I use a Magnum Dynalab MD 102 and a Fanfare FT1a. I rotate them in my main system. Currently have the Fanfare in place. Great tuner , I'm spoiled by it's remote and it sounds great.
FM Radio, anyone?
I was a kid in the 70s. I remember listening to Detroit Tiger baseball on WJR AM 760 on summer evenings - the voice was Ernie Harwell. And I remember listening to music on our local FM stations, and FM sounded so much better than AM (well, of course it did!).
I remember the glow of the dial on higher end FM tuners, or on receivers. We had a Pioneer that was nice. But a neighbor had a beautiful Marantz with the heavy horizontal tuning dial. Today I own a Model 19 and a 2215b.
So, today I also own a McIntosh MR87 and I plan to showcase it in a whole house audio rack, with a rooftop antenna for the best possible reception. I also have a Magnum Dynalab MD-108 and I’m not sure where to put it, but it sure is pretty!
Yeah, I know, the SQ is crap compared to just about anything else these days. And radio stations just aren’t as good as they used to be, or as I choose to remember them (the exception being WXRT in Chicago). But I cannot let go! Anyone else?
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WUSF… home of The Underground Railroad At least while I lived in St. Pete from ‘65-‘75. I LOVED that station. Attended several of their riverfront festivals too. They were the only station around playing things like Procol Harum, long-play tunes from Brownsville Station, Bowie, others, worth staying up LATE to listen to on weekends. Oh, and the LOOOONG versions of “The True Story of The SS Titanic” and Alice’s Restaurant.
I have a Technics ST-9038/SH-9038 combo I did some updates/repair on (better output amplifier - OPA2134 - recapped audio signal path and power supplies, fixed push buttons) and still enjoy listening to late night/weekend FM (Hot Jazz Saturday Night, The Big Broadcast), or did, up until we moved away from DC in May. Gotta find out if there’s a station in Nashville or Huntsville (I’m between the two) broadcasting those shows (did NPR finally go fully commercial?), until then, there’s still streaming and I love me some RadioBOB aus Stadt Hessen. |
Thanks for the antenna recommendations @yyzsantabarbara @big_greg. |
@normb Great contribution, It is clear that where FM Listening really won through is how a Radio Station - Show - DJ / Presenter was able to create a Fan Club in similar context to being a Fan of the Artists who were having their recorded music played. Even when visiting Florida in the US annually nearly 20 Years ago, my Wife and I struck up a strong like, with hours of airplay for the 'Free the Eagle' 181FM - Eagle Radio Station. |
My once favorite antenna solution was a pair of tunable rabbit ears specifically designed for FM that were once available from Radio Shack. Much better (quieter!) than any powered antennas at the time. Nowadays I won’t put up with the look of those things, but I found a uniquely simple solution. I only listen to one station so I cut a piece of slender, flexible wire to a length that matches the wavelength of the desired signal. For example, for a station at 90.9 MHz, the full wavelength is 130.315” (wavelengths for different frequencies are easily found on the web). I just cut the wire to 32.6” (quarter wavelength) and hooked it to the back of my tuner. It gives me full quieting without fuss and it’s a simple matter to adjust the wire’s position for minimum multipath and tape it to the back of my cabinet out of sight. Pretty much free and worth a try… |
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