Sounds great at this price

build quality is somewhat lacking

Ok, so I have lousy speakers (sony ss86e), which are quite unable to produce any bass. or so I thought, till I switched my technics SL-PG480a for HD740. The change in the way music was played on my humble system (NAD310 integrated, sony speakers) is just incredible. There is bass, there is detail, there is a feeling of life. I don't give a damn about how this cd is built, or how it looks. it plays fabulously, and that's what I bought it for (though I personally think it looks nice). CD tray is really badly built, but if it will live for another five years, I'll be more than satisfied with it. I'll give it five stars because it plays great. and that's all that matters.

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quite a few - but none sounded as well

Sounds warm and impressive. Adds a lot of "weight" to the music. Great voices. Tight and DEEP! bass. Also well-balanced.

Bass may sound a bit overdone, however you might be happy with it since small speakers sound great with this player. Further: detail and real/honest sound can be better (Marantz). Not the most spacious sound on the market.

All in all a very good player, especially for those who like the 'live' experience. It's funny how many more live cd's you're gonna buy when you posess this player. Weighty sound might impress many. Don't combine this one with Harman/Kardon Amps: your bass will be overblown (unless you like much bass that is). Tip: combine with small-sized speakers you'll best appreciate this player. It has enough detail (you'll hear it all) but compared to a Marantz 67 OSE the HK doesn't attract your attention to details. It gives a 'stage'-experience.

Similar Products Used:

Philips CD-753, Marantz CD 67 OSE

Good features, good value for money, adequate sound.

The Burr brown filter is good for midrange and tweeter but lacks the bass of cd players that NAD and marantz are able to preform for the same amount of money. the design of the player I find overall poor.

The HK 640 is a good player for someone who has resonable componentry to go with it to make it sound good. Only with very good wiring, amplifier(s), and speakers does it show its full capability. The value is very good since the player has got a lot of features like digital output, good playback funtions which are fast in use, and D/S filters which are used in much more expensive players too. The build doesn't seem that sturdy but the inner layout of the player is very good. A recommender.

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NAD C520, very good. Yamaha CDX-493, cost less, but preforms poor.

The best value for money in that price class.Better for rock than blues but thats always case for this price. Got also Marantz 63 SE but HK beats him in every way

timeless looks had it for over 8 years and still is kicks!

maybe the tray, but it's passed the test of time!

I bought this player at least 8-10 years ago, the style is still contemporary enough to look like it matches basically the new B&K pramps and amps. The sound is really great I picked up a new sony dvd/cd player and I A/B them with the same song, the H/K blew the sony away muscially with better soundstage, bass, mid, and high's. I thought for sure a 2000 player would somehow with technology beat the old H/K not so! This player stays until it does not want to. Pick one up if you can!

Similar Products Used:

rega planet sony dvd/cd cambridge soundworks