The Death of the Stereo Receiver

Until I read the posted Nielsen stats I was going to state that I didn't see how AM/FM tuners are commercially viable in gear. Oops.

However I do find the internet to be a much more convenient delivery method for what I used to turn to NPR and Philly's 88.5 WXPN for. Do you have a set of shows you really like on public radio? There's podcasts of it. You don't have to worry about missing it. You can download it to your device and listen to it on your own terms. I can almost map out my whole week M-F with podcasts now. I rarely even touch AM/FM in the car anymore.

When my wife and I were just dating she wanted to buy a stereo. I had her buy the Yamaha R-S201 (and gave her some speakers). It's the cheapest two channel receiver you can still buy new. I didn't recommend it because of the radio, rather it's the bare bones nature of it, the remote, and once you listen to it, the bang for the buck it provides. In fact, we still have it. It drives my Klipsch KG2's, helped by a 10 inch powered sub. My turntable is plugged into it and for all intents and purposes it is now my main system. My Musical Paradise is paired with my computer and is primarly for headphones. I know the Yamaha isn't the best, but if you're strapped for cash and want a remote, it's amazing what it can do.

For sure! I've seen them brand new with warranties for less than the cost of dinner and a bottle of wine. And I forgot about the convenience of the remote and bluetooth connectivity, which everything has now. I don't know about sub-woofer management, but seeing as how my forty buck Orb Audio mini-T amp has a sub-out, I don't see how they can't have it too. They are not going to make your B&W 801 speakers sing, but a pair of bookshelf speakers with a powered sub will get the job done nicely.
 
For sure! I've seen them brand new with warranties for less than the cost of dinner and a bottle of wine. And I forgot about the convenience of the remote and bluetooth connectivity, which everything has now. I don't know about sub-woofer management, but seeing as how my forty buck Orb Audio mini-T amp has a sub-out, I don't see how they can't have it too. They are not going to make your B&W 801 speakers sing, but a pair of bookshelf speakers with a powered sub will get the job done nicely.
Yeah pretty much. We have to get my retired mom sorted out and buy our own house. I'm happy now and can worry about some real big guns later on down the road.
 
There is something intoxicating about a vintage receiver all lit up.

I agree--that big wood case, silver face and the big analogue tuner and meters all lit up are special to me. That doesn't mean that I actually use the tuner, but there is something "intoxicating" about that "look". But then again, I feel the same way about vinyl spinning on a heavy polished aluminum platter over a real wood plinth, and the big reels turning on my R2R decks...
 
As a native of the D.C. metro area (Maryland side), 25 years ago there were a number of good FM stations including HFS 99.1 and Jazzy 100.3. As a former resident of said area, I must ask this: So what do you listen to while stuck on 495? :mad:

HFS was the last non NPR FM that I listened to. That was in the mid 1990's
 
I agree--that big wood case, silver face and the big analogue tuner and meters all lit up are special to me. That doesn't mean that I actually use the tuner, but there is something "intoxicating" about that "look". But then again, I feel the same way about vinyl spinning on a heavy polished aluminum platter over a real wood plinth, and the big reels turning on my R2R decks...

I have been buying integrated amps for a while now and only have a few receivers, BUT, I still buy the matching tuner for the amp. The reason? I like the look of a lit up tuner. And once in a great while, I even listen to the radio for a bit.

I will always have a few vintage receivers around even though I like the integrateds better now........just something so simple and honest about them that I love.



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One can always power up the tuner and choose Aux (a steaming source) to enjoy effect of the lights! I know a guy that does this occasionally....

We listen to Spotify Premium at night when falling asleep (with vintage Sansui timer). Right now we are using a Pioneer TX 6800/SA7700 tuner/amp combo and I always leave the tuner on as it makes a great night light. After two hours it shuts off.

One of the meter lights just went out so my wife calls it the "Pirate".

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And in the same room is a Fisher combo that I always leave the tuner on as well.....

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I confess to having rigged up LEDs in a couple of classic tuners/receivers that I don't want running all the time. Sue me! They just look better lit up.

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For quite awhile I ran a Sansui TU-555 in my theater system, and it was plugged into a switched outlet on the back of the receiver, so it always came on.
My wife used to say that it looked like it came out of an old airplane.
 
I listen mostly to NPR and a local (Gresham, Oregon ) Jazz station 89.1 FM ( https://www.opb.org/kmhd/ ) on a Nikko Gamma I tuner and Sansui A7 that I enjoy lighting up. I do venture off into rare frequencies but usually get rattled by commercials which helps me appreciate the jazz station even more. Pop (name your genre) radio just doesn't have the character to help us discover new music. I don't mind using the internet for research though, as it offers loads of samples and I can take peeks at search engines for band info.
 
I had the same experience as genone. Radio was for the car, except for very early on, before I had my own gear. Then, on to very basic integrated; then Mac separates.
However, if really good tuner came my way at an unavoidable price, I'd get it.

Dave
 
I have zero need for a receiver/radio.
For the most part, I can get two stations: Left side of the dial country, and right side of the dial country.
Occasionally, I can get the classic rock station out of Vegas when the conditions are right, but it's not worth listening to, unless you are a diehard AC/DC fanatic.
Every other song is is by some guy who sings like he has his nuts in a vise, and a truck parked on his foot. Maybe AC/DC owns the station?

I used to like NPR when they just told the story, or laid out ALL of the news without any opinion/ or cherry picking, but that's long gone.
Saturdays used to be their best. I loved laughing my butt off listening to car talk...RIP.

It's sad that many people will never understand or know where FM really came from; that they'll never know the laid back operators who played whole fresh vinyl albums on air just for folks to record on their R2R's.
Sad they'll never know radio without car commercials, and without whacked out manically depressed female DJ's.

I've often thought that if I ever had more money than I knew what to do with, I'd build an "underground" FM radio station like the days of old.

My fondest memories of FM are of KQRS in Minneapolis back in the early 70's.
 
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