My mom purchased this HK SC-7 from Gemco in San Jose, in the late 60’s with my assistance when I was about 13. It was our 1st stereo system . I opted for the larger HK-40 speakers. This started me on a never ending learning curve and quest to always want something that sounded better. I don’t know where these 2 previous reviews of 5 stars came from but even in my teens as a newbie to start to appreciate audio reproduction I soon realized this system was a mistake. Yes it all worked fine as intended but this was some of the worst solid state products HK ever manufactured. The best part of this AM/FM/FM Stereo/Turntable/Speaker System was the Dual turntable that they simply mounted within the top section of their custom designed actual wood frame. It was a Dual 1009 series fully automatic, 16,33,45 & 78 rpm speed stackable changer and Shure cartridge. The main fault of this system was ALL the HK electrical engineering and design. There was an immediate and audible hum with zero volume level when AC power was turned on via the rotary combination power/volume control switch. Increasing the volume masked this 1st flaw. The over all tuner performance- that is selectivity and sensitivity of the FM front end assembly was a joke as I would eventually learn by usage and comparing performance to other brands of equipment-2nd flaw. Next was the power supply (not amplifier) that was flaw #3: as you were listening to music and tuned up the volume, starting at about 10 o-clock (using an analog clock face as a reference) to the maximum being 2 o-clock, the radio dial lamp starts to dim and flicker. Again as I started to learn more about audio design and build techniques. Please note this was not a defective unit. Out of warranty now by months I had verified this was normal and even after writing to HK and presenting a copy of my product’s test results from my local McIntosh dealer free audio clinic, The cereal bowl shaped distortion graph was quite obvious that my complaint to them was the HK SC-7 sounded like mush. Again, I was told this was normal operating performance within the design of the SC-7. I still own it and will someday get into it to modify and re-design or fit a superior power supply/tuner/amplifier into it as it really was a nice looking design. But those 55 years kept learning and collecting and other things were more interesting to me.

Obviously this is not a 5 star rated item as I said at the beginning and “sweet sounding” was an error in the previous reviews. Flaws listed in above text detail. Please note that someone listed in the description this is a “200 watt” amp. Nay, Nay! At best, it is 5-10 watts max at 5-10% distortion 20-20khz/8 Ohms. Confirmed by McIntosh Labs

I have a circa 1968 Harmon Kardon SC7 Component Control Center that I bought while in college but I has been in storage for the better part of 30 years. It was a top of the line product at that point. I still have two double wall inert sand speakers that put out unparalleled sound. I turned it on after 25 years and the tuner and turntable still work. I've lost track of the speaker cables and jacks and would like to see if the system is still operable but I don't know where to go to replace the speaker cables and jacks.

Would appreciate any suggestions.

Thanks in advance.

Cabot

i have a 1968 sc7 harman kardon compact and have used it for ten years after it sat in a basement for 15 years or so. nimt condition and sounds great . turntable needed new motor and sounds sweet now. alll-in one solid wood casing is mind blowing. got four channels and defenitive tech dr 7 towers 200 watts provide crisp and base sound undistorted - small jvc bookshelf 20 watts fill out the sound - really nice options with speaker control and reciver usage. i mostly use the turntable and have the original drop and a stubby drop as well. system is small and takes up no more space than a laptop and is unassuming at first glance. very portable for tc trips to dj at parties- has oem speker set up and plugs.you only need to buy one in a lifetime . love this stereo