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 REVIEW |
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Reprinted with permission from Stereophile Volume 13, No. 8 (Aug 1990) Magnum Dynalab Etude FM Tuner
The Etude is a direct descendent of Magnum Dynalab's first tuner, the FT-101, which premiered at the 1985 CES and received a rave review in these pages (Vol. 8 No. 4). Don Scott praised the FM tuner's value (then $495, now $698), its stereo separation, quieting, and sensitivity, with only the mildest of criticisms for its lack of a high-blend circuit. The article finished with a very strong statement from Mr. Scott: "that it competes with the best available, despite its modest price, is amazing."
This tuner has retained its "star" rating in the magazine's "Recommended Components" ever since its first listing in November 1986. Over the years, Magnum improved the tuner by adding a stereo blend circuit; in a later version, the blend circuit could be defeated with a front-panel switch (FT-101A). The Etude, the FT-101A's most recent version, represents a maturation of this excellent FM tuner design, with a heavy dose of "audiophile" adjustments, including special capacitors and expensive wire. Are these modifications just tweaks, or do they make this version competitive with some of the price-no-object FM tuners not available to audiophiles with real-world incomes?
The Etude differs from the less expensive, $875 FT-101A in a number of ways. The faceplate is made from a machined, 1/4" piece of aluminum, while the FT-101A uses a 1/8" stamped version.
Other improvements available include WBT gold-plated RCA output jacks and very large Solen/Chateauroux polypropylene output coupling capacitors. The rationale for such huge capacitors is to provide optimal-sounding circuit components at a key point in the audio circuitry. Two extra hours of component selection, matching, and testing allow the Etude to claim an extra 5dB of adjacent-channel selectivity over the FT-101A.
Though the frequency is displayed with a digital readout, similar to the Day Sequerra Broadcast Monitor or Studio Tuner (Vol. 13 No. 1, pp. 171-178), tuning is actually accomplished by means of an analog design. While those more expensive tuners depend upon oscilloscope displays, the Etude uses a red stereo indicator and three generous-sized analog meters for its fine tuning. These meters, moving left to right on the front panel, display multipath, center channel, and RF Input. The green, four-digit frequency readout sits to the left of the meter, and includes (top to bottom) switches for Mono/Stereo, Wide/Narrow IF Band, Blend (On/Off), and Mute (On/Off). A power switch sits further left, but only turns on the meter lights, frequency display, and audio circuitry. The RF circuits remain powered as long as the unit is plugged into an AC mains, for maximum stabilization and drift-free performance. A large tuning knob, which occupies the far right panel area, completes the list of controls.
RF performance
Specifications run a close second to some of the most expensive, high-performance tuners on the market today. To show how competitive it is, compare the Etude's published figures with those listed for the $3800 Day Sequerra Studio Tuner. RF sensitivity specifications list the stereo sensitivity at 11.3dBf versus the Studio Tuner's 12sBf . The stereo 50dB quieting is stated as 34.0dB, while 33.5dBf is claimed for the Day Sequerra tuner. The Etude offers two selectable bandwidths of 150kHz and 300kHz versus the three bandwidths found in the Studio Tuner. This allows the Magnum Dynalab to produce 30dB of alternate-channel selectivity, coming in second to the Studio Tuner's 40dB performance. Distortion is comparable in the two units, the Etude claiming 0.18%, bettered slightly by the Studio Tuner's 0.1% rating. Stereo separation is rated identically in the two models at 60dB. In most regards, the Etude comes close but does not equal the more expensive competition.
Subjectively, I compared the RF performance of the Etude to a Day Sequerra Broadcast Monitor. Its panoramic display function allowed me to quickly scan the FM band to locate weak signals or stations in alternate channels. This unique oscilloscope function allows this $13,800 analog FM tuner to serve as a station monitor; in addition; I enjoy its extraordinary sonics and superb tuning abilities, which makes it a no-cost-object reference.
First, I subjectively evaluated the Etude's quieting sensitivity. This has been defined as the measure of the input signal strength necessary to achieve a S/N ratio of 50dB in stereo, which has been called "passably listenable". The Magnum Dynalab's quieting was quite impressive, and sounded only slightly noisier than the Broadcast Monitor on the same antenna. In practice, both tuners pulled 55 stations easily.
Next came selectivity. Adjacent-channel selectivity is one of the more critical tests, for it is the ability to separate signals only 200kHz apart without interference from the station not selected. The Etude's 150kHz narrow IF bandwidth, 30dB adjacent-channel selectivity setting gave it an unfair advantage over the Broadcast Monitor's fixed wide setting with its 15dB adjacent-channel selectivity. I was able to pull out a clear but weak signal of a very distant FM station sitting adjacent to a powerful New York City Top 100 pop station. The Broadcast Monitor's panoramic display showed the two adjacent signals just 200kHz from one another, but it couldn't capture the weaker station.
Two Magnum Dynalab antennas were also auditioned: the inexpensive ($24.95) indoor Silver Ribbon, and the company's outdoor vertical omnidirectional whip-and-coil ST-2. The Silver Ribbon, which comes with 300 ohm cable, is a clever design employing a 1" wide metal foil stretched over a plastic guide; press down on the center structural element and the plastic frame spreads along the foil, serving to spread out its rabbit ears. The Silver Ribbon did very well when loaded with a 75/300 ohm, ballun matching transformer and fed into the Etude's 75 ohm input. It did not fare as well when run directly into the Broadcast Monitor's 300 ohm input. I later modified the Silver Ribbon by changing the ohm twin-lead stub for a 75 ohm coaxial output (see Modification Note). This arrangement afforded better reception for both tuners. The ST-2 did quite well inside or outside my house, was very easy to install, and was able to pull in all but five stations captured by my high-gain (12.5dB greater than a dipole), 9-element, rotor-equipped Yagi Channel Master Stereo Probe 9 antenna clipped to my chimney.
Audio quality
Listening tests were carried out over several months. the Etude was placed just below a Day Sequerra Broadcast Monitor in my listening room, and connected, at various times, to identical antenna systems (the rooftop rotatable Channel Master Yagi high-gain unit; Magnum Dynalab's Omni ST-2; Day Sequerra Urban FM antenna; and the Silver Ribbon indoor antenna). WNCN, my favorite New York fine music station, served as the source for most of my sonic evaluations. Other FM tuners were run for comparisons, including the Day Sequerra Studio Tuner, a Revox B-260-S, and an Onkyo TU-9090 Mk.II. Preamps included a Mark Levinson ML-7A run in single-ended configuration and a Mark Levinson No. 26 run in balanced configuration using Madrigal HPC interconnect cable with an internal moving-coil module. Speaker cables included Monster Cable and Levinson HF-10C cable. Loudspeakers included Quad ESL-63s with the newer US Monitor panels, and Snell Type A/III Improved dynamic speakers. Both were run full-range without external electronic crossovers or subwoofers, driven by a Mark Levinson No. 27 amplifier.
Like most high-quality audio gear, the first few seconds of playing an FM tuner separate the better units from the more mundane. The Etude's strong suit is its midrange, which comes through as smooth, distortion-free, and grainless. Strong dynamic contrasts, smooth and grain-free highs, and detailed bass lines were heard repeatedly. The sound was wonderfully free of hash, distortion, grit, and glaze; I could listen for hours without fatigue. There was none of the glassy, strident sound that afflicts my old Kenwood KT-7001, and none of the compression of dynamic contrasts that becomes apparent in the Revox B-260-S. Orchestral soundstaging was wide and good, and depth of field was apparent.
How did the Etude compare with the price-no-object FM tuners? The Broadcast Monitor was perceptibly quieter, more defined in the bass, better at precise imaging and instrument placement, and had a greater sense of ease in handling dynamic contrasts. Of course, the Broadcast Monitor's stratospheric price tag gets you a hand-built, professional FM station monitor with many times the parts count of the Etude, a huge tuning oscilloscope, and a unique, panoramic FM-band display several megahertz in width. The Day Sequerra Studio Tuner betters both of these units, producing a see-through transparency and rock-stable imaging that challenged my best vinyl sources.
'Scope displays comprise my favorite way of fine-tuning an FM receiver. However, I discovered that the Etude's three-meter system was quite effective and easy to use. These meters provide a reliable way to tune for minimal audio distortion. Tuning is critical in an analog FM receiver, which does not generate its tuning frequency, as do many of the Japanese FM units. On the other hand, synthesized-frequency tuners have their own weakness: if they suffer a slight misalignment, the user can't simply adjust the tuning knob to correct for it. Most synthesized-frequency tuners are unable to fine-tune closer than 25kHz to a given frequency. If such a tuner is ever out of perfect calibration, then no FM station can ever be tuned in optimally.
I find some of the other "modern innovations" in FM tuners downright unfriendly. Elaborate LED "meters," LCD screens, and presets are hard to read, nonintuitive, impossible to set up, and often require reading the manual (a sure kiss of death!). The learning curve for using the Revox B-260-S's presets, for example, is just too steep for me when I just want to listen to music. That's why the Etude's simplicity is so welcome.
Don Scott's early review praised the FT-101's strong RF performance. For those audiophiles far removed from their favorite, low-power college FM classical station, the Etude will be a winner. for the test I tuned in WKJY, a 3kW station some 50 miles away on Long Island. I left the rooftop antenna pointed slightly away from its direction, so that the signal trace just crossed the bottom tic mark on the Broadcast Monitor's 'scope display. This corresponded to a signal just stronger than 30dBf. The Etude pulled in WKJY with a little noise but with good stereo separation, some imaging, and surprising clarity. Flipping the high-blend switch lost most of the static and a tiny bit of stereo separation. The Broadcast Monitor playing the same distant station showed a somewhat quieter signal and more bass content, but not by much. In terms of pure RF signal-grabbing, the Etude does a very fine job.
Conclusion
This Magnum Dynalab FM tuner is well-designed, easy to tune, and musical. Its Spartan exterior and low parts count belie the effectiveness of its RF circuitry, effective analog metering, and superb RF performance. The defeatable high-blend circuit and dual audio outputs show a real evolution from the first FT-101 that garnered the 1985 rave review. Is the addition of eight strands of silver cable, four very-high-quality polypropylene output coupling capacitors, a machined faceplate, and two to four hours of special alignment procedures in the factory worth the $400 price boost over a stock FT-101A? This review does not answer that question, for no shoot-out was run between the two Magnum products; potential customers should audition both the FT-101A and The Etude for themselves. As far as I'm concerned, the Etude's more careful component selection, its instant-on feature, and the audio treatment package are well worth the price of admission. FT-101 owners can have these internal features added in a factory upgrade, but will not receive the stereo blend switch.
The important point here is that this FM tuner represents an excellent value: its RF performance, smooth midrange, low distortion, and musicality are better than most similarly priced tuners on the market today. The Etude's strengths match or surpass the performances of more expensive FM tuners. For example, I prefer its greater definition, midrange smoothness, and superior bass response over that heard from the $2500 Revox B-260-S. One has to spend at least $3800 to find an FM tuner with superior ('scope) tuning options, better imaging, transparency, depth of field, and bass definition. All in all, the Etude represents one of the better balances of price and performance you can find in FM tuners today--some accomplishment for $1300!
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