Superampman
AK Member
Honest question guys n' gals. I'm seriously considering a vintage tuner but wondering if it's just redundant. How does internet radio compare? Reception is obviously not an issue but what about overall sq?
Redundant or not it will look good won't it?Honest question guys n' gals. I'm seriously considering a vintage tuner but wondering if it's just redundant. How does internet radio compare? Reception is obviously not an issue but what about overall sq?
Only if it's totlRedundant or not it will look good won't it?
Perhaps it's fun to do things the old school way? Quite often I'll wonder to why I bother with fm given the lack of quality music and the same new car commercials repeated dozens of times daily.
View attachment 1084571 Lol, yea I do love the look of my big silver face SCOTT tuner with its meters. It looks good and I like to listen to old fashion radio. The DC classical and jazz stations are my favorites.
Edit - pic for viewing pleasure.
This says it all..... Jazz and classical on a proper FM station with a non-junk tuner is still worthy.The DC classical and jazz stations are my favorites.
So - for the Internet radio services - what is the bandwidth of their streams? I think that has a LOT to do with the SQ. And even then, its still not quite the same as an analog stream from good media over FM.Honest question guys n' gals. I'm seriously considering a vintage tuner but wondering if it's just redundant. How does internet radio compare? Reception is obviously not an issue but what about overall sq?
Good question, Superampman. I've just prepared my 1970s Armstrong 624 tuner for disposal as it had been in storage since I moved to digital broadcast reception several years ago. I tested it a couple of days back and was impressed with the sound quality, which isn't that far behind my high-end digital player (Cambridge CXN).
The Armstrong is an attractive machine, wood-cased with a black fascia, with very tactile keys for operation (including six impressively accurate mechanical/electrical tuning presets). This thread has got me wondering if I should retain it for 'everyday' listening, such as to our UK stations BBC Radio 2 and 4, to release some of the 20 presets on the CXN that are getting used up. I may well keep it now I've been nudged in that direction!
View attachment 1084735
The real Questions is what are your local FM broadcast resources like.
I was at a listening demo north of Baltimore Saturday, and Walt switched inputs to an old MacIntosh tuner for his local classical music station - WBJC - 91.5 FM (I think). Stream at - http://wbjc.radio.net/
He was happily talking about their broadcast quality and longevity - I have to admit, it really did sound good on his Altecs..
Here in DC, we don't have such a premier station - our old Classics station, WGMS - gave their library and format to a local PBS station (WETA-FM) a few years back,
and they are now the local classics station - but they don't quite have the legacy and sound of those older stations.
This says it all..... Jazz and classical on a proper FM station with a non-junk tuner is still worthy.
Love the Silver Scott btw. Sold off my Scott tube FM receiver a few years back but kept the "only 12wpc" ECL-86 1966 tube amp.
Old Scotts certainly do rock!! Shhhh. Keep it under the radar brotha!
Exactly right. And I live in a relatively dead zone, AM & FM wise, with only one non-commercial station coming in at full reception strength (luckily it is 24-hour classical). Still, I wouldn't trade that magic for anything.Forget bitrate,unlimited stations,no commercials,no static,no mindless banter and a hundred presets for the moment.
There is something magical about listening to music on a correctly working FM tuner. In an age where most content arrives on a cable, looking at a dipole or a set of rabbit ears pulling music out of thin air does it for me all day long!
Happy(FM)listening
Jimmy
I am an extremely disappointed FM listener and was a tuner junkie. Look at my signature list. I grew up in Chicago and lived about 15 miles from the Hancock/Sears towers in the 60's-80's era. Went to college in Champaign in the late 60's and lived on the 8th floor of a high rise dorm. I could easily pick up stations 50 miles away with my KLH 18 and a dipole. I now live in a poor reception area of a vast FM wasteland in the Akron-Canton, OH area.