[jackman]

Hi,
I just picked up an Omega II tuner on Audiogon.  The date on the bottom of the case states that the unit was built in 1992.  It looks pretty cool, seems to be built very solidly, and appears to be based on a Philips digital tuner (made in Belgium).  I already spoke with Frank who said the tuner was very good but I was wondering if you could answer a couple questions:

* What mods were done to the original unit?  
* How many "gang" is this tuner?
* What upgrades are available and what do they consist of?

I can't wait to hook it up but I have to get an antenna first.  Your help is greatly appreciated.  Everything from AVA that I have tried so far ( the Fetvalve amp/pre, the Longhorn cartridge, etc.) has worked flawlessly and has outperformed more expensive (and more hyped) gear, can I expect the same level of performance from this tuner?

Thanks!

Jack

[NealH]

I did not know AVA made a tuner.  Is it an engineered from the bottom up tuner or is it another throw in the IC's and op-amps tuner?  Not trying to be cynical but, a quick look at the popularity and resale of McIntosh 78s and 80s would tend to indicate that there is no substitute for truly engineered tuner (multi-ganged input tuner stage, stagger tuned filters, foster-sealy discriminator, discreet audio circuits, etc).

[jackman]

While I tend to agree with you regarding Mac gear (I have a MA6200 that I really like) and their tuners look very cool, and have great resale), the folks at Fmtunerinfo.com don't seem to gush about the Mac as much as some audio enthusiasts do.  They liked it, but seem to like several others much more.  For what it's worth, here is their ranking, which was put together based on the results of head to head comparisons:

THE SHOOTOUT CONTINUES!
Rankings after Shootout #31:
1: Kenwood L-02T - Most natural sound, good bass. Pinpoint imaging. Lifelike, three-dimensional sound.
2: Sansui TU-X1 - Very good sound top to bottom. Big soundstage, three-dimensional. Very slight diffuse sound.
3: Philips AH-6731 - A very natural, neutral sound. Stereo separation best with a good signal.
4: Luxman T-117 - Very good-sounding tuner. No real faults, top to bottom. Not as three-dimensional as the L-02T and gives up some bass richness.
5: Sansui TU-717 - Good bass and midrange with nice "depth" to the soundstage. More forward than the L-02T.
6: Technics ST-9038 - Very good bass, nice midrange, smooth treble.
7: Magnum Dynalab MD-108 - Bass OK, very good imaging and realistic midrange, extended but forward highs.
8: Kenwood KT-917 - Good bass, midrange and treble. A very pleasant sound but more one-dimensional when placed next to the L-02T.
9: Pioneer F-90 - Great sonics with a slightly lighter sonic presentation than the top dogs. Upper midrange and treble are top-notch.
10: Technics ST-8077 - Good bass, midrange OK. Nice treble presentation.
11: Nikko Gamma V - Very good bass, good imaging, treble forward but not unpleasant.
12: Kenwood KT-8300 - Good bass and dynamics, with a slightly forward upper midrange and treble.
13: Pioneer F-91 - Very good bass punch and control, articulate midrange with forward highs. May be a good tuner for a large room.
14: Pioneer TX-9800 - Rich bass presentation. Good midrange with a treble slightly forward that took away from the total picture.
15: Tandberg 3011A - Good bass, midrange a little light, sweet treble. Very good imaging.
16: Sumo Charlie - Punchy bass, good midrange, slightly rolled-off treble.
17: Revox B260 - Rich bass and lower midrange. Good imaging. Three-dimensional. The highs are a little too much for my personal taste. The high rating reflects its other positive sound qualities.
18: Yamaha CT-7000 - Warm-sounding bass, pleasant midrange and highs. Highs a little rolled-off.
19: Sequerra Model 1 - Harmonically rich bass and lower midrange. Very seductive, but if you want accuracy, shop elsewhere.
20: Magnum Dynalab FT-11 "NEW" - Good sound, natural midrange, treble nice, loose bass.
21: Pioneer TX-9500II - Clean, articulate sound. Lighter sonic presentation against the L-02T.
22: SAE Mark VI - Inoffensive sound, good background music. A mini-Sequerra.
23: Denon TU-850 - Good sound, midrange just right, treble sweet, slightly bass-shy.
24: Sansui TU-217 - Good sound when reception is strong.
25: Kenwood L-01T - Good sound, midrange slightly forward, good bass.
26: Phase Linear Model 5000 Series Two - Bass-shy, pleasant midrange and treble.
27: Magnum Dynalab FT-11 "OLD" - Good bass, dry midrange, treble OK.
28: Naim NAT 01 - Bass OK, midrange OK, treble sweet.
29: Marantz 2130 - OK bass, midrange and treble forward and "light" sounding.
30: McIntosh MR 78 - Good bass, slightly electronic sound.
31: Fanfare FT-1A - Best through the low-output jacks, clean but bright midrange, lacks bass power.
32: Kenwood KT-7500 - Flat soundstage, better sound can be found. One-note bass. More boring than unpleasant in a long listening session.
33: Kenwood KT-815 - Bass thin, treble forward. It cries out for a new audio stage.

I'm not saying it's accurate, but the site is very informative and the people who put it together seem to know quite a bit about tuners.  The AVA tuner I have is a modded Philips unit from the early 90's.  In the past, AVA has had great success modding products from Hafler (including a tuner I think), Dynaco (I also think they modded a Dynaco tuner) and Grado (cartridge).  Everything I have heard from AVA (including an inexpensive amp) has sounded superb.  Frank knows how to make and modify things that just sound good to me.  I bought this tuner on AVA reputation alone, but I expect it to sound good.  Either way, I'll keep everyone posted!

Jman

[eico1]

This technology has created quite a buzz in the radio world(~pun)

http://e-www.motorola.com/webapp/sps/site/application.jsp?nodeId=02M0ylfWcbfM0zymyKJz[url]

[doug s.]

jack (and all),

being somewhat of a tuna freak myself, i really love the fmtunerinfo site.  (i am a contributor, as well.)  and, i love the reviews ya have quoted.  but, be aware that they are all the opinion of only *one* person, taken it the context of his tastes, in his system, w/his ears.  he (jim) sometimes prowides further info on the related yahoo fm tuna site.  other folks disagree w/him re: specific models listed.  

for example, i, for one, think the tandberg 3011a is worse-sounding than my old adcom gft-1a.  i kept mine less than a week, trading it in on a far-better sounding (and far more sensitive & selective) revox b261.  and, i also think the naim nat-01 is one of the finest-sounding tunas out there...  some folk have put out their own counter-opinions to the review list ya quoted, right on the fmtunerinfo site - don't forget the "ricochets"...  

also, i would suggest checking out the fmtunerinfo's related forum site, for info regarding your specific tuna, & for tuna info in general:

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

now, for a shameless plug, i have a few tunas presently f/s...  
http://cgi.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cl.pl?misctunr&1055109138

regards,

doug s.

[jackman]

Doug, very cool stuff.  I love that tuner site.  This tuner looks very solid, unfortunately, I can't get the cover off to look under the hood because the screws are star-type and my set doesn't go that small.  Will get more attachments and take a look later today.

Are you familiar with the AVA tuners?  What is your favorite tuner or tuna?

J

[avahifi]

Hi Jack:

I saw the AVA tuner on AudioGon and it looked like a good deal.  You are correct in that the unit was a mod to a Philips tuner.  What we did was replace the Philips audio circuits with ours.  We did not mess with the front end of the tuner at all, so it's a stock Philips until you get to the audio stage.  Included with the mod is a separate Omega II amp board and power supply.

We offered the tuner in the Omega III series before Philips finally stopped production on the tuner.  It is possible to upgrade the unit to an OmegaStar series.  The price of the upgrade would be $295.

Thanks!!

Larry Jenkins

[JoshK]

Do you guys know the model number for the phillips digital tuner this was based on?  One could always peruse ebay for a good condition phillips tuner (this one I mean) to get upgraded.

[doug s.]

jack,

i am not familiar w/the tuna oferings of ava.  re: *my* personal faves, i am partial to a hot-rodded h/k citation 18 i have, and a rare onix bwd-1 w/outboard soap power supply.  the onix is similar in design/ergonomics to the naim nat-01.  w/these tunas, (and many other tuna i've tried), the sound quality - even a'phile stuff like soundstage width/depth , etc., is all there - on the same level as a good analog or digital set-up.  providing ya have a station that broadcasts a quality signal, and a good antenna to catch it, that is!    and, ya can see my system in audiocircle's gallery, if ya tink it must not be hi-rez enuff for me to be making this kinda statement...

re: quality radio, i tink it's difficult, if not impossible, to find a decent broadcast of current pop/rock music.  all the stuff i listen to is non-commercial radio.  mostly latin/jazz/world, (89.3, wpfw - howard u) w/a touch of classical & npr (90.9, weta), a touch of bluegrass & npr, (88.5, wamu - american u), & one sometimes-good alternative/indie rock station from a li'l tiny wva radio station at shepard college (wshc - 98.7).

if/when ya can find out which philips model the ava is based on, (larry, any info here?), i am sure the folks at the yahoo tuna forum will be able to help ya...

doug s.

[JoshK]

Doug,

I am still quite young by audiophile standards (27) and still enjoy non-audiophile approved music.  I find that WKRQ has about an hour or two each night and couple hours on the weekend worth listening to when they are playing new and upcoming stuff, indy rock and local band stuff although I have not listened to the radio in months.  Other than that I haven't been able to find good stuff worth listening to on the radio but I hadn't really looked that much.  Thanks for your recommendations even if I would only get a fraction of them here in the city.  The Indy rock station sounds awesome and I would love to see if I can get it in.

[doug s.]

hey josh - i'm ~60 miles nw of dc - i tink you'll have a hard time getting any of these stations from nyc!   but, i heard there are lotsa good stations there... wazzup?  also, reception there is way-difficult, i understand - lotsa multipath, w/all the tall buildings...  in a place like nyc, someting like the magnum-dynalab md-205 signal sleuth that i yust sold, should really come in handy...

to get decent sonics on way-compressed stations, (which is typical of most pop/rock stations, as they want ya to be able to hear everyting in the noisy car enwironment where most listening is done),  hook up a dbx 3bx into yer tape loop (so it's not in the signal path when not needed), and turn it on when listening to compressed fm.  it also works well for *any* compressed source - it really improved my santana supernatural album, fro example...

here's a nice link for folk to find any/all stations in their area:
http://100kwatts.tmi.net/listings.html

doug s.

[avahifi]

Hi:

The AVA tuner is based on the Philips FT920 FM/AM tuner.  The AVA tuner was introduced in 1993.  The link below is the 1993 announcement in Audio Basics:

http://www.avahifi.com/root/audio_basics/ab_pdf/ab1993-08.pdf

Take a look at Page 5 for details.

The original was released in the Omega II series and later as the Omega III series.

While we no longer can get the tuners, if you find a "working" stock one in we can still do the upgrade of the audio circuits.

Thanks for your interest in AVA products!

Larry Jenkins

[jackman]

Thanks!  I'm going to pick up an antenna today (one of those indoor Magnum Dynalab jobs) and hook this thing up.  It's in perfect shape and looks kind of cool.  I like the controls and hope the performance matches the look.

This is asking a lot, but do you remember how this tuner compared to some of your more expensive designs like the Transcendance?  What about offerings from competitors like Mac or Kenwood?  Also, is the mod for the next level worth it?  How good can a tuner be?  

Will keep everyone posted.  

Jack

[OBF]

Would any of the tuner people know if an older (early 80s maybe) Fisher "Studio Standard" tuner is any good?  I have nothing to compare it to, but I recently dusted it off and hooked it up and was amazed by the sheer number of stations that came in.  So many the search feature was almost impossible to use because it would stop every decimal place on some random station from who knows where.

I think it's this exact tuner:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3018750628&category=3279

[doug s.]

obf & jackman,

i'd suggest posting to the yahoo tuna forum to ask about these...  i tink jack may have a better chance of a response, tho.  i am not sure there will be any familiarity w/that fisher tuna, which seems not to be oriented to audiophiles, but looks more like when the fisher got more interested in the k-mart crowd, no offense...  and, tunas can be quite sensitive, but not sound wery good.  a quality sounding tuna w/a good broadcast signal on a good rig will easily rival the best cd or fono playback systems.  it *is* kinda an amazing ting, the 1st time yure exposed to this level of sonic quality from the radio.   i know i was quite flabbergasted the 1st time *i* ever heard a great fm broadcast on a great rig!  

re: the fm antennae, i wouldn't expect much if any improvement over a cheap rat-shack dipole w/that m-d thing, jack.  rooftop rotor-mount antennae  *rule*!     if ya don't wanna spend the big bucks for an antenna performance specialties model, a winegard hd6065 will work yust fine - i've had both, & am plenty happy w/my present winegard...  can be had for ~$75 off the 'net...

doug s.

[OBF]

Thanks Doug,

You're probably right, it's sensitive, but sounds a bit flat to me.  But lets get one thing straight here........it was the SEARS crowd, not K-mart