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My Sherwood 3000 III and Sony ST5000F are going to my tech for repair. I'm looking in US Audiomart and The Music Room. Would like to try something new for me. I only listen to one station WNCW 88.7.Not interested in DXing. Good sound is important. My pre and amp are tubes. There's an Accuphase t 1000 the is supposed to be great. I want to try a Magnum Dynalab maybe. Or maybe an inexpensive tuner from US Audiomart. I had a Marantz model Twenty that had nice imaging but the Sony st5000 beat it out on clarity and vividness. Also have owned a Sansui TU 717 and IIRC a 9900 or 919 that I sold for a friend, a Dynaco FM3,and many years ago a a Marantz 2020 receiver. Just looking for opinions what would be interesting and fun. It's been years since I have posted here on AA. Thank you!
Edits: 04/28/25
The best sounding tuners I know are:
McIntosh MR-67, MR-71 (and probably MR-65) and all benefit from mods by Richard Modaferri at Audio Classics
Marantz 10-B
Sorry, but the solid-state Mac tuners aren't in the same league for audio quality, though they do have great RF sections.
WW
"Put on your high heeled sneakers. Baby, we''re goin'' out tonight.
Thanks WW, I'm currently enjoying a MR74 that was very recently aligned and brought up to specs by Richard.
My thinking on the Mac tube tuners is that I have two Sherwood S-3000s tube tuners being aligned at a semi-local shop. Some have said that the S-3000 compares favorably to the Mcintosh tube tuners. I've listened to a Sherwood for quite awhile. Have you ever listed to one to compare to the Mcintosh tube tuners?
BTW, Audio Classics was a breeze to deal with, and the turnaround was a fast couple of weeks. The return shipping packing was a huge upgrade over how I had shipped to them. Maybe a bit spendy. IDK?
Chris
I haven't seen an Audiolab for sale, although I haven't really looked for one. I would definitely try one if I found one at a good price. Thanks!
Chris
I'm hooked on a classical station and have tried a lot of different tuners. One I recommend is Scott 310E.
Hi fredtr, what tuners have you tried and why does the Scott appeal to you the most? I'm all of a sudden on this FM tuner quest again and have considered a Scott.
Unfortunately my local classical station doesn't have the best signal strength. I'm getting a rooftop antenna soon which may help. I live in a mountainous area.
Thank you
Chris
Hi Chris, Good questions. I was after a specific quality to the sound. I wrote software listening to low volume classical, electrostatic speakers, tube amplification. I have a good DAC but prefered the air waves to catch my attention. I'm not good at describing what I was after, but most of the time the classical music was background, but something would come on that would catch my attention, something I liked, plus a characteristic of the sound. I tried about a dozen tuners, chasing what I was after, if it was close at all I did some tweaks, to further pursue the sound I was after. The tuners ranged from Accuphase solid state, Magnum Dynalab, Denon, Kenwood, Sansui to tube Eico, Sherwood, Scott stereo and mono with outboard MPX. I did not try the Mcintosh or the Marantz 10B, which I was tempted, but familiar with the 10B maintenance issues. The Scott tuners were the closest and the 310E was the best I tried, although I heard the 4310 is even better. As far as modifications, I took the relays out of the signal path, recapped it with combination of PIO's and film coupling caps, replaced the detector diodes and aligned it. I have a large outdoor FM antennae, station is about 35 miles away with multipath issues.
I think what I was after is some kind of colorization of the upper mid frequencies, some sparkle or magic that grabs my attention even at low volumes. I also don't trust my short term judgement, some tuners I used for a year or more before moving on. Only the Scott 310E has been my selection for many years.
Thank you for the generous description! I get what you are talking about. My out of service Sherwood has that special sound. While I'm getting it and my Sony repaired, it's a good time to sample other tuners.
US Audiomart has a few good tube tuners listed.
After weeks of streaming through a Bluesound Node my favorite FM station, I now own my first Mcintosh tuner to fill in while my Sony ST-5000F and Sherwood S-3000 III are in for repair... or perhaps upgrade.
The Mac arrived well packed and in better shape than described in the listing. "Mountain Mornings", a roots music show from 6-7, sounded fine, definitely better than streaming through the spendy DAC setup at AAC 58 kb/sec, Whatever that is?
Wow! My offer was a accepted for the MR67. It looks nice and shiny, and works. Works as we know can be highly variable. As long as it works, I bought it at a price good enough for a tweaking or a major upgrade. It is returnable within a week, so I'm happy with that.
When I get my Sony back, the Sherwood too, it will be great fun to do my own little shootout!
It was not a "deal", but a fair price from a reputable seller.
Thank you for the kind responses. I have found my tribe. I hope to contribute in the future.
Whoops, made a offer on a MR67 too!
Well, I suppose any new one too, although that should be a minimal chance.
Does it need alignment or other service?
Previously living in areas with multiple good station choices (meaning for my favored music) I've gone through a number of the more popular models. For awhile I had a Sansui TU 9900 which was known for signal quality. Mine was near perfect cosmetically but the sonics were only average. Similar story with a Yamaha T-9. Only later did I realize it could have been misalignment rather than unwarranted reputation for those.
Buying a respected model at the right price and having it serviced by a qualified tuner tech may be the answer.
"The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing, if you can fake that you've got it made." Groucho
So right you are M3 lover!
Do I want to return the new to me MR74 for $50 shipping? Or invest the money to service it? It probably needs caps replaced and other stuff? Any ideas? I can't do that kind of electrical work any more due to eyesight and hand unsteadiness.
It was taking up to 15 minutes to warm up and not picking up my station as well as most tuners do. It sounds like power supply caps and it's probably has never been serviced.
It cost me $700 shipped. Is it worth investing in? It's cosmetically nice for a 1970s tuner. Almost perfect in that respect.
Ideally you'd find one with a good reputation within reasonable driving distance. Otherwise you're face with shipping + repairs.
Unfortunately shipping costs have gone up like everything else, other than new TVs. ;^)
Was the MR774 represented to be in good working order by the seller? If so I'd say they owe you a partial refund
"The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing, if you can fake that you've got it made." Groucho
I have an experienced tech nearby. He is not into the mod thing, but he has brought several vintage items up to specs with power supply repair and replacing old caps. His shop is always an interesting place with high end gear on the shelves including Mcintosh gear.
I hate to be the guy to ask for a partial refund. He represented this MR74 as working and that he had played it for a few hours before it shipped. Which on a strong nearby station and warming up for a while it would certainly do. My station, though not the strongest, picks up on other tuners that I have had. That is quite a few, at least 10 or so.
Thank you M3 lover, I'll let you know what happens.
Chris
I got a partial refund on the MR74. It's a nice piece cosmetically, no rust or pitting and the glass is nice. I'll have to ship it, as my local tech no longer does alignments. I'm happy with this. Mike at RadioX tuners is probably where it will go. If it works out my Sony ST-5000F will go to him too.
It's funny that online people love certain brands or wouldn't have one. I need to try a Mcintosh sometimes so here it goes. I can always sell it.
Now the MR67 is a whole different story! Yikes! It has rust and pitting that was not obvious in the pictures. The supplied tubes include duplicates, probably meaning that some are bad. And there is still 5 tube sockets that no tube was included for. I realized that it was not perfect, but the description was way off. "Tested and working, this was taken from a working environment ". Rated as Very Good. Most of their stuff looks like it was aquired from estate sales or storage locker type buys. They have good feedback. I'm familiar with them so I'm pretty sure that they will take it back without a hassle.
I'm back to square one, looking for a tuner to tide me over while mine are in the shop.
I had a MR74 and it was my best for tuning weak FM stations that wouldn't do as well as my Marantz 10Bs and Fisher 200B etc.
Hopefully, the MR74 will be up to snuff after an alignment and recapping.
OTOH, the tube tuners were sweeter sounding.
-Rod
Thanks for the kind words Rod. Shipping the MR74 out tomorrow. I really like tubes too. Got to get the Sherwood S3000 refurbished next.
I hopefully have a place holder tuner coming in soon. Shipping is not what it used to be. It always takes a day longer now. Will reveal when it gets here. Clue, it's a cheapo black face.
Absolutely. I have had plenty of
vintage gear and yes, you pretty much have to figure in the cost of servicing. My tech guy is surprisingly reasonable on cost. He finds my gear interesting. It's not his everyday stuff. I always see nice gear and plenty of Macs when I visit.
I had a Sansui 717 and sold it. The sound was not very memorable.
I have quite a few good tuners, but I keep a McIntosh MR-78 in my main system. My second favorite is a Pioneer TX-9500 which I consider a great value (especially since I got it for $10.) For some reason, digitally synthesized tuners are harder for me to warm to but my favorite of those that I have had is the Sanyo Plus T55 which I think may be the best value out there. I have a Yamaha T-85 which is truly great as a performer but a bit of an aesthetic nightmare.
Ha ha I'm amoung my own here!
Aesthetics is certainly important.
I'm in south Florida now checking craigslist before we travel home. There's a Sansui 717 for sale. I had a nice one and it wasn't memorable.
There's a gorgeous Marantz 2100 and a 105. One seller, the Marantz seller, has a Pioneer TX 6500ll and an Onkyo T-401. Would my wife kill me?
I want a Mcintosh something around $1000. A MR74 and MR67 stand out to me. There's all the cast of cousins for sale too. MR71, MR78, MR77, MR65, MR66.
I would be on a TX-9500 or the Yammy T-85 like white on rice.
I was sick and couldn't work, sold my stereo, a yard sale cheap Sony synthesizer tuner got me through that with it's awful integrated. It was the gear with touch pad buttons. Never again!
Stay tuned if I snag the Marantz just for it's beauty.
Do you know about the Tuner Information Center? Among other info they evaluate a long list of models. So if you have a short list of candidates that might help narrow things down.
Without knowing what your signal is like from 88.7 remember the antenna can be as important as the tuner. Something I read decades ago, "You'll get better performance from a decent tuner with a great antenna than from a great tuner with a mediocre antenna".
"The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing, if you can fake that you've got it made." Groucho
Absolutely m3 love. I have a yagi antenna that I need help to install in the attic. I'm using a Magnum Dynalab antenna now.
My station is broadcast from a mountain 10 miles from me, though it is shielded by trees. The reception is good. The added antenna height will surely help reception. Maybe I'll put it on the roof? I don't need directional as there is only one station that I listen to.
Oh yes, I have purused FM info page for many years. It is a good reference though they are biased toward DXing and don't have any new tuner info. I'm leaning towards a vintage Mac, Kenwood, or Scott...
My goal is to try one or maybe two tuners while my other two are in the shop. And then thin the herd again. I like trying different tuners.
Streaming was a revelation for me, but my FM sounds very good and I would like for it to sound better with a new antenna and an improved tuner.
I would like to find someone who is knowledgeable about upgrading the Sony ST-5000F. I'm not sure if my local tech is the guy for that though he is experienced in repairing home audio gear for many years?
Thanks
Chris
Mike Williams, RadioX tuners in Michigan for your Sony. He is working on my Onkyo tuner and Fisher decoder now. I love the look of the old Sonys!
Perfect. Thank you.
I like the looks also of the Sony ST-5000F. It certainly sounds good.
There are lots of great tuners!
HH Scott - 310 D; 4310, or even their MPX box for an older mono tuner
McIntosh - the old tube units MC -65, or into the SS arena: the MR - 74 & 77
Kenwood made some great units, especially the trio
Luxman is no slouch
same with accuphase, esp the T-108
THere are some older Fischer and Lafayette models, and don't over look Pilot...
The European models can work if you can switch the slew rate -
THink Revox
Braun
and Linn
Happy Listening
Try going cheap. If it doesn't work, spend a bit more.
I've been very happy with a tubed Lafayette tuner I got for $5. Great looks, great sound, great reception.....and cheap.
Your interest may vary but the results will be same. (Byrd 2020)
I can't compete with the dead. (Buck W. 2010)
Cowards can't be heroes. (Byrd 2017)
Why don't catfish have kittens? (Moe Howard 1937)
I like the suggestions. I had a small Lafayette SS once that was perfectly adequate. I have never tried a Macintosh or a Magnum Dynalab. Very curious about those.
The tube Scott or Bogen are inexpensive and there are many on US Audiomart now. Also a Luxman T-117!
Also a couple Sansui are available now.
I'll probably see if my technician will upgrade my Sherwood 3000. It's a favorite of mine.
Same with the Sony ST 5000F. My tech loved the quality of the build. The sound is good as is. But maybe good output capacitors would be good? IIRC he already replaced caps in the power supply. I just broke the antenna screw post on it in a moment of mentality lapse.
Yes, I'm a FM tuner nut because I listen to my tuner more than my excellent streaming system. My FM station plays a mix of music that i love. Cosmic county, Grateful Dead, Old-Time, alternative rock, jazz, and live in their studio sessions quite often. Thank you Braun and Linn and Byrd69.
Chris
Welcome back Ancient Tones. If you're close enough to WNCW transmitter, try a Sangean ATS-405 portable; connected to your amp via 3.5MM stereo plug into RCA male plug interconnects. Got a 405 a few years back to replace stolen Grundig portable. Shortwave reception was kinda on par with ATS-803A (Realistic DX-440), but stereo FM reception was crisp-n-clear through headphone output. You'll hear station's sonic signature, thanks to D.S.P.-chip. Then, when your tuners get back from tech, you'll have an enjoyable portable for outdoors and travel. ... 73s para Sactown
Wow! Cool idea FRG7SWL. I need a tuner for my main hi-fi stereo stereo system. I don't like the description of audiophile, but my stereo is quite that.
However, I loved looking at all of the Sagean radios that I was not aware of! The shower radio is interesting and I'll probably buy one.
I live in Asheville and did not have a battery powered portable radio after after hurricane Helene wiped out power, cell phone service, and of course internet and TV. We sat in the car twice a day to get updates on our local NPR station. I'll probably buy a Sangean portable. I can think of uses other than natural disasters. I have heard of Sangean and think positively of that brand.
Great ideas so far everyone! I will follow up and let you know what I buy which is looking like at least two radios now.
Chris
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