Braun TS 1

Object Biography

In this day and age, electronic devices such as smartphones, laptops and even TVs are built for not one specific purpose or task. They are built to surf the internet, listen to music, to enhance the bureaucratic work workflow, and even listen to the radio. If we turn back the clock 65 years ago, devices tell another story. They were built for one purpose, and one purpose only. In case of radios back in the day, they were built to be listened to. They were like little magic boxes that brought all sorts of entertainment and information to people’s homes. They connected people to the outside world, which made them feel part of something exciting and interesting. The simplicity of the radio made them something special back in the day. But there is one German company that started to think outside of the box. They wanted to produce their radio devices to fulfil not only the task to be listened to, but how they were perceived by their users as well. This very company was the BRAUN company, know today for their grooming products. Before we dive into their mastery, which emerged during the 50s, let’s have a look on how the BRAUN company came to be. In 1921, in a small workshop in Frankfurt Germany, Max Braun, a young and aspiring engineer developed a great interest in electronic devices. This led him to open his own little and humble workshop, simply called “BRAUN”. From there on, he set his motivation and ambition towards the engineering of radios. With that, he navigates his company and himself towards the future of broadcasting. But this very future got covered in dark clouds, as the national socialist party (NSDAP) in Germany gained enough power to put Adolf Hitler in the space of a chancellor in 1933. As Propaganda, especially Propaganda through radio, was a speciality of the NSDAP, the BRAUN company couldn’t remain neutral, and had to be politicised. Despite these tragic circumstances, BRAUN was able to claim several personal successes in the years to come. In 1933, they established new factories outside of Germany: in France and the United Kingdom. A year later, in 1934, they changed their company logo, to the famous BRAUN logo we know today with its long “A” in the middle. At the World Fair 1937, which was hold in Paris, BRAUN was awarded a gold medal for special achievements in the phonographic industry. In 1938, BRAUN had around 1000 employees working under them. With that, BRAUN was one of the biggest electronic devices manufacturer in Germany, who managed to make a name for themselves inside and outside Germany. These achievements would soon become fade memories of a better time, as the second World War unfolds itself in Europe. BRAUN was put under the services of the German military. From here on they ha to produce different radio devices, which established and maintain the connection between Headquarters and soldiers on the front. This was a major change, in comparison by whom BRAUNs products were used before: From citizens, young and old, listening to their devices within their comforts of home, to soldiers, sitting in dark trenches listening to their next possible death order. With the approach of the allies from the west and the red army from the east, the bombings arrived. Major German cities were destroyed and flattened to ground level. During these bombings, two large BRAUN factories were targeted, as they were classified as German war-production. With the end of the war, many hindrances and problems stood in front of BRAUN. First big problem was their number of employees: it shrunk down to a tenth, of what they had before. And with only a hundred employees left, the company could not get back on track how they used to be before the war. With their major factories in ruin, the company lacked space, tools, and materials. And not to forget, the constant pressure of the allies and the Soviet Union in Germany limited the freedom of the company. As these circumstances weren’t tragic enough, the founder of the company, Max Braun, died of a sudden heart attack. Still mourning the lost of their aspiring leader, BRAUN tried to go back to its roots: producing radios, not for war, but for entertainment and push them on the market. Despite their position, BRAUN managed to have a good start, but they were not competitive enough to compete with other big companies. BRAUN realized that their radios were built with the newest technology, but they still lacked something. BRAUN had to reorganise! They started to hire employees with different educational background, such as Hans Gugelot from the University of Design in Ulm, Herbert Hirche and Wilhelm Wagenfeld. The company started to visit different countries as well, such as Italy and the USA, in order to collect new ideas for their products. During one of these trips, BRAUN witnessed the better technology within radios of the US. This pushed the company to hire younger scientists such as Wolfgang Hasselbach, to bring new ideas and concepts to the company. They didn’t stop with only that. BRAUN even started to work on a completely different field. They collaborated with the institute of Demoscopy in Allensbach and observed their own consumers in more detail. The goal was to better understand their contemporary consumers and to know what people at that time were looking for when buying a new radio. New ideas and a new way of thinking was on the daily menu of BRAUNs organisation. And the result was an entirely new series of radios that saw the light of day. And the radios didn’t disappoint, they were an instant success, which pushed the company to produce newer and better versions or variations of the new series. With this success, the company was back in the game and kept producing, improving, and remodelling, and their old prestige was restored. But there is one radio that sparked the biggest interest within the consumers: The Braun TS – 1. This radio was one of the earlier models in this particular series. Coming out in 1956 between the G 11 and the PK 1, the radio presented a wooden and light brown casing. The front is light grey, to maintain a certain colour scheme of the radio, which aimed to be not too noticeable and blend in with its surroundings. The backside of the radio presents labels and keywords to explain to its user how the different sockets work and how to use them. The radio is also standing on two small feet, to give it a more “furniture” style. The radios design can be described in one word: simple. It shows that BRAUNs designers worked with the idea “less is more”. How does the radio function on the inside? Surprisingly, the radio didn’t introduce groundbreaking new technology. It is rather “basic” for a radio at its time. Nevertheless, the radio can show off one interesting technical feature: the creation of “3-Dimensional” sound. To achieve this, BRAUN installed not only one speaker to the front of the radio, but also on the sides. To maintain the radios looks from the outside, the most important thing for the radio, the antenna, was fixed on the upper inside of the radio, by sticking aluminium foil on the sealing of the radio. So, the goal was to create a radio and a piece of furniture at the same time, without losing any of the technical manufacturing within it. But there is one question that sill remains. What makes the TS – 1, as well as its brothers and sisters of the series so special? Keeping in mind that BRAUN struggled to remain competitive on the market with its radios, why did this series in particular bring in so much success? Let me give you an example! Imagine you are buying a brand-new car. It’s affordable and it’s design is stunning. But on the inside on the other hand, it runs on a very old engine. For the consumer at the end of the day it doesn’t matter. The car runs and gets its job done, while it looks pretty. The idea for the TS – 1 was exactly this very approach: Pretty design, while “running” on old technology. The Braun TS – 1 is the technical result of decades of research within the science of radios and broadcasting, but also the beginning of a new, open-minded view on objects and their daily interaction with their owners. BRAUNs interesting approach of creating a team of experts from different educational backgrounds to bring forth not a technical product, not an art product, but a product that is pleasant to look at, is pleasant to exhibit in your comfortable home and fulfils the task of a radio. The TS – 1 was more than just a radio. It proved that the simple task of a radio isn’t only dependent on its technical mechanism, but also how it was presented and how it was displayed before the eyes of its potential buyer. With that, it became more than a radio: It became a part of the homes of many families, and their memories.

Images

Video Object Biography

https://vimeo.com/881736299/6b787d15db?share=copy

Literature

• Deutsches Hifi-Museum. http://www.hifimuseum.de/braun-historie-1.html.
• GILFILLAN, Daniel. Pieces of Sound: German Experimental Radio. University of Minnesota. URL: https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/unilu-ebooks/detail.action?docID=496592&query=radio+history#.
• HOFFMANN, Tobias. Radiogeschichte als Designegeschichte. Berlin 2021. URL: https://www.mfk-berlin.de/wp-content/uploads/04-Tobias-Hoffmann_Radiogeschichte-als-Designgeschichte.pdf.
• Horst Kaupp ist die Seele der BraunSammlung. In: Zaunus-Nachrichten. 19.11.2014. URL: https://www.taunus-nachrichten.de/kronberg/aktuelles/kronberg/horst-kaupp-seele-braunsammlung-id16735.html.
• Le Grand Livre de la TSF .URL: https://www.doctsf.com/braun-ts-3-a-8-u/f70501/o=y
• POLSTER, Bernd. Braun: 50 Jahre Produktinnovation. Köln 2012.
• PUDDINGTON, Arch. Broadcasting Freedom: The Cold War Triumph of Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty. Kentucky, 2000. URL: https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/unilu-ebooks/detail.action?docID=1915004&query=radio+history#.

Archival Material

• Foerderkreis Braunsammlung. URL: https://www.foerderkreis-braunsammlung.de/de/kontakt.html.
• Hifi Archive: 1957 Braun Radio, Phono, TV. URL: https://www.hifi-archiv.info/Braun/1957%20Braun%20Radio,%20Phono,%20TV/index.html.
• Internet Archive: 1954 Braun Katalog. URL: https://archive.org/details/1954-braun-katalog_202205/page/n5/mode/2up.
• Internet Archive: 1957 Braun Neuheiten. URL: https://archive.org/details/1957-braun-neuheiten_202205/page/n1/mode/2up.
• Internet Archive: 1957 Braun radio, Phono, TV. URL: https://archive.org/details/1957-braun-radio-phono-tv/page/n19/mode/2up.
• Internet Archive: 1958 Braun Programm. URL: https://archive.org/details/1958-braun-programm/page/n7/mode/2up.
• Radiomuseum. TS1: URL: https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/braun_ts1.html#images.
• RadioWiki: Braun TS31. URL: https://p393186.webspaceconfig.de/wiki/index.php?title=Braun_TS31.
• WOLTER Albert. Privat Collection.