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Vintage Asylum Classic gear from yesteryear; vintage audio standing the test of time. |
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In Reply to: Need a little tuner advice my friends posted by Russ57 on December 31, 2003 at 11:05:33:
I think you've already answered your question: you miss the uniquely musical presentation of a fully tubed tuner.Selectivity and noise levels aside (the traditional weaknesses of tubed topology), I doubt that any solid state example will properly recreate that same sonic enviromment for you. SS is way less noisy with a better quieting threshold you say? My CD front end is vastly quieter than my vinyl rig. Guess which sounds better?
A tubed tuner with a top-notch front end is as sensitive as any SS model you'll ever find, usually more so. I've gotten hard to capture stations on a 500C with a butter knife for an antenna that a separate Magnum-Dynalab or Fanfare (not to mention an Onkyo or Yamaha) couldn't find with a large roofmount. That's the beauty of a magnificent Amperex flying in its prime. For enjoying distance on an uncluttered FM dial, high sensitivity is an essential ingredient, no doubt. But it's only about 10% as important as the antenna array and downlead in any DX setup. So don't expect ANY tuner to capture that obscure college band station if you have a garbage antenna SYSTEM (array AND downlead/distribution network). Recommendation number one might be to invest that first $100 in a better antenna and downlead.
If you really like the 400, then you would probably be enraptured with an FM-50B or KM-60, both of which can be had in the sub-$100 range, are superlative MPX performers and models of dependability. Scott also made some wonderful units, but are usually a little over $100 as there were fewer of them made or still extent. The Dyna FM-3 is another sub-$100 choice, but I find the above Fishers decidedly superior to it. One problem is that the prices are going up, as more and more folks discover the secret. A primo KM-60 used to be a $25 bargain. I can see the day coming when folks will be bidding $250 for them on Ebay.
But to get it right with any tubed choice, you may have to spring for a little cap and rectifier work, perhaps a few fresh tubes, and an alignment, after which it should be rock dependable for another 40 years.
Still onboard? I'm sure there are a line of SS tuner enthusiasts pointing out that you won't have to deal with any of that if you go SS.
Don't buy into the common myth that tubes are less reliable or more troublesome than SS models. It's all about the instrument's age - ANY instrument. Yeah, some black SS box may not need any service right NOW like a tubed unit will. However, EVERY electronic instrument, tube or solid state, requires reconditioning services after so many years. It only happens that most tubed instruments are just older than most solid state ones, so need that service sooner - usually now. In another several years, you may find yourself recapping that "maintenance free" vintage transistor tuner as it reaches the terminal age. And believe me, those SS models have one hell of a lot more electrolytics to replace than a tubed model. Did you know that SS units require realignment once you mess with them? And transistors DO wear out. Again, it's a matter of time. With a tubed model, you can do it all now and be ahead of the maintenance curve for a very long time.
People fear what they don't understand. A transistorized tuner is a real easy choice right now because they're newer, still "plug-and-play" and they purportedly sport better "specs". And my nephew's Sony HT receiver has better specs than my 800B. Which would you rather listen to? The typical enthusiast really doesn't understand the relative circuit simplicity and strengths of tubed instruments, so there is a natural, but completely unjustified, prejudice against using them.
But the real and ultimate proof of an instrument's worth is always in the listening, as you seem to have discovered.
Good luck!
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Follow Ups
- Perhpas more than a little advice. - sgmlaw 12:14:38 12/31/03 (2)
- Re: Perhpas more than a little advice. - merrylander 06:34:23 01/02/04 (0)
- Re: Thank you for saving me from myself..... - Russ57 12:51:24 12/31/03 (0)
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