As a teenager, I always liked to put directional antennas on top of the roof of my house, so I could tune in to FM stations. One day something happened that almost ended in tragedy.

A neighbor who was a blacksmith made me a mast 15 meters high. He put up several guy wires so that he could climb up to the top. When he was fixing the antenna, the tower collapsed when two of the guy ropes broke.

Luckily, nothing happened to him. He jumped off before the mast fell to the roof. The impact was so hard that it left a crack in the concrete, and I received a well-deserved reprimand from my upstairs neighbors, since I live in a duplex-type house.

We had to find thicker turnbuckles to successfully lift my 8-element Yagi antenna.

Frequency modulation (FM) is the radio transmission system in which a carrier wave is modulated by varying its frequency depending on the audio signal emitted.

Its sound quality is superior to that of other types of radio waves, as it better withstands interference from different sources and has a better signal-to-noise ratio.

It was common to incorporate FM in tuner brands, which competed for excellence in the 1970s and 1980s. It was a time when metal equipment was manufactured, with great design and electronics with quality components. This guaranteed their durability over time, so we could enjoy a wide variety of music according to our tastes.

The different stations were specialized according to musical genres and even in different languages. So we can listen to Latin stations, and in English, dedicated to Pop, Rock, Jazz, Gospel, etc.

A few days ago I told you about the equipment I use to listen to shortwave, in the post: My shortwave radios for Diexism. Today I want to share, some of the tuners in my collection that serve for FM reception.

What makes them different from the radios shown in previous posts?

They are radios that do not have an integrated amplification stage or speakers. In order to listen to them, they must be coupled to a preamplifier (through their respective cables), where we will hear the final sound emitted by the speakers connected to the output of the power amplifier.

They are known as Tuners, and are part of an audio setup that we configure according to our possibilities and tastes.

Some tuners from Japan with Amplitude modulation (AM) and Japanese FM band: 76-90 megahertz (MHz):

YAMAHA model CT-5100

This equipment offers a Natural Sound. Something typical of YAMAHA audio equipment. A clean sound, rather flat, or with little coloration of its high and low frequencies.

Aurex (TOSHIBA) model ST-130

ONKYO model T-6000

PIONEER model TX-7600

TRIO (KENWOOD) model KT-6005

Here is a picture of the rear of this tuner, where we find the connection panel. At the top right are the screws for attaching the external antennas, both for AM and FM.

In the center, the audio outputs for the input to the preamplifier. On the left, the outputs and inputs for attaching a magnetic tape deck, both for playback and recording. Below, a built-in mobile antenna for AM.

Tuner from Japan with America FM band: 88-108 megahertz (MHz):

SANYO model Plus T35

TELEFUNKEN model TT 250

I left this tuner for the end, because this German brand, together with Grundig, have earned a worldwide reputation for manufacturing radio tuners, with great sensitivity and selectivity, to capture the stations that reach the receiver with little strength.

In addition to the AM and FM bands, it has two bands for Shortwave (SW).

As I have said on other occasions. The operation of a radio is a magical experience, which knows how to caress the emotions and sweeten the soul.

Thanks to those who read me. I wish you a good start of the week.

Own photos. Camera: Panasonic Lumix model DMC-ZS100

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Text by Andrés Brunet

@abrunet

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