5304C with single gong ?

[Dan/Panther]

Did any of the 5304C sets with a B2A ringer only have 1 gong like in the photo ? The set is dated 11-51.

D/P

[AE_Collector]

No idea really but I'm going to say that someone wanted to cut the ring volume in half!

Terry

[Dan/Panther]

That's funny you should mention that. Because 302's typically did not have ringer volume adjustments, the 5302 had them on some versions but not all, why not just turn down the ringer volume ?
D/P

[paul-f]

The loudness of the B1 ringers was adjusted by loosening the gongs and rotating them to change the spacing.  The Bell System did it this way to keep users from tinkering with them.  They wanted to make sure the level was always set high enough for the surroundings that the user would never miss a call.  Most calls generated revenue, so a missed call was a missed revenue opportunity.

Eventually, the decreasing revenue per call and increasing cost of service calls to adjust the bell volume tilted the decision to user-adjustable ringers.