Sound OK when it it worked

Keeps turning off in saround mode

I am totally dissapointed in this peice of crap. I thought H/C maid quality product. I can not get this machine to run steady for more then 30 min's. It constantly turns off or only works in 2 chan mode. I would not recomend this machine. It is absalute garbage.

produces crisp sounds with high power, inexpensive

remote control

I purchased this receiver following a suggestion to try H/K and the minute I hooked her up, I was amazed. My old Sony was worthless and creating horrible sounds through my Klipsch KSB 2.1 fronts and 1.1 surrounds (small apartment), but the H/K product produced crisp clean tones through my bookshelf system...no blasting or buzzing the woofers anymore, just solid sound. Finally I got to hear what my Klipschers had to say. Great buy for under $200!

Similar Products Used:

Sony

Good sound, decent setup, good remote control

Reliability

I was knocked out by this receiver until about two weeks ago. It looks sharp, has good controls, and I no longer need to use heat in the winter as long as it is on. Unfortunately, It now cuts in and out in all modes. Resetting doesn't do the trick. Looks like a case of overheating. A friend has one and has had no such problems. I suppose I can pick up something else for what I have saved on heating bills.

Similar Products Used:

Sony

Hard to say

Lasted a couple hours and now refuses to stay on.

Got it new from Ubid Australia. Plugged it in to "warm it up" and play with the controls. Switched itself off after a couple hours. Slight acrid smell in the air. Now it runs for a few seconds before failing. Sometimes it displays a "PROTECT" message. It's going back to UBID.

Similar Products Used:

Pioneer/Yamamha

Beautiful imaging - even better than my old McIntosh MAC 1700. Pushes my Klipsch Cornwalls easily (although I guess that's not saying much lol). Great features and wonderful Dolby Digital processing. Amplifier section is responsive from 8 hz to 80 khz, an unusual feature in a receiver of this price, which means that distortion / rolloff of audible music is nonexistent. Glad someone besides Yamaha is using specific decoder circuits rather than general purpose ones. The difference is very noticeable.

Only one Optical and one Coax input. =( Oh well. Also, I have to get up to shut off surround processing. Maybe there's a function for this on the remote. Been too busy watching movies and listening to music to figure it out. hehe.

Excellent buy - I got mine open box at Circuit City. As long as you are not running really hungry speakers this receiver is top notch in its price category.

Similar Products Used:

yamaha natural sound digital receiver

SOLID CONSTRUCTION,SOLID,CRISP SOUND REMOTE CONTROLLS EVERYTHING

MILD CLICK WHEN CHANGING PROGRAMS ON DVD'S

I bought this receiver at UBID [refurbished] for 230.00 plus 35.00 for shipping.IT was in excellent condition and everything seems to work well on it.I was having a problem with lines on my tv when the receiver was on.I tried moving it all over the room,plugging it into adifferent outlet,nothing was working.Then my local tv man said try using channel 4 instead of channel 3 on my satellite receiver. Bingo!no more lines! Overall, so far, I am very happy with this receiver.

Similar Products Used:

TECHNICS DX-930

Good sound, easy to use

Weakness of bass controls

While some seem dismayed at needing to turn the volume up to 3/4 (or more) to get truly loud sound out of this Receiver, I will say this - I don't notice distortion in stereo mode until about -10 dB (out of -64). And at that point, the sound is much more loud than I need. I think this amp has clean sound all the way up there. The only thing is you need is an equalizer to appreciate it. This amp is sorely looking for a Contour control (like the one on my 1976 h/k 430 - which still works, and _still_ beats the pants off the super cheap amps out there for sound quality, BTW). But, once you have the bass boosted with your eq, this Receiver is a winner (for quality sound). Just don't overpay like I did ($1400 CAN). This receiver can be had for $600 CAN or less - and that makes this a good buy (except for below).

Now, I do have a problem with H/K quality. My receiver has broken. Not completely, but the jacks for the tape deck (or, in my case, EQ) no longer work properly. After using these inputs for more than about 5-30 minutes (yes, that random), the receiver goes silent. I'll be returning it to H/K for service soon, we'll see what happens.

As for being made in China, well, that doesn't mean much to me. My h/k 430 unit was made in Japan in 1976, and by all means that unit should have been junk (Japanese products in 1976 didn't have the respect they do now). Well, not at all - the controls are dirty, but that is to be expected after 25 or so years. Other than that, the old H/K still works rock solid, and is still pressed into service every day (as my computer speaker system amplifier).

The remote and front of the unit are great. But don't even think of using the remote to control other equipment - it is a nightmare. It ONLY works well for the Receiver, most other buttons are very poorly laid out.

Oh, and a couple of other notes - this amp seems to hiss with the wrong speakers hooked up. My homebuilt ones are fine, but the cheap crap RadioShack specials hiss like mad when they are in Pro-Logic surround mode (lucky I really don't like Pro-Logic). Stick to Dolby Digital 5.1 channel and you will be fine, or try speakers out on the Receiver before you buy them.

Overall, if they can work out all these minor points (which add up to be a major point) this Receiver would EASILY be a 4 out of 5. As it stands, with the problems this unit has, I can't give it more than 3/5. If you are looking for an amp with a good name, this is it. Otherwise, for now, try something else that has a reasonable amount of power.

Similar Products Used:

Older H/K receivers, JVC

This receiver replaced my Technics GX710. I find the H/K to be an exellent replacement.
It delivers unbeleivable sound in my 2400 sqr. ft. entertainment room. The sound is Loud and Clear..
The H/K does an exellent job driving the two Cerwin Vega E-715s and the louder you take em, the better it sounds..
The memory on the H/K is nice, remembering the settings for each individual speaker for each sound mode.
A great all around system.

No Phono inputs,

Great sounding system...No Humm or hiss.
Would recommend this system. But not if you like to play albums. I had too keep my old Technics to play them.
For the price...At $749 Canadian, they could have included the darn phone jack!
I will remove one point for this lack of "input".

Good Univ. Remote, nice sound quality

No DTS, awfully big, gets a little hot if not properly vented, no A/B speaker switching

Very good integrated A/V product for the price. I was running separates before (still use Carver/Dynaudio set up for listening to CD/Analog music in another room) but wanted a decent DD A/V receiver to watch DVD's. I have not run across the shut off problems that I read about with others, but I'm not really pushing the thing that hard - it seems to have plenty of power to run a pair of Dynaudio fronts & center channel, AR rears, and a small, custom sub with a Soundstream 10" woofer. The A/V room is a pretty modest size - the viewing/listening distance from the tv and front speakers is only about 10 ft - so volumes don't need to be cranked all that high. Also, the unit is in a cabinet with an open back and supplemental fan to push air through, so heat's not really an issue. I wouldn't recommend it for any type of flush mounting or enclosed or hidden mounting - it seems to want significant air flow to dissapate heat properly.

Similar Products Used:

Onkyo, Denon, Sony

Great sound, great looks, awesome dolby digital.

The tuner is as weak as it gets

If you are looking for a DD-Receiver for a fair price, this should be it. The volume it produces on my magnat vector 77's is more than enough (wallshaking), and watching movies at night is your neighbours worst nightmare. The only weakness I could discover is the radio; constant disortion.

Similar Products Used:

Denon, jvc