brb@philabs.UUCP (Brian Bertan) (01/30/84)
After nearly 4 months of frustration, I have finally purchased an FM
tuner -- the Yamaha T1000. I really had my heart set on buying the
Pioneer F-90, but there were none to be found in the New York
metropolitan area, and no dealer had any idea of when they would
arrive.
I have spent a great deal of time sampling tuners from $200 (JVC
T-X55) to $475 (Carver TX-11), and I would like to share my opinions
and observations on a few of the more interseting ones.
My dealer has a policy where you can leave a deposit and take home a
demo unit for a nights listening. I tried the Sumo "Charlie the
Tuner" ($440), and tested against a friends Carver TX-11 (One must be
very tactful when doing this, or you might offend your friend by
implicitly doubting his audio judgement). The Charlie seemed to have
an almost imperceptable advantage in stereo separation, while the
Carver had a superior control panel. It was practically a toss up.
After running this head-to-head test (with a simple dipole antenna), I
found that I was not overwhelmed by either of these "Super" tuners, and
for my application they would not be worth the extra $200.
I'm not sure that the Carver tuner has its value in suburban areas
where reception is fairly strong. I did not notice a reduction in
noise level with stations (even distant stations) in a suburban
environment. I really cannot say how well it works in outlying areas,
although I understand that is where it excels. When I read between the
lines in the Ovation and Audio reviews of the TX-11, they seemed to
agree that the TX-11 was extremely well suited for rural operation, and
that it would perform nicely in suburban and urban areas. Still there
is something about the TX-11 that intrigues me.
The Yamaha T1000 performed very well with an indoor dipole, and was
reasonably priced at $260. It has two controls, MONO/STEREO and
LOCAL/DX. When you preset a station, it will remember the setting of
these two selects. It may not be a "Super" tuner, but in my reception
area it performs about as well as Charlie and the TX-11.
My dealer did not have the Yamaha T1000 in stock, but he should have it
in a week or so. In the interim he has given me his floor sample. If
for some reason I do not like the tuner I can return it, otherwise I
will exchange the demo for the factory fresh model when it arrives. So
if anyone has an opinion on this tuner PLEASE LET ME KNOW WHILE I HAVE
AN OPPORTUNITY TO RETURN IT. There may be something I have
overlooked.
I'd like to thank all those who gave their advice. I wrote back to all
of you, but I believe something may have gone wrong with my reply
command and some of you may not have received my letters. If that is
the case, please accept my apologies. I will use the mail command from
now on.
Brian Bertan
Philips Labs
Briarcliff Manor, NY
{allegra | decvax | seismo }!philabs!brb (914) 945-6309