Sound Quality, features

Reliability on previous models

Well here we go, have I got a story for you! First of all,
I have owned the HK AVR20mkII for over 4 years and it has
performed flawlessly with great sound! With that said, I decided to upgrade to Dolby Digital. I had a limited budget, so I decided to go with the AVR500 based on my experience with the 20mkII. It too had great sound and I really liked the Logic 7 processing. However it started to shut off at radom. I exchanged it for a new one, in which the volume would change at random, at times going very loud. Not good! After emailing back and forth several times with Tech. support, they finally told me to send back the unit as
it was past the stores 30 day return policy. I was told there was a upgrade being produced that would be in May 1st
and that I should wait to send it until then. So I did (by the way they paid for shipping). Two weeks later and no replacement. Oh oh! I started to experience the nightmare that I thought would never happen to me! After many phone conversations and fially getting them to agree to send my eventual replacement to another local dealer that carried both HK and marantz so I could get the highly acclaimed SR7000, I filed a long complaint with customer service. Mind you I never got overly upset because everybody makes mistakes like the person who told me to send in the defective unit before they actually had the replacements. Because as I told them I could have lived with the defective unit as the problem was exteremly intermittent.
Sorry for this long prelude but here's the punch line, after receiving the complaint the tech. at HK was able to get the O.K. to send me a BRAND NEW AVR7000 as a replacement to the AVR500 at no extra cost to me. Now, I know it can be had on the net for about $1100. But the local Circuit City wants $1500. I originally got the AVR500 for $599 at Video only.
HK did this because of customer satisfaction. My hat's off to you HK ecspecially to Joe in Tech. support for pulling this off. It just goes to show that patience can pay off and that HK is concerned about customer satisfaction.
As for the AVR7000 WOW! what a receiver, I've been a Tech. myself for over 10 years and have setup and auditioned many stereo and Home theater systems for friends and family and this reciever is the best I've seen for sound and features.
Sure it has it's quirks like the sub output is low in Logic 7 modes but that can be worked around. The soundstage, clarity, and dynamic range is something that has to be heard to be appreciated. As the reviewer below me states it will remind you of the kind of quality you get from seperates! I hope it stands the test of time! Definately audition this receiver even at $1500 (remember it can be had for less), but probably not for $599! Enjoy!

Similar Products Used:

HK AVR 20mkII, AVR500, Pioneer, Yamaha, Marantz

Number Of A/V Inputs

Build Quality (loose screws in receiver box, could these of fell out from inside the receiver?????)

The problem I couldn't stand with this receiver was the interruption in the S-VHS signal when playing the DVD Twister. When using this receiver as an A/V switch, the picture would scramble and occasionally the TV would display "unavailable signal". I tried going directly to the TV from the DVD and the problem disappeared. This has happened on two different AVR-7000's. So finally I purchased a Yamaha RX-V2095, which has absolutely none the aformentioned problems.

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha RX-V2095

Sound, features, remote, price and physical appearance

None so far

I have had this receiver for about 2 months now and I have had no problems to speak of. The sound is absolutely incredible for the price that was paid. I am also running 4 OHM speakers and I find the HK to do exceptionally well in this task. It does run a little hot but I have had no problems with overheating and shutting down. Music reproduction is some of the best I've heard from the recievers priced in its range. In fact I've compared this unit to a friends Denon-5700 and while it had a bit more power it did not seem to sound any better. The internals of this unit are also extremely beefy, which I find to be comforting. I'm running VCR, Sony Playstation and Dreamcast all through the HK and have not noticed any problems with video imaging. The unit gets many complements for its elegant, smooth look. This reciever is also underrated I'm guessing by about 20-30% in the power department. My previous reciever was a Pioneer 26-TX and it did not feel nearly as powerful. I returned it shortly after finding out about this killer reciever. All in all I find no faults in this reciever, and while they're may be a few reported problems here and there all manufacturers have their share of problems. Denon, Sony, Yamaha, they all do. Either way..don't hestitate to give this unit a try, you will not be dissappointed.

Similar Products Used:

Denon, Marantz, Yamaha

The best receiver in this price range, with features and quality found on products twice its price

None

I write a second review on this product a few weeks after my first one, I know it is not supposed to be allowed and this is not the place for a forum, but I have been wrongly misquoted by a precedent reviewer, see 9 reviews below, by Karl Schmidt (Audiophile of Vancouver).

Apart of the fact, that this person mispells my name, he misunderstood my review, it was about the user manual, which I think could have been better written; I wrote that at least it was not written in Japanese-English like the Sony's and only that.

I know very well this unit was built in China, I can read it on the box and on the unit itself, I knew it before hand and that did not stop me from buying it.

However, his review implied that because it was built in China, with possibly some components made in Korea, it was per definition no match to the Sony 777ES.

This kind of argument does not stands, unless one assumes that any product made in these countries and not in Japan and/or not in the US or in any "good" country is per definition an inferior product. If this is not a form of "racism", what is it?.

HK as far as I know is a US Company, and as such like many others have production lines in Emerging Countries, in order to be able to bring the Production costs down. As long as proper Quality Control is applied, the end Product will comply with Technical Specifications, and that's it.

I fail to understand, the purpose of the review from our Canadian reviewer, I am pretty sure he does not own a HK-AVR7000 (why should he own any "Chinese - Korean" inferior product), he might not even have listened to one. Obviously he does not like it; but if all of us would post reviews about products we do not own and/or do not like on this site and post votes from one to three starts, I am not sure it would help reviewers to make their own idea about a product, they might consider buying.

There are a lot of products I dislike, and that I will never buy, I will not be stupid enough to lose my time posting reviews about those.

In conclusion I confirm my first review, I prefer to own and use a HK-AVR7000 (even if it is made in China) which delivers a fantastic sound to my system that a Sony QS or ES (made in Japan, which I ownned earlier)which were hissing from 10 O'clock onwards, a Canadian "Audiophile" might understand that.

My 5 stars vote will somehow compensate what I consider an unfair review, misquoting my previous review, not helping reviewers and really not in the spirit of this site.

Similar Products Used:

Sony's QS (STR-DB930) and ES (STR-DA50ES) receivers

To quote Ives about japanese /english translation.
the HK 7000 was build in china, not in japan
most of the component used are the same as in all
HK's receivers especially the dsp crystal chip
which are used even in their low end models
some of them are build in korea.

For me quality in craftmanship and component used
are a big thing
the hk 7000 vs sony STR-DA777es scores about equal
but craftmanship an components quality
the HK is no match to the 777 es

Similar Products Used:

Sony STR-DA 777ES

Clear Power, Looks, ease of use, connectivity, no gimmicks no nonsense machine, High End machine at mid price range.

Size and weight (but I guess it is the price to pay for a quality product)

I upgraded consecutively from the two Sony's here above ref. due to unacceptable hissing at relatively low levels and the lack of a second coaxial digital input.

I have used this machine for a week only, and I can say without any doubt that it does not compete in the same league as the Sony's QS and ES I had before; it is head and shoulders better in most aspects, the most important being the quality of the sound it delivers in 2 speakers stereo or any "surround" mode.

It has only 10 surround modes compared to the 28-40 of the Sony's, but they really deliver noticeable differences.

The set-up was straight forward, I was lacking a monitor cable, therefore I could not use the on screen displays for the set up, however it took me less than half an hour to connect and set up the receiver(incl. the tuner), two front and a center speaker, a DVD, a digital satellite receiver, a 41" Retroprojection TV and a VCR. Now that I have bought a monitor cable, i will spend some more time tweaking the system with the On Screen Display features, but I am not sure I will achieve any noticeable improvement, from an already outstanding quality of the sound delivered. There are no sign of cracks, hums and/or hissing at any level, and that is a tremendous difference compared to the Sony's

The remote control is better than what I expected after reading some reviews on this site, it is able to control all my equipment(which is what it is supposed to do), but my satellite receiver; This satellite receiver brand was listed in the user manual, however it looks like that the code proposed is wrong; this is a minor issue, as I am able to control all my equipment with 2 remotes instead of 5 previously, and I still think I might solve the problem with a little research and/or a couple of phone calls.

The user manual again could be better, even if it is far better than the Sony's which were written in Mickey mouse Japanese English.

I love this machine, it is the best piece of HIFI Equipment I have owned. There might be out there somewhere better equipmnent (separates, better speakers) at much higher price, however I am not ready to spend that kind of money for a result I am not sure to achieve.

I like also the looks of it, it is a no gimmicks-no nonsense unit, although its weight and size (specially the depth, I had to move my rack from the back wall) are on the very high side, but you do not move it around every day.


This unit was tested in "lyd and Bilde", a very competent HIFI magazine in Norway, where I live. They gave it marks of 10 out of 10 for all criterias, and elected it receiver of the year 2000. In the same magazine was tested the new Denon AV1C which gor marks from 7 to 8, along with the likes of ROTEL and NAD (again marks from 7 to 8), these machines cost between 20% and 40% more than the HK-AVR7000. The title of the test was "MIRACULOUS", they stated that it was a miracle HK could deliver such a quality product for as little money. They ranked it in High end, even if it is a mid range price unit.

Well, the miracle has worked for me, this machine deserves the best marks : 5 *, well done Harman/Kardon

Similar Products Used:

Sony STR-DB930 ; Sony ST-DA50 ES

I bought this receiver to replace AVR 500. Really like a sound quality of AVR 500 but disappointed by lack of quality control, then I read about AVR7000 so I decided to give this receiver a chance. I bought this unit form Soundpros. Had a talk with one salesman who I can't remember a name. Initially I was reluctant to purchase this receiver because of previous experience with AVR500 but he told me that AVR7000 is made in Japan so I bought it.

A unit arrived in less than a week on perfect condition. I noticed that this receiver is made in China. Little disappointed, I decided to hook this receiver up. First I decided to listen a CD.
Wow!!! That was my first impression. My Boston Acoustics speakers never sound so good. Bass is tight not boomy, treble is smooth and clear, then I hooked up DVD player and decided to watch movie.
Well, I wasn't disappointed. It seems some people have problem with Subwoofer level output but not my unit. My apartment is filled with bass. Watching Saving Private Ryan was truly eye opening experience.

I had AVR7000 for little bit less than 3 weeks. While I really enjoyed this receiver, it is not free from weakness.
First weakness is owner's manual. It is not very well organized so it will force you to go back and forth between pages. I also noticed that my receiver tend to run hot. I am afraid it might burn out. Now some people have complot about remote control, but I don't have any complaint. Sure it is not outstanding but it isn't terrible either. My Onkyo's remote was 100 times worse than Harman Kardon's.
I also would like to have more digital inputs but I guess this is minor issue.

Similar Products Used:

Onkyo tx919THX, Harman Kardon AVR 500

power, sound, remote

none yet

I have had this unit for about a month and find it flawless in sound quality. The surround processing is also superior to my roommates Denon AVR-3300. We conducted a few in house tests and found each had their strengths and weaknesses but the sound from the HK appeared to be more spacious and live. The clarity in the highs and mid range was reproduced exceptionally well. I plan on keeping this unit a while and I don't have any complaints with it. I paid $1150 from Onecall and according to them these units are selling like hotcakes for the limited amount of info available on them. I would recommend this unit to anyone looking for a top performer for a reasonable price.

Similar Products Used:

Denon 3300, Yamaha dsp-a1

Great HK sound, power, looks

Auidble click when switching chapters, very low but audible

Love the sound. It was pretty much against the 777es and the HK, I found the HK to sound better for music and the quality of HT playback was about equal. I researched both units extensively on the net and in the stores and found a lot of people liked the 777es for its amazing HT sound and tunability. Just before deciding to purchase the 777ES I looked at the HK and was utterly impressed. I demoed this unit many, many times before I ended up taking it home. I prefered the sound of the HK more, as it seemed to be a bit fuller in sound while holding its clarity and soundstage. HK amps have been known for their unusually amazing sound and it was very apparent in my auditioning sessions that this is true. As others have mentioned the unit looks very classy in person and it seems the layout and design is very user friendly. One review I found to be very informative and close to what I found is, suprisingly, Etowns review. Here is a snip from a review of the Sony 777ES which I found to be right on the nose.


Value: Outside of far more costly separates from Proceed (AVP preamp/processor and AMP 5 five-channel amp), Parasound (AVC-2500 surround preamp/processor) and Rotel (RMB 1095 five-channel power amp), the 777ES provided me with the best surround sound experience I've ever had. The only other receiver I've heard that equals it is the slightly less expensive Harman-Kardon AVR 7000 A/V receiver.


I don't know what the previous poster was referring to when they said that this unit lacked in HT. If anything it excels and exceeds its price in HT. This unit is one peice of work for the price. Go check it out.

Similar Products Used:

Sony 777ES, Onkyo TX DS-777, Denon AVR-3300

Not many for the price

Small power supply compared to Marantz. 75 amps only because it is incredibly inefficient. It won't take 2 ohms very well despite that it has as much current as some that will.

22000uF caps are pretty small considering Marantz uses about the same in their SR-7000 for the mains(much less expensive). SR-7000 sounds just as good, possibly better midrange. It will handle 4ohms and is just as rugged despite that it is not 75 amps. Those current rating on HK show inefficiency and very low voltage drive. Kind of reminds you of a Profile or rockford car amp and not much better sounding. The HK sounds as good as Yamaha at least. If you know whats best, go with Marantz. The SR-18 has a pair of filter caps rated over 80,000uF and THX ultra: I think 350w at 3.2 ohms is the requirment to meet their standards.
I give HK 3 stars for matching Yamaha or Onkyo. At least its not Sony quality like the HK 500.

Marantz all the way.

Similar Products Used:

Marantz, Yamaha