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McIntosh Audio A Tradition of Excellence |
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#11
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Thanks guys for the positive comments. I think everyone is confirming that it really does depend on where you live.
I'm fortunate to have decent FM options because at our lake house there is no viable alternative to terrestrial FM. Tom
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Main System: Amati Futura Mains Amati Homage VOX Center, Proac Response 1sc Rears, Three MC2301's for L,C,R MC 602 for the rears C 1100, MX 151, MCD 1100, MR 80 Nottingham Dais with Wave Mechanic Sumiko Palo Santos Presentation SurfacePro 3, RPi 4, ROON, WW Starlight Platinum USB, Schiit Yggdrasil, Benchmark DAC3 HGC MX 151, OppO BDP-95, JVC RS-500 DILA projector, 106" diagonal Stewart Luxus Screenwall Deluxe with Studiotek 130 G3 material. Lake House: Ohm F, MC 275V, C2300, MR 77, Rega P3 OnDeck: McIntosh MAC 4300v |
#12
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Fan of FM and FM Tuners (bit of a sermon follows)
I absolutely love FM and FM tuners.
When I returned to audio in a serious way a few years ago, I did not originally purchase a tuner as I also assumed that FM was dead. After the rush of all of the new boxes subsided, I remembered that there was a bluegrass show on Monday nights, a celtic show and a different blues show on Friday night, a jazz show on Saturday night and an emerging piano artists show on Sunday night that I frequently enjoyed via the (dare I say it) Bose Wave Radio in my bedroom. But, I knew that there was definitely lots less quality FM than there used to be. So I hunted around a bit on the FM forum here and bought a used Sony XDR-F1HD. It was a great little digital FM tuner that also got HD, which allowed me to explore the HD offerings in my area. That led me to some Best Buy version of rabbit ears, which led me to putting up a real outdoor FM antenna. All steps on the slippery slope. I loved having FM back in my life in a serious way, but didn't really care for the sound of the HD channels (sounded quite clear, but too compressed). There wasn't enough interesting content in HD in my area to overcome the SQ issues for me, but I really loved the thought of an FM tuner. The Sony was a nice little tuner, but it wasn't befitting of the rest of my system. As stated in several other threads, I am not mechanical at all and don't really know of a class A repair shop in the Atlanta area and had heard that older tuners simply required a good workover from time to time. That brought it down to either (expensive) Accuphase (when Ivan's beautiful specimen wasn't available in the for sale pages), the MR-88 or the offerings from Magnum Dynalab. I preferred the pure analog offerings from MD and bought a 108T and simply haven't looked back. It's a fabulous tuner and I'm even thinking of having it upgraded. It is by far my most used source - it simply sounds wonderful, so smooth and delicious and analog. So, I think my experience underscores many of the good points that have been made in this thread. There aren't as many good stations as there used to be, the sound quality isn't generally as good as it used to be, but there are some good stations that still care about quality and if you're so inclined and live in the right area, you should be able to find some good stuff. HD is only so so, for various reasons. I also think (old guy disclosure) that there is less good content on the airwaves generally and the content that is there is often compressed and pre-programmed, which removes what can be a magical relationship with a DJ. I obviously don't think that FM is going to go away any time soon (after having spent several thousand bucks on a bunch of new equipment), but agree that it is not the healthy medium that it once was. Then again, all audio media is more diffuse than it used to be. CDs are diluted by the resurgence of vinyl, which is diluted by the streaming services, which is diluted by downloads/Sirius-XM/internet radio, etc., etc. Which brings us all the way around to AM. Yes, there's little AM of interest in my area other than spanish language/sports talk/news talk/religious/and practically nothing of musical interest. EXCEPT the mighty WMLB AM 1690, which is an independent station that has real DJs and plays the most wonderful eclectic stuff I could ever imagine. If I won the lottery, this is the station I would start on the FM dial. In the SAME hour, they will play Townes Van Zandt, Billie Holiday, Van Morrison, read from Moby Dick, have someone by to talk about theatre in the area, go back to the Rollingstones and the Waylon Jennings and Rodriguez, etc., etc., etc. - it makes me feel better to listen to this station. So, at the end of my sermon, I hope that everyone with these wonderful aging FM tuners will pull them out of the closet and look for interesting stations (maybe even as interesting as AM 1690 in Atlanta), cause their ratings to increase from 4 or 5 listeners on any given night to maybe even 8 or 9 or even double digits, and convince the powers that be that FM is a great thing that deserves to co-exist in what will undoubtedly be a multi-stream audio world. Last edited by Weirdcuba; 12-27-2015 at 10:01 PM. |
#13
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Jim....... . .
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Dan STUDIO - McIntosh C1000C/P, MC2301 (2), MR88, Aurender N10, Esoteric K-01X, Shunyata Sigma spdif digital cable, Sonos Connect, PurePower 2000, Stillpoints, Furutech Flux 50, Michell Gyro SE, Michell HR Power Supply, SME 309, Ortofon Cadenza Black, Wireworld, Sonus faber Amati Anniversario LIVING ROOM - McIntosh C2300, MC75 (2), MR85, Magnum Dynalab 205, Simaudio MOON Neo 260D-T, Schiit Audio Yggdrasil, Aurender N100H, Shunyata Sigma USB cable, Micro Seiki DD40, Ortofon Cadenza Blue, Nakamichi BX-300, Sony 60ES DAT, PS Audio P10, Furutech Flux 50, Sonos Connect, Stillpoints, Wireworld, Kimber, PMC EB1i, JL Audio f113 VINTAGE - McIntosh MA230, Tandberg 3011A tuner, Olive 04HD, Sony DTC-59ES DAT, McIntosh 4300V, JBL 4312A |
#14
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FM radio is a wasteland. I'm keeping my MR78 purely for sentimental reasons.
NPR is the only thing worth listening to. The music played by over 95% of the stations is crap, overmodulated crap, distorted crap or "music" that no one with an IQ over 85 (yes, even marginal intelligence) would want to listen to. |
#15
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Gary.......Why sit on the fence?
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Dan STUDIO - McIntosh C1000C/P, MC2301 (2), MR88, Aurender N10, Esoteric K-01X, Shunyata Sigma spdif digital cable, Sonos Connect, PurePower 2000, Stillpoints, Furutech Flux 50, Michell Gyro SE, Michell HR Power Supply, SME 309, Ortofon Cadenza Black, Wireworld, Sonus faber Amati Anniversario LIVING ROOM - McIntosh C2300, MC75 (2), MR85, Magnum Dynalab 205, Simaudio MOON Neo 260D-T, Schiit Audio Yggdrasil, Aurender N100H, Shunyata Sigma USB cable, Micro Seiki DD40, Ortofon Cadenza Blue, Nakamichi BX-300, Sony 60ES DAT, PS Audio P10, Furutech Flux 50, Sonos Connect, Stillpoints, Wireworld, Kimber, PMC EB1i, JL Audio f113 VINTAGE - McIntosh MA230, Tandberg 3011A tuner, Olive 04HD, Sony DTC-59ES DAT, McIntosh 4300V, JBL 4312A |
#16
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Quote:
An FM transition to all digital will NOT be technically more difficult. All it takes is an act of congress. It won't be worth it - the juice isn't worth the squeeze. It took an Act of Congress to legislate the DTV transition. The stakes were incredibly high. This quote is from the FCC's DTV Transition Web Page: "An important benefit of the switch to all-digital broadcasting is that parts of the valuable broadcast spectrum have been freed up for public safety communications by groups such as police, fire departments and rescue squads. Also, some of the spectrum has been auctioned to companies that will be able to provide consumers with advanced wireless services, such as wireless broadband." It's brilliant - lead with the Police and Fire Departments and then get to the real reason which is freeing up huge amounts of spectrum that is being auctioned off to the wireless carriers. Terrestrial TV lost 100 MHz of its allocated 400 MHz in the DTV Transition. That spectrum was auctioned off to wireless carriers. ATT and Verizon built their current networks on approx $20 Billion of that spectrum freed up and auctioned off in the first wave of spectrum sales in 1998. The next wave netted $40 Billion. The remainder is yet to be auctioned, but this is beachfront property and will be priced accordingly. FM currently occupies a measly 20 MHz of total spectrum. A total digital transition probably wouldn't free up a lot of that space. Besides, FM is in an undesirable neighborhood for mobile wireless - the frequency is too low to make handsets operate efficiently. So I don't think there will be any action on digital FM anytime soon. Tom
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Main System: Amati Futura Mains Amati Homage VOX Center, Proac Response 1sc Rears, Three MC2301's for L,C,R MC 602 for the rears C 1100, MX 151, MCD 1100, MR 80 Nottingham Dais with Wave Mechanic Sumiko Palo Santos Presentation SurfacePro 3, RPi 4, ROON, WW Starlight Platinum USB, Schiit Yggdrasil, Benchmark DAC3 HGC MX 151, OppO BDP-95, JVC RS-500 DILA projector, 106" diagonal Stewart Luxus Screenwall Deluxe with Studiotek 130 G3 material. Lake House: Ohm F, MC 275V, C2300, MR 77, Rega P3 OnDeck: McIntosh MAC 4300v |
#17
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Quote:
Anyone who knows me knows my position on FM Tuners, especially vintage McIntosh Tuners. Not only do I agree with Dan's comment that an FM Tuner is an essential source component that has always been a part of any system he has assembled, I would would go a step further to say that I wouldn't dream of setting up any future system without one either. Now of course there are those who don't take the same position, and that's fine. To each his own.... Quote:
Anyone thinking of tossing their vintage McIntosh (and a few others) tuner to the curb, send them my way. I'll take very good care of them...
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Pete No. 35 Main System: VPI Prime Signature TT in Rosewood, Ortofon Cadenza Black, Stillpoints LP1 V2, McIntosh: MP100, MR78, MCD1000 Transport on Stillpoint Ultra Minis, MDA1000 D/A Converter on Stillpoint Ultra Minis, MS750 Music Server, C40, MC501's (3), Soundcraftsmen: DC2215 Eq/AS1000 Real time analyzer, DBX 3BX II, Carver C9, Nakamichi Dragon, Crown SX724, Crown D-75A (as headphone amp), Sony XBR55X900E 4K TV, JBL L220A's, JBL B460, Sumo Delilah active crossover, WireWorld Silver Eclipse audio interconnects, WireWorld Starlight and Silver Starlight Coaxial Digital interconnects, Wireworld SuperNova 7 Toslink digital interconnect, WireWorld Aurora 7 and Silver Electra Power cords, Wireworld Silver Eclipse 8 speaker cables, Terk AF-1 Powered Antenna, Oppo UDP-205 4K Blu-Ray Player, Bryson BUC-1 USB Converter, Wireworld Gold Starlight XLR Digital interconnect, PS Audio Direct Stream Power Plant 12 on Stillpoint Ultra Minis, PS Audio Dectect, FuruTech Flux-50 NCF Inline Power Filter, Add-Powr Wizard EM Field AC Line conditioner; Stillpoint Ultra SS's under (3) McIntosh MC501 Amplifiers Florida Room/Art Studio System: Harmon Kardon T60 TT/Ortofon 2M Black, McIntosh: MR77, C32, MC2205; Crown Power Line Four, Wyred for Sound DAC-2 Digital to Analog converter, Soundcraftsmen AE2000 Eq, JBL 4313B's, JBL 2241-based Sub, JBL BX63A Active Crossover, Oppo BDP-105D Blu-Ray Player, Samsung 5500 Series 32" Smart TV, Terk AF-1 Powered Antenna Master Bedroom System: McIntosh: MX120 Theater processor, MC206 6-channel amplifier; MR74 AM/FM Tuner, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, JVC HM-DH40000U D-Theater Digital VHS, Phase Technology PC80 Towers (now used as stands), (2) JBL 4401's, (1) JBL Studio 6IW speaker, (2) JBL Studio 6IC speakers, Sony XBR-49X900E UHD TV, Panamax 1000 Line Conditioner, (2) JL Audio E110 Subwoofers, Wireworld Solstice speaker cables, Wireworld Aurora Power cords, Wireworld Equinox and Solstice speaker cables and various other flavors of Wireworld and Audioquest cabling Office System: Marantz 150 Tuner, Crown DL 2, Crown EQ 2, Crown SA 2, Crown D-75A (as headphone amp), McIntosh MCD7009 (as transport), DBX 3BX Series II, Oppo BDP-103 Blu-ray player, JBL 4401's, JL Audio E112 Subwoofer, Samsung 5500 series 32" Smart TV, Wire World Oasis audio interconnects, Wire World Solstice speaker cables, Wyred for Sound DAC-2 DSDse Digital to Analog converter, Wireworld Starlight Coaxial Digital Interconnect, Sennheiser HD800 Headphones, Sennheiser HDVA600 Headphone amp, Wireworld Silver Eclipse Balanced Interconnects, Wireworld Platinum Starlight USB Cable, Add-Powr EAU-2 AC Harmonic resonator High Resolution Source: HP Omen 17" Gaming Laptop |
#18
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Pete.......That's funny but I don't think you should hold your breathe while waiting on a FedEx freight truck to backup to your front door with a load of old McIntosh tuners any time soon.
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Dan STUDIO - McIntosh C1000C/P, MC2301 (2), MR88, Aurender N10, Esoteric K-01X, Shunyata Sigma spdif digital cable, Sonos Connect, PurePower 2000, Stillpoints, Furutech Flux 50, Michell Gyro SE, Michell HR Power Supply, SME 309, Ortofon Cadenza Black, Wireworld, Sonus faber Amati Anniversario LIVING ROOM - McIntosh C2300, MC75 (2), MR85, Magnum Dynalab 205, Simaudio MOON Neo 260D-T, Schiit Audio Yggdrasil, Aurender N100H, Shunyata Sigma USB cable, Micro Seiki DD40, Ortofon Cadenza Blue, Nakamichi BX-300, Sony 60ES DAT, PS Audio P10, Furutech Flux 50, Sonos Connect, Stillpoints, Wireworld, Kimber, PMC EB1i, JL Audio f113 VINTAGE - McIntosh MA230, Tandberg 3011A tuner, Olive 04HD, Sony DTC-59ES DAT, McIntosh 4300V, JBL 4312A |
#19
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Hopefully, that truck will stop at my house before Pete's.
Maybe they will be a door stop some day, but right now, fm is my most frequent source. Everything changes - cassettes occupied the same position at one point. |
#20
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I think you're right Dan!
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Pete No. 35 Main System: VPI Prime Signature TT in Rosewood, Ortofon Cadenza Black, Stillpoints LP1 V2, McIntosh: MP100, MR78, MCD1000 Transport on Stillpoint Ultra Minis, MDA1000 D/A Converter on Stillpoint Ultra Minis, MS750 Music Server, C40, MC501's (3), Soundcraftsmen: DC2215 Eq/AS1000 Real time analyzer, DBX 3BX II, Carver C9, Nakamichi Dragon, Crown SX724, Crown D-75A (as headphone amp), Sony XBR55X900E 4K TV, JBL L220A's, JBL B460, Sumo Delilah active crossover, WireWorld Silver Eclipse audio interconnects, WireWorld Starlight and Silver Starlight Coaxial Digital interconnects, Wireworld SuperNova 7 Toslink digital interconnect, WireWorld Aurora 7 and Silver Electra Power cords, Wireworld Silver Eclipse 8 speaker cables, Terk AF-1 Powered Antenna, Oppo UDP-205 4K Blu-Ray Player, Bryson BUC-1 USB Converter, Wireworld Gold Starlight XLR Digital interconnect, PS Audio Direct Stream Power Plant 12 on Stillpoint Ultra Minis, PS Audio Dectect, FuruTech Flux-50 NCF Inline Power Filter, Add-Powr Wizard EM Field AC Line conditioner; Stillpoint Ultra SS's under (3) McIntosh MC501 Amplifiers Florida Room/Art Studio System: Harmon Kardon T60 TT/Ortofon 2M Black, McIntosh: MR77, C32, MC2205; Crown Power Line Four, Wyred for Sound DAC-2 Digital to Analog converter, Soundcraftsmen AE2000 Eq, JBL 4313B's, JBL 2241-based Sub, JBL BX63A Active Crossover, Oppo BDP-105D Blu-Ray Player, Samsung 5500 Series 32" Smart TV, Terk AF-1 Powered Antenna Master Bedroom System: McIntosh: MX120 Theater processor, MC206 6-channel amplifier; MR74 AM/FM Tuner, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, JVC HM-DH40000U D-Theater Digital VHS, Phase Technology PC80 Towers (now used as stands), (2) JBL 4401's, (1) JBL Studio 6IW speaker, (2) JBL Studio 6IC speakers, Sony XBR-49X900E UHD TV, Panamax 1000 Line Conditioner, (2) JL Audio E110 Subwoofers, Wireworld Solstice speaker cables, Wireworld Aurora Power cords, Wireworld Equinox and Solstice speaker cables and various other flavors of Wireworld and Audioquest cabling Office System: Marantz 150 Tuner, Crown DL 2, Crown EQ 2, Crown SA 2, Crown D-75A (as headphone amp), McIntosh MCD7009 (as transport), DBX 3BX Series II, Oppo BDP-103 Blu-ray player, JBL 4401's, JL Audio E112 Subwoofer, Samsung 5500 series 32" Smart TV, Wire World Oasis audio interconnects, Wire World Solstice speaker cables, Wyred for Sound DAC-2 DSDse Digital to Analog converter, Wireworld Starlight Coaxial Digital Interconnect, Sennheiser HD800 Headphones, Sennheiser HDVA600 Headphone amp, Wireworld Silver Eclipse Balanced Interconnects, Wireworld Platinum Starlight USB Cable, Add-Powr EAU-2 AC Harmonic resonator High Resolution Source: HP Omen 17" Gaming Laptop |
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