Newbie looking for cheap tuner

systemerror909

Active Member
Okay, so I sorta goofed up and bought an sacd player this week instead of a tuner (not good cause I still only have 1 sacd to listen to). I couldn't pass up a good deal though, so here I am and now i'll have more time to do a bit of research regarding what to look for in a good tuner. I've been following ebay for a while now looking for tuners, and this particular model caught my eye:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5869513115&rd=1&sspagename=STRK:MEWA:IT&rd=1

Its cheap (very cheap) and appears to be of good quality. I looked up the specs somewhere and they looked very good, excellent seperation, snr and dynamic range. I've been a fan of digital tuners in the past, for sake of ease, but all you guys seem to prefer much older analog tuners. Honestly, I've never heard a "good" tuner before, and most of my friends think i'm silly for actually buying a tuner, just a component tuner, not being part of a integrated amp/mp3 player.

I'd like very much to replace the my early 90's pioneer integrated amp w/tuner in favor of something much better. I have gotten good results with it *sometimes but generally it is relatively mediocre on both clarity and reception.

Any suggestions? I really have no idea what i'm looking for other than something preferably under $50.
 
Any of the low number tuners are within your price range.....go for a 200 or 300 series and mod it down the road.

click here

Far better than what you can get for the same price with modern gear.

sdz
 
You could try looking at the Tuner Information Center. Google "FM Tuners" for the site. There's a list of good tuners there under "Shootouts". You can check prices on eBay. Ignore the top of the list, as all of those are now expensive. Good luck!
 
The FM Tuner Info site is invaluable, but your best deals will be on the tuners that have not been reviewed by them. Look in the "on deck circle" and look for tuner that were mid-line, but haven't been reviewed. There are some great Onkyo, Sony, Yamaha, and Denon tuners that haven't been reviewed, but have very good sound.
By the way, that price on the Sony 444esx was abnormally low. Usually those sell for more than $50.
Here are some good digital tuners that can be had for dirt cheap (sometimes):
Onkyo T-407,
any Sony ES 400 or 500 series that hasn't been reviewed (but avoid the 555ES/444ES because they use non-standard connectors),
Denon 460, 550, and 660,
Yamaha TX-500/530/540/550 and sometimes the TX900U can be had cheap.
Very rarely you will find a Pioneer Elite F-51 or sub-elite (F-676 or F-656) that goes cheap. Those are good bets too.
None of these will be considered to be top tuners, but they should provide better than average sound and they won't break the bank. The best tuners don't go cheap.

NOTE: I've only listed digital tuners because that is what he prefers.
 
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You can really "bottom feed" for price with a Pioneer TX-6800 in good shape. A nice entry level tuner with great potential. Then you could completely rebuild it with new caps, resistors, rectifier diodes, an F connector, polarized power cord, etc. for a small amount of money. Then you could add two of Bill Ammons' filter boards to make it really selective without giving up frequency response or distortion and finally get it aligned. That's gonna be a heckuva tuner, and cheap. I've done that with one. Surprisingly good sounding (clean & simple audio path), and a nice looking tuner to boot!
 
Find the sleepers on the FM tuner Info website. It'll cost a bit more, but IT will pay dividends! I never knew until I stumbled on a world class tuner.

dew.
 
Thanks for your help and recommendations. I've actually visited that site before, but had only really looked at the sony & pioneer sections. Being 20, I can barely remember sansui being a brand, and my limited impressions of it was that it wasn't a very good one (haha). Well I'll definitely have to look into this now since I missed that sony auction. I was aware btw that it required special adapters or as the tuner information site suggests for the 555es, you can simply solder a 620ohm resistor in between the outputs. My interest in this tuner was due to my previous satisfaction with the ES line as well as the fact that this was one of the least expensive models featuring sony's direct comparator technology, which boasts excellent snr and channel seperation. I read this somewhere described as a combination of the best things from analog and digital tuners. I live in Rochester, btw and free stuff is ALWAYS appreciated, so feel free to let me know about anything free.
 
systemerror909 said:
Well I'll definitely have to look into this now since I missed that sony auction. I was aware btw that it required special adapters or as the tuner information site suggests for the 555es, you can simply solder a 620ohm resistor in between the outputs.

Actually the 444ESX model has normal RCA outputs. Its only the 444ES and the 555ES that use the ACT outputs. Its also little more than soldering a resistor...you have to install RCA connectors which requires a slight case mod.
 
I've made a habit of stopping by my local Goodwill store on the way home from the office. So far, I've picked up a Denon TU-660 and a Sanyo Plus tuner models. Both have been excellent machines. Neither cost me more than $18.

However, luck favors the prepared. Since I had poured over TIC for weeks, I knew what to look for in a tuner so when I saw an above average tuner, I recognized it and bought it. Signs are switchable bandwidth, mulitple antennae leads, meters for both signal strength and center tune, etc. - if a tuner has some or all of these, then chances are that it is decent or better.

Happy hunting.
 
Good luck in your hunt.

For cheap, I picked up a Pioneer 608 and Kenwood 5500 for under $10 each, to mod. Decent tuners, though the next models up (the Kenwood 6500, unsure of the Pioneer) are much better, and probably could be had for around $50.

I also have a Kenwood 7500, a very good tuner for usually cheap cash (around $75 for mine) that performs well and becomes a top-notch tuner with modifications- some say it's hard to beat it when modded with anything else, unless you spend over $1000.

There's also the Technics 7600 ($50 for mine mint-) that's a lighter performance version of the excellent 8600 (which seems to command outragous prices as of late), and the Sansui tuners are great (I own a 717, but they aren't cheap).

The sansui 317 is a nice low-profile tuner that is a knockout to look at, and is a good performer on strong stations. Move directly to the 517 if you want to pull in weak stations.

Just some opinions, for what it's worth. And as you know, everyone has them...

I wish you luck on landing a beaut!

EDIT- by the way, there's a Kenwood KT-6500 for sale in the classifieds here at AK, if you're interested. Check the tuners section.
 
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Also, 1 thing to remember is that there is something of a premium to pay for separates so you may also want to consider picking up a decent receiver that is not on the vintage radar and simply use the tuner or even 1 that is but does not demand high dollars such as the H-K 330C, 430, 630 receivers each with decent tuners, a Philips Lab series, something from the early to mid 70s Sylvania line that was their last shot at moving upstream and were pretty decent, the Radio Shack STA-2250 and there are plenty of others.

Also, for tuners, you may want to look at the Yamahas. They seem to be a bit under valued except for the TOTL.
 
systemerror909 said:
Thanks for your help and recommendations. I've actually visited that site before, but had only really looked at the sony & pioneer sections. Being 20, I can barely remember sansui being a brand, and my limited impressions of it was that it wasn't a very good one (haha). Well I'll definitely have to look into this now since I missed that sony auction. I was aware btw that it required special adapters or as the tuner information site suggests for the 555es, you can simply solder a 620ohm resistor in between the outputs. My interest in this tuner was due to my previous satisfaction with the ES line as well as the fact that this was one of the least expensive models featuring sony's direct comparator technology, which boasts excellent snr and channel seperation. I read this somewhere described as a combination of the best things from analog and digital tuners. I live in Rochester, btw and free stuff is ALWAYS appreciated, so feel free to let me know about anything free.

If you ever make it to Buffalo, I have a couple tuners, at least one pair of speakers (maybe two), and some other audio stuff that's yours for the drive here. Seriously. PM me.
 
A superb tuner for the money is the Sony ST-J75: They generally go for about $60 or so on ePrey.

Almost as good are the ST-J55 and the ST-J60, which generally go for about 1/2 that price, but I've seen 'em as low as $10.

The Sony you missed for $10 was one heck of a buy. :cool:
 
I have a couple of extras I wouldn't mind selling or trading for another cd player. I have an Optonica ST-3535 and a Yamaha CT-810 which are not seeing any use. Both are in excellent condition.
 
I have a Onkyo T-4 which is an analog tuner. I bought on the bay for $40. I consider this a bargain in view of its sound, selectivity and sensitivty.
 
Saw a Vintage Early 90's/late 80's Sony 550ES tuner today at a local audio/video store (drool, drool). Unit was in mint looking condition and the guy said it had been all checked out and was working perfectly. This place is very respectable and I've gotten some GOOD deals in the past from them. The price: only $99 and probably a bit negotiable. Would really like to get this unit, but can't justify it seeing I just spent my tax return on a pair of Sennheiser 580's. Man i've got this audio bug thing bad!!
 
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