Sound power looks

shut down

The best purchase yet... I love this little guy... Its got so much juice, that my dogs hide under the beds when we watch a movie... Its got it all... 7.1, ready( ps, ive got my surrounds running from the HK and the rear surrounds running into my old receiver, Keenwood av209, and its perfect) Now the only problem that the puppie has is the following... It shuts down every so often... How to fix this is as follow, Get a 12w fan, plug it into the HK outlet, and plug your HK unit in a dedicated, clean power outlet, and you should be fine... go get it, and enjoy it... My current setup: Receiver: Harman Kardon avr 320 Speakers: Mains L/R -- JBL s-312 Center-- JBL s-center Rear and back surround-- JBL s-26 Monster cables all around TV: Sony wega flat screen, 27" ( next purchase will be a 53" projection tv) DVD Player: Sony DVP-S570D VCR: Sony slv81 Sony Remote Commander rm-av3000 Sony 5 cd changer: cdp-c245 Subwoofer: Sony 10" sub 120 watts (soon to be upgraded)

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kenwood av 209

very good sound and installation options good owners manual. take the the time to read through it first.

remote is difficult to use. tiny buttons

i bought this receiver to replace a 9 year old sony str-590. (long overdue). i am very happy with this purchase. it was very east to set up. i was a little worried with all of the advancements in technology over the years, but had no problem hooking it up on my own. the sound fields are very nice. vmax is great with cds or radio. the on screen programming makes it a breeze establish the speaker levels etc. this unit has to be one of the best looking as well. was ready to buy a yamaha htr-5560 until i saw it at best buy. very boring asthetics. the style looked 10 years old. i wish the remote was easier to use and backlit. i dont think i will ever be able to use it without turning on a light. buttons are to small and the numbers layout is different than any other remote around. all in all this is a great receiver for a good price. also the second option and remote are a very nice feature although im not using that yet.

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sony

Loaded with advanced features

The AVR 320 is Harman Kardon's first entry-level 7.1-channel surround-sound processing. Featuring support for Dolby Digital, DTS, Logic 7, and VMAx digital sound processing, the AVR 320 is meant to satisfy nearly any audio taste. Pushing 55 watts per channel into 8 ohms, the AVR 320 will give you strong sound with less than 0.07 percent harmonic distortion, even with all channels being driven simultaneously. Eight-channel direct inputs are provided for future digital sound processing upgrades. Loaded with advanced features, the AVR 320 includes DTS-ES 6.1 surround sound, wideband HDTV-ready component video switching, and 24-bit/192kHz audio digital-to-analog converter. Connection options are extensive with 7.1-channel preamp outputs, six digital inputs and three digital outputs, plus a front-panel digital input that can be switched to output mode. Support for Dolby Pro Logic II Surround Sound is included to create surround-sound effects from a stereo input such as VCR or TV. Additional features include multiroom/multisource audio which allows users in separate rooms to listen to different sources simultaneously. A separate Zone II Remote Control is included for multiroom operation. Power-up volume can be programmed to avoid that jarring sensation of powering up your stereo with the volume at max from the night before, and rotary controls let you adjust bass, treble, and balance settings. A universal remote is programmable to control up to eight devices from preset codes or by using its learning capability.

Power, flexibility, very attractive styling, music is surprisingly detailed and spacious. Movies definitely have that "you are there feeling".

The most obvious weakness of this receiver is the layout of the remote. The strange decision to put the buttons in this configuration I.e. numbers not in the customary rows 1-3, 4-6,7-9 instead laying it out 1-4,5-8 with 9,0 beneath it is just too strange. The tiny unlit buttons much room for ergonomic improvement.

I was more than a little nervous about the many postings of problems with recent model HKs but decided to give it a shot anyway. Besides even after adding the cost of circuit citys 3 year warranty nothing else in its price range could compete with the features and sound quality. I liked the sound of the marantz receivers, but the HK had every feature I wanted and lots of room for future growth including 6.1 7.1 etc. I've owned quite a few receivers including the likes of technics sa-gx707 early 80's vintage two channel(really nice sound), sony,onkyo, and several others. And I have to say this HK has the most natural sound of any of them. On movie sound tracks this thing is excellent. It manages to sound very powerful even at low volume levels. Do not be concerned with the rated watts this is definitely a "high current" receiver. The remote was obviously designed by very smart people... with no common sense. I say this because after many hours of tinkering, entering different combinations and sequences of button pushes, I now have mastered this remote. It is amazingly flexible and has enough memory to hold a surprisingly many "learned functions" and macros. The entire matter of one touch powering up your whole system and one touch turning it off being greatly compounded by seperate on and off buttons for the receiver. The number of buttons on this remote is a little intimidating to my girlfriend, and is made worse by the relative similarity in size and shape. while the remote is not at all intuitive it is amazingly capable. I have recently had a strange thing happen, while listening to a movies from a digital cable source the rear speakers were apparently losing power (volume fluctuating) problem was immediately cured by switching to pro-logic emulator. Can't be certain at this point if problem is in the receiver or was caused by poor signal. Its done this several times on cable but never on dvd. Last but not least, I love the appearance of this reveiver. Very tastefully styled truly beautiful piece (I've received several compliments on that alone). My system is as follows: Denon dcm-340 cd player, sony dvd, Mirage 460 (front mains), polk cs175 (center channel), polk rt 15 (rear) and Definitive Technology psw 250 (sub used only for movies). No its not perfectly timbre-matched but does sound very good.

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sony str-de 735, Onkyo 2 channel (cant remember model) Technics sa-gx 707 2 channel, Onkyo Pro-logic receiver

very versitial, high current amp design, every sound dsp you could want, great programable remote.

none yet

This is a great reciever for anyone who is looking for great digitial sound and does not want to pay too much. It is everything anyone could ever want or need in a reciever 5.1/7.1/8.1 Muti room ect. I don't use half of what this reciever does yet but I am sure I will in the future. Thats the best thing about it I plan to have this reciever for many years to come. I got a great Price at acoustic sound design and great service as well.

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Sony Digital reciever

power,quality of sound,all sound set-up,front panel,all connections you need.

no power for the 6.1

I had the avr-120,for 3 months and the central channel died...i retuned it and exange for the avr-320,almost the double price... very goog sound,very accurate,not too clear just perfect,a lot of power in spare.Great for cd or HT,this receiver blow!! Yes the big remote is not very practical,but i used the little one,this receiver is coming with 2 remote,i am suprised the others reviewrs don't mention that...? my system: avr-320 front spk:energy 22 reference center: paradigm cc-170 sub:d-box david-302 rear spk:paradigm mini-monitor cable:12ga ------------------------------------------- price paid:$1249 can dollards avr-120 $599-699 ca

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Power, power and more power. Clear reproduction of music and theater. Good options, looks good.

Remote needs a lot of work. Set up can be a little bit easier.

I purchased the HK after reviewing many different Av’s and due to HK''s reputation. What I found in the HK was the most popular options for a good price. It is also a quality receiver. The main value is its sound output, clarity and power. So far, this receiver has not let me down. The music and theater reproduction are great. During the THX demonstration at the beginning of Star Wars Ep. 1, what I heard was a clear, crisp and very powerful demonstration of the HK''s capability. It sounded amazing. Don''t let the power ratings fool you. Even at 25-30% power, the receiver just cranked. I''m sure my neighbors agree. I then put in the Eric Clapton Unplugged CD and the sound there was just as impressive. Clear, crisp reproduction. Other receivers tend to distort sound at higher outputs, this receiver doesn’t. I have been very impressed with the receiver''s ability to handle the different sound modes. DTS and DD are handled perfectly with this unit. (In the opening scenes of Gladiator with the army approaching the battle scene from the rear, the sound is clearly and powerfully routed to the appropriate rear speaker. When the catapults are ratcheted back you hear them first from the front speakers and then the sound transfers to the back.) Even though all the mid/high end receivers can handle this, the power that the HK is able to put out is instrumental in reproducing these sounds from all the speakers without distortion or degrading. The receiver also has a lot of other features such as Logic 7. Even though I believe this HK is the best bang for the buck, it does have its weaknesses. The setup is kind of complicated. The video display is a must to properly set up all the different outputs. The remote is a mess and very crowded. This has deterred me from controlling other devices through the HK remote. All in all. I highly recommend this unit for the price. Great sound amazingly reproduced due to amazing power.

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Sony, tried all the best products.

Natural, clean, exquisite sound. Powerful remote control. Good radio.

Ergonomically poor remote control. Poor design.

Home theater receivers are big these days. Everybody wants one. I am into home theater as much as the next person, but I also want a receiver capable of reproducing music accurately and beautifully. Unfortunately, such a receiver was hard to find. I searched and searched. I even bought the much-anticipated Onkyo 600, but I had to return it due to its average sound. My search eventually ended with my purchase of the HK 320. I have a love/hate relationship with this receiver. I love the way it sounds--open, clean, natural. Although it can reproduce sound beautifully from all sources, it works even better with Audio-DVD. When It plays my favorite Audio-DVD, I am simply in sound heaven. However, no receiver is perfect. And this one has its fair shares of flaws. The remote control is an ergonomic disaster. It is absolutely the most user-unfriendy thing I have used. The tiny buttons are of similar sizes and shapes, making them nearly impossible identify in the dark. You would think that, at a list price of $899, Hk would make it a lighted one. No, only the AVR-520 has that. Most remote controls would let you use the TV channel buttons to control use radio presets. Not this remote control. It has two radio presets buttons located at the bottom, making them, again, impossible to find in the dark. HK should fire the idiots who designed this remote control. What about all those lights on the front of the unit? Useless, I say. The main display already tell you all you need to know about the current source and the sound mode. Those lights are an annoyance at night when I try to go to sleep while listening to music. This receiver has DTS-ES but not DD-EX. The DTS-ES is useless until you hook the receiver to another amplifier. When you consider the fact that even entry-level receivers like the Onkyo 600 and the Yamaha 5560, both priced at $499, have all these built-in, it''''s a pretty significant omission on HK part. Clearly, I have a love/hate relationship with my HK 320. I hate it for the things it lacks. But it shines on that most important job of a receiver --accurate, beautiful sound reproduction. When the music comes on, I am happy and all is forgiven.

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Onkyo, Marantz.

Lots of features that I don''t have on my Denon (tons of digital inputs, for instance). Speaker setup is saved for each input. A GREAT value for the price I paid (if it works).

6th and 7th channels require external amp. Quality with mine, but I''ll look at HK again when the Denon dies.

I got the 320 as a step up from an older HK PL receiver. I ordered directly from Harman Online, since they had non-refurbished models available, and there is a service center nearby. Unfortunately, out of the box this unit was broken in several ways. It played, but many features did not work, and I compared my non-working model with a working model at CC to be sure I was doing things correctly. Re-initialization, as suggest by the manual, did not fix any of my problems. Harman was very nice about the return, and they covered return shipping. Initially I wanted a replacement, but while I waited for the return shipping label I bought a Denon 3802 instead and took a full refund from HK. I was not very happy with the sound. Admittedly, this could be due to faulty electronics. The tone functions would not allow for any L/R sound when engaged, so I never got it set for my ears.

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Fantastic sound, looks better than any other unit on the market. More power than most receivers rated twice the peak wattage. Crisp clean sound at any volume level.

Not a big fan of the remote, would have liked an LCD screen remote for a receiver priced at $700.

I had a very hard time deciding between this and the AVR520. I was formerly a Sony devotee but having heard the HKs I was convinced. At first I was wondering about the difference in power ratings but it was explained to me the difference between peak power, continuous power and amperage. The HK is superior at 55W to all of the Sony 110 W systems I have heard. It sounds spectacular on DVD or music settings. Dolby Pro Logic II is a big plus not aval on any Sony except the high end ES. My system consists of Infinity IL30 front speakers, IL25 center channel and Sterling Bookshelf surrounds. All of them have never sounded better than with this receiver. The 520 would have been nice but this system cranks beyond what I expected.

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