Can anyone recommend an excellent quality tuner. I am willing to buy second-hand. I can't get DAB and mainly listen to Radio3/4.
FM Tuner required
- Thread starter cse
- Start date
John Duncan
Well-known member
Depends how much you want t o spend. You can get something excellent like the Denon TU260L Mk2 for as little as 25 quid....
Have a look at www.fmtunerinfo.com and checkout retro classics. Got my Sansui TU-317 for £45 all in with delivery from a guy in London on the strength of that site. Great tuner, wonderful sound, easily as good as what's out there today.
DistortedVision
Well-known member
If you're looking for a budget tuner then I would have to agree with John - the Denon TU260L Mk II is excellent and was a bargain even at its full RRP. I still have mine in my second system. I was pleasantly surprised to read about it in Hi-Fi+ who normally review very high end components. They said this,
""The Denon TU260L Mk II Tuner is quite possibly one of the finest single pieces of affordable hi-fi equipment to have ever come out of the land of the rising sun."
The rest of the article is here: http://www.hifiplus.com/t-rev4-4-tab.html
I've seen the TU260 Mk II sell for as little as a quid on eBay recently. Its happened more than once! Have you still got yours John?
If your budget allows I would get a Tag McLaren T32R. It has DAB but really shines on FM. Andy Clough of the WHF team has one. You may wish to look at this thread:
http://whathifi.com/forums/t/102201.aspx
Another suggestion is perhaps using Freeview and the digital out into a DAC. I use my Sony Freeview box and its connected to my Tag McLaren DAC20 and is far better than DAB in my opinion because of higher bitrates. If you're looking for a new DAC then I suggest you take a look at the Cambridge Audio DACMagic
""The Denon TU260L Mk II Tuner is quite possibly one of the finest single pieces of affordable hi-fi equipment to have ever come out of the land of the rising sun."
The rest of the article is here: http://www.hifiplus.com/t-rev4-4-tab.html
I've seen the TU260 Mk II sell for as little as a quid on eBay recently. Its happened more than once! Have you still got yours John?
If your budget allows I would get a Tag McLaren T32R. It has DAB but really shines on FM. Andy Clough of the WHF team has one. You may wish to look at this thread:
http://whathifi.com/forums/t/102201.aspx
Another suggestion is perhaps using Freeview and the digital out into a DAC. I use my Sony Freeview box and its connected to my Tag McLaren DAC20 and is far better than DAB in my opinion because of higher bitrates. If you're looking for a new DAC then I suggest you take a look at the Cambridge Audio DACMagic
Greenwich_Man
Well-known member
JohnDuncan:Depends how much you want t o spend. You can get something excellent like the Denon TU260L Mk2 for as little as 25 quid....
I have this one - it's just so good - got it off e-bay - you could get one for a good price there
I have this one - it's just so good - got it off e-bay - you could get one for a good price there
John Duncan
Well-known member
DistortedVision:Have you still got yours John?
Yes, though it's in storage and will probably remain so in the long term - it's one of those things where I don't use it but a) I got it from my wife so selling is a no-no and b) I'd only get 25 quid for it, so seems a shame to, in case I ever find a use for it. But when it was up and running, it was brilliant.
I personally wouldn't go down the DAB route if you want "hifi" radio - in fact even a freeview box will serve you better in this regard, since the bitrates are higher for the vast majority of stations.
Yes, though it's in storage and will probably remain so in the long term - it's one of those things where I don't use it but a) I got it from my wife so selling is a no-no and b) I'd only get 25 quid for it, so seems a shame to, in case I ever find a use for it. But when it was up and running, it was brilliant.
I personally wouldn't go down the DAB route if you want "hifi" radio - in fact even a freeview box will serve you better in this regard, since the bitrates are higher for the vast majority of stations.
chebby
Well-known member
Yes.
It will sound fine. Better than DAB and not quite as good as FM (assuming you have a professionally installed rooftop FM aerial).
Freeview Digital radio is clear and detailed enough but FM is in another league when it's right.
I repeat the point about the the rooftop FM aerial. It is far more important than the tuner (most of which are pretty good) which is why I spent £195 on one. (I am also lucky with local reception conditions.)
[Edit. Just noticed you said you enjoy mostly R3/R4 in which case FM will definitely be preferable if you are in a good reception area. Live concerts and radio plays are stunning on FM.]
It will sound fine. Better than DAB and not quite as good as FM (assuming you have a professionally installed rooftop FM aerial).
Freeview Digital radio is clear and detailed enough but FM is in another league when it's right.
I repeat the point about the the rooftop FM aerial. It is far more important than the tuner (most of which are pretty good) which is why I spent £195 on one. (I am also lucky with local reception conditions.)
[Edit. Just noticed you said you enjoy mostly R3/R4 in which case FM will definitely be preferable if you are in a good reception area. Live concerts and radio plays are stunning on FM.]
John Duncan
Well-known member
Yeah and a 25 quid s/h Denon will sound immeasurably better than a similarly priced freeview box.
Though you could -ooo- record radio with a freeview PVR.........
Though you could -ooo- record radio with a freeview PVR.........
DistortedVision
Well-known member
cse:Can you use a freeview box played through your hifi without having a tv set-up?
Yes as long as you don't mind losing the information that you get on-screen which would include the station you're listening to. I can't see navigation being a problem though since you mostly listen to to Radio 3 and 4 which are right next to each other anyway.
I'd recommend the Sony VTX-800U Freeview - We've got 3 of them in our house and they are excellent. They were a WHF 5* product.
They normally sell for around £40-50 on eBay.
Good luck!
Yes as long as you don't mind losing the information that you get on-screen which would include the station you're listening to. I can't see navigation being a problem though since you mostly listen to to Radio 3 and 4 which are right next to each other anyway.
I'd recommend the Sony VTX-800U Freeview - We've got 3 of them in our house and they are excellent. They were a WHF 5* product.
They normally sell for around £40-50 on eBay.
Good luck!
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