Those recordings aren't bad. The mechanical cylinder recording process was reasonably good, as was the duplication process; it was mechanical playback that introduced most of the distortion, because the playback mechanism was too massive to reproduce high frequencies well.
The Library of Congress has a machine which can read scratched and broken records, by optically scanning and building a 3D model of the surface.[1] But undamaged cylinders don't need it. They can be read out with a stereo cartridge and a suitable stylus.
Edison cylinders and records are vertically recorded; the groove bottoms go up and down, not left and right. Later records (RCA Victor, etc) were horizontally recorded. Stereo records are both; the groove format is called 45-45 Westrex, with two axes, both 45 degrees from vertical. This has the nice property that mono records played on stereo players, although one channel is phase-reversed.
If you want a cylinder phonograph, they're easily available on eBay for about $500.
The Library of Congress has a machine which can read scratched and broken records, by optically scanning and building a 3D model of the surface.[1] But undamaged cylinders don't need it. They can be read out with a stereo cartridge and a suitable stylus.
Edison cylinders and records are vertically recorded; the groove bottoms go up and down, not left and right. Later records (RCA Victor, etc) were horizontally recorded. Stereo records are both; the groove format is called 45-45 Westrex, with two axes, both 45 degrees from vertical. This has the nice property that mono records played on stereo players, although one channel is phase-reversed.
If you want a cylinder phonograph, they're easily available on eBay for about $500.
[1] http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1185184...