An FM Radio reciever question...or two...

[Radio-X]

I have "adopted" a Fisher 'Studio Standard' FM-660 reciever I pulled out of the attic of my station. This was aparently the monitor reciever for the studio before it was upgraded in 2000. I am assuming that it's about 10-15 yrs. old and is a superb reciever.

My question is quite simple:

Given that it is a bit old, is it better to leave it running constantly or to turn it on/off as needed? I'm not sure the wear and tear that turning a large reciever on and off can do.

Does anybody know much about the 'Studio Standard' FM-660 model? Is it a decent reciever in the grand scheme of things? Was it very expensive new?

Now my next question is: What are some good older model recievers (reception-wise) that I might be on the lookout for? I was quite happy with a Kenwood reciever that was bought in 1989 that really had decent reception. Any other models worth taking a gander at?<P ID="signature">______________
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[semoochie]

> I have "adopted" a Fisher 'Studio Standard' FM-660 reciever
> I pulled out of the attic of my station. This was aparently
> the monitor reciever for the studio before it was upgraded
> in 2000. I am assuming that it's about 10-15 yrs. old and is
> a superb reciever.
>
> My question is quite simple:
>
> Given that it is a bit old, is it better to leave it running
> constantly or to turn it on/off as needed? I'm not sure the
> wear and tear that turning a large reciever on and off can
> do.
>
> Does anybody know much about the 'Studio Standard' FM-660
> model? Is it a decent reciever in the grand scheme of
> things? Was it very expensive new?
>
> Now my next question is: What are some good older model
> recievers (reception-wise) that I might be on the lookout
> for? I was quite happy with a Kenwood reciever that was
> bought in 1989 that really had decent reception. Any other
> models worth taking a gander at?
>
I would say that a 10-15 year old Fisher is a mere shell of a 30-40 year old model. For one thing, Fisher is one of those great names from the past that was later resurrected and slapped onto equipment of less quality. Also, it's been a very long time since audiophiles have spent a lot of time listening to high-end FM tuners.

 

[rbrucecarter]

Everything you could possibly want to know about vintage FM tuners is at:

http://fmtunerinfo.com/

Those guys tend to favor certain models, and there are two main (and conflicting) groups of listeners - audiophiles that concentrate on low distortion and quality from local stations, and DX'ers who are trying squeeze every last mile out of a station's listening area.

They also have a huge discussion group at:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FMtuners/

You could field you question there and I bet somebody will have heard of your model.

 

[DudeFan]

> > I have "adopted" a Fisher 'Studio Standard' FM-660
> reciever
> > I pulled out of the attic of my station. This was
> aparently
> > the monitor reciever for the studio before it was upgraded
>
> > in 2000. I am assuming that it's about 10-15 yrs. old and
> is
> > a superb reciever.
> >
> > My question is quite simple:
> >
> > Given that it is a bit old, is it better to leave it
> running
> > constantly or to turn it on/off as needed? I'm not sure
> the
> > wear and tear that turning a large reciever on and off can
>
> > do.
> >
> > Does anybody know much about the 'Studio Standard' FM-660
> > model? Is it a decent reciever in the grand scheme of
> > things? Was it very expensive new?
> >
> > Now my next question is: What are some good older model
> > recievers (reception-wise) that I might be on the lookout
> > for? I was quite happy with a Kenwood reciever that was
> > bought in 1989 that really had decent reception. Any other
>
> > models worth taking a gander at?
> >
> I would say that a 10-15 year old Fisher is a mere shell of
> a 30-40 year old model. For one thing, Fisher is one of
> those great names from the past that was later resurrected
> and slapped onto equipment of less quality. Also, it's been
> a very long time since audiophiles have spent a lot of time
> listening to high-end FM tuners.
>

If you are looking for audiophile FM receivers, then you want a Mid-70's unit.. including some from Fisher, Late 80's stuff from Carver or other high-line manufacturer, or a current Fanfare ($$$$$). Yje Fishers come up on ebay pretty often.

 

[John_U]

>
> My question is quite simple:
>
> Given that it is a bit old, is it better to leave it running
> constantly or to turn it on/off as needed? I'm not sure the
> wear and tear that turning a large reciever on and off can
> do.
>
To answer that question. If it is a transistor receiver than on and off will nto make a lot of differnce. If it is a really old vacuum tube receiver turn ti on and let it run for a few hours and then turn it off. It helps the old electrolytic high power capacitors.

John

 

[westlife]

> I have "adopted" a Fisher 'Studio Standard' FM-660 reciever
> I pulled out of the attic of my station.

Fisher slapped the "Studio Standard" label onto a lot of mediocre consumer-grade equipment in the '80s and early '90s. It may still be a good receiver, but don't expect it to literally be a studio-grade piece of equipment just because it says so in a fancy script on the front panel.

> Given that it is a bit old, is it better to leave it running
> constantly or to turn it on/off as needed?

Just turn it on and off as needed. I do that every day with a variety of audio equipment and the worst problem that's resulted from this kind of constant use is a burned-out bulb in the front panel lighting.

And your Fisher's age is nothing compared to the Gates Solid Statesman audio limiter which I've had in daily service for several years now. It was built in 1971 and still has all its original components, including electrolytic capacitors -- yet it works beautifully and there isn't even a trace of AC hum in its audio output.
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