The Transistor
"A welcome companion to the new recording technology was the transistor, introduced by U.S.-based Bell Telephone in 1948. Until the transistor, the amplification needed for radio broadcasting and electronic recording was tied to cumbersome and fragile vacuum tubes-a component based on Lee de Forest's audion, capable of generating, modulating, amplifying, and detecting radio energy.
The transistor was capable of performing all the functions of the vacuum tube but in a solid environment. As such, it could be made smaller, required less power, and was more durable than the vacuum tube, which was soon replaced. This advance encouraged decentralization in broad-casting and recording, which aided independent production.
On the consumption side, the transistor made possible truly portable radio receivers. Teenagers, who were soon to become an identifiable consumer group, could now explore their developing musical tastes in complete privacy."
Source: Garofaro, Reebee. "From Music Publishing to MP3: Music and Industry in the Twentieth Century." American Music. no. 3 (1999): 318-354. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3052666 . (accessed April 06, 2014).
Image Credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transistor










