Table Radio "Shootout" - Old Zenith vs. Tivoli One

Snade

humble AK member
This is just for fun.

The contenders:

Zenith AM / FM table radio, circa 1955, Chassis 7C05, 7 tubes, made in Chicago, paid $15 at thrift store.

Tivoli Model One, AM / FM table radio, circa 2006, designed by Henry Kloss, made in China, priced new at about $120.

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A look inside the Zenith - 7 tubes, all original

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The Tivoli Model One with wood cabinet

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Things got ugly during this shootout. I had to separate the contenders.

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Reception:

The Zenith is over 50 years old, but it still does a great job pulling in FM stations with the internal antenna. "The Automatic Frequency Control" does a good job locking in the stations.

The Tivoli also does a fine job, but on my test of WFMT, the classical FM station here in Chicago, the reception drifted a bit on the Tivoli. The Zenith kept it locked it.

AM reception on the Zenith was also a bit better. An edge to the old Zenith for reception with both radios using their internal antennas.

Sound

I'm expecting the Zenith to have that warm, full "tube" sound and it does sound good. In particular, talk radio stations on AM have a rich sound to the human voice - very pleasing.

But next to the Tivoli, something is missing with the Zenith. The Zenith lacks detail in the midrange. It is very noticeable next to the Tivoli. I put on some jazz on FM and the Zenith just does not have any detail in the mids. Sounds flat when compared to the Tivoli.

Also, the Tivoli has a lot more low-end punch.

The Tivoli sounds more "tube-like" than the Zenith with that rich, detailed and full sound. A clear edge to the Tivoli making music.

Controls

Both radios have a very similar set of controls. The Tivoli has a tuning light that glows brighter when tuning into a station. The Zenith has a wider tuning band and you can better control tuning into a station. No clear winner here.

Looks and Fit and Finish

Both radios have plastic knobs and a wood cabinet.

The Zenith looks beautiful but is big and bulky compared to a modern radio.

The Tivoli has an elegant, simple design.

The metal chassis and tube design of the Zenith are impressive. This puppy was built to last and it has - over 50 years and still ticking.

I'm old myself, so I give a slight edge to the looks of the old Zenith.

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__________________________________

Overall Score / Shootout Winner

One of these radios is going into my winter man-cave - a spare bedroom where I watch TV and listen to the radio.

And the winner is .....

The Tivoli Model One, it just sounds better than the beloved Zenith.

The Zenith goes back into the basement. He's not happy about that.

Cheers, Snade
 
Nice review Snade. I'm suprised the Zenith was so lacking in the sound department. Perhaps it's just a better speaker in the Tivioli.
 
Pretty cool. FYI: You can improve BOTH the AM and FM reception by connecting a 30'+ longwire to the F connector. The AM and FM internal wire antennas lay beside each other, so the feed from the F connector will induct into the AM antenna. Without a longwire my AM reception is fairly poor. But with it, can listen to damn near anything on both AM and FM. (Don't use coax!)
 
Excellent review. Very well done. I own a tivioli 1 and it's a great unit, but that zenith looks so cool. What condition is the speaker in and are all the tubes up to snuff in the old timer??
 
Not to be a problem BUT how long since grandpa had a tune up? Granted in your case you are comparing to samples. But your comparison does not hold for any other sample of this Old boy.

Who knows you might give the Zenith a full going through and find bad caps weak tubes etc. After a run through the shop grandpa might be chasing junior around the chicken coupe with a willow switch!!!!!
 
Not to be a problem BUT how long since grandpa had a tune up? Granted in your case you are comparing to samples. But your comparison does not hold for any other sample of this Old boy.

Who knows you might give the Zenith a full going through and find bad caps weak tubes etc. After a run through the shop grandpa might be chasing junior around the chicken coupe with a willow switch!!!!!

Kinda what I was thinkin', too...
 
Not to be a problem BUT how long since grandpa had a tune up? Granted in your case you are comparing to samples. But your comparison does not hold for any other sample of this Old boy.

Who knows you might give the Zenith a full going through and find bad caps weak tubes etc. After a run through the shop grandpa might be chasing junior around the chicken coupe with a willow switch!!!!!

Good points.

But I think the Tivoli also has a superior speaker and cabinet design by Kloss that gives the radio more clarity than the Zenith.

I did have the Zenith checked-out by an AK member that collects vintage Zenith TVs, but it is true that a recap and testing of the tubes might improve its performance.
 
On my 1955 Zenith TransOceanic, I found a couple of weak tubes as well as bad capacitors. With some NOS tubes and Sprague "Orange Drop" caps it now performs really well. My next radio project will be my Grandfather's 1938 Silvertone upright console radio. The best sound? No way, but they don't make them like that anymore and they're just a lot more fun to listen to.
:banana:

However, YMMV.

Best Regards,
TerryO
 
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Snade, if you don't want that junky-ass ol' Zenith anymore, I'd be more than happy to take it off yer hands for you....I got a Tin-Ear, & don't really care how they sound (grin)...My example is a blonde-wood case that's squared-off rather than curved like yrs is. Mine was my gran's, she listened to Billy Graham's station from Black Mountain, NC, near Asheville on it. Zenith must have made a zillion of those things, in about as many cabinet variations.
 
Snade, nice write up! The Zenith did better than I expected and wins in the looks department for me. :thmbsp:
 
If the Zenith has not had a recap and alignment, then I'd be amazed it is in spec. The speakers in these radios were less than they could be, most were simple limited range drivers. I've replaced a few over the years with some newer none too special more modern speakers and there was a big improvement.
 
This is just for fun.

The Zenith goes back into the basement. He's not happy about that.

Well, it may have been fun for you, but not for Zenith! :tears: Zenith's have 'soul'. Tivoli would get over it. Think about it next time! :D:D

It would serve you right if he switched on at full volume at 3am! :D :D I keep my Tivoli right next to my 35 yr old Sony tabletop radio for that very reason. :smoke:
 
The Zenith matches the decor of the furniture, whereas theTivoli presents a visual jar. The Zenith deserves to be in the bed room. Please give her a fighting chance by bringing her up to spec.
 
Very nice review, my old friend.

Alternate Tivoli Use: I use a Tivoli Model 1 in my kitchen. My little 13" TV there has to be turned up pretty loud to be heard over normal kitchen din. My solution was to use the Tivoli for TV sound. A simple 1' mini plug to mini plug cable connects the TV's headphone out jack to the Tivoli's Aux in jack.

The Result: A bit of a pain to have turn them both on and off but much better sound that doesn't grate on the nerves when it's loud enough to be the heard over range hood fan, microwave, dishwasher, refrigerator, etc.
 
Very nicely done! When I saw that pic of the Zenith I almost flipped---I had that model for 10 years and used it exclusively during the period I was just sick of messing around with "stereos." I really like it a lot.

A year or so ago I needed a little radio and I looked at the Tivoli, but I wound up with the Sangean - a very similar size etc. I've often wondered how it would compare to the old Zenith - now I know!
 
GE portable superadio

is what i got for the bathroom. its big, sounds good, has bass and treble controls and draws in the only station i really like in my unusual location.

when i moved in, there was an amplified tv antenna that could pick up the lower local stations but 6 and 8 from san diego came in like on cable. when restaurant ads came on, she would start to get ready to go until she realized the addresses were recognizable as san diego area.

anyway, my station (kkjz 88.1 or on the net kkjz.org) comes in nicely except during atmospheric interference times. in the living room the sangean hd tuner locks it in regardless of atmosphere.

other stations on the portable are hit and miss. kcrw comes in ok but not klos. likewise on the sangean.

in the kitchen, the computer suffices. then i can also get niceties like wbgo.org from new jersey (obviously JAZZ is my thing).
 
Nice review.I really like that Zenith.Before I did anything to the Zenith I would probably upgrade the speaker.
 
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