FM tuners - Are they OBSOLETE ?

Think of Web-based radio stations like your digital camera after you have taken 1,000 photos.

Many of them are just not worth keeping so you delete them.

But, there are many that are crystal-clear and are real gems, so you save them for good and enjoy them.

Internet radio is like this. So many, some bad, but by the sheer number of stations out there, you are bound to hit probably 100 times more good ones than any standard FM market. And tons without the blabber and the ''Toyota Red Dot specials'' ads. Think about it.

Web radio done right is open, worldwide territory, with both music content and sound quality. This weekend they have a 2-day music special in honor of Bob Dyland's 70th birthday. It promises to be great. And it's on BBC 4 Scotland, a finger tap away in 128kps-through-Dac stream, and the sound is fabulous. Of course this is only science-fiction with even any mega-dollar analog tuners.

Soniqmike got it right.

The only problem with internet radio for most is the possibility of giving up looking for the gems because of too many choices and limited time, much like what many experience with 100s of cable or satellite TV channels today

"This weekend they have a 2-day music special in honor of Bob Dyland's 70th birthday."

Wow, gotta find that!

SOme of my favorite themed programs on teh internet I have heard have been on WWOZ New Orleans, which should be a cornerstone of any American music fan's channel set.

My Logitech Squeeze Radio has buttons for 6 presets. Mine include the local am news channel, RAdio Paradise, my custom pandora channel, WWOZ, and a couple of prgressive rock focused internet stations, including Stellar Attraction.

go buy yourself a brand new sony xdr-f1hd for under $100, and have some fun.

Mapman, that's not the only problem with internet radio. Some stations "broadcast" in low rez. There is a chance that the sound quality could possibly be better via FM.

Unsound - completely missing the point again - who cares that some stations broadcast in low rez - there are a zillion out there that broadcast with great quality - and with those zillions of great stations compared with the relatively F-E-W fm stations (some of those have music content that you wouldn't listen to anyway) that come in clear, again, it's no contest and a no-brainer to go digital with the right gear, of course. On top of this if I remember doesn't FM have limited frequencies up to around 13,000 or 15,000hz? I am less sure about this latest thing, but one thing I'm convinced of after using both ''technologies'', there's no going back to FM tuner sound for me. But that doesn't mean FM tuners have no attributes - some like their sound and the way the gear looks - matter of personal taste of course. But for sheer performance and convenience - and the ''exploring the world'' factor, Web wins.