European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - July 20, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Rating pm tuners by Hans Fantel new York times o Many audio fans even those informed about technical mailers an pm Luner is Ihal is called a Black Box in engineering parlance meaning an enigmatic device Wilh mysterious innards. Listeners May be knowledgeable about Power ratings distortion and frequency response in amplifiers. But when in comes to assessing the performance of liners the component that pulls in radio programs even otherwise Sawy audio fans Are often at a toss Leeling intimidated by what they perceive As technical Arcana. Their i Fidenco is groundless. The key performance factors of fun liners pose no greater Challenge to comprehension than do other audio specifications sensitivity is the most widely touted of All tuner specifications but its importance depends on your listening location. H you live in a City near the stations you normally listen to sensitivity matters Little because most stations come in Strong. Bui it you live m Remote exert of or in Rural regions Good sensitivity May be crucial in bringing in Tho stations you want. The sensitivity Retina of a Luner always listed in ils specifications tells you flow Strong the incoming signal Musl be in order to be received clearly. This is indicated As a number of Micro volts and the lower the number the More sensitive 1he tuner. As a general Rule in the specs say that the tuner has a usable sensitivity of More than two Micro volts it May be adequate for City use. But it will not perform Well in outlying locations where a sensitivity rating of about one Mic Rovoll would be More appropriate. The Mailer is not As simple As thai other factors Musl be considered. If comparisons Are to be made Between Dilfer enl tuners Pineir sensitivity ratings must be measured in exactly the same Way i.e., Wilh reference to the same level of background noise that is Why the specifications often list what is called usable  term indicates that the measurement was made with the background noise 30 decibels quieter than the desired signal. Some companies adhere to More stringent standards and prefer to measure Iho Sensi Lively of their tuners against a background 50 decibels below the desired signal. Them is no uniform agreement about which of these two measuring methods is to to used so critical buyers must be aware of possible discrepancies. In any Given City in the United Stales. Pm stations Bre usually fairly Well spaced out Over the dial to prevent their interfering Wilh one another. Yel Rural listeners May be roughly eur Distant irom iwo or More cities with pm Stalions and they May find these stations coming in on neighbouring channels or even competing Wilh each other on the same Channel. The belter to Cope Wilh such exigencies listeners in this situation would do Well to Check the selectivity and capture ratio of any tuner they plan to buy. The latter term refers to the tuner s ability to separate Stalions broadcasting on the same frequency. Ii two Stalions come in on the same spot on the dial. Erma Bombeck the tuner should capture he stronger Ono clearly and suppress Tho weaker the capture ratio listed in the specs dolls How much stronger one of the two consoling signals Musl be to bring about this Complete separation Tho loss difference Tho Belier the tuner. Therefore. The lower the number the better the performance for example a capture ratio of iwo Decimals an excellent rating by the Way Means thai a Lalion need be Only two decibels stronger to override interference irom another station on the same Channel selectivity by contrast does not differentiate Between stations contending Lor the same spot on the dial. Rather it helps to keep apart two stations with frequencies adjacent to each other this Factor is also expressed in decibels which express the degree to which the tuner squelched a noisy neighbor on the dial in his Case the bigger number indicates the belter performance As a rough guide a selectivity rating of 20 decibels will allow satisfactory reception if Iho interfering signal Job Mai Vety weak. But if the intrusive station is very Strong a selectivity rating upward of 40 decibels May to needed to bring in the weaker station clearly. The remaining tuner specifications such As distortion and signal to noise ratio Are much Iho same As in amplifiers and familiar to most audiophiles. As in other components a distortion rating of 0.1 percent or less is excellent and a Sig Namo not so ratio o 70 decibels common among belter tuners actually exceeds practical requirements since pm Iran Millers themselves rarely do thai Well. A Basic understanding of these specifications can Forestal the disappointment of buying a tuner or receiver thai is not suitable to the to Catton of the Fastener s Home. Sometimes a tuner chosen with critical regard to those figures can extend its reach to stations thai wild less capable equipment could not be received at is. 15-year mortgages pro and con Byjah Cunniff associated pressm Ost people Don t like to commit themselves to any project for 30 years ahead the big exceptions being marriages and Home mortgages Bolh of which seem to have eager acceptance. Bui in the Case of mortgages at least there is a Shorter alternative thai being the 15-year mortgage ii is a real alternative Wilh it a Homeowner can obtain a lower interest Rale and pay for 1ho House in half the time nevertheless Many homeowners prefer the longer Lerm and higher rate for several Good reasons one of them being that Home mortgage interest constitutes one of the biggest deduct ions on Federal income la returns. In so doing however some homeowners might penalize themselves. For one thing the average Home mortgage in l held Lor 30 years. It varies widely at one Lime the average was Only seven years. It is much higher today but still Only a Iraklion of 30 years. Thai presents the question ii Tho 30-year mortgage in t going to be held Tor Hal entire time Why pay lha higher Rales that prevail on such mortgages Why not take a lower Rale 15-year mortgage instead typically iwo solid reasons Are Given in answer the 15-year mortgage though hollered at a lower interest rate still requires bigger monthly payments in order to More quickly amortize the loan. Wilh a 30-year loan you have the option of making Advance or extra payments to repay taster. You pay extra interest for this option but you Are no compelled to make Advance payments it is your Choice. According to the National association of realtors the monthly principal and interest payment on a $65.900 mortgage for 30 years at 9 percent would be about $530. On a 15-year loan at 8.75 percent the payments would be $659. What happens after that should affect any Borrower s decision. After five years the principal owed on the 30-year. 9 percent loan is reduced by 4.1 percent. In tha same period the principal on a is year mortgage at 8.75 percent is Cut 20.3 percent. Afler 10 years the principal owed on the 30-year loan. Is reduced by 10 6 percent. But on the 15-year loan it is lowered by More than half specifically by 51.6 percent and after 15 years when 79,3 percent of the principal is still owed on tha 30-year mortgage the 15 year loan is paid of. The key questions Lor a would be Borrower Are these How much Money can i afford to put into housing How Long do i intend to keep the properly do i have other outlets Tor tha extra funds required by a 15-year mortgage that is could the Money be More profitably invested in securities or in other properties what Are my tax savings Likely to be whatever they Are there s a Good Chance the lax savings won l be As great As before Iha most recent change in tax Law. Because the tax acl of 1986 lowered income tax rates generally such deductions May not be As beneficial. This is especially True for High income individuals who in the past might deduct As much As 50 percent of the interest paid on mortgages. Top tax rates and therefore the value of tax deductions Are much Tower now. It s an unusual product these Days thai is not being eyed As a potential  throughout the years we have watched everything irom China silverware and handkerchiefs to diapers and ballpoint pens become throwaways i suspected my world As i knew in was being trashed the Day i walked into my gynaecologist s examining room and his nurse said slip into this. Ii opens Down the troll i unfolded what appeared to be a Road map of Rhode Island and remembered thinking this in t something a Lull grown woman slips Inlo. This is  seeing lha look on my lace the nurse explained you see. When you Are finished with this. We can throw it  i never imagined that you would want to keep a i said. Unless of course you Are packing a vase for  that Day marked the last modicum of modesty and innocence left to me from that evolved a society Hal keeps nothing Page 16 the stars and stripes today there Are few things thai Are permanent. Take a shave throw away the Shaver take a picture. Throw away the camera. Answer the phone throw the phone away. See who s across the room. Throw away you Contact lenses. In retrospect my children were years ahead of their time. Everything to them was temporary. Umbrellas and sweaters were expendable there was no doubt in their minds Hal once they had used it they could leave it and another one would pop up in its place the same Wilh gloves and boots some people like my Mother refuse to succumb to the waste. She still launders plastic bags and hangs them out to dry and has try largest Supply of plastic Bulter containers in North America. With our growing paranoia Over the transmission of germs it s Only a Mailer of Lime before Luggage and Replat cars become a one Shol commodity frankly i Don t know How much longer parents can hang on. One of these Days someone will figure out whal it monday. July 20,1987 lakes to maintain us. We have to be laundered led three times a Day. Transported exercised to keep us irom sagging and run in occasionally Lor checkups and parts. Someone will figure out in would be cheaper to have a disposable Parent in every room. Maybe in pastel Wilh a Micro Chip that covers discipline Wise sayings and advice. I know. It sounds ridiculous. But last month i was Al lending the american booksellers convention in Washington do a crowd was gathered around a display of Boffl Cosby s Book there seated Al the counter was a Wax figure of Bill people were posing Wilh him Lor pictures. No one seemed to notice or to care Hal he was t saying anything. His publisher was Happy. The by made of Wax never had room service a Tono or an expense account. If he does t come out with a Book next year he could be mailed Down and recycled. Think about it