I have a recently refurbished Fisher AM/FM tuner with an attached preamp that is so old that it only has mono outputs. By coincidence, I happen to be listening to it at this moment.
Yes, this one, like many other very old units, do have a unique and warm sound to them. For overall quality of sound they should be taken as more of a curiosity. In the corner of my living room I have my McIntosh 2102 (tube)--We call it 'BIG BLUE'-- amp on a rather spartan-looking mahogony stand that has a marble top. Sitting on the baseplates of the stand is the Fisher tuner and they are sitting just behind a pair of cherrywood Kef Referance 205 speakers. A number of people, especially guys, just stand in front of this set-up, holding their chins in complete wonderment. It is fun to watch and tell the stories, especially when I then explain what my Audio Aero Mark II(tube) CD player is. There are other pieces, but these make for quite the visual impact, and then I turn it all on!
Now, to complete the effect, imagine my wife and I standing near the set-up, hands outstretched warming our palms....
I think the above might be an answer to your question. If you are really into that classical warm sound of vintage tubes, I would point you toward some of the more interesting amps occasionally available on Audiogon. The very old fisher-type receivers, preamps and tuners can sound okay but if you want audiophile quality music then get something much newer. Even with new tubes and transisters you still have all of the old wires and connectors and these are far from perfect. In my case I listen much more to my CD player and I put on the old Fisher more for background music and it was a whole lot of fun when I used it to hear the World Series Baseball games as the radio feed comes in about 15 seconds faster than the visuals from my Satellite and this was quite the 60s-style trip!
Yes, this one, like many other very old units, do have a unique and warm sound to them. For overall quality of sound they should be taken as more of a curiosity. In the corner of my living room I have my McIntosh 2102 (tube)--We call it 'BIG BLUE'-- amp on a rather spartan-looking mahogony stand that has a marble top. Sitting on the baseplates of the stand is the Fisher tuner and they are sitting just behind a pair of cherrywood Kef Referance 205 speakers. A number of people, especially guys, just stand in front of this set-up, holding their chins in complete wonderment. It is fun to watch and tell the stories, especially when I then explain what my Audio Aero Mark II(tube) CD player is. There are other pieces, but these make for quite the visual impact, and then I turn it all on!
Now, to complete the effect, imagine my wife and I standing near the set-up, hands outstretched warming our palms....
I think the above might be an answer to your question. If you are really into that classical warm sound of vintage tubes, I would point you toward some of the more interesting amps occasionally available on Audiogon. The very old fisher-type receivers, preamps and tuners can sound okay but if you want audiophile quality music then get something much newer. Even with new tubes and transisters you still have all of the old wires and connectors and these are far from perfect. In my case I listen much more to my CD player and I put on the old Fisher more for background music and it was a whole lot of fun when I used it to hear the World Series Baseball games as the radio feed comes in about 15 seconds faster than the visuals from my Satellite and this was quite the 60s-style trip!