The Amphion Action
made by the Amphion Piano Player Company

The Amphion Action as advertised in a 1918 issue of the Music Trade Review.

Advertisement from the Music Trade Review.

The Amphion Action as advertised in a 1918 issue of the Music Trade Review. The utter simplicity of the Amphion action is immediately obvious, and the cut-away view shows the uncluttered internal construction thereby making it easy to comprehend how the unit value functions. The Amphion action was comparatively cheap, simple to install, adjust, and repair—all sought after attributes that any player piano manufacturer could readily appreciate. All that was needed, for instance, to replace an errant unit-valve was to remove a single hex nut holding a spring clip retainer in place and the valve could be immediately replaced—and without the annoying and time consuming task of removing the stack from the piano. Considering the mechanical complexity of the Melville Clark designs and the factory space required to manufacture them it is no wonder that the Apollo Piano Company (i.e., Wurlitzer) elected to abandon the old designs for the Amphion system.

The following articles from The Presto trade magazine provide a bit of insight into the operation of the Amphion Piano Player Company and the quality of its popular Amphion Accessible Player Action:

From The Presto, December 17, 1903

ANOTHER PIANO-PLAYER CO.

Latest in This Line Is a Company at Syracuse, N. Y., "Amphion" by Name.

Still another piano-player company has put in an appearance and the question arises: How many more before the end of the year? There have been a good many entries in this line of manufacture during the year 1903 and some very reputable and widely known firms have branched out in this direction. All of this tends to show the growing popularity of the piano player.

The new concern, which has just been launched, styles itself the Amphion Piano Player Company, and it has filed incorporation papers with the secretary of state at Albany under the laws of New York, its place of business being Syracuse.

The directors of the company are as follows: G. S. Larrabee, W. L. Smith, F. B. Scott, H. W. Smith and, F. E. Wade, all of Syracuse. The capital stock is $200,000, and each of the directors holds fifty shares.

From The Presto, August 5, 1909

AMPHION MOVES TO SYRACUSE

Playerpiano Industry Now at Elbridge, N. Y., to Have Big New Factory with Increased Capital.

A deal was closed last Saturday whereby the Amphion Pianoplayer Company will move its factory location from Elbridge, N. Y., to Syracuse. The deal was put through quietly and the Amphion Company will begin operations at once in its new location.

The company is composed entirely of Syracusans and the reason for the change in location was to enable the management to obtain an adequate amount of help to keep pace with its constantly increasing business.

Has Two Buildings.

The Amphion Piano Player Company was formerly located in Elbridge with offices in Syracuse. The company now acquires two large brick factory buildings near the Onondaga Pottery Company in West Fayette street, Syracuse, lately occupied by the H. H. Franklin Manufacturing Company. The concern manufactures pneumatic piano playing actions and its business is exclusively with piano manufacturers.

The Amphion actions are the invention of L. B. Doman of Elbridge, who several years ago interested prominent Syracusans in the enterprise. Since the company was organized the trade has increased greatly and it is said that the last six months the factory at Elbridge has been working all the help it could get twelve and a half hours a day. Unable to secure enough help in that village, the officers were forced to seek larger quarters and went to Syracuse as the result of inducements made in regard to location and the prospect of obtaining sufficient help.

The New Plant.

Comprising the new Amphion Company's plant are two large brick buildings with a total of more than 60,000 square feet of floor space. The company has a force of men already at work on the alterations and the plant will be fitted up at once for the company's needs. The plan is to start work immediately or as fast as the equipment can be moved.

The Syracusans interested in the concern are the following: C. W. Tooke, W. L. Smith, H. W. Smith, Monroe C. Smith, F. B. Scott, George S. Larabee and Frank E. Wade. The present officers are: President, Frank E. Wade; vice-president, F. B. Scott; secretary, H. W. Smith; treasurer, C. W. Tooke; general manager and inventor, L. B. Doman. The company will maintain sales offices in New York and Chicago and E. L. Atherton is manager of the former.

From The Presto, January 16, 1926

AMPHION PLAYER ACTION DESCRIBED IN BOOK

Instructive New Booklet Just Issued by the Amphion Piano-Player Action Co. Tells Merits of Product.

“The Amphion Accessible Player Action” is the title of a new booklet of the Amphion Piano Player Co., Syracuse, N. Y., which tells what it is, how it works, why it excels and how to care for it. The title is suggested by the distinctive feature of the Amphion action—the accessibility of every working part and the ease with which any part of the player or piano action may be reached for adjusting, cleaning, re-conditioning, and tuning. Alluding to this phase of the action the booklet says:

“The Amphion Accessible Action is unique among mechanisms of its kind in providing the maximum degree of accessibility to every working part. Every part of this action is instantly accessible for examination, cleaning, and reconditioning. Every part is replaceable with a minimum of effort and expense, should replacement become necessary.

“Adjustments to the player action may be made at all points without disconnecting tubing or otherwise disturbing the installation. The piano may be tuned and regulated without any interference from the player.

“In general, the Amphion Accessible Action provides every feature of interchangeability of parts and every convenience for maintenance to be desired, and in this respect differs radically from most other apparatus of its kind.”

The parts of the Amphion action are clearly pictured with admirable halftones from technical drawings, which make the relation of parts quite plain to the piano buyers.

An enlightening cut shows the air motor and this description in type further helps the non-technical reader: The Amphion Air Motor is constructed with six power pneumatics, thus insuring perfect smoothness of operation. For the operation of the six pneumatics only three slide valves are employed instead of six. The valve plates are metal of a special composition ground to a true flat surface. This material is not subject to corrosion, will not warp, and is not scored by the slide valves. The slide valves of the motor are made of mahogany specially treated to prevent warpage. All other details of the motor represent the best practice known in the construction of this part of the player.

Other features which are described with cuts and type are the bellows, the sustaining pedal pneumatic, the top action assembly, decks and valves, spool box and related parts and transmission.

An instructive part of the booklet tells how to keep an Amphion Player Action in perfect working order. In its lubrication, uses of pump, valve functioning, automatic tracking, brake drum and music roll brake, air motor governor, bellows and adjustments generally are treated in a clear and direct way that increases the usefulness of the booklet.

A copy of the booklet will be sent to all tuners, repair men and others interested on request. The office and factory is at 681-689 Clinton street, Syracuse, New York.
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