Surprisingly good Tandberg amplification

[Volante]

Some time ago I bought a matching set of Tandberg gear in their original boxes from a good home (seller was apparently trading up to naim):
TPA- 3002A control pre-amplifier
TPA- 3003 (150W) power amplifier (they also did a more powerful 3006)
3001A Tuner

because I wanted to get my hands on the fantastic tuner which is very good indeed -they made various "3001" or "3011" models but the 3001A is the one to have which i have been enjoying for some time now. Together it's a fine compact set that doesnt take up too much real estate.

I had not bothered to use the pre or the power amp for a long while but recently brought them out and used them driving Tannoy 12 inch reds in canterbury cabs and I was amazed at how good they sound. maybe they have good transformers or something. Having done a bit more research I see that they are highly regarded in the US and fetch quite high prices for vintage gear. My tuner has been re-fettled by a good engineer but the amps have just come staright out of their boxes and sound wonderful - they give real body to the tannoy sound (having used many different valve and SS amps with the Tannoys in the past).

Judging by comments I have found online the MM/MC phono stages in the pre are also highly regarded although I haven't got rpound to trying them out yet.

Sadly at some stage I may have to move them on for downsizing reasons but am wondering if I should as they look great as a complete set including a good phono stage.

I think a couple of forum members have their speakers (of that generation) which i have not heard which I think can be picked up quite cheaply.

Anybody else had experience with the Tandberg gear of this generation?

[jandl100]

Oo, I fancy a go with the amps!

Tandberg, yep, I'm not surprised it's very good.

I recall a hifi show, must have been 35 or more years ago, where Tandberg had a large dedicated room.
That seemed kind of strange, even at the time. Tandberg? :scratch:

But, by golly, it was making great sounds. The Tandberg speakers were large cubic unprepossessing looking things, probably 3 foot or so on a side. No way now I can recall the model. But they and the whole system sounded fantastic, easily the best sound I had heard up to that time and for me the best sound at the show.

How about a pic of your gear, Neil? :)

[walpurgis]

I had one of these for a while. Tandberg TR-20752 receiver. Very punchy with decent sound quality.

http://i66.tinypic.com/28w304n.jpg

[anubisgrau]

Same here, TR-2055 was my first decent stereo.

[Barry]

Tandberg made some very good gear; their reel-to-reel tape machines were IMO better than the, then, ubiquitous Akai 4000.

It's a disgrace that Tandberg went out of business following a downturn in business and being hounded by the Norwegian government for so-called non payment of taxes, causing the founder of Tandberg to commit suicide.

[struth]

got one of their cassette players.. top notch.

http://i.ebayimg.com/images/i/263332104005-0-1/s-l1000.jpg

just dont use it

[Macca]

Back in the day you had to be well-off to afford Tandberg. I don't think they ever made a budget range.

Some years ago now I got them as a client at work. Imagine my disappointment to discover the brand is now devoted exclusively to supplying video conferencing equipment.

[Ali Tait]

Still have my TD20A R to R. Excellent machine.

[sumday]

I owned a Tandberg 2040 reciever in the late 80, bought very cheaply from my junk shop of choice.
Cost me less than 30 quid and very good for the money, well built and VERY heavy for its smallish footprint...the pushbuttons were a joy to use
IIRC the main problem I had was typical Euro style din socketry....I always had an issue with hum induced into record replay via cheap Din to phono converters.....soldering a 5 pin din was and still is a pet hate.

I of course moved it on, along with most of my vintage gear well before the rise in interest and prices (looks for razorblade).

[Barry]

Back in the day you had to be well-off to afford Tandberg. I don't think they ever made a budget range.

Some years ago now I got them as a client at work. Imagine my disappointment to discover the brand is now devoted exclusively to supplying video conferencing equipment.

Yes - we used Tandberg video conferencing equipment where I worked.

It's a sign of the times - companies noted for their prowess and reputation in now outdated technologies have to look for new, niche markets. This is especially true for companies that specialised in manufacturing tape recorders. For Tandberg it was a move into video conference equipment, for Ferrograph it was a move into manufacturing dot-matrix public display boards. I don't know what happened to Uher, or to the likes of Studer and Revox. Nagra are starting to find their feet again in the high-end audio market, but it has been a somewhat erratic journey in much the same way as Leica experienced after the demise of 35mm film cameras.

[helma]

Tandberg made quite high quality stuff. Tandberg "Studio Monitor" is a somewhat legendary speaker in these parts of the world and the last time I saw a pair on auction they went for over 1000 euros. I have no idea if this is because of the Tandberg freaks (the brand in general seems to draw collectors) or sound, or both. Of course it might also be people collect that stuff because it sounds so damn good :)

Out of curiosity I checked out the service manual for that preamp and it has some pretty impressive specs for a fully discrete MC-phono especially at the time + it has two separate phono preamplifiers, one for MM-carts and the other for MC - obviosly that's not how you do it if you want to be sensible and save money.

[dantheman91]

I am collecting a Tandberg TR 1010 for the collection tomorrow too cheap not too...:)

1975 - £199 New....

[dantheman91]

TR 1010 Here has not been used since 1982 but seems to be working well...Sounds very decent will be restored in time going back to collect the Sony PS 11 turntable later on next week...

[ff1d1l]

Tandberg made quite high quality stuff. Tandberg "Studio Monitor" is a somewhat legendary speaker in these parts of the world and the last time I saw a pair on auction they went for over 1000 euros. I have no idea if this is because of the Tandberg freaks (the brand in general seems to draw collectors) or sound, or both. Of course it might also be people collect that stuff because it sounds so damn good :)

Out of curiosity I checked out the service manual for that preamp and it has some pretty impressive specs for a fully discrete MC-phono especially at the time + it has two separate phono preamplifiers, one for MM-carts and the other for MC - obviosly that's not how you do it if you want to be sensible and save money.

I have a friend in South Wales with a pair of the monitors - they sound excellent.