How Many TAS Readers Listen to FM?
Robert Harley -- Fri, 08/29/2008 - 10:42
I received this letter from a reader, and frankly, didn't know how important a source FM is to TAS readers. I'd love to hear from you about how much you listen to FM, and whether you'd like to see more tuner coverage in TAS. —Robert Harley
Mr. Harley-
Pardon me for asking such a random question - as in not related to any recent article or equipment review in TAS. I have been curious for some time now as to why analog radio itself appears to be a forgotten musical medium and analog radio tuners are all but forgotten equipment in audiophile magazines today, including TAS?
I have a Magnum Dynalab MD 102 analog FM tuner, with the Musical Fidelity X-10 V3 tube buffer in between my tuner and pre-amp. The musical results are fantastic, assuming my FM signal is good. And to help me in that regard as a clear signal can be a challenge in Boston, is the Magnum Signal Sleuth model 250 which really brings in the signal and cleans it up pretty well. No question that signal strength can be an issue, and may be the answer to my inquiry. But in most instances, I can get a very good quality signal.
I question whether I am missing something that everyone else has figured out, or if I am some sort of "fringe" audiophile that still listens to analog FM as a great source of music (and by the way, it's free!). I definitely listen more to my disc and vinyl collections at home and the iPod hookup in my car, but the radio is a great solution for a music source when you want variety, you want to hear the new artists developing and you want to hear what the new trends in popular and alternative music are. Also, in Boston I'm blessed some great Sunday morning jazz broadcasts which I look forward to and have picked up many new (and old) artists as a result.
When some of my friends listen to my tuner setup, they are blown away with the purity of sound that you can get via a good analog signal and corresponding receiving equipment. Is there any possibility of an article in the future regarding this topic? Maybe the article is part retro-review of the classic tuners from the 70's and also an analysis of todays leading edge audiophile equipment focused on this medium?
-Jeffrey Mead
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I listen to FM mostly Classic Rock since the rest of the DC areas stations suck. Only jazz station is WPFW and it isnt jazz all the time plus its way to far to left to put up with.
Actually it would be interesting to compare Fm radio to HD radio to Sirius and to XM. Who has the best sound.
After chasing the absolute sound for over 20 years I finally decided what counts is being able to tap your foot and enjoy the music. I dont care about soundstage, transparency or the upper frequency air. I want to enjoy the music whether its Jummy Buffet on Radio Margatitaville or Soul Street on XM. Man we used to enjoy 8 tracks and I can remember having the first Blaupunkt AM/FM cassette radio and speakers in my Rabbit that morphed into a Jackrabbit GTI for a 16v Oettinger head conversion, 4 wheel discs amd a 5dpd and outrunning just about anything except for a Porsche 930. The car stereo sounds got lost in the sounds of a high tuned VW.
I find many audiophile recordings to be crap and would much rather listen to a Buddy Guy or Shirley Horn CD. I still have vinyl but only a few albums are from the audiophile highend side.
I have a great system at home Linn, Maggies and CJ for 2 channel but I am not chasing things that really dont matter. Cables are by Better Cables. I dont spend time after a tough day fiddling with VTA or worrying that the latest interconnect from MIT maybe what I need for audiophile nirvanna. Or will those special cable elevators really make a difference.
Who cares! The important question is will my girlfriend be wearing La Perla or Agent Provocateur wher FMPS!
At 49yo my hearing isnt what it was at 18yo and this is another thing you need to look into. Can your reviewers really hear what they claim to hear
based on their hearing.
I just want to sit down with Highland single malt and enjoy the Neville Bros or Wynton with my collies. Or just rock out to George Thoroughgood and the Delware Destroyers since I used to pass his dad's concrete company on the way to the beach. Or some Who or AC?DC. Then maybe some Stones.
Only thing that really matters in car audio is can you roll up the windows and sing along with the tunes.
Sheepherder
Shenandoah Valley, VA
I really do not listen to FM radio any longer. There do not appear to be any decent stations down here.
When I lived in Chicago, then yes, there were several stations that I listened to a good deal.
Now it is XM or internet radio via a Roku. Actually, I do enjoy listening to either one, they both sound quite acceptable and there is always something new playing. It is very good exposure to new music for me.
Good Listening
Jac
I listen to FM, through an Integra DTC 9.8 (and in the car).
Here in Austin, we have a listener-supported classical radio station, KMFA (http://www.kmfa.org/); it streams (at only 64kb, I think) and hopes to offer HD radio in the future (some interesting discussions with them about the quality of that medium).
An excellent means of hearing enjoyably high-quality sound and stuff that one would only otherwise encounter as a TAS/Stereophile/etc review - but those can't tell you what the music is - you have to have heard a version of it for classical reviews to make much sense.
-- Pete
Hello Pete,
Funny when I logged into the station and downloaded the stream link my iTunes shows its at 256 kbps, which is VERY good.
I immediately added it to my radio favorites list.
Thanks for the link.
Steven Stone
Contributor to The Absolute Sound, EnjoytheMusic.com, Vintage Guitar Magazine, and other fine publications
I don't listen to radio, even in the car. I can't put up with the hours of drivel that is broadcasted. We don't have a pure jazz station locally and I can't be bothered enough to keep track of the occasional Jazz program that airs. It's LP or CD all the way for me.
I have an excellent tuner, a Rotel RT 1024. It is from the late 70's I bought new in MINT condition. I live in Vancouver BC Canada and have a few stations, and live close to them. Reception is not a problem, and my favourite stations are easy to get and very clean. My tuner puts out excellent sound and it is an integral part of my audo system and I use it frequently. Does it compare to CD? Not exactly but VERY close. Sometimes I prefer to listen to FM and want the babble, variety or whatever rather than a dedicated artist on an album. Yes, I do critical listening with the tuner as I would any other source.
The real trick/question is do you have a reference grade tuner? Can you get stations easily and free of distortion? Just before I moved into a house, a little further from the city centre (and broadcast centre) I could get stations PERFECT: no distortion, static or whatever, all with a simple piece of wire about 3 feet long (you read that right). Currently I am a bit down in quality with SOME noise, but I am working on getting a better antenna to fix that. But I feel I can get the reception I once had. I am certain if I lived in any of the near suburbs to the city centre the antenna issue would be null. But the tuner quality is a must, and if you get into it, you may find the best tuners have already been made. Internet searches abound; and most of the good tuners are Japanese made some years ago.
I would never get rid of my tuner given how good it sounds and I think most would be suprised how good it could be for them too if they took the time to get a good tuner and solve any reception/antenna issues, if any.
Although I'm a HUGE fan of music, FM bores the pants off me. In the car it's AM talk and in the evenings I enjoy spinning vinyl.
I'm from Ontario, Canada (midway between Toronto and Detroit) and almost directly across lake Erie from Cleveland. Our area is considered a bit of a wasteland for good fm, unless one has a good antenna source and a tuner that pull a signal from a distance. That being said; we have local university and college stations, CBC our national radio network has a local transmitter and of course we also have 5 or 6 rock stations, including a classic (read 70 and 80's) station. I have listened to fm for 40 plus years and only in the past 5 years have I discovered what a good tuner can do for great sound. I had listened for years to receiver tuuners only. I happened upon the fm tuner information center ite online right in the middle of an ongoing shoot-out where they compared 80 something tuners against a base system. It was fascinating and I got hooked. I now have a bevy of great tuners including tube classics and switch them in and out of my systems (both solid state and tube) as the whim or desire for a slightly different sound hits me. Its free, its fun and when one gets a great signal, the sound can be extremely good.
I love music and I have always enjoyed the pleasant company a radio provides. I'm not an audiophile so the cable company connection works fine. I receive interesting classical and jazz stations from Seattle ( I live in Victoria) and also enjoy the local university station. I do not listen to the national CBC anymore, as it has changed it's programming to sound like an aging, behind the times, university station. I listen to satellite radio, too, and while I miss the local aspect, I enjoy the Met channel and the blues and jazz programming.
Listening to radio is very important to me. It keeps me informed on new cd’s and I hear announcements for concerts that might be interesting. And another big plus: interviews with performing artists and directors. I listen allmost exclusively to classical radio: Radio 4 of the Netherlands Denon, but I have ordered a Vincent (partly tube in the amplification sector). Radio offers the oppertunity to listen to music you might never have heard about.
Every Sunday afternoon there is a discussion program on the Dutch Radio 4 with knowledgeable people lisstening to new cd's and comparing a feature composition with sometimes quite surprising conclusions since the performing orchestra and composer are only revealed afterwords! I learned a lot about classical music listening over twenty years to this program.
Dutch Radio 4 sounds a lot like Britain's Radio 3 and Poland's Radio 2 - good sounds presented by knowledgeable people with a decent command of their language. In today's dumbed down world that link with a living culture is a valuable thing indeed.
Europe is a good source of nice FM tuners. One of my biggest regrets is the passing of the great age of the FM tuner. My tuner collection just gets larger and larger as I keep my finders crossed that they will never switch off FM broadcasts.
It sounds like you have access to a wonderful station. It sounds like a full-time version of Performance Today on NPR, which I enjoy.
I live in the Portland, Or area, and I listen to FM a lot, while I drive around for work, and at home.
At home, I use a completely restored and modded 60's tube Dyna FM-3, which has mods for sound (caps, resistors, added circuits), and selectivity and sensitivity mods.
On the 3 stations here which sound good, two are Community FM stations ("real" jazz and classical), and a commercial station which plays "Adult Rock", from the 60's through today, and they do not equalize or compress too much.
Most of the FM stations do eq, compress the heck out of the signal, and sound like crap.
FM can sound quite good, and I listen at home to a mix of it, CD, and LP.
Mike
VinylGuy
Re - FM listening
I listen to a LOT of FM here in central Alberta. We have two great sources of music that occupy space in my basement office/shop. One is the venerable Canadian Broadcast Corporation and the other is a listener supported network of frequencies that has been broadcasting in Alberta for over 80 years - CKUA.
I gave up on commercial radio fodder over a decade ago. I might go back to lisening to a commercial station if I could find one that would play all the other songs on an album and not just the "Hit".
Both CBC and CKUA can be heard via streaming internet but why would I? I have dozens of vintage amps and speakers and tuners and turntables here but my main source of music is pretty much those two stations. Neither is restricted for content and the on-air folks play pretty much what they (and we the listener) enjoy - and that's good for my collection of CDs and vinyl! (Although actually finding that music in a store is getting a bit tougher.)
The only competition for new music choices and recommendations is, of course, when TAS hits the mailbox.
Would I like to know more about tuners? Yes I would. Would I also like to know more about how to best capture those FM signals (antennae)? Yes I would. Do I wish there were more stations like the aforementioned? Betcherass I would and don't we all!
best regards
jac
Revial Audio Collections
Edmoton, Alberta
I like listening to FM because it's like having a huge amount of music on 'shuffle' - I just change the station if I don't like what's playing. It also helps me, as others have said, get to know new or different artists I would normally not come across.
I strongly dislike listening to ads, though which is why I like my Polk iSonic because it plays HD radio ie no ads. It is, however, a poorly designed piece of equipment which makes it frustrating to use. But I use it when I want to listen to radio because it has HD and my main setup gets used only for movies and the occasional CD.
I'm still trying to figure out an economical yet elegant way to have all my music stored electronically on a device that can also play HD radio and connect that to my Maggie 1.6's and Pioneer Elite.
I have a M. Dynalab Elite tuner and listened regularly to 2-3 stations in Oklahoma City: a classical station , Oklahoma U. station and one other. Now I live in Clemson, SC and there is NOTHING worthwhile to listen to. I'd love to have a good jazz or classical station, preferably both.
Jack D II
Hello Jack,
If you look I bet you can find the stations you liked in Oklahoma City on the Internet.
I regularly listen to WGBH and WBUR from Boston as well as WNYC from New York via the Internet.
Steven Stone
Contributor to The Absolute Sound, EnjoytheMusic.com, Vintage Guitar Magazine, and other fine publications
FM can be a great medium and can sound excellent. More coverage in TAS may raise FM consciousness and help to keep FM alive. I listen to FM just about every day and would love to see coverage of FM tuners, both current production and vintage. As has been said, there are few good stations, but FM continues to be one of a relatively few ways of hearing new music -- and learning about music, new and old.
I am fortunate to be within range of WBGO, Jazz 88, an all-jazz, NPR affiliated station which broadcasts from Newark, NJ, at 88.3 fm, in analog and HD, and it streams on the web at wbgo.org. It's a fantastic station for any jazz lover and puts out a great signal. Among other things, it has weekly live broadcasts from the Village Vanguard -- great sound, uncompressed, I believe.
My tuner is a late 70's Kenwood L-07TII, aligned and modified by a retired gentleman in AZ. For more info on older tuners, check out the Tuner Information Center, www.fmtunerinfo.com. This particular is said to be one of the best Kenwood models and cost around $400 on Audiogon, plus another $350 for alignment and mods, a relative steal in the world of high end audio, and it has made me understand how wonderful FM can sound. Tuners are quirky, without a doubt, but then so is vinyl. More coverage in TAS would be great.
James B.
WBGO also has an Internet webstream (which I'm listening to right now).
Too bad it's only 64 KBPS.
Steven Stone
Contributor to The Absolute Sound, EnjoytheMusic.com, Vintage Guitar Magazine, and other fine publications
I continue to listen to FM via a 'cherry' Tandberg 3001A tuner and a KLH Model 21-II table radio. There are two public radio stations (WKAR - Lansing, MI and WCMU - Mt. Pleasant, MI) that I can receive that have classical and jazz programming. I can receive many other stations, but the ones worthwhile for me are the two I mentioned. FM does still open one's listening to a variety of music that one might othewise miss out on. Both of my sources -- I am the original owner for both -- continue to give great service despite their advancing age. The Tandberg is seductively musical when the material permits. Good vintage analogue FM tuners are the comfort food of audio equipment -- a bit like visiting times past. Twirl that knob!
I also listen in my automobile and over the internet. WKAR has excellent "reach" in my area of Michigan (flat terrain) so one can easily drive for 2 hours and keep listening. An internet favorite for me is WRTI in Philly.
An overview of analogue tuners would be a welcome addition to articles on the vintage classics.
Bob Bubeck
Note: Posted on two threads.
I listen to KPLU out of Tacoma and Seattle, you can find their on-air schedule here: http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/kplu/guide.guidemain
They play a lot of great jazz for several hours a day, and connected via 75 ohm coax to my tuner, this is by far the clearest FM station I have ever heard. On many occassions I prefer the sound I am hearing even over good quality CD played on my Cambridge Audio 8409C. The reception is that clear. I have listened devotedly to ths for years.
By comparison, any of the local rock stations and such sound terrible. Compressed and poor quality.
I have a built in tuner in my NAD T753, and a separate NAD tuner for my 2 channel setup. Both sound very, very good with KPLU.
If you like jazz and can pick up KPLU, it is highly recommended.
Paul
Here in the UK we have a fantastic FM radio station in BBC Radio 3. The music ranges from classical through to jazz and eclectic in the evening. The transmission quality is never less than good, and goes all the way to exceptional on the live broadcasts.
I have a variety of tuners. At the moment I'm listening through my Yamaha CT-7000, only one previous owner since 1975 and to the best of my knowledge it's never been aligned since then. I find I enjoy music through this old analogue beauty more than through the CDP and get more variety than I from my record collection even though absolute sonics suffer slightly. Don't talk to me about DAB radio. Life would not be the same without FM radio - the greatest gift of technology ever!
With so many music sources available now I drifted away from FM for awhile. But after listening to Sirius, XM, internet and HD radio, I'm back. To my ears, FM with good reception sounds better than any of those other sources. The advertising on the commercial stations is more obnoxious than ever, but the music sounds better. I definitely feel that TAS should commit more coverage to this media. If FM dies (or gets priced out of existence by recording industry greed) we will all suffer.
With so many music sources available now I drifted away from FM for awhile. But after listening to Sirius, XM, internet and HD radio, I'm back. To my ears, FM with good reception sounds better than any of those other sources. The advertising on the commercial stations is more obnoxious than ever, but the music sounds better. I definitely feel that TAS should commit more coverage to this media. If FM dies (or gets priced out of existence by recording industry greed) we will all suffer.
I listen to the local jazz station: WWOZ
http://www.wwoz.org/
Local college station: TUL
http://www.wtulneworleans.com/
I listen while driving ONLY and Clearstation channels suck so bad it hurts!
Internet radio has so many wonderful options such as French Kiss & Intergalactic FM.
Cheers!