Purchased a HK-65 over the weekend at Circuit City (mfg. date of Nov. 1998) and I was very disspointed with the receiver.First, there was a noticeable hum coming from my center speaker.
Second, the manual was not good.
Third, I did not like the remote.
Fourth, the sound was not impressive.
I will be returning the receiver.

Good luck, HK.

I just receivedthe AVR65 from netmarket.com for 599.99. At first I doubted the reviews about the his and hum sound from the reciever but once I got it, lo and behold this receiver sounds like crap. Needless to say, it is going back. I used to own an HK AVR 25 and it soundedgreat. What happened to HK? Plus what is up with that shitty manual. Giving it 2 stars b/c it has DD and DTS for under 600othewise it sucks

I'm very interested in the ongoing saga with this receiver. I've been following the discussion here and in usenet (alt.home-theater.misc, rec.audio.opinion, alt.video.dvd, rec.video.dvd.players) etc about this unit and the problems some people are having.
One thing I haven't seen mentioned (which may be a known issue) is (one of) the reported official service releases, HK9805, about which little or nothing is known. It apparently has to do with an internal grounding issue.

Below is an excerpt from my usenet posts and a followup from another user I received via email. I look forward to hearing more reports on the status of the fix and ideally how to identify a production receiver with the fix in place.

--Don
dabl2@nlm.nih.gov

===
==
Re: Harmon Kardon AVR-65 Noise Problems, Service Release HK9805
Author: dabl
Date: 1999/01/20
Forums: alt.home-theater.misc, rec.audio.opinion, alt.video.dvd,
rec.video.dvd.players

In article ,
dabl2@nlm.nih.gov wrote:
> Anybody heard/know anything about the below?
>
> --Don
> dabl2@nlm.nih.gov

Well,
getting through to someone knowledgeable at HK wasn't as horrible as I
thought, though there was quite a wait. Called the below number, made
the below choices, talked to the below person and got the below reply.
Short answer: no new batch yet so no way to ID units with fix, some old
ones had the problem, some didn't.

--Don
dabl2@nlm.nih.gov

=
1-20-99

HK (800) 553-3332
#2
#4
#4

Ken
Re: HK9805 Service Release for AVR-65
haven't released a new batch yet so no way to identify units with fix.
Some units had the problem, some didn't.

===

Subject: Re: harmon kardon avr-65 problem fix yet, Service Release HK9805
Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 11:44:22 -0800
From: Sampson at ATEN
To: Don Lindbergh (by way of dump )

I just received my new Harman Kardon AVR65.
There is a slight difference on the new one. The new one now takes banana
plugs.
I have not heard any hiss or hum but it still has video inerference.
I would suggest staying away from this unit and wait until H/K really solves
all the problems.
Sampson

===

Subject: Re: harmon kardon avr-65 problem fix yet, Service Release HK9805
Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 12:01:10 -0800
From: Sampson at ATEN
To: dabl2@nlm.nih.gov

The date is NOV 98. The old one that I had returned was NOV 98 too.
There is not video problems when the video bypasses the receiver.
That is why I assume the problem is from the receiver. I will take your
advise and try it on a different receiver.
Thanks.

Sampson

I have recieved several emails about my suggestions on how to fix the
HK problem that some of us are having. My particular case was easy
because after hearing from the HK tech that I spoke with, it was
VERY CLEAR that there ARE INTERNAL ISSUES both inside the receiver
and within HarmanKardon as a company. To be totally honest, the
second issue bothered me the most. I can understand that a total
recall is probally not a very good way of advertising your products,
but who really would have to know? I just wanted to be treated the same
as I treated HK when I purchased their HK AVR65 in good faith.
-- NOW -- for the rest of you, some can live in the fantasy that it was only
a few units and couldn't happen to me, or " I MADE THE RIGHT DECISION " mode
all they want and I'm happy for those people. However, the fact of the matter is
HK has lost my trust and my high regard for their company. Don't get me wrong,
I think HK has made some of the best receivers I have ever heard but the only
reason some people are satisfied is because of the support of the person/ or business that returned these defective units. I was lucky enough to have
purchase mine through a good source and was able to return my unit.
--In Closing- I would suggest that if you are the proud owner of a unit that
does not have any problems, enjoy some of the best sounding music reproduction that HK in known for, Otherwise why even go through the hassle? I get email from
people wondering how to fix this problem.....well it's not YOUR problem!! Relax,
and go out and buy a product you can have confidence in. Personally, I went
with the Yamaha2095. I wish all of you the best and that you for making this
forum such a success. I really appreciate all your help and comments.
Troy

It took me a while to setup my HT system - HK AVR65, Toshiba SD3108 and AT 250.1 I thought HK manual was the worst of 'em all until I saw the Toshiba manual. Man ! These people need lessons in clear documentation !
Having said that and the initial minor problems gone, I absolutely love this receiver !! The Pro-logic and DSP modes were good, but DD 5.1 really blew me off ! I also played audio CDs on my DVD player and the pure crystal clear sound was divine ! I felt the $740 I spent was well worth it.

I did not have the hiss/hum problems that lot of people have had. (Last 4 digits of the serial number was > 4001, supposedly the second gen receivers' starting point).

HK's website service sucks, though. I e-mailed them coupla questions and they never replied.

Overall, I am extremely satisfied with the unit...

I received the 2nd generation(Serial number 4550) replacement this week. I have not found any hiss or hum.
Tight bass and crystal clear highs.
Video problem was resolved by replacing the cable.
I am glad that I made the reight choice.

OK - Here We Go.
Interference Problem - I just got off of the phone from HK. I reported my problems of the rec causing interference with my tv cable channels to hk about three weeks ago. They said that they had heard of no such problems and that I should take it to a service center. I finally dropped it by a center yesterday and called hk to ask if they had any problems again. This time they said that they are researching an interference problem with the rec and that they are aware of the problem but don't have a fix yet. If you are registered with hk they will notify you when they figure it out. It is probably common to the early production runs. Mine is dated November.

Next issue - HK Service Bulletin 9805
This is for the hum in the three front speakers. There is a prob with some of the fuses and they need to install a jumper between two of them as well. I haven't seen the bulletin, this is straight from an hk rep.

HK Rep - Johnathon at 800 645 7484 ext 6423.
This is his voice mail. I find it easier to leave a mess. than wait on hold for 15min.

OneCall
If you bought your rec from them like I did, they will gladly exchange your rec for a new one. BUT they are dealing with HK to find out if their existing inventory has the same prob. So at this time you might end up with another faulty rec. OneCall was very helpful and willing but I'll wait until they know that they have good product in stock or go direct to HK for an exchange.

ALSO
Supposedly the second, and hopefully good, run of recs has banana plug compatible binding posts. Mine was made in November and is not BP compatible. I learned this from a friendly poster, not a rep.

This rec sounds great, I just want it to work!!!!

So feel free to email me if I might be able to help.

Good Luck Y'all,

Ross

I bought this unit home and hooked if up to my NAD 925 THX amp and NHT speakers.
I heard plenty of hissing, why? because a lot of concert
DVDs are recorded really low, you have to turn the volume
up substantially to hear the music. There are also silent
periods within movies too, and it becomes apparent,
and I'm not lying when I say that the hissing is equal to
about 1/4 of the total sound coming from the speakers.
There was no humming coming from the unit.

When I played the Gipsy Kings CD on it through my Denon dvd3000,
my NHT speakers(known for there accurracy)
revealed a lot of faults with the AVR65.
Notes were distorted and overemphasized, the bass splattered.
Although, the hissing noise was low and undectable.
Maybe I'm too used to my NEW tube preamp, but it was
borrowed so I had to give it back. Too Bad!

I have bought the so called new genaration(Nov 98). I've had it for 2 days now.It has banana plugs and serial's last 4 digits are higher than 4k.
And guess what I also have a hum and a hiss, what can I say (not to impress),
considering that I have changed my flawless H/K AVR-75 for this.
Now, it has some nice new features that I was missing from the AVR-75. So
I really what to keep this unit. I'll see if the service center will be able to
fix it properly.
Right now my rating is very low, maybe this willl change once the unt is fix.
I'm still not convince the'll fix it right the first. I always have bad luck
when it come to things like this...
From what I see on the newsgroups, H/K is not handling this professionaly.

danbe@nortelnetworks.com

I purchased an AVR65 and a Toshiba 2108 at Christmas. My unit was manufactured in Nov. and the last 4 digits of the SN are 3970.
I have not encountered any of the problems listed in the other reviews. I have BA VR30, VR10, VRS, and Cambridge PSW1 speakers. I have found the the receiver to be very well performing, very good power and clean throughout the range. I have a very bright room with a lot of brick and I cannot hear any hiss that is not from source. This was an upgrade from a 8 year old Denon receiver and the change in Audio quality was remarkable. The receiver brought out bass in the VR30's that I never heard before. I'm using the optical link between the DVD and receiver and it is very clean.

My complaints are:
The manual is just OK, enough to set up the unit without problems.
The remote should be a learning remote. It is able to control my Hitachi VCR and Samsung TV but not all buttons are mapped correctly and some control functions for the TV aren't available. It's a little busy with the button layout but it works. I didn't like the Kenwood or Sony "gameboy" remotes either so I'm not sure what would make me happy here!
Made in China, I didn't know this when I bought it, I try to buy American.

Overall, I'm very happy with the AVR65 and I feel I got a good quality unit that has all the features I will need for a few years and I was able to build a home theater without breaking the bank.

My complaints are:
The manual is just OK, enough to set up the unit without problems.
The remote should be a learning remote. It is able to control my Hitachi VCR and Samsung TV but not all buttons are mapped correctly and some control functions for the TV aren't available.