About the Company
Movicorder was a brand of consumer-grade reel-to-reel tape recorders produced in the early 1960s, most notably around 1961–1964. These machines were typically tube-based designs targeting home audio enthusiasts, not professional studios.
Production History
Era of Manufacture: Early 1960s
Movicorder machines were introduced circa 1961 and remained available through about 1964.
They were part of the wave of consumer reel-to-reel recorders that proliferated in the post-war period as tape recording became affordable and popular with hobbyists.
Country of Origin
Movicorder models like the A-2 suggest manufacturing and design origins associated with Denmark, with some models documented in Danish advertisements and publications of the period.
Market Position
These were consumer-level machines, distinct from high-end or professional decks from brands like Revox or Akai.
Most units used tube electronics and offered basic functionality suitable for home recording and playback.
Known Models
The main documented Movicorder model is:
Movicorder A-2 — a tube-based reel-to-reel recorder typically supporting 3¾ and 7½ ips tape speeds, up to 5″ reels, with multi-voltage operation and 1–2 track recording.
Additional references (vintage ads) also mention earlier models like Movicorder Stereo A Two, indicating stereo capability and multi-speed operation in late 1950s–early 1960s units.
Technical Features (Typical)
Movicorder reel-to-reel decks generally had:
Tube-based analog electronics
Multi-speed capability (e.g., 3¾ and 7½ ips)
Two-track operation suitable for playback and recording
Consumer-oriented performance with modest frequency response and fidelity, typical of early-1960s home tape recorders
Decline and Legacy
Production appears to have ended around the mid-1960s (circa 1964), likely as solid-state designs and cassette formats (compact cassettes) began to overtake traditional reel-to-reel recorders in the consumer market.
As a relatively obscure brand, Movicorder has limited documentation, and surviving machines are primarily known today through vintage audio collector registries rather than comprehensive company histories.