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Model: | T31 |
Category: | Tuner |
Suggested Retail Price: | $1000 |
Description: | AM/FM Stereo Tuner |
Manufacturer URL: | Arcam |
Model Picture: | View |
Review by Luminator on August 29, 2008 at 10:50:38 IP Address: 66.47.253.226 | Add Your Review for the T31 |
Because speakers are totally dependent upon the upstream gear, and completely at the mercy of the room, reviews hardly ever translate well into readers' homes. Because tuners rely on available local stations, there's no way of knowing how a tuner will perform in another home, let alone in another city. Only a select few people have those devices which convert a line-level source into a radio signal. This is the right way to gauge how accurate to the source a tuner is, but unfortunately, I'm not one of those select few who has such devices.
So what are we supposed to do? Keep quiet and not share experiences? Or tell others what was used, and at the same time caution that the results may be radically different elsewhere? Tricky, tricky, tricky.
Rather than be silent, I'd rather forge ahead with my take on the Arcam T31 tuner. I'd rather speak up, risk being wrong, and be corrected. Whether I'm accurate or not, at least we'll have something to talk about.
At home or work, internet radio is not for everyone. And many people do not want to invest in Sirius or XM satellite radio. There is still a demand, no matter how small, for AM/FM in the home.
Take, for example, San Francisco's 102.1 KDFC. Supposedly, it's one of the nation's most popular classical music stations. At my parents' place, regardless of tuner or antenna, I've always had to fidget, in order to lock in 102.1. If San Francisco residents can't get the Bay Area's classical music station, is it any wonder why classical music here is dead?! Alas, the Arcam T31 was no different. I had to aim the antenna at odd angles, in order to receive KDFC cleanly.
Oddly enough, when I brought the T31 to a colleague's Financial District office, it (the T31) received KDFC cleanly, regardless of where we threw the T-antenna!
At home in the East Bay, I expended considerable effort, in order to get KDFC. Here was the #1 classical station, and I was getting no signal strength! But turn the Fanfare FM-2G a certain way, and the signal strength meter lit up light a Christmas tree! KDFC then came in clearly and quite beautifully. It was then that I realized that the T31 had the potential to rise above my other tuners. I've blogged about some of those, but for the nitty gritty on the T31, click on the links below:
Part 1 - faceplate, remote
Part 2 - back panel
Part 3 - interconnects, powercords
Part 4 - RDS
Part 5 - antennae, AM, powerline conditioning
If you choose to use the Arcam T31 with throwaway cords, it is going to sound bland and ho-hum. The T31 does respond mildly to powerline conditioning, powercords, and interconnects. While I'm not going to stop you from spending more on accessories than the T31 itself, you do not need $$$$ associated gear for the T31 to perform well. It sounds just fine with the API Power Pack II, Kimber Timbre interconnect, and basic Kimber PowerKord.
Compared to my other tuners, the T31 is refreshingly free of bass boom (unless, of course, that is what the station is broadcasting). The sound can be clean, with nice openness in the middle of the soundstage.
KDFC's sister station, 96.5 KOIT, is a lite rock staple. KOIT is probably ten times as popular as KDFC itself. A real acid test for a tuner is for it to play KOIT all workday long. Is the sound good enough, that office workers don't go nuts, yelling at the office manager to turn it off? Is the sound good enough, that your co-workers stop what they are doing, and take notice of the music? When KOIT played the Corrs' "Breathless" the other day, the answer was a resounding yes. It prompted my Tenant Administrator to remark, "They sound heavier (and better) than Def Leppard." [Mutt Lange has produced both the Corrs and Def Leppard. He added so much distortion to Def Leppard, that they don't sound tough or heavy. Many listeners have opined that if you took away the scratchy vocals, Def Leppard would sound like, well, Shania Twain].
If you bring home a new (unused) T31, be aware that it may take two weeks of being constantly on, in order to burn-in. A new T31 [I've used three samples] will sound smaller, more opaque, not as focused, and less open than a fully burned-in unit. But really, two weeks for a tuner is nothing.
I wish Audio Asylum would put an optional box for "Review Weakness." I would unequivocally state that there is no way of predicting how a tuner will perform anywhere else in the San Francisco Bay Area, let alone your house. Be that as it may, I do feel compelled to report that the Arcam T31 showed me enough strengths, that I feel I should open debate, and encourage others to check it out.
-Lummy The Seahorse
Product Weakness: | display is too small, "Belling Lee" FM coax requires an F-type adapter, no balanced outputs, remote doesn't work very well, AM is nothing special |
Product Strengths: | silver faceplate, no bass boost, plenty of presets, no hum |
Amplifier: | Mark Levinson No. 431, Simaudio W-8 |
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): | Mark Levinson No. 326S, Simaudio P-8 |
Sources (CDP/Turntable): | Adcom GFT-555II, Classe Tuner-1 and CT-10, Fanfare FM FT-1A, Parasound T/DQ-1600 and Halo T3, Sony ST-S550ES |
Speakers: | Sonus Faber Grand Piano Home, Thiel CS2.4, Totem The One |
Cables/Interconnects: | Nordost Odin, XLO Limited Edition |
Music Used (Genre/Selections): | Bay Area radio stations |
Type of Audition/Review: | Product Owner |
You have to first to clear anything past the self-appointed shreiking doorman, who will judge everything and anything you have as CRAP, (w/ multiple exclamation points !!!), unless you follow gods' antenna instructions.
Note that god doesn't live in the USA radio broadcast market.
And that's why this Board scrolls like molasses in winter. Don't bother mentioning cables and PCs here, either. The sycophants will arise with torches lit and pitchforks at the ready...
anywhere else.
But ......
For a majority of posts here, the prior importance of a good antenna, is not understood or wished away.
Instead there's a desire to discuss ONLY their tuner, or a new one, as if this can be sensibly done without reference to their particular reception conditions and needs, and what they know or don't know about that.
Only rarely do we get posts asking for advice about antennas.
The only differing factors in the USA cf Australia with FM results are i) that your band II is much more crowded - with many more stations at many more points of the compass, ii) many more of you live in apartments where an external antenna is either physically impossible OR not allowed - but see the FCC threads here / at TIC. (iii) The percentage of your population at difficult distances from ANY FM station is much higher that Australia.
i) places a very high premium on the selectivity of any domestic 'FM radio system', given the limits to selectivity of FM front ends that applies globally, the requirement for a directional antenna (and a rotator) is even higher that in it is in many cities here.
ii) makes the whole idea of FM as a source questionable, paticularly if no thought or effort is put into the signal reception issue.
iii) Also places a further premium on large* directional antennas and rotators!
*For any yagi or log-periodic antenna to work well (gain and a tight pattern) for FM band II, it has to have spaces between the elements, that are large fractions of the wavelengths involved, so that the interactions that provide gain and a tight pattern can occur. IE A working LPD FM/II antenna will be a couple of metres long or even longer.
Few people understand how useless the signal strength indicators on nearly all tuners are.
I am not going to stop making these points, and I will continue to diss overspending on tuners combined with underspending on the antenna. It is way too common to ignore.
Because I like highish ROI in audio, IE that the music sounds better for a given amount of money. To achieve high ROI's in any field, often requires thought and personal effort before you spend, AND so that you don't overspend. no?!
I will lay off the caps, okay?!
------------------------------------------------
last?!
Not even God can turn your Godar FM2-A (?) antenna into a log-periodic antenna!
As has been reported here and at TIC, your antenna can be outperformed by cheaper items that are the right size for the wavelengths involved. OTOH it is true that none of the better performing items were dimensioned for display on or near your rack, and SFA of their build goes on appearance.
IME people don't like being told that they've wasted money. Or are planning too!
Life's tough, isn't it!?
-----------------------------------------------------------
WarmestTimbo in Oz
The Skyptical Mensurer and Audio ScroungerAnd gladly would he learn and gladly teach - Chaucer. ;-)!
'Still not saluting.'
http://www.theanalogdept.com/tim_bailey.htm
I've been on AA since almost the beginning, so Ive seen pretty much everything over the years. I actually appreciate what you are offering in wisdom, even if it rubs some the wrong way, because you are of course correct. However, as a counterpoint, some of the appeal of tuners is the technical geek factor, which has nothing to do with actual performance in the field. Some of us are just RF nerds and will spend inordinate amounts of cash on tuners just because we can. Guilty here. Though, I have read enough of your posts to feel like I need to make at least an effort to find something to replace the fanfare whip I have hanging from my eaves now that I have another new and very expensive tuner on the way. I do have some multipath issues with a few stations that I would like to resolve.
I've always found this to happen, when going from an omni or T-dipole to a directional antenna.Yes, even for people within Losight of our big telecom tower with no obvious reflections from hills or buildings, and who in every case thought their FM results were just fine.
What improves? the music becomes more like real music being made by real people, in a real space. Interviews gain intimacy. Much better on nuances, the voice working, and the coherence of 'the sound space as the music happens in it' !? ;-)!
Thankyou for the thoughtful response, and here's more in the same vein.
For me it's the quality of the music being made when I'm listening, and being always on a tightish budget, the money has to go where it would do the most good.
I am fortunate indeed that I don't need a rotator! ;-) both stations I can be bothered with - and most of the others - being on one big tower on a biggish hill. Canberra is a very spread out city, and it's inside the Great Dividing Range. There are TV and FM repeaters in the valley behind us, which has 1/3rd of the pop'n in it.
I will soon be investigating the potential for using the space under my pitched tiled roof, either the existing FM duty (band1.5to2.5) tenna , OR a longish rhombic wire job. ? I'm getting older and my big high mast is very heavy.
I've never been into the technology in some isolated way, because I've always approached things holistically, which made/makes me unpopular! Especially with 'educated idiots' and 'managers' - ;-)!
At 18, in the late 1960's and offered an NUScholarship, I'd discovered that I wasn't alone and it was a legitimate way of seeing things with new academic cred. ...... ?
I wanted to study 'systems', back when you had to wait until you were doing a maths or Science Masters / even a Phd!!!!! I HATED maths, back then!
I did eventually finish up with a Bachelors in Management Science with a systems major, and was a tutor on salary before graduating. mid-life! It's what 'the system identified' does, or makes possible, or better, for us humans, that is my real way of being.
In this case for the impact on me/Trisha of the music and the extent to which the recorded sound allows me 'to be there', and nuances and expression are orthogonal* with sound space coherence, JBTWay.
So technology needs to be understood to that extent.
As a former soldier, I am boggled by how long it took for the term 'weapon's system' to gain currency in the defence field and still at how little understanding of it's rich meaning many of them do still manifest.
My audio path? I discovered music as a 9-10yr old boy chorister in a cathedral, and within 3 years also discovered audio through people in the choir / the ABC recording us - with one stereo mike. And, listening to us# and whole services off 2-gen R2R tapes on serious gear, which was and still is high-end. [But, I'd use better caps and bigger PSU's, and a VCR for tape - ;-)!]
# me?!!!! I was a Leader by then and did solos, and was I nervous, or what!!!!????
So, for me it's all about whether a home sound system can make me suspend disbelief by taking me to the place and with the players e.g. whether I can hear all the singers working!
FM can do this - at least down here in Aussie on ABC Classic FM - and very well indeed with direct broadcasts of performances, and studio interviews.
I believe - despite the FR limits and the DR limits - it's because you are not listening to one or more overlaid copyings, unlike CD's, cassette, LP's, N-genR2R's, and etc, where there can be many or even just one.
In our case we ARE listening to an ADConversion and DAConversion - using mpeg2-'s audio layer but at 512 kbps - AND optimised for starting transients / the attacks of all notes.
It is my experience that a directional antenna makes such results reliably likely and that nothing else does. Especially on stereo* where the MPX process is easily affected by multipath, thus screwing with the fine stuff/space. nestpar?
In the circs, any other approach to audio is going to seem a bittuva wank to me, isn't it!?
So watch out ;-)!
;~)!
click below and give ABC FM a go, maaate! the listen on line button is high, and LEFT!
WarmestTimbo in Oz
The Skyptical Mensurer and Audio ScroungerAnd gladly would he learn and gladly teach - Chaucer. ;-)!
'Still not saluting.'
http://www.theanalogdept.com/tim_bailey.htm
Hi, Luminator:
KDFC is not the only choice in classical music programming, but may be the ONLY successful commercially run one these days in the SF Bay Area, aside from several better stations which occasionally feature classical music from time-to-time. My criticism with the KDFC approach is that they tend to play mostly the "standard = popular" classical repertoire and in most situations, tend to feature very short movements of much larger works, rather than concentrating on an entire piece by a given composer.
There are exceptins to this, however.
If you like experimental music or more modern compositional content, consider tuning in to Sarah Cahill's "Then and Now", a fine program she produces and airs over KALW, San Francisco.
I have provided the URL below.
Enjoy classical music while you can, at least on Bay Area FM radio as it still exists.
Richard Links
Berkeley, CA
"totally dependent upon the upstream gear" - this is also true of tuners, in re antennas, no?FM at its best, from a minimal processing station relaying a live simply miked acoustic concert, via a low multipath passive directional antenna, and driving the tuner well past full limiting, IS a true high-end source.
BOTH the MD and Fanfare whip antennas are repackaged AND (over/)repriced marine whips with SFA performance down in the GOOD part of the bandwidth in the USA. And, crap anyway on the whole. I've had an FM2G here for years, and all I use it for is to show people how crap they are.
Guaranteed to lower the ROInvestment from even the most basic tuner.
WHY stick one on a GOOD tuner!
If you really can't install an "I AM serious about FM" antenna -
IE a directional antenna with a rotator, for your spread out stations, when/where you very clearly NEED one ......
Why BOTHER with FM at all!
I've been to SF, and though there are some good stations, it is a very hilly place and a directional antenna on a rotator strikes me as kind of an OBVIOUS requirement.
GarbageIGOut
Considering any tuner on its own, without reference to reception conditions applying where its owner lives/ the antenna it has / the one it might NEED, seems to me to be mere pissing about.
AND / OR wanting an expensive tuner, to display, and whose price tag you could boast about.
Warmest
Timbo in Oz
The Skyptical Mensurer and Audio ScroungerAnd gladly would he learn and gladly teach - Chaucer. ;-)!
'Still not saluting.'
http://www.theanalogdept.com/tim_bailey.htm
Granted what you're describing is the best but sometimes it's just not needed.
Example: I live in midtown Manhattan on a high floor. Tons of strong signals, though multipath distortion can be a problem sometimes.
I use 2 antennas and switch between them on my modded Onkyo T9090II, including the Fanfare FG2G. Works superbly, crystal clear, drives the tuner past limiting, etc. etc. I would have little use for anything more.
*? Pointed at just ONE desired station, and then tell us how much better it sounds sans multipath. Which all your signals will be full of, using the whip at least!
Sooo, what is antenna two?!
I'm NOT expecting that you won't hear a difference.
Why so? Multipath, even when not directly OR grossly audible - like it can be in the car, esp. in a city! - STILL raises TND and veils nuance and expression. Even switching to mono doesn't always help, either. So, eliminating it as a potential factor can turn FM from a basic background wallpaper source into a high-end source, if the station is good enough.
A rhombic is almost undetectable, by wimmin, once up ON the ceiling
[just don't do it on the carpet anymore MAAAATE! ;-)!.]
Given big-enough* room/s, and some luck on the orientation of your *suitable rooms, they can even outperform your common Yagi because they get quite long sides. You can use single white insulated wires OR use TV ribbon (and paint it) which doubles the gain.
I know that there are only a very few truly GOOD sounding stations in the USA, at least in SF where I was for 9 days and Baltimore where I was for 11 days a year later. I still have the Headroom 'Traveller' pack, an int'l radio-walkman, and CD-man, and carried a rolled up T-tenna, thumb tacks and blu-tak.
I now realise it should have been a rhombic!
Me???!!! a perfectionist!? ;-)!!!
WarmestTimbo in Oz
The Skyptical Mensurer and Audio ScroungerAnd gladly would he learn and gladly teach - Chaucer. ;-)!
'Still not saluting.'
http://www.theanalogdept.com/tim_bailey.htm
Firstly, you already sent me the rhombic plans a few years ago. Thanks again. But, good as it might be, I'm not inclined to install it. Just not doable for a range of reasons.
My second antenna is a simple wire dipole. Works well also. Remember, I'm just a few blocks from many of the FM broadcast locations. Plus, sorry to say, I just don't listen as much as I used to, despite having 20 or more good FM stations, including the world's best jazz station WBGO.
Nice review Lummy. I truly enjoy your writing and reviews but I place Arcam products in general mostly in mid-fi territory mainly based on my less than impressive opinion on the AVP700 pre/pro.
I dare you to compare that Arcam T31 against the $279 Marantz ST6000 tuner. I dare ya! It will likely blow that Arcam away. ;-)
Not to mention dozens of Japanese tuners produced in the '70s, available used for a fraction of 1k.
At the thousand dollar price point, you could/should be looking at some of the best tuners ever produced, the likes of which we'll probably never see again-if you think good fm will be around long enough to warrant the price.
"Dammit..."
;-)!
WarmestTimbo in Oz
The Skyptical Mensurer and Audio ScroungerAnd gladly would he learn and gladly teach - Chaucer. ;-)!
'Still not saluting.'
http://www.theanalogdept.com/tim_bailey.htm
I was all warm and fuzzy about it until I saw the price. I guess dollars aren't what they used to be.
Speaking of Marantz, Abe, I read your recommendation for the 6000 over in the Tuner section. Thanks for that. I checked the Marantz website to find that the current offering is the ST7000 for $400. They claim its all of the 6000 and more, with the addition of XM reception to the usual FM and AM.
I'm sorely tempted to get one. Any opinions?
here's an opinion served up with unashamed self-promotion & spam. :> ) check the prices & specs for the latest st7001:
http://us.marantz.com/Products/1515.asp
then, compare them with marantz's best tuna, the st-17:
http://us.marantz.com/Products/617.asp
the specs are way better for the st-17. almost an order of magnitude lower distortion, & 6-12db better signal to noise ration & separation. no, it doesn't have xm. but, i have found xm to be completely unlistenable for serious listening for even a minute. as background, it's problematic for longer than 15-30 minutes - it gives me a headache.
now, back to the st-17, i know, it lists for $750. that's where the spam comes in - buy mine, (in black), at a fraction of the price! :> ) i got mine, freshly checked over by ray "ain't this stuff fun" mcdonald, over at the yahoo tuna forum. comes w/his records, notes, & manuals. and remote. as to sonics, it is good. right up there, close to my best. and, i own ~25 tunas, some *extremely* good - like modded refurb'd hk citation 18, sansui tu-x1, sansui tu-9900. no, the st-17 ain't as good as those, but it is amazingly close. (as are quite a few other tunas i own, actually - you do *not* need to break the bank for quality tuna, imo.)
so, if you are wanting a newer modern tuna that still delivers the goods, & don't wanna break the bank, you could do a lot worse than this - make me an offer. ;~)
thanks,
doug s.
...but if it is in fact the ST6000 with the added bonus of XM, then I say go for it. On the other hand, if you have no need for XM, you might be able to find a good ST6000 for less money.
Be ware though that some ST6000 fluorescent dot-matrix displays may have a couple "dead" dots on older used units. If you buy one used, make sure to ask the seller if every dot in the display is 100% good and not "dead" or dim relative to the others.
I have two ST6000's. The one that I bought new has a perfect display. The used unit came with a couple dead fluorescent dots. Both sound wonderful.
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