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Reprinted with permission from The Inner Ear Report Volume 8, #3
Magnum Dynalab FM Tuner Model MD108
It has been awhile since we reviewed a tuner, not since Vol. 5, #3, Summer of 1993 when we reviewed Magnum's then top-of-the-line tuner, the Model Etude. We always considered the Etude to be one of the world's best tuners, regardless of price, and that is why in our studio, we use an Etude. Magnum has been in business for thirty-seven years. It wasn't until the mid seventies that the company established itself by specializing in tuners. By 1989, the aforementioned Etude onto the market and quickly became a reference standard component. For the past few years, Manfred Breuning, chief designer and tuner specialist, has been working on a no-holds-barred design with which to make a statement; and the result is what the company calls the Magnum Analog Tuner model MD 108.
Appearance
Although one word may describe it all, we are obliged to elaborate (the one word being STUNNING). This tuner is somewhat larger than most. It stands 6 inches high, 18 3/4 inches wide and is 15 1/2 inches deep. At first glance one's attention is drawn straight to the centre of the faceplate, since the tuner employs a Magic Eye -- a fine-tuning device popular in the fifties. This Magic Eye glows seductively in the dark (and even in daylight) and gets one right where it counts, namely, in the little old audiophile soul. Under the Eye, 3/4 inch large LEDs allow a clear view of the station frequency. To the left and right of the Eye, a multipass meter and a signal-strength meter take up a good portion of the handsome faceplate. A large antenna input selector switch on the left and a large tuning knob on the right as much as send thrills up a connoisseur's spine. The Antenna selector allows 2 positions for external antennas and 2 positions for cable inputs with small green LEDs above the knob. Above the tuning knob two small green LEDs indicated Mute and Stereo. An array of toggle switched on the bottom of the tuner control the functions of (from left to right) Power, Mute, Stereo/Mono, followed by BW1,2 and 2 (Bandwidth), Blend and Dim (dimmer switch). To say that this component looks impressive, is an understatement.
On the rear of the unit, one finds the various antenna inputs, Balanced outputs (to complement the OCM preamp, no doubt), a pair of unbalanced (RCA) outputs and the AC socket (the unit comes with a detachable AC cord). All told, this tuner is laid out impressively, sporting clean lines and logically arranged function switches. It emanates class and breeding. An aluminum sleeve that can double for a suitcase is included.
Did we leave you with the impression that we like it? Now to what's going on with that impressive chassis.
Technology
Tuner manufacturers strive to get us radio signals and all tuners have a potentiometer in common. Yet, same as with amplifiers which have transformers in common, the sonic differences are as numerous as there are discrepancies, models, manufacturers etc. Breuning (Magnum's head designer) addressed all of the known technical parameters such as sensitivity, spurious response, image rejection, adjacent channel selectivity and frequency response. Two low-noise dual gate FETs were chosen to enable regulation with a clever automatic gain circuitry. The IF section offers three settings for bandwidth. BW1 is for ultra-wide and best frequency response, while the second setting combines excellent frequency response with high channel selectivity. The third setting -- super narrow -- is there for extreme reception conditions. Magnum employs phase linear matching parts, which are hand-selected to assure precise band-pass. An IF integrated circuit provides all meter outputs as well as the keyed AGC that works with the low-noise FETs in the RF section. The tuner's multiplex component was chosen for its high rejection modes and superb sonic quality to continue into special passive lowpass filters which were selected again for their sonic quality. The output section of the tuner is driven with two 12AX7 vacuum tubes made by Svetlana. The signal path from the RF section to the audio section is wired with Kimber Solid Silver wire but separated by an aluminum shield. A NewMetal shielded transformer is employed for the audio section. Six regulators supply the various sections in the RF stage, filtering out the noise in the signal path. The tuning potentiometer is a precision unit coupled to a large tuning knob via a gold plated flywheel and clutch assembly. A hand tooled tuning shaft is there as well. The two meters are taut band precision instruments for absolute accuracy. The front-panel controls for the circuits are gold-plated momentary switches. There is more information on the audio section, but it didn't arrive in time for this evaluation. Basically, this is a hybrid full analog tuner with the only digital section being the readout (channel display) section.
To say that this tuner is a no-holds-barred design is almost an understatement. However, the workmanship and the careful selection of components is audible as we get to what's important ...
The Sound
All we can say is that we are sorry that the audio dictionary doesn't have enough of a vocabulary to express what this device can and will do. However, we'll give it the proverbial shot:
Imagine a tuner that, when played, sounds as good as a CD player. Imagine also, that the tuner can bring in fringe stations which most of our local audiophiles don't even know exist. To top off these features, imagine the finest, most detailed amplifier you have ever listened to--and you get close to that experience when you listen to this tuner.
All of the visitor to our studio practically stopped in their tracks to take a look at the MD 108; and without exception, they wanted to get their hands on it and feel it. Everyone wanted to listen to the Magnum; and everyone remarked that the sound quality was superb. Phrases such as mean, exceptional, great, amazing, and some more we can't remember came out of the mouths of every single person that had a chance to listen to this tuner.
Synopsis & Commentary
As we said at the beginning of this report, it has been a while since we reviewed a tuner and it has been even longer since we came across a tuner of this calibre. Our editor claims that the last exciting tuner he came across had also been a Magnum, the model Etude. Before the Magnum, the only tuner kicking his fancy had been the now discontinued McIntosh MR-80.
It's relatively easy to get a tuner which brings in your local stations; and if one uses a radio to listen to the news and weather reports, the quality matters little. If, however, music is the priority--and we don't mean elevator-type background information--a tuner must perform just as good as any other component in the audio system. Our regular First Reflections columnists Ron Sanders, uses his tuner to listen seriously to classical music. He has had every serious and expensive tuner in his house and finally settled on a vintage Marantz 10 B which went through a thorough tuneup and tweak-up before he settled down and enjoyed the music. Prior to the Marantz, he owned a Magnum, auditioned an expensive Sequerra, played around with antennas and did many other foolish (not to him) things. All that, so he could listen to a difficult-to-get station here in Toronto, namely WNED, the commercial-free public radio station from Buffalo, N.Y.
The Magnum 108 isn't made for the casual listener, to be sure; it has been built to complement a high-end, highly resolving audio system, regardless of brand name, regardless of solid state versus vacuum tube preferences and, of course, not at all regarding cost. Not many audio enthusiasts can spare the sort of cash required to get this quality of FM programming, but those who can afford this tuner, are buying the best, maybe even a collector's item.
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