Harman Kardon or Denon?

Question

I have had an old Kenwood reciever paired up with my Bose acoustimass system for 5 years now. I would like to upgrade to somthing that has digital inputs. I have an upconvert DVD player but I am not getting full Dolby Digital Surround sound. I am looking to spend no more that $350 US. Any suggestions would be great as long as it is Harman Kardon or Denon. If you think Harman Kardon or Denon do not pair well w/ Bose please let me know and state what you think I should.

Answer 1

I personally own 2 HK receivers and I was so happy about the performance of it. I am hearing good reviews about Denon too so I want to evaluate those receivers. One thing for sure, I am not a big Bose Acoustimass fan (sorry but I do not want my speakers rule over my high end receivers). These receivers, HK and Denon are both good, specially if they are paired with speakers that really matched their performance. I also personally own some Bose speakers but the discreet ones. I have a bose center speaker and a pair of Bose 401 for the fronts before but I replaced them with the Yamaha NS777. I do not want them to be controlled by the Acoustimass system since that system has its own set of amplifiers. I want my speakers directly driven by my receiver. In this way, you can enjoy the TRUE 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound. Also, if you can couple your upconverter player using its Optical Audio Output (best) or its COAX Audio Output (better) directly to the reciever, then you will have a true 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound. If you have an HDMI cable from your upconverter player and want to connect it directly to your receiver, make sure that your receiver can still output either a 1080i or 1080p (for full HD video). Please DO NOT USE your ordinary L and R channel audio output from your upconverter player because no matter what you do, it will not produce the true 5.1 dolby digital surround sound even if your receiver is capable of a 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound.

Good luck!!!

Answer 2

Those are both good brands and those are the two that I think would match best with Bose. The "twiddlers" in the Acoustimass system do not excel in bringing out high frequencies accurately. Denon and HK both excel in this so they would be a good match for your speakers. I have an old HK receiver in a music system that is outstanding. In the last 20 years though HK reliability has suffered. Even though they still sound good they have developed a reputation for service problems. Denon receivers, on the other hand, have a great sound and a solid reputation for reliability. I have a Denon in my main home theater now and am very pleased with it. If you shop around on the Internet you can find some great buys on Denon.

Answer 3

Hi. In my opinion all surround sound receivers are pretty much the same The name does not matter when it comes to audio your ears should be the judge.. There is so much circuitry crammed into them and the signal goes through so many changes its a wonder the sound is as good as it can be.But it is not high fidelity sound.When you have surround sound watching a movie the quality of the sound tends to be overshadowed by all the sounds coming out of the speakers.

Manufacturers of Home Theater know that most of the people who buy this equipment are not audiophiles.,and are not searching for the perfect sound.If any of the receivers with 5,6,or 7 channels were audio quality the price would be several thousand dollars ,outside the reach of most people. So they are mass produced as such because people will buy them because of the cheap price.Everyone is after top quality but wants it for practically nothing. So they buy the cheapest expecting it to work wonders. Iam not being sarcastic when i say this but it is a fact of life when it comes to evaluating the audio quality of an amplifier.Buying better or more expensive speakers wont help, they only deliver what is fed to them .They cant make a bad signal better .

Having said that you cant get anything decent for $350. just pleasant noise and low fi sound.There is a new 7.1 Onkyo Receiver for $299 which supports HDMI with 75 watts per channel which may interest you.Anyway have a look and see.


http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/onkyo-txsr573-receiver.shtml

Answer 4

In my opinion, being in audio for over 25 years....I won't tell you what to buy...but I will give you an idea of each companies marketing ideas....

HK was started by two gentlemen many years ago by the names of Harman and Kardon...yep...since that time, HK has gone under many changes and the last of those changes was to be absorbed by a mass-market company by the name of Harman International. They also sucked up Infinity speakers, JBL, etc. The equipment they produce these days is for mass-market consumer electronics.

Denon on the other hand is a professional audio company. They started with professional equipment. They then refined the equipment to what is called audiophile, which is a GOOD thing. Their equipment has what is called a 'trickle-down' theory. Their audiophile equipment technology is also present in their affordable consumer market.

With this information I would hope you can make an educated decision. But do NOT buy anything until you hear both pieces of equipment. Your ears will never lie to you.

Enjoy your new received, whichever it may be.

Answer 5

CAN you buy a new Denon or HK receiver for under $350?
I did not know this.
What I do know is that soon, upgrading a 5.1 to a newer 5.1 will eventually make you wonder why you didn't go up to at least 6.1channels, or even 7.1 ch. New blue-ray technology enables you to listen through 7.1 channels, and even though that may be far-off for now, a lot of material is tranferred with 6.1 discrete channels, which, BTW, sound incredible with the right set up.
Eventually, you'll own a blue-ray so why not prepare for it now? Regular DVDs offer 6.1ch sound(some, not a lot yet), but it think it's worth it.

Answer 6

Neither... They are really both the same.... crap. If you still want to go with one of them, just find the one with the best features you need for the best price. Otherwise you will not be able to tell the difference.

Weight is very important in a receiver. If you see a Sony (or anything else similar) that says 5x100 or even 6X125... I guarantee you that it only weighs 14 to 22lbs. What that means is that it is fibbing. There is no way something of that weight can output 500 watts. These companies use alot of loopholes when it comes to this. So when you are shopping around, don't be afraid to pick up the receiver and feel the weight of it.

I have an Outlaw receiver. It is only 65watts x5, but weighs over 5 lbs. It is really powerful and guarantee it can blow away anything that even claims to be 125x6. Outlaw is an online company that sells great stuff. Check it out at www.outlawaudio.com. It might be about $200 more than you want to spend, but I guarantee you it will be worth it; now and 5 years from now.

Although they are online only, they have great customer service. A lightning storm shorted mine out... they paid for everything (shipping, etc) to get me a new one.

Answer 7

yeah scott is right you need to compare equal equipment here. if you want to compare hk to denon use the denon [DRA-697CIHD] Premier AM/FM/FM Stereo Multi-Source/Multi-Zone Stereo Receiver with HD Radio The DRA-697CIHD receiver will shine as the core to your high end Hi-Fi stereo multi-room audio system. Equipped with many new features including HD Radio, it can handle almost any configuration combination. Its two source three zone capability allows you to run multiple sources to multiple areas at the same time with pure clean sound. With the HD tuner as a second tuner source, regular AM/FM can be listened to in one zone and HD Radio can be listened to in another zone. Being 4 ohms stable, it can handle the most demanding speakers, yet deliver smooth fidelity. Custom integration is no problem either as this enhance receiver has all the typical connections an installer needs to integrate to third party control systems. 100 watts x 2 channels Signal Level Divided Construction (S.L.D.C.) RS-232C control Serial IR remote ports Subwoofer output +12 volt triggers XM Radio Ready (Connect and Play antenna sold separately) Dedicated iPod port for optional ASD-1R D-dock (no OSD) HD Radio Multi-cast reception capable this will give you a better comparison i vote for denon

Answer 8

Get Harmon Kardon, They are advanced in there home audio. But, Have you ever thought of checking out Polk Audio or Definitive Technology?

Answer 9

I don't want to dissapoint you, but all the recievers in your price range sound about the same, especially with BOSE speakers. The only difference - if any - are features, reliability, etc.

Answer 10

HK should be fine.