Moderators Youthman Posted September 12, 2012 Moderators Share Posted September 12, 2012 I purchased this Vintage Harman Kardon 430 from Blindman. I've had it hooked up now for a few weeks and thought I would take a minute to share my thoughts. First off....I've never liked "Vintage" anything. I'm 37 and I haven't really been exposed to much "vintage". I grew up in the age of technology and thus never really cared for "antiques" of any kind. When blindman posted the 430 for sale, it was inexpensive enough to allow me to buy it "out of curiosity" to see how it sounds. I figure for $50, I wouldn't be out much if I hated it and could always sell it to another forum member for what I had in it. Shipping ended up costing an extra $25 but even at $80 total cost with shipping, it still wasn't a lot as an investment. My plan was to hook it up in my office where I had a Harman Kardon AVR70 connected to a pair of KG 3.2's. I've always LOVED the sound of HK with Klipsch. So much detail, clarity and musical separation. I was curious how a 30 year old receiver would sound compared to a more current model. Right now, I'm listening to Pandora from my computer hooked up to the 430 and the KG 3.2's and I'll say it sounds fantastic. I have the speakers laid on their side on a bookshelf exactly at ear level with tweeters aimed at my ears at about 3 ft away. First song that came on was Big Daddy Weave's "From Here". It's so detailed, warm and almost heavenly which ironically the song is speaking of heaven. [] Next song was by Israel Houghton which has lots of horns. Man, that sounded very lively! I almost got up and started dancing. LOL The acoustic section at the beginning of Skillet's "Yours to Hold" was rich and very pleasing to the ears. Even hip/hop sounds good (listening now to Jamie Grace's "Share Jesus"). Imaging on the KG 3.2's is great, even being so close. The 430 only has 25 watts x 2 but it provides plenty of volume especially for my small office. The ONLY negative thing I have to say about it is that it is a little thin in the bass. I have the bass turned up almost all the way to fill in the bottom end quite nicely. I have the bass at 3 o'clock and the treble at 1 o'clock and it sounds very nice where I'm sitting. There is almost no bass at 12 o'clock. I'm assuming the lack of bottom end is due to the low wattage in the amp? Anyways, a big thanks to Blindman. The unit was incredibly packed!!! Looks like I'll be keeping the 430 as it provides a very musical experience, even coming from low res audio of a computer. I want to take it home this weekend and hook it up to my son's RF-7's in his room and then to my RF-83's in the HT to see how they sound with it. I'll have to borrow my son's Marantz DVD player when I hook it to the RF-83's since I only have HDMI with the PS3. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted September 12, 2012 Share Posted September 12, 2012 I have the bass turned up almost all the way to fill in the bottom end quite nicely. I have the bass at 3 o'clock and the treble at 1 o'clock and it sounds very nice where I'm sitting. There is almost no bass at 12 o'clock. I'm assuming the lack of bottom end is due to the low wattage in the amp? I don't think that's the problem. Do you have any eq set on Pandora or your pc audio out?I get pleny of bottom end on my HIIs with my 430. If anything, I have to roll it off a little bit. GREAT price btw. I think I paid $100 each for the two that I have and still consider them a good deal. Bruce Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Youthman Posted September 12, 2012 Author Moderators Share Posted September 12, 2012 I do not see any controls in Pandora or on my computer sound settings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennie Posted September 12, 2012 Share Posted September 12, 2012 Congratulations! [<)] Has the "430" been gone through? It may need new capacitors, and that WILL cause lack of bass. Dennie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RT FAN Posted September 12, 2012 Share Posted September 12, 2012 Youthman, glad you are loving your "new" HK receiver. On my old HK 330B, there was a "Contour" button, which functioned like a Loudness button, & brought more bass to the party. See if there is one on your 430, just might be the answer you are looking for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnysal Posted September 12, 2012 Share Posted September 12, 2012 as mentioned old caps can go bad and cause a lack of bass...the HK 430 is a great receiver, I would even venture to say better in two channel sound than most options available today. Until you decide to send it out for new caps, look for the "contour" button ans see if that helps at all. regards, Tony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted September 13, 2012 Share Posted September 13, 2012 I do not see any controls in Pandora or on my computer sound settings.What OS are you using on the computer? What sound card are you using?Bruce Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Youthman Posted September 13, 2012 Author Moderators Share Posted September 13, 2012 Tony, the Contour button definitely added much more of the bottom end. I'll play with it to see which I prefer (bass set to 0 and contour pressed or contour button depressed and bass at 3). My OS is Windows XP and using a Dell Optiplex GX260 computer with factory sound card on the Mobo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djk Posted September 13, 2012 Share Posted September 13, 2012 Try the contour on and the bass cut a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Youthman Posted September 13, 2012 Author Moderators Share Posted September 13, 2012 Try the contour on and the bass cut a bit. Yep, that's exactly where I have it now. Going to listen to it for a few days like that, then switch it back and see which I prefer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddy Dee Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 youthman, thanks for posting. sweet gear, indeed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel's wife Posted September 14, 2012 Moderators Share Posted September 14, 2012 How could you not love a vintage Harman Kardon receiver!! [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Youthman Posted September 14, 2012 Author Moderators Share Posted September 14, 2012 Thx Daddy Dee. Dtel's wife, I've always been a fan of HK....so I'm not surprised I'm enjoying the vintage HK as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
t-man Posted September 17, 2012 Share Posted September 17, 2012 Glad you are enjoying the HK. What did it replace, and how does it compare in the same room, same speakers, etc....? I inherited a 430 and played around with it for a month or so - I had problem with the AUX inputs making loud noises at times/interference and such. When I did have it hooked up, I noticed it sounded great with my Klipsch speakers. The unit certainly wasn't bass shy! With KG 3.2s in a small room, I'm guessing you are loosing bass more due to that placement I see up high in a shelf. I must say that the glow of thos old HKs are classic in the appearance department. If they came out with a throw back unit with identical looks in 2 channel, nice build but with upgrades such as a REAL power cord, speaker binding posts, remote control, etc....It would be a fun receiver to have indeed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted September 17, 2012 Moderators Share Posted September 17, 2012 One thing to remember also is the HK AVR 70 you were using first was by far not the worst for 2 Ch, there are many AVR's that would have not sounded that good, especially some of the newer low end models. The HK AVR's are known for having better sound for 2 Ch than some other brands to start with. After a little while, switch back to the original you were using, that will be a easy way to hear the difference, sometimes just a different sound takes a little getting use to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Youthman Posted September 17, 2012 Author Moderators Share Posted September 17, 2012 One thing to remember also is the HK AVR 70 you were using first was by far not the worst for 2 Ch, there are many AVR's that would have not sounded that good, especially some of the newer low end models. I've only owned HK's in the AVR series (AVR55, then AVR60 and now the AVR70). All three were very musical but coming from the same generation, I guess that would be expected. The HK AVR's are known for having better sound for 2 Ch than some other brands to start with. That has definitely been my experience, which is why I was curious about trying a vintage HK receiver. After a little while, switch back to the original you were using, that will be a easy way to hear the difference, sometimes just a different sound takes a little getting use to. Will definitely do that after some more time spent with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Youthman Posted September 17, 2012 Author Moderators Share Posted September 17, 2012 What did it replace, and how does it compare in the same room, same speakers, etc....? I previously had an HK AVR70 hooked to the KG 3.2's in my office. The unit certainly wasn't bass shy! If I do not have the "Contour" button pressed, it is pretty weak on the bottom end when the bass dial is in the center. I can either turn the bass knob up to 3 oclock or press the contour button to provide adequate bass. With KG 3.2s in a small room, I'm guessing you are loosing bass more due to that placement I see up high in a shelf. That very well could be. Definitely not the "ideal" location but I can't exactly crank them up in the office so they sound great with tweeter and mid at ear level. nice build but with upgrades such as a REAL power cord, I thought that was funny too. It's more like an old lamp cord. LOL speaker binding posts They are pretty flimsy and you can't fit large gauge wire in them without a using the pin type banana plugs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 DJK posted this some time ago, regarding replacing caps on the 430. When this amp was new, electrolytic values were -10%, +100% Just make sure the new ones fit, you may need to go higher in voltage (that's fine) and don't go higher than X2 of the original value in µF. Unit pops? C405 Gain is low/no bass? C408 (most likely), or C402 Scratchy volume control (on turn-on, OK after a few minutes)? C504 or C712 Hum (one channel)? C6, 7 or C8, 9 Hum (both channels, varies with volume)? C4, 15 Hum (tuner)? C3,4 Best bet? Like roaches, you got to get 'em all (the smaller caps are about $0.10 each in 25 lot from Mouser). Given the popularity of this unit, it makes sense to do a group buy and make up a kit of all values required. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Youthman Posted September 21, 2012 Author Moderators Share Posted September 21, 2012 Thanks Marvel. I doubt I will attempt to replace the caps or the other components in an attempt to restore the unit to it's original condition. It is working great right now and my thought is "If it ain't broke...". Hopefully she will provide me with several years of great listening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 One of mine has the scratchy volume right after turn on. I haven't fixed mine yet either, and just leave it on a couple of minutes before adjusting. Bruce Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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