Don't let power rating deceive you!
Written: Jul 09 '01
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Pros: Amazing sound clarity, easy hook up, just incredible sound
Cons: None yet
The Bottom Line: Don't be fooled by the 40 watt rating, the bandwidth allows a much greater amount of sonic information resulting in unbelievable clarity and depth!
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| technonerd's Full Review: harman/kardon AVR 210 5.1 Channels Receiver |
I have had A/V receivers since 1993, my original was a Sherwood pro-logic, superceeded by Kenwood 1080VR, Kenwood VR-407 and Pioneer Vsx-D710S. (We have 2 HDTV theater setups in our house, wife and I have different viewing habits!)My 6 month old Kenwood VR-407 died, (I've had it with Kenwood) and I had just gotten the Pioneer for the second theater. I wanted something with Pro Logic II for the 95% of DirecTV's 2 channel sound to convert them to 5.1. The Kenwood was rated at 100 watts per channel, I took their number as gospel, but ignorance certainly WAS bliss. When I went shopping I found only Onkyo and Kenwood available with PLII locally, but at Circuit City they also had Harman/Kardon (with Logic 7, which is like PL II). I gave them a listen...WHAT A SHOCK!! Although the HK 210 is rated at 40 watts, the real secret is the high-current amplifier. (There is a post by an electrical engineer on either HomeTheaterspot or avsforum about the difference a high current amp makes) I have heard from audio types about "Depth of field", "soundstage", etc... but had never really listened. This 40 watt high current receiver blew away the competition! I am college educated but still find it hard to convey the sense of amazement I felt when I heard this receiver.
I didn't buy at CC but went to HHGregg, they have better sales people and you can negotiate price there. The sales reps at HH reinforced my opinion so I bought it and brought it home. We had friends over so I did a quick preliminary hookup last night. I haven't had the time to assign the digital inputs or even run the monitor out cable to my TV for setup, just attached the analog output from our DVD to the 210. WOW! I never realized what the Klipsch speakers were capable of with the Krapwood. Much better job filling the room with sound, even though it was only Pro Logic and Logic 7, I tried both. The sound clarity, depth, definition, just floored me. I will update this after I really get to configure and tune it but obviously my first impression has me gushing like a school girl with a crush! I will NEVER believe the Kenwood, Sony, Technics, etc claims of 100 watts per channel again, they just don't compare. It's as if the H/K has MUCH more bandwidth, like the H/K is a 1.5 GHZ Athlon that runs at a lower voltage than a 486/100! Listen to an H/K, the others cannot compare!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 410.01
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Epinions.com ID:
technonerd
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Reviews written: 5
Trusted by: 2 members
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