Stereo Receivers with DAB or FM/AM

[Blackdawn]

I've noticed that there are many mainstream brands still producing stereo receivers with only FM/AM tuner inside. e.g. Marantz, NAD, Onkyo, Harmon Kardon, Denon, Yamaha etc. First of all, are there many people here with fairly new stereo receivers which also have DAB? I see Denon have one and also with the NAD you can add a DAB module etc. What do you think of them if you have a new one? Is the FM signal still going to be turned off in the next few years and do you think this will impact on people buying these receivers? Will manufacturers begin to include internet and DAB/DAB+ to these receivers? Is it better to buy a separate tuner instead of stereo receiver?

 

[iMark]

IMHO DAB is dead in the water. It's obsolete technology. It's completely unclear to me why the UK is the only country in the world considering switching off FM for DAB. I have tried to listen to DAB in the UK and because of the low bandwidth of most stations it sounded worse than FM.

For home use I see internet streams as the future. Here in Amsterdam I can now listen to BBC Radio 3 through iTunes radio with a bitrate of 320 Kbps and it beats the FM feed we get through the cable TV provider hands down. I have a ten year old Denon stereo receiver that still works very well and the FM receiver is pretty good.

I don't know anyone who actually has a DAB receiver here in NL. There are plans however to start broadcasting a couple of new multipelexes in DAB+. The Dutch government has twisted the commercial radio stations' arm by forcing them to adopt digital broadcasting because otherwise their FM licenses would not be renewed. There are no plans however to cease FM broadcasting.

Coming back to my original point I think Internet streams are the future for radio. It is flexible so that when more people get broadband the better quality the streams can be. I don't understand why the hifi makers are not producing internet radios that can be connected to a stereo system.

This looked like an interesting gadget to me a couple of years ago:

http://www.revo.co.uk/digital-radio/revo-mondo-wifi.php

However I don't know how flexible it is when future standards change. I also have no idea what the quality of the DAC is for streaming local files. We now stream radio from a MacBook or an iPad to our Aiport Express that is connected to a DAC and for the moment that seems the best solution.

 

[nads]

I've noticed that there are many mainstream brands still producing stereo receivers with only FM/AM tuner inside. e.g. Marantz, NAD, Onkyo, Harmon Kardon, Denon, Yamaha etc. First of all, are there many people here with fairly new stereo receivers which also have DAB? I see Denon have one and also with the NAD you can add a DAB module etc. What do you think of them if you have a new one? Is the FM signal still going to be turned off in the next few years and do you think this will impact on people buying these receivers? Will manufacturers begin to include internet and DAB/DAB+ to these receivers? Is it better to buy a separate tuner instead of stereo receiver?

no comment on DAB but this from NAD does all you ask for and more

http://nadelectronics.com/products/tuners/C-446-Digital-Media-Tuner

 

[chudleighpaul]

IMHO DAB is dead in the water. It's obsolete technology. It's completely unclear to me why the UK is the only country in the world considering switching off FM for DAB. I have tried to listen to DAB in the UK and because of the low bandwidth of most stations it sounded worse than FM.

I have a Yamaha receiver with DAB and I love it, ther is also a DAB portable in the house, I now have a DAB radio in my car and it is absolutely brilliant.

 

[iMark]

[/quote]

I have a Yamaha receiver with DAB and I love it, ther is also a DAB portable in the house, I now have a DAB radio in my car and it is absolutely brilliant.

[/quote]

How does DAB compare to FM on your receiver? I found Radio 3 horrific on DAB.

 

[Blackdawn]

This looked like an interesting gadget to me a couple of years ago:

http://www.revo.co.uk/digital-radio/revo-mondo-wifi.php

However I don't know how flexible it is when future standards change. I also have no idea what the quality of the DAC is for streaming local files. We now stream radio from a MacBook or an iPad to our Aiport Express that is connected to a DAC and for the moment that seems the best solution.

iMark, that revo player looks good and a nice price.

 

[Blackdawn]

I've noticed that there are many mainstream brands still producing stereo receivers with only FM/AM tuner inside. e.g. Marantz, NAD, Onkyo, Harmon Kardon, Denon, Yamaha etc. First of all, are there many people here with fairly new stereo receivers which also have DAB? I see Denon have one and also with the NAD you can add a DAB module etc. What do you think of them if you have a new one? Is the FM signal still going to be turned off in the next few years and do you think this will impact on people buying these receivers? Will manufacturers begin to include internet and DAB/DAB+ to these receivers? Is it better to buy a separate tuner instead of stereo receiver?

no comment on DAB but this from NAD does all you ask for and more

http://nadelectronics.com/products/tuners/C-446-Digital-Media-Tuner

thanks nads. I've seen this product before whilst browsing the NAD site. It looks great but unfotunately is at £700, its ~ £500 over my budget.

 

[Blackdawn]

This product appears to do everything I want from a Tuner:

http://www.revo.co.uk/digital-radio/revo-heritage.php

The price is good and I can hook it up to the stereo, its portable and looks to be multi-format. Any comments? Anyone have one? The other one I was looking at could be the Q2 Wifi radio.

 

[chudleighpaul]

[/quote]

How does DAB compare to FM on your receiver? I found Radio 3 horrific on DAB.

[/quote]

Never listen to Radio 3 but Classic FM is very good indeed.

 

[iMark]

Just had a look at the Revo Heritage thing. It looks very nice but remember that the internet radio is powered by Reciva and that Reciva is not well known for its support of AAC+ streams. Loads of complaints on the forums.

The streaming also looks very cumbersome to me.