Review on Tivoli Audio Model One AM/FM Table Radio, Classic Walnut, Lightweight 2.4 lbs by Kipp Amundson

The tuner on these radios has a serious manufacturing defect. Radios are built with a small analog variable tuning capacitor, which becomes a problem after a few years. What happens is that the rotor/shaft of the capacitor is structurally connected to the ground of the tuner circuit. Between the shaft and the bearing that makes the electrical connection to ground for this capacitor is a lubricant that will degrade over time, resulting in a poor electrical connection, resulting in a very squeaky tuning knob making it almost impossible power to tune into a station . According to Tivoli Audio, to solve this problem you have to turn on the unit, turn the volume all the way down, and rotate the tuning knob vigorously from end to end for 3-5 minutes. They don't say why, but I suspect it's to redistribute the lube and clean the shaft, which improves the electrical connection. The problem I've found with this solution is that it's temporary and stops you from switching to another station after a few times when you want to change channels (what's the point of a good radio if You can, don't change the channel). This is clearly a design flaw which the company ignores as to my knowledge they still use this defective component in their tuners. If you google "Model One Scratchy Tuning" you will find that there are many others with the same problem.