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Tuner or Receiver

I'll preface my main point and question by saying that I recently bought a used Yamaha RX 596 Receiver which is around 15 years old.  After biwiring my Castle Conway 3 Towers to it, I have been blown away by the sound from this system.  Far better than any previous amp I've used with these speakers and probably due to the 85 wpc vs 60 wpc or less and only using a single speaker cable for each.  


This leads me to the question about tuners and receivers.  Currently I have a Carver TX11a and also a Onkyo T-4310r.  Both are quite old but still work fine.  But...  Has recent tuner technology advanced beyond the the units from the 80's and 90's?  Is the sensitivity of the AM and FM sections superior these days and is the selectivity also better?  I don't need Digital FM and still listen to analog AM and FM.  Just want to know if I would be better off with a new tuner or receiver that would offer better audio quality or better signal capturing ability?  The tuner in the RX 596 is OK but also dates to about the same time as the Onkyo tuner.  Onkyo seems better too.
will62
gdhal's avatar
gdhal
1,641 posts
 
I had a Carver MXR-130 for over 25 years. Up until the tuner went do to a problem with the quartz crystal itself, it was spectacular (sound wise, not necessarily reception wise) for AM/FM.

Anyway, can I get some feedback please on the quality or lack thereof of a Technics FM/AM Stereo receiver model SA-110? I've had this thing collecting dust for more than 30 years (seriously), but cosmetically it is in perfect condition and I assume it is still in perfectly good functional condition as well. I realize this is no audiophile grade component like a Magnum Dynalab, but given some of posts herein I'm wondering now would there really be an audible difference between the Technics and a high end tuner.

Thanks. 
erik_squires
5,268 posts
 
This to me seems a bigger question than merely FM.

In my mind, the FM tuner has by and large been replaced by Internet radio. While we can argue sound quality, issues of reception are more or less fixed given a stable Internet connection.

For really good sounding Internet radio,check out the 96 kHz feed from Jazz FM 91 in Toronto.

http://jazz.fm/

Best,

E
randy-11
1,913 posts
 
well, I have 3-4 good (Public) FM stations here

I do listen to the outstanding WWOZ on internet radio tho
https://www.wwoz.org/

gdhal's avatar
gdhal
1,641 posts
 
In my mind, the FM tuner has by and large been replaced by Internet radio. While we can argue sound quality, issues of reception are more or less fixed given a stable Internet connection.

+1

This is why my toy of an FM receiver is not part of my audio chain and and has been collecting dust for years. The only time I listen to FM is via my car radio, for 10 minutes to and from work.
audiolabyrinth's avatar
audiolabyrinth
4,483 posts
 
Tuner's sound different from one to the other,  at this point, the Sony and Kenwood for cheap sound best, I have many tuner's,  buy and sale them all the time.
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