the mid-1970s that paid tribute to historical events leading up to the creation of the United States as an independent republic. It was a central event in the memo ...

model D-104 was manufactured in 1976 featuring a 18k gold plated finish, and an eagle and shield design on the back plate. Also released at that time, was a slightly different chrome version that featured a press to talk bar on the base in addition to the standard "grip" to talk. They were known as the Golden Eagle and the Silver Eagle (respectively). Of the two, only the Silver Eagle remained in constant production since its inception, and remained one of Astatic's most popular D-104 microphones. There were other variations as well, but production ceased in 2001. The D-104 is often used by

CB radio Citizens band radio (CB radio) is a land mobile radio system, a system allowing short-distance one-to-many bidirectional voice communication among individuals, using two-way radios operating near 27 MHz (or the 11-m wavelength) in the high freq ...

hobbyists and

vintage amateur radio Vintage amateur radio is a subset of amateur radio hobby where enthusiasts collect, restore, preserve, build, and operate amateur radio equipment from bygone years, such as those using vacuum tube technology. Popular modes of operation include spe ...

enthusiasts as part of their operating activities.

History

JT-30 microphone

D-104 microphone

See also

References

External links