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Tuner Advice. Help a lost soul.

There seems to be a lack of good information on the web and elsewhere when it comes to tuners. Which is too bad because I'm looking to get a good tuner for my system, and I'm lost. I listen to a lot of radio and I would like a tuner that sounds good...no that sounds GREAT!! Unfortunatly I don't have $5000 for a Magnum Dynalab MD 108 or even $1500 for a Fanfare FT-1. I'm looking in the $200-500 range I guess. I've considered the NAD C440 and a used Magnum FT-11. Other than these two and the Onkyo line (which is confusing) I'm lost. Can anyone recommend a few quality tuners and/or a good place to purchase them. Any help, advice, recommendations, etc. would be great.
mailman199
ezmeralda114405
55 posts
 
The Dyna FM-3 and FM-1 with multiplex boards can be found on the used market for quite cheap ($75-$125 or less). Audio by Van Alstine has an article on thier website telling how to maintain one and bring it up to spec. www.avahifi.com Right now I'm contemplating one or a Magnum Dynalab. For the money the Dyna can't be beat.
samujohn's avatar
samujohn
291 posts
 
Buy an old McIntosh. I have had a several Dynacos including Frank Van Alstine's best effort and a Magnum Dynalab 101a plus their Antenna tuner and a good old Mac is the better deal. Just make certain that it is Stereo. Caveat: Old Macs are not the most sensitive or selective, for that you need an MR 78 (or later), but for excellent sound at a reasonable price try a MX 110. I have an MR 71 but they are $600-800 in good condition. Why by a Mac? 1. they sound better (much) 2. they never depreciate they only appreciate 3. Their build quality is beyond belief. Good luck
trelja
3,223 posts
 
I have an old Sansui tuner. I can vouch for those that say they are good. Over the past 15 to 20 years, I have bought 4 tuners to try and replace it. They were all returned. I have now stopped trying, and just enjoy the music. New tuners are almost all digital. While, I thought that would be a help, it is actually a negative in my case. I am in a weird situation. I live 1 - 2 miles from the Philadelphia radio and tv towers. I am UNDER the signal. A good analog, that you can REALLY fine tune has proven best for me.
sugarbrie
3,854 posts
 
Both the Creek T43 mentioned and the Cambridge Audio clone (Yes, Mike Creek did design both) interestingly use a high end car stereo chipset. Mike discovered they had better reception and sounded better than most digital tuner stuff. Go to http://www.hifichoice.co.uk/ for reviews on both.
sdcampbell
2,136 posts
 
NEC made a very fine line of moderately priced tuners in the late 80's and early 90's. I recently sold my NEC T6-E to a fellow in Connecticut who absolutely raved about the quality of radio reception he was getting on New York City stations. If you can find a NEC tuner in the T6-E or later series (T6-F, etc.), they often sell for less than $100 and are absolutely unbeatable at the price.
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