Mentre cresce l'interesse verso la musica liquida, l'alta definizione in musica e i sistemi per riprodurla, tutti temi dei quali ci siamo occupati in questo blog già da diverso tempo e con un certo anticipo (vedere l'indice per una guida su tutti gli articoli in merito) facciamo invece ancora un passo indietro nella direzione del suono analogico.
Parliamo di radio, però, un settore dove il digitale non è ancora arrivato.
Nonostante qualche tentativo, chiamato DAB, T-DMB e DRM. L'unico formato che ha avuto una qualche diffusione (ma quasi solo in Germania e UK) is the first. But it is a technology 10 years ago, and the probability that it is adopted in Italy is now quite small, if any. The private radio stations do not want it, they only have disadvantages and no advantages. Rai is experimenting with an alternative standard. It then remains on the FM of the '60s (which is not too bad) with the chaos of adjacent frequencies that those who live in big cities know as well as the almost total closure of the sector from the opening of new radio (all frequencies are employed). The future will be perhaps the television broadcast on the radio (terrestrial or satellite). But you will hear from the TV or some multi-room system. Will no longer be a "radio".
something decent (musically speaking) in the vast sea of \u200b\u200bcommercial FM radio all the same but somehow there, and then you can enjoy in Italy sound of the best radio available today, exactly the Tivoli Audio Model One . What has also become, surprisingly, a kind of status symbol.
designer Henry Kloss, a famous business guru Hi-Fi, which had drawn some historical models of speakers from the 70s and founded the historical brands such as Advent, to realize this radio has not really tried much. His goal was to achieve the best possible sound from a compact and portable radio, however. So the first thing to invest was exactly the sound system, the "box". They were largely successful at that time the small speakers with bass reflex technology. With very minimal size were obtained amazing performance, even on low. So this was the first solution, put the radio in a mini speaker.
The stereo, and even FM stereo, however, provides two speakers, and here Henry Kloss had a brilliant idea first. Instead of proposing an object fake stereo with two speakers close enough that the stereo effect becomes non-existent (as in all the radio going around at the time, the portable compattoni) preferred to go directly to the mono . In each case the difference was not there, and one small speakers could do radio.
remained to decide on speakers, they usually have two small speakers, tweeter and woofer, which requires a cross-over and a more powerful amplifier.
Restava la vera e propria sezione radio. Circuiti integrati per la sintonia in digitale (non per il segnale, che rimane sempre analogico) ce n'erano tanti e a costi bassissimi, ormai li inserivano dappertutto, anche nei portachiavi. Ma questo era un oggetto per chi dava la priorità alla qualità, e poteva anche rinunciare a qualche comodità, come la memorizzazione dei canali o la ricerca facilitata delle stazioni.
Quindi un tuner analogico, ma di elevata qualità e sensibilità, con tecnologia a MOSFET, con un comando molto semplice, un manopolone demoltiplicato, che con molta attenzione consente di selezionare le diverse stazioni sovrapposte caoticamente tra di loro anche nell'etere selvaggio di Roma, uno tuning tool represented by a light that gets brighter when the signal is better, as in radio in the living room of my grandmother, and nothing more.
Then to top it all a quality amp, but not great power (not needed for the size of the object) and a simple but pleasant appearance, a box with wood, a clean front and refined in color with a pleasantly harmonious that of wood. It also has good connectivity options, so the casket could be used (again in mono) for other sources, for example, a portable CD player.
could have happened a single FM radio, a manual tuning, and in addition, despite the simplified design, because of high construction quality, but also much more expensive than any radio or compattone with radio on the market?
apparently had to be impossible, but the success came. Without even advertising or articles in magazines Hi-Fi, only with the tam-tam, word of mouth. And the experience.
Why listen to one of the Model One with a (rare, very rare, unfortunately) decent programs broadcast by FM radio in Italy is a very pleasant experience. A full, rich sound, very extended bass, very pleasant to talk, the opportunity to hear the details, in a word (abused), natural, what you wanted and tried e che riporta (e mi ha riportato) al piacere di sentire la radio. Un modo diverso di fruire della musica, per una volta non scegliamo noi, ma in questo modo abbiamo anche modo di scoprire tanta musica nuova che non conoscevamo (tanta se fossero tante le trasmissioni o le emittenti che ci provano, ma questa è un'altra storia).
L'azienda Tivoli Audio fondata da Henry Kloss ha avuto quindi un inatteso successo mondiale e, dopo la scomparsa del fondatore, ha capitalizzato sul brand ormai acquisito per lanciare tutta una serie di varianti e prodotti in qualche modo derivati. Dal model Two (stereo, due cassettine) e PAL (portatile, pensato soprattutto per barca) già progettati dallo stesso Kloss, al modello radio sveglia (gli Americans still use them) to the CD model, the model satellite, Internet and so on. All items of interest, do not argue, but the beautiful simplicity of the Model One is unsurpassed, unsurpassed and despite some attempts to imitate the Japanese (from Teac for example). Maybe good products, but without the magic of the original.
Not to be confused with the myriad of pseudo Chinese imitations, the price certainly much lower (a fifth) but the quality is incomparably lower, you see a little 'by all parties. Things to avoid with the utmost care.
(In the pictures, taken from the site of the Tivoli Audio , the Model One in two classic finishes front with ivory and blue, then you have indulged in a range of other colors, but the design has always been pleasant, is not a design "retro," as stated in the site so naive Italian company, is a rational design, it is not the same thing)
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