Harmon Kardon

[starflyer59]

Hey ya'll

I hope this is the right area to ask this?

I am looking for a new receiver and really like the yamaha receivers.

I was also looking at Harmon Kardon but they seem really under powered.

Their cheapest recevier starts around $549 and it is only 50w per channel.

To get 100watts per channel you have to get up around the $900 mark and that is way above my budget.

I am a newbie to home theater and I am confused on why all the Harmon Kardon receivers are rated so slow in wattage per channel and all the other makers are offering 110w -115watts per channel for alot less price.

I am also looking for some bookshelf speakers to use as front speakers. i was looking at the bose 301.

Does Klipsch have something in that $298 range that would make great main front speakers?

[Buckeye_Nut]

I wouldnt get too hung up on receiver power ratings. The HKs can hold their own.

As for speakers? There is a reason that specs for most Bose speakers are kept secret and unavailable to the customer. There are a multitude of respected speaker manufacturers held in high regard by the audiophile community, but bose AIN'T one of them.

Klipsch makes some excellent bookshelf speakers that are definitely worth a listen. I'd recommend doing a zip code dealer search and giving the new reference line an audition. Either the RB 51 or RB61 should right in your range.

[starflyer59]

Thanks. I will look at those.

[Fish]

The HKs have a true rating,no fuzzy math.If you notice the 635 is about 41 lbs at 75 x5.The Denon 38xx is about 38 lbs and 120x7.Denon makes good stuff and if you can get a 3806 for $600 it's a good deal.The 635 can be had for less than $600,has superior musicality(only my opinion,but widely shared).I've owned several of each,I sold my 3805 and got a 630,much happier,then a 635,happier still.

As to mains,Klipsch has several bookshelfs you could choose from if you want new.There is always a good deal to be had used for $300.

[Wrench722]

Look out these guys are filling you. GO WITH THE YAMAHA! Just do more home work on both and don't get hung up on watts.

[Jay481985]

where the heck can you find a 3806 for 600 dollars? and I hav ethe hk3480 that is a stereo reciever that puts 120 watts and its really 120 watts unlike some weird math some companies claim.

[rimwich]

Harman Kardon recievers though not high in power are great in sound quality. And it says on cnet.com they go just as loud as an 90 watt reciever and sound better.

[Jay481985]

I forgot the HK's are all high current

[wuzzzer]

Whatever you do, don't listen to advice from any of the big box salespeople. I actually heard a Circuit City salesperson tell a lady who was looking at receivers that Brand X would play louder than Brand Y because the volume knob went up to 20 on Brand X but only to 15 on Brand Y! No joke!! [8o|]

[psg]

Often, receiver power is rated with one channel driven at a time, whereas h/k are rated with all channels driven.

Look at the power comsumption of the receiver. If it sucks 400W from the wall outlet, it can't reallly deliver 120Wx7, can it?

Also, h/k receivers operate well with 4 ohm loads, whereas many other brands do not.

[starflyer59]

Thanks guys for all the help. I am still confused about wattage ratings. I listened to the yamaha htr-5960 and then listened to the Harman Kardon AVR-240 and the HK blew away the yamaha. Circiut City had the HK on sale on line for $399 vs $499 for the yamaha. I got the HK. Now I just need some more speaker wire to hook up the two extra surrounds. I liked the sound of the HK better.

[Fish]

Congrat's,you've made a sound decision.Think of watt ratings like this.You wanna car that gets good gas milage,A guy says he's got a nice roomy one that gets 40 miles per gallon,he don't tell you thats only goin down hill.I tell you I have a nice roomy car that gets 25 miles per gallon,but thats goin' uphill.OK,maybe not the best analogy but you get the idea,hey it's after midnight.

[Jay481985]

There is RMS wattage which is roots mean squared which ultimately mean sustained maxium average wattage, in which the amp/reciever can supply without literally draining its capacitors.

There is peak wattage which basically calculates what the reciever might be capable of sending out for maybe 1/100 of a second. That is where some amps get outrageous in claiming 1000 watts output, yeah for like a split second, like a long distance runner with a burst of speed but overall does not change the average mph he is running.

Some recievers show what they can do per channel wise which means that the watts are given when only one channel is run which when all channels run you will see the rms rating go down. Many recievers have a shared type amp where the unit can provide a certain amount of wattage and it is split within the system's surroundsound capability

Some recievers can only do that wattage at a claimed 8 ohms resistance. The higher the resistance number the higher the specs usually are. many cheaper recievers cannot do 6 or 4 ohms and will struggle with or actually shut off due to various problems like heat, etc. Expensive amps can usually double down meaning if the unit say can give 100 watts at 8 ohms then it can give 150 at 6 ohms and 200 watts at 4 ohms and some can even go down to 2 ohms.

[oldbuckster]

Really doesn't matter what others say, it's what sounds best to your ears, which one fits your wallets needs, what features you are looking for, in the end you'll make the right choice for your needs, which I think you did.................Good Luck and Enjoy........................don't get too technical, just enjoy the Music and Movies........................