Harman Kardon HK 3480

 

Silver Member
Username: Mike_anthes

Canton, SD USA

Post Number: 315
Registered: Aug-04
hey guys i was wondering if this reciever would be a good starting reciever...i noticed that it is from a pretty reliable company and it seems to put out some decent power...for the money would you guys recommend this reciever...also could some of you give me some other recievers in this price range...thanks...mike
 

Silver Member
Username: Touche6784

USA

Post Number: 772
Registered: Nov-04
i have it and love it. get it from jr.com. they sell it the cheapest and i believe with no shipping. i think it is a wonderful reciever to enter into hifi with.
 

Silver Member
Username: Stu_pitt

NYC, NY

Post Number: 767
Registered: May-05
H/K makes good products. Their stuff can be found refurbished for significant savings on their E-Bay store or their own outlet website -

http://www.harmanaudiooutlet.com/search_browse/product_detail.asp?urlMaterialNum ber=HK%203480-Z&status=

Marantz also makes a stereo receiver for about the same price retail. You could get it here refurbished for cheaper -

http://www.accessories4less.com/cgi-bin/category/StereoReceivers

If you don't listen to the radio often, you could also look into integrated amps. From my experience they almost always sound better dollar for dollar. I own the NAD C320BEE and can't recommend it highly enough. It retails for about $400. Marantz makes an intergrated amp for a few dollars more retail. Refurbished Marantz integrated amps can be found here for a great price -

http://www.accessories4less.com/cgi-bin/category/IntegratedAmp
 

Gold Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 3143
Registered: Mar-05
Oh, the HK3480 is not a bad receiver in and of itself at all, despite HK's higher than average QC problems and its inherent analog-generated hiss/hum buzz. A few months ago I might've recommended one of those too.

*but*

you know, for some reason, I have NEVER heard of anyone replacing (for example, a $2500 Rotel receiver) with an HK 3480 before!

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6492921#post6492921

good golly Miss Molly, but why the dickens *IS* that???

ROTFL!

 

Listen for Yourself
Unregistered guest
edster you're a friggin' joke. No one who wants a good stereo receiver should have anything to do with your beloved Panny. It sounds like @ss for music, despite what you want to think. I know you've been wowed by it, but that thing is a travesty for REAL audio - almost as much as iPods and other .mp3 players. That's not to say you need to spend a fortune for audio (hardly!) but the Panny is a royal piece of $h!t as far as audio is concerned
 

Gold Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 3149
Registered: Mar-05
Art, why are you posting under a pseudonym?

How disappointing, tsk tsk!
 

Listen For Yourself
Unregistered guest
Once again Edster, this is not Art, just someone who agrees wth him. You have been whoring yourself over this panny just like you did with the Ascends before. I appreciate a good bargain as much as the next guy, and have done my best to build my systems with the best bang for the buck. But I have to call a spade a spade, and the Panny is junk, for anything other than movies. Sorry if the truth hurts, big guy.
 

Gold Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 3153
Registered: Mar-05
well if you ain't Art then you sure sound like him...almost same exact diction and phrasing in fact.

anyways you can hurl all the insults you want, it won't stop the MARCH OF HISTORY, heh heh heh. Just kiss your precious analog gear goodbye...
 

All Snobs Must Die!
Unregistered guest
Unregistered Guests are the dregs of the Internet.
 

Gold Member
Username: Artk

Albany, Oregon USA

Post Number: 2342
Registered: Feb-05
Eddie it was a work night and since I get up at 4 a.m. I'm was in bed at 8 p.m. pst. Though a bit harsh the person you mistakenly assumed was me is right. If you think analog gear is dead read what Frank wrote on another thread related to this debate. Also for the last several years vinyl has outsold all of the new digital formats COMBINED. Give yourself a few years and some more experience and you will look back on this with the appropriate amount of embarrassment.
 

Gold Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 3158
Registered: Mar-05
> Also for the last several years vinyl has outsold all of the new digital formats COMBINED.

That's hardly surprising since the new digital formats are overpriced marketing ploys for the most part, rather than any concrete leap forward in technology that CDs were over vinyl.

Until multichannel SACD/DVD-As come way down in price, not many people are going to want to pay 3 times as much for their music (and a damn limited selection of music I should add), plus upgrade to a universal player, plus add surround speakers and a surround receiver if they have a stereo setup. The SQ improvement is relatively small for a huge increase in $$$.

The only people likely to fork out that kind of money for overpriced SACD/DVD-A are serious audiophiles, many of whom are still enamoured of vinyl.

> Give yourself a few years and some more experience and you will look back on this with the appropriate amount of embarrassment.

heh well anything can happen in the unknowable future. For example, Art can go digital---of course a far more expensive digital amp than the Panny but still digital.
 

Silver Member
Username: Twebbz

Ann Arbor, Michigan USA

Post Number: 300
Registered: Apr-04
Do consider the refurbished Marantz SR4320 receiver @ 80Wpc. I just purchased it from www.accessories4less.com with a one year warranty for $269.99 + shipping. They are an authorized online Marantz dealer. The sound is warm & rich, just as people have said. Very satisfying with the Athena AS-F1s & Energy C-3s.
 

Gold Member
Username: Artk

Albany, Oregon USA

Post Number: 2375
Registered: Feb-05
Edster have you ever bought or considered buying an SACD. I suspect not from your wholly uninformed reply. SACD's and CD's cost the same. XRCD's which are really just CD's do indeed cost more. You (of all people) should know that you can get universal player for as little $99. I might wind up with a true digital amp (probably before you) but I am more likely to have tubes first.
 

Gold Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 3218
Registered: Mar-05
Art, I can get CDs for $6 from BMG, shipping included...granted they do not have a stellar selection but can you find me some SACDs for say, $10 shipped? I'd be very surprised, but very grateful of course.

And I don't mean the usual mass-remastered classic rock clunkers like The Eagles and Pink Floyd, for Chrissakes. Our godawful Houston FM stations already play that stuff 20x a day, last thing I want to do is PAY to listen to it for the 21st time each day.
 

Gold Member
Username: Artk

Albany, Oregon USA

Post Number: 2382
Registered: Feb-05
I can get both CD's and SACD's for free at BMG. Through regular retailers I can get budget brand CD's like Naxos for $7 but mid priced and full retail discs cost the same regardless of the format. Retail for a Blue Note RVG edition CD is $12 and retail for an RCA Living Stereo SACD is $12.
 

Gold Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 3229
Registered: Mar-05
> I can get both CD's and SACD's for free at BMG.

for FREE? You must be talking about the intro offer or accumulating bonus points? I don't think I've ever seen too many SACDs on their website...

Don't think I've ever seen SACDs for $12 locally. Sigh, this must be another Lucky Northwesterners Audio thing.
 

Gold Member
Username: Artk

Albany, Oregon USA

Post Number: 2384
Registered: Feb-05
Yeah Eddie we do have it good for audio but the "Living Stereo" SACD's retail for $12 nearly everywhere.

http://www.amazon.com/Living-Stereo-60-Collection-Box/dp/B003UCPEJ2

I'll be going to "The Musique Gourmet" today in Eugene where full and mid price SACD's are the same price as CD's. The last time I saw a difference Border's was occasionally (where they hadn't updated the prices) asking $1 more for the SACD version of the record.
 

Gold Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 3232
Registered: Mar-05
Just went to the mega-Borders today...the only audio magazines they carry are "Sound and Vision" and "The Absolute Sound." No sign of "Stereophile."

CDs were $12 each for oldies, $14 for newer or more popular releases. Didn't see any SACDs I don't think, unless they are really subtly marked as such.

Such is life in America's 4th largest city...
 

Gold Member
Username: Artk

Albany, Oregon USA

Post Number: 2387
Registered: Feb-05
Borders carries different mags in different stores. In the Corvallis store they carry About 10 different audio mags and at the Eugene store they carry 3. SACD's are mixed in with the other discs.
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