Ok I have to try a tube tuner. What i'd like is nice cosmetics and a reliable tuner that sounds tubey, not too mushy but definitely tubey. It doesn't need to be super sensitive as I have a good antenna and plenty of signal strength here. I'd like to keep this under 350.00. I've been thinking of doing this for some time and I can spare the cash right now considering I'm unemployed. Gotta love America! Any help is appreciated. Thanks

Dynaco FM-3. Best little tube tuner ever made. Won't give you AM, but who needs it anyway. Easy to work on, easy to resto, real easy to listen to. You should be able to buy several for that amount of money. I only own 2, another "backup" would be nice.

Sherwood made some very fine sounding tube tuners and they don't cost a fortune. As to whether it has nice cosmetics or not....that's in the eye of the beholder.

http://www.geocities.com/frleand/ClassicAudio/Pages/Sherwood.html

Harmon Kardon Citation IIIX of which i just so happen to have one :)

The audio quality of the Sherwood tube tuners (at least the mono ones, of which I have two examples) is excellent. RF performance, again in mono, is fine too, and they are not expensive. I cannot recommend them highly enough, in terms of bang-for-buck.

Ok I have to try a tube tuner. What i'd like is nice cosmetics and a reliable tuner that sounds tubey, not too mushy but definitely tubey. It doesn't need to be super sensitive as I have a good antenna and plenty of signal strength here. I'd like to keep this under 350.00. I've been thinking of doing this for some time and I can spare the cash right now considering I'm unemployed. Gotta love America! Any help is appreciated. Thanks
Click on http://www.fmtunerinfo.com/tubetuners.html

The Tuner Information Center is, IMHO, the single best source of info on FM tuners anywhere. They give high marks to the Sherwood that others have recommended, but note you'll probably have to do a little updating and repair to any Sherwood you pick up. And the stereo tube Sherwoods are more expensive than the mono tube Sherwoods.

I've no personal experience with Sherwoods but people who's ears I trust like 'em a lot when they are fixed and aligned.

Another great tube tuner I have listened to and can enthusiastically recommend is the McIntosh MR65B, but it will come close to or exceed your budget. IMHO it gives you the best sound for the least amount of money of any of the McIntosh tuners - I think the prices tend to be a bit lower on this model because it doesn't have the classic styling of the later McIntosh models, but re-capped and aligned, it's one heck of a good-sounding tube tuner. You can probably find one for $350 or less, but it's going to need an alignment and maybe some caps and other parts replaced and this will push up the price.

A final factor to consider is IBOC: No stock tube tuner has very good adjacent channel selectivity and if you have an IBOC station next to an FM station you want to listen to, it could be a real problem with a tube tuner unless your tuner can be modded with more narrow IF filters. I'd research this before I plunked down the money for any tube tuner.:cool:

sherwood is also a recommendation of mine. s-3000II & III are mono tunas that sound excellent w/a mpx decoder, & are usually ~$50-$100. really quite decent reception. some of the III's had built-in mpx's awreddy. the iv & v's all had mpx's if i am not mistaken. still should be found for <$200

i also recommend the fisher fm90r & fm90x. really nice sound there, too. also need decoders for stereo. should be ~$50-$200, depending on condition. really beautiful tuna, imo.

the fm100 & km60 (kit iteration of the fm100) are also supposed to be excellent sounding fisher stereo tuna's, but i have never heard 'em. also should be ~$100-$400, depending on condition.

i also think sound near as good as it gets can be had from a stromberg carlson sr445 w/a mpx decoder, but the reception is really a step down from the others. again, this is <$50.

i have never heard the citation lll/lllx, but, based upon what others have said about it, & based upon how good i know the s/s citation 18 is, i suspect grumpy is correct about it. but, i have also heard it should have a good going-over, cuz it can have problems if not serviced recently. i have seen prices anywhere from $100-$400...

the scott 310-series mono tunas w/mpx decoder is also a good choice, but i think these give up a bit of sonic bliss (not much) for better reception - imo. $50-$200, except for the stereo 310e, which is prolly above your budget if in decent shape.

now, if yure patient, you *may* be able to find a decent mcintosh mr65b for ~$350 or a bit less, but their popularity (and price) seems to be on the rise. a beautiful looking thing w/really nice sound, & ok reception.

for best sound/best reception on the cheap, the sherwood is the one. for best sound, w/mediocre reception on the cheap, the s-c sr445 is the one. imo again.

doug s.

Lafayette/Kenwood tuners are generally sensitive and very cheap, if you do not mind re-capping them first.

I'll echo the recommendations for a Sherwood tube tuner. I have a S2000 mono tuner (it has a jack for a multiplex adapter) from the late 50s. The quality of sound is so good, that I don't miss the "stereo" aspect of the signal. It sounds as sweet as when new.

I've heard many good things about the sherwoods too, but have never heard a well functioning unit myself, so I cannot meaningfully comment on them.

My personal tube tuna of choice is the Mac MR-67. These are absolutely BEAUTIFUL sounding units. I can't recommend these highly enough, assuming that you are in a strong signal area (not the sticks). :thmbsp:

I have a Sherwood on loan at the moment. It is mono, not sure model number. It sounds very good to me. I have'nt missed stereo one bit and I thought I would.

Gary

Scott 350-D. Beautiful sounding stereo tuner that's ended the hunt for me, I'm done looking.

I have a pioneer aft-14 that I really like the sound of. Don't know if I would call it attractive though . . .

Thanks for the recs here. I may also check out the MR 65 also. I've already taken into consideration an alignment and some caps will need being done. Sounds like the Sherwoods may be the best way to go. I'm surprised that Fisher isn't in here as I remember them but I'll go by what you guys tell me.

Fisher's are good, but the nice ones are expensive. Ditto Scotts.

Scott 350-D. Beautiful sounding stereo tuner that's ended the hunt for me, I'm done looking.
bill, don't give up so easy! :D scott aficianados almost unanimously say the the 310-series scotts are the best. if yure looking for a stereo tuna, it's the 310e, or a 4310 (way-spendy; almost as good as the 310e), or a 4312. otherwise, it's the mono-series 310's w/a 335 decoder. then there's the fact that many (include me in this group) feel the sherwoods, fishers, macs, sound better than the scotts.

doug s., so many tunas, so little time! :)

Thanks for the recs here. I may also check out the MR 65 also. I've already taken into consideration an alignment and some caps will need being done. Sounds like the Sherwoods may be the best way to go. I'm surprised that Fisher isn't in here as I remember them but I'll go by what you guys tell me.
re: mr65, this is a tiny bit different than the mr65b, tho i don't know the performance implications (if any). i do know that the built-in mpx decoder was an option on the 65 & standard on the 65b.

fisher *is* in here, at least in my book, but it will cost a bit more than the sherwoods. the mono fm90r or fm90x are hard to beat in the appearance department, imo. get one hotted up w/a good mpx decoder... but, sherwoods will be as good, imo, & likely a bit cheaper, both for their mono & stereo iterations, compared to the stereo/mono fishers...

ymmv,

doug s.

Im impresesed-- for the money spent-- with the sherwood that just returned from radio x. Nice non fatiguing sound. Great mid range.

All depends on your budget. the sherwood is good but as they say the mac 71 is mo better But it costs about 5x-6x as much

But it costs about 5x-6x as much

More than that, IME! :-(

More than that, IME! :-(
the mr65b is the one to get, imo - the better four-ganged pot like the mr71, & the better back end of the mr67. also, cheaper. better-looking, too, imo; tho i am in the minority on this.

ymmv,

doug s.

There's a very clean Scott 370 on eBay currently, with wood case:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=010&item=200013388613&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&rd=1

Anyone have an idea of how it sounds or its general reputation? It is supposedly the BOTL for Scott stereo tube tuners.

If you should encounter General Electric FA 11, you can buy without hesitation. Lovely sonics.

General Electric FA 11
I don't doubt you, but it sounds like it should be a turbofan engine for a commercial jet! :-)

http://www.turbokart.com/images/ge90_nacelle.jpg
http://www.turbokart.com/images/GE90.gif

Sorry but I do not have a camera. I have tried to get information on this GE but without success. I bought it about 2 years ago at a thrift in Coney Island and was astounded by its sound. IT is pretty. The front dial is black and is bordered with material that could be mistaken for gold gilded metal. The outputs at the back are marked Lo, HI and Multiplex. It is a am, fm tube tuner.

GE made some moderately cool hi-fi components ca. very late 1950's... they do turn up on popular on-line auction sites. I actually may have info in an old catalog; I shall check.

Having a high-bypass turbofan would be pretty cool, too... ya gotta admit.