See how one stock TU sounded compared to many top tuners on our Shootouts page. Our panelist Jim found "a couple of differences worth mentioning: The 's C71 is a 3. TUs with rack handles are fairly common and sell in the same price range. Sansui TU , front , inside search eBay The TU, a rare tuner with 4 gangs and 4 filters, was sold for only a short time, and we've received conflicting information on it. Some data suggested that the TU and its companion amplifier, the AU, were the successors to the ubiquitous TU and AU, filling a gap when Sansui was not yet ready to introduce its redesigned series products.
The TU's front panel is identical to the TU's, and their circuit board layouts are identical as well although there may be some minor differences in parts choices.
The TU also performs just as well as the TU, making it one of the better tuners around for DXing when modified. Some think the TU and its relatives are among the best-looking tuners, with their sleek black faces and nice lights. When modified with narrower filters in the narrow IF bandwidth path, the TU can be an excellent tuner for DXing while retaining its fine audio quality in the wide IF mode. As good as most TUs are, they can easily be made better; our panelist Bob says, "I think the TU must have had a systematic problem at the factory for the alignment.
Every one I see is grossly off. Just getting that done correctly makes a huge improvement, if you do nothing else. See how one stock TU sounded compared to other top tuners on our Shootouts page, and our contributor Jeff R. Here are Sansui's instructions on how to replace the dial cord on a TU The higher priced s usually have rack mount handles. Sansui TU , front , back , inside search eBay The TU has 4 FM and 2 AM gangs , and 4 ceramic filters , arranged in a different configuration on the circuit board than the TU's filters despite the similar front panels, the TU's circuitry is quite different from the TU's.
The TU has an analog tuning capacitor, with a tuning knob and analog dial scale like the TU, but has a digital frequency readout where the has a signal strength meter it's a vacuum fluorescent display, which resembles LEDs. The uses fairly narrow stock ceramic filters and is more selective than an unmodified , but some may find the 's overzealous crystal lock circuitry like the TU's, as described below an annoyance rather than a convenience.
When modified with narrower filters, the TU's selectivity only improves slightly, and a DXer or anyone else who changes stations frequently will probably prefer a modified TU since the doesn't have the annoying crystal lock. We'll have more information on it eventually. Our panelist Bob has details on the TU's 4 filters: "The filters are set up a little differently than, say, a KT The TU uses three kHz GDT flat group delay 3-pin filters for the wide IF bandwidth mode, and what appears to be one kHz 3-pin filter for narrow mode - all Murata, and well-matched stock.
In narrow it is using all 4 filters, and in wide just the three GDT's. As a result, the wide mode is not super wide, and really almost makes the narrow extraneous, sort of like the Accuphase T or Kenwood KT or The TU would probably be great for DXing with a kHz filter in narrow for getting adjacent channels.
AM radio listeners should note that the TU has a wide-narrow filter for the AM band which can eliminate typical AM splatter noise, making it the best-sounding AM section Bob has ever heard. He adds, "Sensitivity is very good, and the TU excels in having probably one of the best stock stereo blend noise filters.
It really does a good job killing the noise, keeping the stereo image, without rolling off the highs. The ergonomics are good, but you are wishing you could turn the crystal lock off on occasion. It locks on and hangs on well past the indicated dial marking, then lets go and steps to the next frequency in.
It's just odd because you are now well past where the dial says you should be. It does this in both directions, depending on which way you approach the station. First off, we defeated that silly quartz lock tuning but kept the pretty green LED on all the time.
Next, we rearranged the filter configuration so that instead of 3 filters functioning in wide mode, now just two do. The narrow band, which before only added a fourth filter to the 3 in wide, now has 2 filters.
Wide bandwidth has enhanced fidelity, and you can even notice a difference between the wide and narrow settings! And unlike our first go-round with defeating quartz lock tuning in the TU, perhaps? The one nit I can pick: even with the stereo threshold cranked all the way down, this tuner will pop in and out of stereo on very weak signals. By changing the pot that controls the stereo threshold, the user can decide how much noise is too much, and has the option of using the very fine FM Noise Filter this unit employs.
It looks like the stereo threshold will affect the muting, meaning that if we change that pot, we may lose the muting function. I say, 'who cares? Huge, huge improvement, made the sound flat, and this after having felt that the was my reference. Relooked at the and replaced a couple of electrolytics with some film caps, and a couple of other things knowing now what could achieved, and it came in much closer than it had been.
And what about the truly abnormal sales? Hey guys, even though Jim thought the TU sounded great in his system , you got carried away. It was followed by the TU in , then the TU in Our panelist Bob says, "These discreet MPX circuits sound good but need more adjustment like tube tuners to work best.
This one also likely has either ceramic, or crystal filters. Probably a really good tuner, well built. The tuning dial face is not lighted but the dial indicator is, and the tuning knob is adequately weighted. The filters are Murata SFEs The rear panel provides fixed, Dolby, and discriminator outputs, including the usual voltage selector, fusing, unswitched power and antenna connections.
Construction is good, with a removable bottom panel and dedicated PS board. It also shares the same power supply as the TU and TU tuners. Lastly, the uses the identical boards and components as the TU with the one exception being that the MPX chip in the is an HA The TU sounds pretty good after a little tweaking but not equal to the TU It has 3 FM and 2 AM gangs with 3 ceramic filters.
Aside from the usual controls on the front panel you also get an antenna attenuation switch in case you're in a market where the front end overloads. There are no fixed outputs but Dolby RCAs are available. The shares the same single-sided power supply as its series sisters the TU and TU Easy to mod, with nice results when completed.
The 4-gang TU has good specs, especially sensitivity, and our contributor Marc reports that it's very quiet and clean-sounding, particularly in stereo.
Its signal meter doubles as a multipath meter. It has 4 filters and should be a decent candidate for mods. The TU is solidly built and our panelists who have used it praise its sound quality and DX performance, but David "A" rates it well below the TU-X1 for sound even though Eric a non-audiophile felt that it was "close enough. I used to own a TU, refurb'd by Mr. Chow, with further mods done by Mike Williams. The TU-X1 was marginally better, but only a direct A-B comparison could suss out the minute differences, and unless you have real subs that output flat to Our panelist Bob did some mods on his TU "The TU has incredible potential.
At first, it just did not open up sonically, but after trying a bunch of things, I nailed it. It is there now. I removed tantalum caps in the signal path. The big gain was replacing the TAP op-amps, which were limiting the sonics in a big way.
They are inline 7-pin units, so I had to put in 7-pin inline sockets, and custom modify a standard single op-amp to solder onto a 7-pin header. It was about three hours' work just to make the replacements, but well worth it. I also added six polypropylene caps, along with new power supply caps. With all the mods, the TU may be one of the top all-around tuners ever built. I have talked to many people who feel that a stock TU just smokes about everything out there for distant reception capability.
If your unit does not astound you, it is broken or out of alignment. It will easily surpass a stock KT by a decent amount. I think the sonics were the holdback on the s, but not anymore. It also offers many nice features, including a calibration tone and scope outputs.
Because it uses LC filters that are encased in metal and plastic enclosures, no one should buy a TU expecting to replace the filters, but our panelist JohnC says: "Aside from the power supply, the TU is very easy to work on and mod. Bill Ammons' op-amp boards make it very easy to change out the old op-amps and since you can leave 4 caps out of the audio output the cost, compared to using say Black Gates for those 4 caps, is actually a wash.
Our contributor doug s. The TU has the edge when de-tuning a station since it's analog. Classical music was very detailed and I could hear audience coughing : - just to show the benefits of an aligned tuner.
There might be more subtle differences that I haven't spotted. For those wondering what the component values are for the FM front end, please refer to the Onkyo T schematic.
It also has a "super linear digital decoder" SLDD circuit, an advanced MPX decoder with 38 kHz harmonic cancellation that eliminates the need for an anti-birdie filter. However, Bob observes that there's a fine line between a "cool-looking" and "Mickey Mouse" appearance, and says: "The display, if you are used to meters, can be very non-informative.
It is not a businesslike display - it is more like a toy, that is, different. Yes, the colors are 'cool,' but it looks like a toy compared to say a TII or T that actually convey useful information about signal strength. Our contributor Bill C. The couple of bypass caps were WIMA polypropylenes. The results were well worth the effort. Bass is tightened up, and mids and highs are very detailed and focused.
This tuner has a very quiet background due I'm sure in no small part to its Walsh MPX decoder circuit eliminating HD station self-noise. Most of the stations I listen to are HD broadcasters, and other very good tuners that don't have post-detection filtering do show signs of HD nasties. The TU-D99X's noise canceler high blend does a decent job of cutting noise on weaker stereo signals.
I have most of these other Sansuis most are modded and properly aligned and can say that this tuner does not embarrass itself. This inexpensive Sansui may be the best value out of the whole group. Another plus is its slim form factor. Subjectively it's pretty plain-Jane, looks-wise.
All in all, I can highly recommend the TU-D99X to those wanting very good sound quality with above-average sensitivity, especially if you perform JohnC's mods. For sound quality, mids and highs are better than average, and bass, while not earth-shattering, is not bad. The TU-S7 is more sensitive than one might expect, has an excellent signal-to-noise ratio, and is especially quiet on strong signals.
All you have to do to tune in a desired station is touch the appropriate button. Stations are easily identified by the illuminated ID panel next to each of the six preset buttons.
With the decal set included with the TU-S7, the call letters or frequency of each preset station may be entered. Automatic Tuning: A firm push of either the up or down button and the tuner begins scanning the tuning band FM or AM until a station is located. The Search indicator lights while scanning and turns off when a station is found and tuned in.
Rapid Manual Tuning: In this mode, the tuner continues to scan frequencies as long as the button is held. This is for use when you want to move from one section of the tuning band to another quickly.
This is called the "Last One" Memory feature - of great value when making unattended, time-controlled recordings off the air. The first of the five LEDs in the Signal indicator turns off, letting you know when it's time to replace batteries. Drift is virtually zero. Station frequencies are compared for phase difference with that of the quartz oscillator and instantly adjusted to maintain zero difference. Changes in temperature or humidity cannot affect performance. Despite their many conveniences, synthesizer tuners used to be scorned by audiophiles because of their poor signal-to-noise ratio.
Our panelist Jim found a couple of differences worth mentioning: The 's C71 is a 3. If this was an update, maybe the could use a 10 uF single here. Also, while the 's C24 is marked uF 16v, the 's C24 is marked 10 uF 16v and that's what it had. On the DIY Mods page, Jim describes how to improve the TU's sound quality by rebuilding the power supply and inserting better-quality capacitors in the audio stage.
TUs with rack handles are fairly common and sell in the same price range. The TU, a very rare tuner with 4 gangs and 4 filters, was apparently the successor to the ubiquitous TU The TU and its companion amplifier, the AU, filled the gap when Sansui was not yet ready to introduce its redesigned series products. The TU's front panel is identical to the TU's, and their circuit board layouts are identical as well although there may be some minor differences in parts.
The TU also performs just as well as the TU, making it one of the better tuners around for DXing when modified. Some think the TU and its relatives are among the best-looking tuners, with their sleek black faces and nice lights. When modified with narrower filters in the narrow IF bandwidth path, the TU can be an excellent tuner for DXing while retaining its fine audio quality in the wide IF mode.
On the DIY Mods page, our panelist Jim describes how to make the TU even better by rebuilding the power supply and inserting better-quality capacitors in the audio stage. See how one stock TU sounded compared to other top tuners on our Shootouts page, and our contributor Jeff R.
Here are Sansui's instructions on how to replace the dial cord on a TU The higher priced s usually have rack mount handles. The TU has 4 FM and 2 AM gangs , and 4 ceramic filters , arranged in a different configuration on the circuit board than the TU's filters despite the similar front panels, the TU's circuitry is quite different from the TU's. The TU has an analog tuning capacitor, with a tuning knob and analog dial scale like the TU, but has a digital frequency readout where the has a signal strength meter it's a vacuum flourescent display, which resembles LEDs.
The uses fairly narrow stock ceramic filters and is more selective than an unmodified , but some may find the 's overzealous crystal lock circuitry like the TU's, as described below an annoyance rather than a convenience.
When modified with narrower filters, the TU's selectivity only improves slightly, and a DXer or anyone else who changes stations frequently will probably prefer a modified TU since the doesn't have the annoying crystal lock.
We'll have more information on it eventually. Our panelist Bob has details on the TU's 4 filters: The filters are set up a little differently than, say, a KT The TU uses three kHz GDT flat group delay 3-pin filters for the wide IF bandwidth mode, and what appears to be one kHz 3-pin filter for narrow mode - all Murata, and well-matched stock.
In narrow it is using all 4 filters, and in wide just the three GDT's. As a result, the wide mode is not super wide, and really almost makes the narrow extraneous, sort of like the Accuphase T or Kenwood KT or The TU would probably be great for DXing with a kHz filter in narrow for getting adjacent channels. The TU is more sensitive than the TU and , and one of our panelists says his is as sensitive as his Kenwood T!
Our audiophile reviewers agree that the TU sounds great. AM radio listeners should note that the TU has a wide-narrow filter for the AM band which can eliminate typical AM splatter noise, making it the best-sounding AM section Bob has ever heard. He adds, Sensitivity is very good, and the TU excels in having probably one of the best stock stereo blend noise filters.
It really does a good job killing the noise, keeping the stereo image, without rolling off the highs. The ergonomics are good, but you are wishing you could turn the crystal lock off on occasion. It locks on and hangs on well past the indicated dial marking, then lets go and steps to the next frequency in. It's just odd because you are now well past where the dial says you should be.
It does this in both directions, depending on which way you approach the station. First off, we defeated that silly quartz lock tuning but kept the pretty green LED on all the time. Next we rearranged the filter configuration so that instead of 3 filters functioning in wide mode, now just two do.
The narrow band, which before only added a fourth filter to the 3 in wide, now has 2 filters. Wide bandwidth has enhanced fidelity, and you can even notice a difference between the wide and narrow settings! And unlike our first go-round with defeating quartz lock tuning in the TU, perhaps? The one nit I can pick: even with the stereo threshold cranked all the way down, this tuner will pop in and out of stereo on very weak signals.
By changing the pot that controls the stereo threshold, the user can decide how much noise is too much, and has the option of using the very fine FM Noise Filter this unit employs. It looks like the stereo threshold will affect the muting, meaning that if we change that pot, we may lose the muting function. I say 'who cares? See how one TU sounded compared to other top tuners on our Shootouts page, and read our panelist David "A"'s Ricochet.
And what about the truly abnormal sales? Hey guys, even though Jim thought the TU sounded great in his system , you got carried away. It was followed by the TU in , then the TU in Our panelist Bob says, These discrete MPX circuits sound good but need more adjustment like tube tuners to work best.
This one also likely has either ceramic, or crystal filters. Probably a really good tuner, well built. We have more information on it that we'll be putting up eventually. Two steps down from the TU, the TU has 3 gangs and 3 filters. None of us has used one but it looks like a halfway decent tuner.
The little brother of the TU, the 4-gang TU might be worth a try. The little brother of the TU is a fine tuner in its own right. The 4-gang TU has good specs, especially sensitivity, and our contributor Marc reports that it's very quiet and clean-sounding, particularly in stereo. Its signal meter doubles as a multipath meter. From an older generation than the TU, the TU is a good-sounding 5-gang tuner. It has 4 filters and should be a decent candidate for mods.
The TU has 5 gangs and 3 IF filters, two of which have 4 stages rather than a typical ceramic filter's 2 stages, so it's like 5 filters if we count them in the traditional fashion.
The TU is solidly built and our panelists who have used it praise its sound quality and DX performance, but David "A" rates it well below the TU-X1 for sound even though Eric a non-audiophile felt that it was close enough. Our panelist Bob did some mods on his: The TU has incredible potential. At first, it just did not open up sonically, but after trying a bunch of things, I nailed it. It is there now. I removed tantulum caps in the signal path. The big gain was replacing the TAP op-amps, which were limiting the sonics in a big way.
They are inline 7-pin units, so I had to put in 7-pin inline sockets, and custom modify a standard single op-amp to solder onto a 7-pin header. It was about three hours' work just to make the replacements, but well worth it. I also added six polypropylene caps, along with new power supply caps. With all the mods, the TU may be one of the top all-around tuners ever built. I have talked to many people who feel that a stock TU just smokes about everything out there for distant reception capability.
If your unit does not astound you, it is broken or out of alignment. It will easily surpass a stock KT by a decent amount. I think the sonics were the holdback on the s, but not anymore. Because it uses LC filters that are encased in metal and plastic enclosures, no one should buy a TU expecting to replace the filters. The TU offers many nice features, including a calibration tone and scope outputs.
The TU has the edge when de-tuning a station since it's analog. Classical music was very detailed and I could hear audience coughing : — just to show the benefits of an aligned tuner. A digital synthesizer tuner with the equivalent of 5 gangs and 4 3-pin ceramic filters, the TU-D99X is a good candidate for a filter mod, since its specs list alternate channel selectivity of only 60 dB in the Narrow IF mode.
There might be more subtle differences that I haven't spotted. For those wondering what the component values are for the FM front end, please refer to the Onkyo T schematic. The TU-D99X has way above average sensitivity and good sound, with nice solid bass. It also has a "super linear digital decoder" SLDD circuit, an advanced MPX decoder with 38 kHz harmonic cancellation that eliminates the need for an anti-birdie filter.
However, Bob observes that there's a fine line between a "cool-looking" and "Mickey Mouse" appearance, and says: The display, if you are used to meters, can be very non-informative. It is not a businesslike display - it is more like a toy, that is, different. Yes, the colors are 'cool,' but it looks like a toy compared to say a TII or T that actually convey useful information about signal strength. Bob adds that the 99X has better inherent adjacent channel capability than the TU-S9.
For sound quality, mids and highs are better than average, and bass, while not earth-shattering, is not bad. The TU-S7 is more sensitive than one might expect, has an excellent signal-to-noise ratio, and is especially quiet on strong signals. The TU-S9 is an unusually attractive digital synthesizer tuner, with a rosewood veneer cabinet and an elegant black front panel. It is packed with well-chosen and convenient features, including direct frequency entry for tuning or setting presets into memory enter for Unusual for a tuner, there is also an unswitched AC outlet.
See how one TU-S9 sounded compared to other top tuners on our Shootouts page. Like its predecessors, the TU-S33 has 3 gangs and 2 filters. It has the added feature of "servo lock," which makes it incredibly easy to tune and keep locked onto the station.
The tuning mechanism glides smoothly, and uses two arrows and a "locked" LED to indicate that the station is properly tuned. The dial has a nice light blue tint, with tick marks linearly spaced kHz. The TU-S33 is very sensitive and moderately selective. Like the TU-D99X, it also has the mysterious "super linear digital decoder" SLDD , as well as a "pulse swallow synthesizer" where do they get this stuff? There's an unswitched AC power outlet on the back panel, unusual for a tuner, and a switch to change the AM frequency steps from 10 kHz to 9 kHz.
It's built with some plastic used for the backing to the front panel and the sides of the chassis. This is not the 'heavy metal' stuff that most of us love. Packing it very securely for shipping is important.
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