Harman Kardon AVR 525 Dolby Digital Receiver Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I purchased the Harmon Kardon AVR 525 for a newly-remodeled medium-sized upstairs living area. To be honest, I didn't have great expectations of the AVR 525. We have a theater system made up of Parasound separates in our larger downstairs recreation room, and I felt like I was lowering myself to buy a mere receiver! I went with it mainly because it had seven powered channels that would fit it the limited space I had available for gear. However, I have been surprisingly pleased with the AVR 525.
Of note is the ease of operation of the AVR 525. I pretty much set up the entire system without referencing the operations manual; including experimenting with the triple cross-over bass management system (I'll talk about this later). About the only thing that I needed to use the manual for is programming the remote and using the AVR 525's EzSet feature to balance the speaker system. The AVR 525's learning remote is quite good. I was able to program it for my DVD player, CD player/recorder, S-VHS player, plasma monitor and satellite receiver without sacrificing any important features.
I matched the receiver with a Bose Accoustimass 15 Series III speaker system and two Definitive Pro-Sub 200 sub-woofers. I have to admit, I am extremely impressed with the AVR 525. Discrete theater modes sound astounding in both Dolby and DTS. Stereo modes and multi-channel emulations are clear and distinct.
I find the Logic 7 emulation particularly impressive for stereo programming. To the point where I hooked my Creek Audio MC Phono-stage amp and Music Hall MMF-7 turntable to the AVR 525, and have thoroughly enjoyed the last few weeks listening to vinyl recordings through seven channels. If you haven't done this, you have to give it a try!
A few comments on the AVR 525's triple cross-over bass management system. I found this to be a very useful feature. In fact, I achieved much better sound by getting rid of the Bose Accoustimass sub-woofer and using the triple-crossover bass management system for routing the bass through the Definitive Pro-Sub 200s. The ability to tune the bass management system for each of the emulation modes has been very useful, particularly for playback of vinyl recordings.
On the down side, the AVR 525 could use one more set of rear inputs. I maxed out the inputs with my current set-up. Fortunately, I have been able to connect my digital video camera through the 525's front inputs. The AVR 525 comes with two component-video inputs, one more would be nice. The unit runs quite hot. Given that the 525 is powering seventy watts through seven channels, this is not surprising. However, when setting up the AVR 525, ample ventilation space is required. All-in-all, these are minor points given the price-range of the unit.
What's quite amazing is that for around $650 the AVR 525 sounds pretty darned-near as good as my Parasound pre-pro and power amp system, which cost me over $5000. Granted, I am filling a much smaller room with sound. But watt-for-watt, the AVR 525 is a great sounding and full-featured receiver.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Harman Kardon AVR 525 Dolby Digital Receiver

Thanks to the latest surround technology such as Dolby Digital EX, DTS-ES and harman/kardon's own Logic 7 processing, in addition to a seven-channel, high-current, ultra wide-bandwidth amplifier, the AVR 525 doesn't miss a beat. Make your program selections from a vast array of digital, analog and wide-bandwidth component video inputs, manage the bass with harman/kardon's Triple Crossover system, and extend the music to a second zone with A-BUS Ready technology or assignable rear-channel amplifiers. Wherever you want your music and movies, however loud you want them, the AVR 525 can handle the job.

Click here for more information about Harman Kardon AVR 525 Dolby Digital Receiver