Nikko Gamma mkV

Rare NIKKO vintage Gamma V FM tuner. This was the finest tuner NIKKO ever made, and among the best FM tuners ever made, by anyone.

The Gamma V is a favorite of the TunerInfoCenter website (see below). It has a gigantic display, huge tuning up/down buttons, and a slim rack-mount design, with a heavy metal case. When the tuner was introduced in 1978, it sold new for $700.

This particular unit --Serial No. C5100312-- is in 8/10 condition; it has been tested and works fine. It has some minor scrapes on the top of the unit (see pictures), but is otherwise in great shape for a 41-year old piece of equipment.

Price does NOT include shipping; shipping via FedEx Ground is the responsibility of the buyer. It will ship well-packed and protected, insured for the full purchase price.

The manual is not included, but you can download a copy here.

Some info from the FM Tuner Information website.....

The Gamma V is a very sensitive and selective FM-only rack-mount style digital tuner. It is a better DX performer in stock form than most digitals we've tested, with the equivalent of 6 gangs, but the Gamma V also sounds terrific with particularly good bass. It uses one linear phase LC filter block in wide mode and adds two more in narrow, both of which are adjustable for best linearity (but because it uses no ceramic filters, it is not suitable for filter modification).

There are also dual transformers for powering the digital and analog section to prevent corruption of the analog power supply. Construction is all frame and beam with heavy shielding around the front end and digital control sections, with beams running from the front to the back of the tuner to further isolate noise-producing circuitry from the audio circuitry. Fixed, variable, and scope outputs are provided on the rear panel.

Our contributor Ryan aligned and analyzed a Gamma V and provides the following commentary:

"When this tuner is fully aligned, it can be better than any stock tuner I have ever heard. The sound is superb from top to bottom, and the measurements back it up. Spectral analysis showed that IM distortion was essentially nonexistent, THD at any frequency over 1 kHz was at .009% or under, and separation was 60 dB out to 10 kHz. In my experience, this just does not happen with almost any stock tuner at any price. I attribute this in large part to the superbly linear IF strip that seems to pay good attention to group delay characteristics, and good ratio detector coupled with the HA11223W multiplex. But do keep in mind that the Gamma V is two [now three - Editor] decades old, and without alignment you will not get these results, and because of the LC filters, it is no ultra-selective DXer. And like many vintage tuners, birdies can be a problem on stations loaded with SCA subcarriers."

Our contributor Bill T. also gives the Gamma V a rave review: "It's digitally synthesized, has only 6 presets, and has a search feature that is fairly primitive. Instead of a tuning knob, it has an up/down rocker switch that's large enough to operate with your elbows. Now the good stuff: the Gamma V is probably one of the best stock FM tuners out there. Build quality on this sucker is outstanding. Nikko didn't skimp on parts with this baby. I have not seen another '70s or '80s digital tuner built this well for less than $1,700-2,000. It appears to have better sensitivity than my unmodified Kenwood 600T, and the Gamma's selectivity is much better. The Gamma's sound stage is a little flatter than what you will hear with the best tuners. However, width and depth are easily the equal of the best digital tuners I have heard. The frequency response seems to be more extended in the upper range than the 600T (I like the sound of the Kenwood, but the highs tend to be a little soft and rounded-off)."

Our contributor Hank calls the Gamma V "a very sensitive tuner with superb sonics and first-rate build quality. Though not *quite* the DX machine that some of the other tuners are, this is nevertheless one of my favorites." And our contributor Bill C. gave the Gamma V's bass the nod over that of his Yamaha T-85 and JVC FX-1100BK. See how one Gamma V sounded compared to other top tuners on our Shootouts page, and read our panelist David "A"'s Ricochet.

The Gamma V usually sells for $120-200 on eBay.

Product Specs:

Manufacturer: Nikko Electric Manufacturing (Japan)

Rating: AC 120V 60Hz 18W

Serial No: C5100312

Material: Metal case

Shape: Rack

Main principle: Super-Heterodyne (Super in general)

Wave bands: FM Broadcast Band Only

Power type and voltage: Alternating Current supply (AC) / 120; 220 Volt

Model: Synthesized FM Tuner Gamma V

• FM-only [no AM]

• 8 Station Preset, Auto Scan

• Wide & Narrow

• Hi-Blend; De-Emphasis

• Power Consumption 120VAC-60Hz 18 Watts