Kapsch Choral – Austrian Three-Speaker Tube Radio from 1956/1957

The Kapsch Choral is an Austrian table radio from the mid-1950s, built by Kapsch & Söhne, Telephon- und Telegraphenfabriks-AG, Vienna. With its wooden cabinet, push-button operation and three-loudspeaker arrangement, it belongs to the more refined domestic radio receivers of its period.

Kapsch was one of the important Austrian manufacturers of radio and telecommunication equipment. The company had already entered radio production in the 1920s, and by the 1950s its receivers combined traditional Austrian cabinet design with the technical standards of the FM era. The Choral was offered as a well-equipped household radio with long wave, medium wave, short wave and FM reception.

The original selling price of the Kapsch Choral Wechselstrom was 2,240 Austrian Schillings, which placed it clearly above simple entry-level receivers of the time. The set was therefore aimed at listeners who wanted a technically capable and visually representative radio for everyday home use.

Technical Data

Item	Details
Manufacturer	Kapsch & Söhne, Vienna, Austria
Model	Choral Wechselstrom
Year	1956/1957
Type	Superheterodyne table radio
Wavebands	Long Wave, Medium Wave, Short Wave, FM / UKW
IF frequencies	480 kHz / 10.7 MHz
Valves	ECC85, ECH81, EF89, EABC80, EM80 or EM81, EL84, EZ80
Power supply	AC mains, selectable 110 / 125 / 150 / 220 / 240 V
Loudspeakers	3 loudspeakers
Cabinet	Wooden table cabinet with push buttons
Dimensions	approx. 495 × 335 × 245 mm
Weight	approx. 10 kg
Original price	2,240 ATS

The Choral uses a typical seven-valve FM/AM circuit of the period. Its loudspeaker system consists of a large oval bass speaker, an additional midrange speaker and an electrostatic tweeter. This was intended to provide a fuller and more spacious sound than smaller single-speaker radios.

Condition and Conservation Notes

This Kapsch Choral was not restored after acquisition, because the radio had already been repaired before it entered the collection.

During an earlier repair, the electrolytic capacitors and paper capacitors had already been replaced by modern components. Electrically, this is a practical and functional repair, but it slightly disturbs the historical appearance of the chassis. In many other radios in this collection, the original capacitor bodies were opened, fitted with modern components inside and then carefully closed again, preserving the original visual impression.

In this case, however, it was decided not to undo the previous repair. Reversing the work would have meant removing functional modern parts only for cosmetic reasons. The radio therefore remains a documented example of a previously repaired vintage receiver rather than a fully conservation-style restoration.

Another visible modification is the antenna socket, which had already been replaced by a modern banana socket before the set was acquired. This change was also left as found.

The Kapsch Choral therefore shows two aspects of vintage radio preservation: the original design and quality of a 1950s Austrian receiver, but also the traces of later repairs carried out to keep the set usable.