Beautiful lighting (at night), clean, powerful (high current) sound from what should cost several thousands of dollars. Vast, expansive sound fields, operators manual well laid out with diagrams. On screen display. Exceptional warmth and distinctive playback of both digital or analog sources. Much like a tube amp in general sonic characteristics but with much more OMMMPPHH!!!! Built like a battleship and yet treats your ears with the most delicate subtleties. Build quality superior to anything I've seen, even McIntosh, Krell, and Lexicon. Should last a lifetime with proper care.

The remote isn't a joy to use, but I can buy a generic touch screen from the $1200.00 I saved on my purchase with plenty to spare!

All while I was growing up, my purchases seemed to focus around one issue..."PRICE" and then I realized (in my late 30's) that like most things, you get what you pay for. Well, finally that ideology has paid off in spades. I was tired of hearing my movies & music cut-out or distorted and realized my hearing was suffering for my lack of vision. Not anymore! Enter the Harman Kardon AVR8000, the battleship of home theater and musical bliss. This monster is huge and so as a result I had to completely rebuild my entertainment center. (over 21" deep + cables behind) I purchased a HK PA-2000 so I could bi-amp my Yamaha NS1738's (rated at 240wpc@6ohms). I ran 12awg wire all around and upgraded interconnects for my subs and components. You need the heavy wire for all the amps this baby produces! My Yamahas NEVER sounded so good and with the addition of two Daliquist 1200 subs and some jensen surrounds (C1's)on stands and center channel (JPC25) also from U-Bid for less than $100. Once again price was my motive, but even these less than audiophile quality speakers SOUND FANTASTIC thru the AVR8000. Whether I'm watching "Attack of the Clones" on DVD or listening to soundtracks from "Wyatt Earp" or "Dances with Wolves" I can simply not believe my ears. The dynamic sound staging envelops you and pulls you into the movie or music like nothing you've ever heard. And my father and brother both are McIntosh tube amp geeks so I know what smooth yet dynamic music sounds like and this would send McIntosh packing! I haven't driven my HK too hard so no noticeable extreme heat as mentioned by others. The unit has no fan (convection cooling) and keeping it well vented is a must. I do cover it when not in use to keep out dust. Rather than try to bombast you all with techno terms, I'll just say it in a word. BUY-IT!!It's being discontinued so don't wait til their gone! I'm so glad I bought this receiver and I now feel proud to own such a gem. With proper care it should last me the rest of my life! Once I buy my BIG screen TV my theater will be complete! Til then my little Toshiba 27" Cinema Series will have to do...

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Pioneer, Sony, Realistic, Kenwood all mediocre by comparison. There is no comparison! Speakers: Acoustic Research, Advent, Yamaha NS, Jensen, Kenwood, Realistic, MTX.

Build quality. Hi Amp design. Aesthetics, Memory for DSP modes, Sound quality.

Size at 20 inches deep and 53 lbs is huge.

This is a high quality beautifully designed massive receiver. I have owned the AVR7000 for 3 years which I appreciated and used mostly for its sound quality in the stereo mode for cd. The AV 5 channel mode never worked properly, the center channel shorting periodically and memory worked inconsistently. The AVR8000 is another story. It is as if HK learned from its mistakes and corrected them. The quality improvement is apparent. The machine is equipped with gold plated rca jacks and gold heavy duty speaker terminals accepting banana plugs or any other contacts. The fit and finish all around is top quality. The memory for speaker setting in the different DSP modes memorizes your settings and works fine. The EZ set speaker balancing is a nice trick. And did I mention the effortless power of 85 amps? I have large ADS M12 monitor speakers that have a sensitivity of only 87 db. They are power hungry at 300 watts max. Center is a three way AR A2C and rears are AR 15, all needing 100 watts or more each. The AVR8000 drives it all effortlessly. I heard Gladiator demoed on a BK507 with B & W 802 Nautilus speakers set way up. It was devestating. The HK in my small living room can only be turned on to about 20% of that volume but the sound is just as beautiful. And the sound in two channel stereo is just great. It has all the usable and latest THX and Digital sound modes without overdoing the choices with a lot of fluff. This is a great reciever that I look forward to coming home to in the evening and enjoying for a long time to come.

Similar Products Used:

Harman Kardon AVR 7000 (1999), Audiodynamics Integrated amp (1988)

Sound proccesing,clean power,price.

Should have touch screen remote like Pioneer Elite or Kenwood,runs very hot to the touch,should have 150 Watts per channel like the other recievers.Should have video signals upgrade to component like Kenwood does.

Unless you can afford the Lexicon MC12 or a JBL Synthesis system,The AVR8000 will the best you can get.This reciever is the best value all around for up to 5K range.Very powerfull,more sound options than anything out there,and the best of all that kills the competition,Lexicon's Logic7. I added a Onkyo amp that cost about 260.00 with 110 watts per channel and it is the perfect match for this reciever and now I have a full blown 7.1 system.I use Logic7 for everything and sometimes DTS if available.As far as DD,THX,Vmax etc,they are OK but will propably never need.Last week I pass thru my computer's optical output some mp3's and I could not believe how good they sound,it makes you wonder why we still use CD players. Over the last 9 Months since I decided to upgrade my Home Theater hardware,I bought and resold on Ebay 3 recievers just for testing and the H/K 8000 was the best that's why I kept it.I audited the Kenwood VR5900,Pioneer Elite 49 and the Onkyo 989,so I hope my test will save somebody all the trouble of checking out these recievers because there is not match.

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Kenwood VR5900,Elite 49TX,Onkyo989tx

High current amplifier section. Great DAC's. Very tight and detailed and accurate sound output.

Don't buy this without checking out the space requirements, this is a monster! It also weighs 50 pounds this isn't really a weakness for a high powered, high quality receiver, you expect this, but if you are upgrading you might not expect it.

I upgraded from a Kenwood VR1080 receiver which is a very good unit itself. The HK-8000 gives a much higher resolution soundstage and better transparency, presence and transients. I compared this to the VR1080 using the Chesky Records "Ultimate Demonstration Disc". This gave me some extremly high quality recordings to compare with. I here lots of formerly faint and hard to distinquish or resolve sounds very clearly now. Some of the difference for sure is due to the higher quality DAC's this receiver has. I'm feeding the CD sound digitally so I can use the HK-8000 DAC's. Another reason for the much improved sound seems to be the added tightness and punch that comes from the extra high current (85 Amps), that is coming through those 125 Watts in stereo mode. The higher current gives the Receiver tighter control over the speakers than the same wattage without high current. There is a price to pay for this high quality and power -- it weighs around 50 pounds! It made my Kenwood receiver seem like a toy in comparison - not that I'm knocking the Kenwood receiver, it was great for what I paid for it. I couldn't have dreamed of owning it at it's full price, but it was worth all the begging to my wife to get it! Thank God she can here the difference too, she doesn't quite understand why you need to pay so much for great sound. I haven't tried this with home theater DVD's yet, but for stereo and using the built in surround modes for music it is phenomenal. I use Axiom m22ti speakers with this along with a Polk PSW350 subwoofer. I can give this receiver my highest recommendation.

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Kenwood VR1080 receiver, Dynaco Integrated Amp,

Everything, sound, clarity, features. Awsome home theater when teamed up with the right speakers. i got klipsch referance all around and it sounds awsome. The clearity and power of the AVR8000 combinded with the clarity of the horns on the klipsch speakers can give you chills. They are a delight for any type of listening.

Nothing. Please..This aint your daddy's pioneer.

Its all in the crossover. You have to set it right or you will lose all bass. i have mine l + R and lfe. It may also be a hinderance if you have a weak subwoofer. i got a klipsch Rsw 12 and belive me this sub is not for the faint of heart. i could probobly shake my house to pieces if i left it on long enough. So the bass output on this receiver is not weak by any means. i too was worried at first after reading reviews. The proof is in the pudding. Buy it you wont be sorry.

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onkyo, kenwood, technics

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i've owned the 7000 and noticed that in logic 7 mode, the bass response is almost nonexistant compare to other modes. others who's owned this unit seemed to share the same criticism. can someone who've owned the 8000 write a review to this specific point please?

Similar Products Used:

avr 7000

Sound. Logic 7. Flexibility. Logic 7. Looks. Did I mention Logic 7?

Huge and heavy. It's impossible to find a good looking rack because the unit is too deep for most of them. Need to build a custom one. Gets quite hot. Not a big concern, just don't stuff it in enclosed cabinets. Minor inconsistencies with menu operations (for example small OSD cannot be removed from the screen permanently, only temporarily.)

Had it for about 4 months, love it. The sound is crystal clear and smooth. Great for music and movies. Too bad I have to replace bunch of my old CDs because they now sound like crap (with every hiss, imperfection, and bad mixing truly reproduced) - but newer CDs and DVDs leave you breathless. I'm running AVR8000 with Sherbourn 1500/5A amp, and although the receiver's internal amps are probably as good as you can get in a receivr, I found the Sherbourn better with my Paradigm 100s (notoriously power hungry speakers.) Logic 7 - I can't imagine myslef leaving without it now. I'm not a member of the "Two Channel Stereo" religious cult, so I love Logic 7 for music and rarely listen without it. It really makes music... well, just more interesting, without disturbing the sound scene (unlike DPLII.) Logic 7 can also be applied to 5.1 sources. On the overall - hard to beat. It's not that expensive (comparing to other flagships or pre-pros), but offers a lot for the money.

Crystal clear sound without distortion even at ear busting volume levers.Easy set-up.Multitude of sound fields in stereo as well as movie mode.Beautifully styled cabnet.

NONE,except maybe the weight.At abour 55 Lbs.you need a good support for it.Mine sits on top of my 55" Toshiba TV with no problems.So I guess this weight may be a slight concern for some.But it can be worked around.

Simply the best reciever you can get.I tried 2 top end Onkyo units but in stereo mode the sound from them sounded muted as compared to the HK.The vocals on the HK have much more presence and realism.I first bought the HK 510 and loved it.But I got the urge for the best and got the 8000.I am not dissapointed in any way.The HK is also easier to setup than others I have tried.The bass is exceptional and can be set to use the main speakers and sub both for the output.This LFE feature is great.The 8000 can shake the pictures off the wall even without help from the LFE sub.I love both stereo music and movies and the 8000 does equally well for both.If you have the funds I highly recommend this reciever.

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NONE CLOSE TO THIS QUALITY

Great sound, all the surround formats you need, 4 optical and 4 coax inputs, 3/1 component switching, logic7, uncoprimising build quality, HCC of 85 amps.

Can get VERY hot, some might be turned off by the lack of 6.1 and 7.1 out the box.

This receiver cant be beat at the price I paid from www.AcousticSoundDesign.com. The 8000 does everything you would expect it to do, without comprimising sound quality. It has an extremely high HCC of 85 amps, which gives it a dynamic advantage that other receivers cant match. Stereo sound is another thing H/K excells at. If you plan on using your receiver to listen to music, you cant go wrong with H/K. Watts are even increased from 110 to 125 in stereo. Make sure you have an open area to put this beast, because it gets extremely hot. I put a fan on it if I plan on using it for over 3 hours straight. Its only a 5 channel receiver, so you need to add another amp if you want 6.1 or 7.1. This is due to H/K not willing to comprimise the quality of the amps inside the reciever. You cant get a better receiver for $1700, so this is a 5 star product.

- Powerful reciever, powerful sound - Component Video Switching is extremely good. - HDCD decoding - 24 Bit 192KHz capability - 6 AND 8 channel inputs for future upgrades - Most of the latest surround/sound formats are supported, including MP3 - Automatic channel calibration is a breeze (and very accurate) - did I mention sound quality?

- very heavy - 2 people to move to a 4' shelf. (not really a weakness, unless you are alone, ... I guess that becomes "your" weakness ... bad joke)

I used to own the 7000, but wanted to have Pro-logic II, and 7 channel capability. THX certification was a big bonus. This reciever has improved on what was already a great reciever (7000). The addition of a PA2000 Amplifier to move into 7.1 took it to the next level. Just as a note: Logic 7 in 7.1 is amazing sound. You do need 7.1 to do it justice. This is an excellent reciever with sound quality on par, if not better than other much more expensive flagships.

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Pioneer VSX-906S, Yamaha RX-V2092, Yamaha DSP-A1, Denon AVR5700, Denon AVR5800, Integra DTR7.1, Harman/Kardon AVR7000 (Yes, I've owned them all!)