"Michael Dennis" wrote in message
om

Whats the general consensus on Harman Kardon receivers ?

Consensus on RAO? Surely you jest!

I am thinking of buying one based on a favourable review I read here in
the UK.

It made great play of its high currant putput.

IMO, a highly overpriced feature.

Do mains blocks ,main conditioners, kimber cable and fancy mains
cables make much difference to sound quality?

Depends on how impressionable you are.

They are all incredibly
expensive and I dont fancy forking out for them unless I know they
work. Any opinions?

You're familiar with the concept of "snake oil"?

"Michael Dennis" wrote in message
om...
Whats the general consensus on Harman Kardon receivers ? I am thinking
of buying one based on a favourable review I read here in the Uk. It
made great play of its high currant putput.
Do mains blocks ,main conditioners, kimber cable and fancy mains
cables make much difference to sound quality? They are all incredibly
expensive and I dont fancy forking out for them unless I know they
work. Any opinions?

I have never been impressed with any Harmon Kardon piece, not withstanding
my great respect for Sidney Harmon. Many of the brands he has brought under
his umbrella have merit, but not HK.

To my mind, HK sound embodies all the cliches of bad solid state.

The accessory items, IMHO, are worthless, with the following proviso: you
must not neglect mass of copper in the speaker cables.

The U.K. is home to some of the finest maunfacturers of low power solid
state amplifiers -- far more than in the States. I would look for local
advice and pick up a British made low power integrated. Sound quality is
more important than watts quantity .

Sugden comes to mind, since I happen to own one, and the build quality is
excellent.

"Le Artiste" wrote in message



Sugden has always struck me as an elderly ladies brand. Maybe it's the
name..


--
S i g n a l @ l i n e o n e . n e t

AKA the self-appointed voice of the RAO consensus.

On Fri, 27 Feb 2004 06:16:25 -0500, "Arny Krueger"
wrote:

"Le Artiste" wrote in message



Sugden has always struck me as an elderly ladies brand. Maybe it's the
name..


--
S i g n a l @ l i n e o n e . n e t

AKA the self-appointed voice of the RAO consensus.

Yes, that's what "struck me" means, *that's* for sure.