Who's listening to FM Tonight? What tuner?

[doug s.]

At a reasonable price the TU-717 is world class. The X1 is ridiculous in price and is going to split hairs at best. When listening to my 717 I never wish I'd bought something else five times as expensive. I'm sure the tuners you mentioned are nice sounding however not necessarily better by any means. I must say my 717 was aligned by Mike Williams and restored to optimum performance at a fraction of the cost of the X1 or some of the others. I have to say the cost to benefits of the X1 simply make no sense to me.

Ron

the tuna i mentioned are necessarily better. but i don't disagree w/you regarding the cost/benefit ratio. w/the exception of the tu719 - this one is better, and it usually sells for about the same price as a tu717 or only a few dollars more. and, personally, i like its digital station read-out. the tu517 can be a bargain, as it isn't as well-known as the 717 and is basically the exact same tuna...

doug s.

 

[BrocLuno]

Just unpacked a used Sony STR-DA3100ES and playing with it. Refurbed Sansui G-7700 came out so this one could go in. The Sansui had a bit more sensitive tuner, but not as flat/dry/analytic sounding amp section.

Station is KRSH 95.9 in Sonoma County which is over the hills and through the woods for me. All reflected signal path. Still coming in pretty well on a vertical dipole between the studs on outside wall.

 

[decooney]

At a reasonable price the TU-717 is world class. The X1 is ridiculous in price and is going to split hairs at best. When listening to my 717 I never wish I'd bought something else five times as expensive. I'm sure the tuners you mentioned are nice sounding however not necessarily better by any means. I must say my 717 was aligned by Mike Williams and restored to optimum performance at a fraction of the cost of the X1 or some of the others. I have to say the cost to benefits of the X1 simply make no sense to me.

Ron

Ron,
>> In your opinion, can you get a TU-717 to sound really close to or as good as a TU-919 with proper evaluation, parts replacement if necessary, and re-alignment? <<<

I do miss my TU-717 at times, and do recall it was a great tuner when I bought it new. I demo'd a TU-919 back then, and returned it on loan until my 717 came in. It was a long time ago, but it did seem like the 919 sounded a little better to me; back then, at that time. I started on the hunt last month thinking of buying a 919 just to try it, then I found the McIntosh MR-77 through a friend who strongly recommended it as a sleeper unit. Listening to this MR-77 has squashed my original desire a bit for a TU-919, or at least for now. When hooked up to my dedicated 2-channel amp, preamp, and speakers, I am absolutely amazed at the detail and channel separation this thing has. If I could, and had the time, it would be fun to try all the different tuners you guys get a chance to try. I still might pick up a 919 down the road, do a side by side comparison, and keep the winner. I caught myself listening to some older rock stations tonight that I use to listen to in Sacramento quite a bit decades ago. I started out thinking they would not sound that great, and I was wrong. I don't remember my TU-717 sounding quite like this on so many different stations in Sacramento, but I'd be interested in your comparison of a solid TU-717 vs. the TU-919 if you've by chance compared the two.

 

[nhparrot]

Breakfast with the Beatles and then Sunday Morning Blues on 100.7 WZLX out of Boston

 

[FauxHall]

BrocLuno,

Does your Sony STR-DA3100ES receiver use the S-Master amplifier design? I've heard smatterings of comments on the design that praise the clarity of the sound and implies that it has a sonic signature different from other Class D amps.

 

[doug s.]

decooney, i have never heard a tu919, so i cannot help you in that regard, re: comparisons.

but i can tell you that, while my refurb'd modded sansui tu-x1 is better than my stock never-serviced tu717, it is not a huge difference. and if i were condemned to having only one tuna, and it was the tu717, i would be ok w/it. after all, i could always refurb and mod it, and that would take it even closer. :thmbsp:

doug s.,
still wondering what tuna your tech hid inside that mr77 or yours!

 

[UH1DG337]

Hope the image loads up...
It is a Rotel model RX-402.
We just pulled this out of the closet this weekend. It is a Rotel RX-402. My old man found this about eighteen years ago at an estate sale. I plugged it in to a pair of Klipsch speakers and it worked, but I just put it away.

Compared to an Adcom GTP-550 Tuner Pre-Amp with a Harman Kardon Citation
24, the Rotel blew both of them away for FM tunability and the warmth of the amplifier. We are playing a pair of modified Fortes with it.

 

[Old_Tech]

Ron,
>> In your opinion, can you get a TU-717 to sound really close to or as good as a TU-919 with proper evaluation, parts replacement if necessary, and re-alignment? <<<

I am not really sure if it will sound like a TU-919 as the two tuners sound different from each other. I think the 919 is a bit bright sounding but some like it that way. The 717 has a full open sound that is quite rich in timbre and full and clear bass. It is very musical. It does well seperating detail in complex music at least mine does. Other tuners I have seem to struggle with that at times but I still like them.

All tuners sound different in some way one to another. It does not really mean one is better than another. But this is the way I look at things. I'm not a "mine is better" kind of guy. I always see the virtues in each piece and it is why some are so hard to let go of when the collection builds!

I think you would find a 717 as nice as any 919 given proper alignment and restoration by a pro.

I love your MR-77. I am looking for one or perhaps a 74 right now just because I want that sound and I have never heard one only the great things owners have said.

Happy listening! Sunday night is always good here in Rochester I'm looking forward to it!

Ron

 

[Old_Tech]

Listening to Cobourg Canada "Dinner Hour" on my TU-717. We have warm weather and sunshine once again with a ton of wind...
Sounds great!

Later I will switch to Jazz 90.1 in Greece NY. I have given up on Wxxi 91.5. Their signal is lost totally in HD artifacts. I am very surprised it has happened and they have not fixed the problem. Perhaps it cannot be fixed.

Where do they expect people to buy HD tuners? Any why does the station sound fine in my car? I can't figure it out. :scratch2:

Ron

 

[doug s.]

Hope the image loads up...
It is a Rotel model RX-402.
We just pulled this out of the closet this weekend. It is a Rotel RX-402. My old man found this about eighteen years ago at an estate sale. I plugged it in to a pair of Klipsch speakers and it worked, but I just put it away.

Compared to an Adcom GTP-550 Tuner Pre-Amp with a Harman Kardon Citation
24, the Rotel blew both of them away for FM tunability and the warmth of the amplifier. We are playing a pair of modified Fortes with it.

mebbe not yours, but a pic of the rotel rx-402

doug s.

 

[R-2-R]

That Rotel RX-402 receiver is a view to behold! That sure is a sweet looking receiver!

Thanks for posting!

doug s.

 

[decooney]

Doug,
Thanks for the note on the 717. Good to know.

Ron,
Appreciate the feedback. Good to know on the 919.


I am more of an amp/speaker guy and build custom speakers for fun, but don't have a lot of tuners lying around, so I appreciate the experience and feedback. This past week I had a chance to try my limited supply of tuners with all sorts of different combinations of speakers, cables, and mixing in various pre-amps and did various comparisons. I'm starting to believe the reason there is so much variation in feedback about one tuner compared to the other really ties back to what sort of system pre-amps, amplifiers, and speakers one is listening to their tuners with. I've been able to prove to myself that I can cause a tuner to sound better or worse by changing out different components in a system, even cables too if I want it a tad brighter or more laid back, especially with my solid state preamps and amps.

Have either of you tried running your best and worst tuners through a really nice integrated tube amplifier and compared results there too?

 

[Old_Tech]

Have either of you tried running your best and worst tuners through a really nice integrated tube amplifier and compared results there too?

Never had a Tube integrated so I can't help there. I am sure the sound would be nice though possibly not as much high end. I don't know.

Ron

 

[MX117.MC7150]

Changing cabling and systems to tailor the sound of a tuner seems a bit cumbersome as well as not really comparing apples-to-apples.
WRTI 90.1 classical all day on the Accuphase T-106 this morning (and jazz last night).

 

[doug s.]

Changing cabling and systems to tailor the sound of a tuner seems a bit cumbersome as well as not really comparing apples-to-apples.
WRTI 90.1 classical all day on the Accuphase T-106 this morning (and jazz last night).

i agree; i have prewiously mentioned my goal re: cabling - neutral and able to pass all the info. and i feel the alpha core purled silver, and the kcag clones, (cheap even new), do all that. i have no use for further cabling "experimentation".

ymmv,

doug s.

 

[doug s.]

...This past week I had a chance to try my limited supply of tuners with all sorts of different combinations of speakers, cables, and mixing in various pre-amps and did various comparisons. I'm starting to believe the reason there is so much variation in feedback about one tuner compared to the other really ties back to what sort of system pre-amps, amplifiers, and speakers one is listening to their tuners with. I've been able to prove to myself that I can cause a tuner to sound better or worse by changing out different components in a system, even cables too if I want it a tad brighter or more laid back, especially with my solid state preamps and amps.

i guess i must respectfully agree to disagree.

i have had, for example, my onix bwd-1/soap-2 - which i have owned longer than any decent tuna i have - in so many different rigs w/different i/c's, and both tube and s/s gear, that i can't remember them all. (well i can, but i am too lazy to list them! ) the onix's sonic goodness and character has come out in all the different systems it's been in. sure, i prefer my melos preamp to the other preamps i have owned, but the onix still sounded great w/other preamps. sure, the wide range of amps and speakers i have used effected the final sound, but the onix still sounded great, and still maintained its sonic character. and the same goes for my other tuna - regardless of the ancillary gear, the good ones still sound good, the great ones still sound great, and the not-so-good ones still sound not-so-good.

Have either of you tried running your best and worst tuners through a really nice integrated tube amplifier and compared results there too?

re: tubed integrated amp - if you have a good one, your tuna should sound good. if not, then not so much. and, imo, there are a few "hi end" integrated amps out there. two tubers that i have heard and enjoyed include the cary sl80i signature and the manley stingray. while i prefer tubes, i have also heard good s/s integrated amps - revox b251, sansui au717 and au11000, and thule ia100...

doug s.

 

[decooney]

i guess i must respectfully agree to disagree.

doug s.

Okay, and well understood. :yes: That's what makes it all interesting to me. If everyone agreed and liked exactly the same things, we'd all have the same tuners, and that would be very boring and no tuner forum to discuss or debate it all.

 

[satkinsn]

Funny - as in odd - tuner story. In the interest of cleaning the rat's nest in my family room, I recently took apart the system I had, which had an MD in it, and before that, the little Sony.

I replaced the amp/pre/tuner with a NAD receiver, a C 740, which as I understand it is a C340 amp and C440 tuner in one box.

Guess what? The NAD runs circles around the other tuners in terms of being able to pick up stations. I have lousy reception in my family room and haven't done the right thing of running an external antenna yet, and both the MD and the Sony were marginal. The NAD gets stations both of the others miss. I have no idea why.

Also, it sounds decent. Better than the Sony to my ear, as good as the MD.

s.

 

[BrocLuno]

Update - the "new" Sony STR-DA3100ES was cruising along, but the favorite station was occasionally scratchy, and very occasionally interfered with by a car or truck with on-board FM transmitter as they went by on the busy road outside. So, as a test, I went out to shop and grabbed my just back from "Classical Audio Service" (Arden Allen) Nikko NT-850 tuner to plug in and see if there was an improvement ...

Well, the little Nikko betters the big Sony by a pretty wide margin. Arden was pretty happy with the way the Nikko performed on the bench and wrote some nice notes in the service log. Now I have first hand knowledge of what he was going on about. KRSH never sounded so good. The big Sony receiver/amp set to 4 Ohms is happy with the Infinities, and the Nikko is feeding them great tunes

 

[91r100gs]

Listened to a couple hours of "meditative" music on KCUR 89.3 "Night Tides" show last evening on the Pioneer TX-8500II. Sounds very open and airy through my Optimus Pro LX5 with Lineaum Tweeters and a subwoofer. This is my bedroom system. The old Pioneer keeps sounding better all the time, since I hooked it up, and have been exercising it 4 or 5 nights a week.