German radios

I am getting involved in German tube radios. I love the design as well as the nice sound these radios have.

I have a question, which can be subjective. What are the best German tube radios? Best in workmanship ,reliability and high regard by owners?

Thank you and best regards

M Khan

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It depends on the type (Before or after VHF-FM) and if mains only or Battery portable. Philips is a Dutch company but was very active.

Also which period of time?  I would divide up

• 1921 to 1923
• 1924 to 1934
• 1935 to 1939
• 1940 to 1945
• 1945 to 1949
• 1950 to 1960
• 1961 to end of German Tube Radios

I'm no expert, but both the Mains sets with VHF-FM and especially  the Battery portables from 1950 to 1960+ seem far better styling than most UK versions and often seem more advanced no matter which German maker or Philips is chosen.

Also there are so many makers from 1930s to 1960s

You might get better answers asking in German (with German selection set) on another thread!

Are any really left today?  Grundig is no more, just a brand label. Philips has retreated to pre 1912 Lighting and also health care. They are leaving TV & Radio (though the badge may continue a while).

Today you can't buy a decent portable or table radio at all. Sets have poor ergonomics, tiny yet boomy loudspeakers, often even lacking LW as Asians build for a lowest common denominator world market and so called "quality" brands make sets for "local" Radio only with DAB and VHF-FM only, that assume all your stations are preset memories.

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the time from 1950 to 1960 / 1965 is the best time of production to look for.

Starting with FM and with the better Sound Quality compared to AM, also the AF side ( and Loudspeakers ) improved, and Radios got equipped with "Klangregister" ( a 3 to 5 Pushbotton Assembly to adjust for different Sound, similar to an Equalizer function ).

Around 1960 was the beginning of Stereo AF, later also FM Stereo.

There are also mechanical things, like Autotuning Systems ( Saba Automatik ) of Motor driven Station Memory ( some Grundig and Philips Models ). These Systems need special mechanical attention, to keep them running, and SABA Automatik will not work ( properly ) on 60Hz AC.

Most Companies in Germany were building high Quality Radios during that time, like Grundig, Saba, Nordmende, Philips, Loewe Opta, also smaller Companies like Metz, Braun etc.

If You look for best Sound, it is a good Idea to look for Radios with 2x EL84, or EL12 Output Stage, and for a 3D ( Speakers in Front and both sides ). Make shure, that the original Speakers are still in the Radio.

You also can look at a Series like i.e. Nordmende from 1956, and look for the Listprice. You will find Tannhäußer, Othello, Fidelio, Carmen etc, and get them in an Order.

After about 1965 the Customers spent more Money on TV, and Radios need to get cheaper, this has led to poorer Quality compared to the mid 50-es.

BR Henning

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Herr  Oelkers:

You did not mention Telefunken.  Is there any reason?

Thanks 

M Khan

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Dear Mr. Khan,

no, there is absolut no Reason for not mentioning Telefunken.

There are a lot of Manufacturers that i did not mention. ( just to mame some, like Telefunken, Emud, Kaiser, Tonfunk, Körting, Siemens.... )

I also did'nt mention former East Germany (GDR), the Quality of those Radios were also basically very good. ( at least until apx. 1960 )

BR Henning

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Herr  Oelkers:

I have an Emud which has WIMA caps( Known to be defective ?),  However, even after 55 years the  EMUD junior radio works great.

Is it true that Telefunken, Korting, Emud, Siemens are not as high quality as Metz, Loewe-Opta, Grundig, Saba?

One more question: What is your thinking on Graetz radios?

I am learning about the wonderful World of old German radios. So please bear with me!

Thanks and best regards from USA.

M Khan

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Dear Mr. Khan,

I would prefer to classify German FM radios according to their age and their class, rather than to their manufacturers. Average quality was quite high for most of brands and every brand offered a more or less complete line, including popular sets as well as top performance models. The same cabinet could be as precious and elaborated as the cabinet of a piano or a small bakelite box.

Then, you can find top-sound radios from every brand: just to name one, Telefunken made its line of Opus sets, characterized by their very high quality. Still today I enjoy the sound of my Opus 2430 Hi-Fi for listening the local classic music channel,

Anyway quality of sound sources evolved through the years and a parallel evolution can be found in radio sets. Very early FM radios, around the early ‘950s, actually were AM radio sets with an added FM tuner. Bandpass was in the order of 5 kilohertz, usually with a single speaker.

Soon later, probably connected to the availability of microgroove sources, we look at the addition of electrostatic speakers for reproducing high-pitched sounds. It was still a small improvement, due to the very poor efficiency of these speakers. From the mid fifties, we see remarkable improvements in the bandpass, with the use of cone and even of horn tweeters, these latter called Schallkompressor, as in this Graetz Sinfonia 522. Bandpass was in the order of 15 KHz in these models, with claimed 3-D sound, based upon array of speakers, even mid ranges and tweeters, irradiating from the front panel and from the sides. Until 1960, the word ‘Stereo’ had no definite meaning. The Saba Freudenstadt 100, from 1959, has a ‘Stereo’ key and even a ‘Stereo’ light on the front panel, but it has a single channel audio amplifier. The stereo key just disconnected the speakers from the local amplifier, to use the radio as second speaker enclosure for an external stereo amplifier!

We must wait until about 1960 to find the early radios with a stereo audio section. No FM decoder was provided, since FM stereo service was still to come in Europe. The stereo sets made in the years from 1960 to about 1963 were just capable of reproducing stereo records, switching to mono in AM/FM operation.

To find true stereo sets with stereo decoder, we must wait until the late 1963. Even the shape and the look of these late German sets evolved to the ‘Steuergerät’, similar to an American stereo receiver, with external speaker enclosures. Unfortunately, the beginning of FM stereo service in Europe took place when solid state devices were already replacing vacuum tubes. For a short while we can find odd hybrid solutions, as this Opus Studio 2650, but Japanese semiconductor sets were ready to take over the market in Europe as well as in America.

As you can see, in about 15 years, every German manufacturer evolved from some prewar AM sets, with an added FM tuner, to something similar to an American Fisher receiver.  I guess that a choice should be influenced by the look, by the sound or even by technical considerations, rather than by the brand. By the way, most of the FM German radios tune up to 100 MHz, with the exception of some export models and of the later Steuergeräts.

Emilio

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