Flexible, rugged -- conveys a full range of sounds. The "official" rating at the time I bought this system was 20 watts per channel.

None, really, although I notice the lack of a remote. (Volume control is manual).

Bought this receiver in 1976 as part of a package with a Garrard 440M turntable (gone), Epicure 5 speakers (the foam suspension rotted after 15 years -- still mourn the loss), and Audio-Technica earphones. The receiver was a CR Best Buy and has been worth every dime and more. I still have my Technics turntable hooked to it (can't beat analog) and recently replaced my Yamaha CD player with a Philips DVD. Handled it fine and plays the audio of either with no hassle. I now use Boston speakers and get decent sound. Point is: this is a 26-year-old tuner that's had one cleaning and accepts the latest technology easily.

Incredible sound quality both highs an lows...especially highs. I use it at least 4 hours a day for 8 years now and it works flawelessly.

1 green light doesn''t work for the Tuner part =)

Ever since I replaced the speaker fuses...hooked up the ProLinear Stage 5 speakers that came with it...and my Sony CD Player...cranked Frank Black: Los Angeles from his self titled solo album...I fell in love...in fact my wife who never really cared about sound quality even noticed the difference...every single person I have demo''d the receiver to has departed from it a HK fan...this is an excellent receiver for "normal volume" listening. I have only once had to repair it because my son (toddler at the time) turned it on full blast and left it...lol The repair was $50 and worth every penny.

Small size. Nice looks. Plenty of controls.

not much power. ok sound.

Compared to my Pioneer SX-980 and my Pioneer QX-8000, the sound quality leaves some to be disired. I got this off ebay for $50 so for the price, it is great but its relitively low power and mediocre sound is enugh that I wouldn't have bought it if I knew more about it. I will give it a 5 value rating cuz I got it for $50 but I would say that it is not on par with my SX 980. both in power and sound quality.

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Pioneer SX-980

This is a classic looking piece of gear from harmon/kardon, and is aesthetically far more pleasing than the big and bulky counterparts from say Marantz and Pioneer that dominated mid-fi with their large displays, cabinets and knobs. The black display powers up to a pretty green, probably an attempt to copy the looks of the far superior McIntosh designs still available today.

I purchased the receiver in 1977 and had it bench tested by ABL Electronic Services (a freebie – they were running a promotion at the beginning of the recession) in March of 1980. (“Perform Receiver Analysis – Graph with Unit” is what is written on the work order). Here is how it measured:

Sensitivity 30 uv, 35 db
Stereo Separation 46 db
Signal to Noise 55db
Stereo Threshold 800uv

The tech commented: “NOTE: FM Sensitivity Very Poor – MP/Intermittent. Controls and Switches Noisy (Had the unit cleaned for $34.50 in 8/1982 by Kurtz Music and Sound, Traverse City, MI).

Since there are actually two people who have been able to grab one of the hk’s off of ebay/flea market, I though that they or a few others might be interested in the following. Otherwise, skip to the bottom paragraph for thoughts on the receiver alone.

The hk330c is a direct descendent of the first stereo receiver ever available, the HK 330. Advent also manufactured a receiver about the same time, but I have read that the 330 was the first to market. I imagine that a 330b was manufactured, but I have not confirmed this.

My hk330c was purchased from the Audio Warehouse Company of Cincinnati Ohio (1644 E. Kemper Rd, Sharonsville, OH, 45242) for $158 on September 24, 1977. I was a junior in high school, and this was my first look into what I thought was the world of “hi-fi.” After months of “research,” visiting specialty stores around the Cincinnati area, I concluded that the hk330c was part of the solution to the financial barriers imposed by the Kenwood integrated/Advent bookshelf loudspeaker/Kenwood cassette deck combo I had been lusting after. The hk330c I had seen in a “high end” store (that’s what I thought they were) sold for upward of $200.

The complete system: hk330c receiver ($158), Garrard SP-25 TT w/Empire AE-1000III cartridge ($96), RTR EXP 9 2-way bookshelf loudspeakers ($196) and a Bigston (OEM?) BSD-300 cassette deck with DOLBY!. Total system price: $598 + $$26.91 tax for $624.91 total. I put down $60 (the hk was on back order – they were flying out the door at $158) and picked up the system on October 13, 1977. I have been an audio buff ever since.

The hk330c was soon replaced in college with a NAD 3020A Integrated (a true classic) and the AR Turntable. My hk330c remained part of a secondary or even tertiary system on and off the years, and it will some day become part of a “70’s Room” in my home.

Manufactured in Taiwan, the unit weighs 21 pounds (9.45kg), and is rated not at 45 wpc, but 20 Watts Min RMS per channel into 8 OHMS with less than 0.5% THD. There are push in speaker connections for two pair of speakers, and you must use “zip” cord (18 gauge) wire (16 gauge will work with some careful effort). Phono section is noisy (nowhere near the beauty of the NAD 3020’s), tuner sensitivity is rather poor (see above), but the use of this unit in a mid-fi application should provide decent sound and great looks (for a unit it tip top shape). The push buttons on the front panel are prone to shorting-out, and the nice looking turn knobs (volume, balance, bass/treble/tuning and source switch) are not sealed and therefore will require maintenance to clear the dust that causes them to become noisy. The tuner does not include a “mute” switch, which means you will hear static when switching between stations, requiring you to put up with the nuisance or at least lower the volume when switching between stations. There are no station memory buttons (not readily available until the 80’s). There is a loudness button (called “contour”), which is nice for low level listening – you get that mild bump in the low bass and high treble. A tape monitor and a mono button are both nice to have, and a front panel button for spkrs-1 and spkrs-2 round out the front panel. The hk220c embodies what became the beginning of the end of quality in consumer electronic products – too bad they didn’t put more quality into what is a classic looking piece of gear that was to commemorate the first stereo receiver ever built. (In all fairness, receivers were never intended to match the performance of separates, although they sure claimed to!). That it is the only piece from my original teenage angst-ridden system to survive is more out of love for the design than the performance. If you can get one that is in great condition for $50 bucks and you love the looks, go for it! But it ain’t hi-fi…

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This was the first and last receiver I ever purchased. There was a glutton of products available at what was the very beginning of the “BEST BUY” Consumer Electronics era.

Beautiful styling, simple to use, good sound with the rightequipment.

Does not play extremely loud. (it's only 25 wpc what should we expect)

I have wanted a classic 1970's HK receiver every since one of the guys owned one in my barricks in Okinawa back in the 70's. While my Kenwood was clearly the star of the barrick due to it's dual power supply and 90 wpc. This gentleman had a modest 40 wpc 1977 HK receiver which in my opinion sounded so much more musical than my system.

After much searcing,I purchased this little receiver off of e-bay to utilized in a 70's/80's bedroom system which includes an AR turntable and Signet speakers. (the speakers are closer to the early 90's but I like them and recently removed them from my main system as rear channel speakers in favor of my B&W DM601's which were bounced to the rear by my Axioms)

I ordered the receiver before finding reviews on this unit hear on Audioreview. I became a little concerned after reading the lukewarm reviews from 2 of the 3 reviewer on this site. After listening to the receiver on a wide variety of music I now realize my fear were unfounded. My receiver sounds musical,and the tuner, which I would probably never use, locked in channel after channel with good reception.

My main purpose for ordering this unit was to mate it with my AR turntable so that I can start listening to my vast collection of albums which were gathering dust. Listening in my bedroom I quickly remembered why I was such a defender of turntables vs compact disc for so many years. The digital sound that we have all become accustomed to was missing (thank God!) the setup sounded lively and more intimate than music through my cd player sounds.

I don't plan on connecting a tape recorder or cd to this amp. It is designated solely for albums. It's appearance is very beautiful as were most of the amps of that era. It appears to be much more rugged than my HK AV20 which is only 7-8 years old.

Now for the negative. The amp does not get very loud. Now I don't expect a 25wpc amp to blow holes in the wall, heck, I don't even expect it to wake up the neighbors, but I would have prefered a little more power. I begain to adjust the volume and realized that I was already near the max. This is not a major problem because I really didn't purchase it to blast the house.

My other issue is not a problem with the equipment it is a problem with me. I keep wanting to fast forward to the next tune without getting up to adjust the album! That comes from becoming lazy during the remote control, mechanic marvel era which we live in today. I will gladly get up and change the record, in order to be able to listen to my treasured albums.

This is a good little receiver. Would it have been my purchase for a primary system? Of course not, but for my intended purpose it is ideal.

For cosmetics this receiver get a 5, for value it get a 5 as well. As long as you can get a mint one (as I did) under say, $125.00 it is a good deal. For music reproduction I will give it a 4. The only reason it does not warrant a 5 is because of the exceptional sound quality of the early 80's NADs which came on the scene after this model, I give it a 4 for sound. Therefore if you can't find an old NAD at a good price, this would be a great addition to your secondary system.

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Kenwood 9090 int amp, Harmon Kardon AV20, Sherwood 945, Sherwood 7106, Cambridge P35

Well-built, heavy, great sound!! Classic looks for mid to late Baby-Boomers!!

Noisy controls that need about yearly cleaning. No big deal

I used to run a Hi Fi shop in Cincinnati from the mid '80s to the early '90s and one day an hk330c came through the door as a trade-in. The thing looked trashed!! I offered the customer $5.00 for trade as a token against, if I remember correctly, a new NAD. He accepted it. I was on my way to take it to the dumpster when my thumb accidently wiped some of the crud off of the face plate! Then I thought it deserved an attempt at a "clean up". An hour, half a bottle of Windex, half a can of contact cleaner, and a roll of paper towels later, the thing looked show-room new!!. I guess the dirt all over it actually preserved it in some way!! I, of course, "adopted" it on the spot!! It's been performing flawlessly since then in a bedroom system with a pair of Boston A40s, a Maggotbox TV, and a Panasonic VCR. The tuner in my unit appears to be an exception to the rule because it is relatively noise-free and seems to be pretty darned sensitive!! The specs I've been able to dig up on it say that its power rating is 15WPC, not 20 or 25WPC. Who cares? It sounds great and I would doubt that any 2002-vintage unit will be functioning in 2027!!

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N/A

Great sound for price. Nice looking. Can drive either low or high sensitvity speakers with ease.

Not the best bass reproduction from what I've heard. Its possible that different drivers might be better suited to it though.

I bought this for $20 at a sort of flea market. So whatever happens can't be too bad can it? I get it home and wham-o! An extremely nice sounding amp in very near perfect condition! The wattage rating probably isn't quite what is said above, but do not be alarmed! It goes much louder than I probably ever would need or want, even hooked to 4 speakers. Besides, Harman Kardon was never very concerned about those ratings anyway. What is nice is the the musicality of the thing with minimal distortion. Compared to the Kenwood, it blasts it out of the water, and the Toshiba, though louder, does not compare to the sound. If you're looking for power, don't get it. It would never suit a concert hall. But if you're looking for a great sounding amp that you don't have to pay through the roof for, this is definately it. There are better recievers out there, but none that you can find for $20! I would even pay $200 for this thing it sounds so nice. I love it!

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Kenwood KR-100 and Toshiba SA-5000.