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| | Home Harman Kardon AVR-254 7x50W 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver with HDMI 1.3a Repeater | |
|  | |  | | | Harman Kardon AVR-254 7x50W 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver with HDMI 1.3a Repeater | | | | | SKU:
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Out of stock | | | | | | The Harman Kardon AVR-254 7x50W 7.1-channel home theater receiver with HDMI 1.3a repeater is an affordable home theater system that gives you more bang for your buck. 7.1-Channel A/V receiver includes HDMI™ switching and audio/video processing. With 350 watts (50 watts x 7 channels) at your fingertips, movies will put you into the heart of the action. This is upscale video without an upscale price. The AVR-254 is Harman Kardon's most affordable receiver and allows you to upscale incoming analog video signals to high-resolution 720p output or select two HDMI™ inputs for audio processing - all with a Simplay HD™-verified, single-wire connection to an HDMI-equipped display. And the sound? Pure Harman Kardon audio, with the clarity possible only with EzSet/EQ™ technology and our high-current, ultrawide-bandwidth amplifier design. | | | | | |
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| | Product Details | | Product Length: | 15.0 inches | | Product Width: | 17.3 inches | | Product Height: | 6.5 inches | | Product Weight: | 33.35 pounds | | Package Length: | 22.0 inches | | Package Width: | 18.3 inches | | Package Height: | 10.4 inches | | Package Weight: | 33.6 pounds | | Average Customer Rating: |  based on 64 reviews |
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| | Features | Harman-exclusive Logic 7 Movie, Music, and game surround sound processing in 5.1 and 7.1 channelsHDMI 1.3a with Deep Color and Faroudja DCDi Cinema video processing with upscaling to 1080pEzSet/EQ equalization for quick and accurate system setupFull Suite of Dolby surround decoding, including Dolby TrueHD and Dolby Digital PlusXM Tuner Ready
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| | Customer Reviews | Average Customer Review:
Write an online review and share your thoughts with other customers.
 Just Say NO and Buy An AVR That Actually Functions Right Aug 17, 2010
Just to give an example. I bought the very first JVC 5.1 made. It was a cheap unit with few extras but at least every function worked flawlessly for 5 years +. The avr 254 has never worked flawlessly by any stretch of the imagination and cost 3 times as much. You change channels from an analog to an HD channel and no sound until you turn off the AVR and turn it back on. You can watch all HD channels with no problem. Same with regular channels but but you switch from one to the other and the 254 has to be reset. This is with HDMI cables. The same with my Sony Blu Ray and HDMI. After watching a DVD if I don't cut off the player and switch modes back to cable the Monitor turns a bright distorted solid yellow color, again until you reset the system. I spend more time resetting this thing than watching it.
BEWARE APPLE OWNERS !!!!! IF you need to change or up date firmware etc.and you will you are SOL ! HK does not support apple so you CANNOT do upgrades !!!
HK has no business even making speakers if they can't d any better than the HKTS - 18. The main surround speakers are adequate but the subwoofer is pretty poor to say the least. It is not even in the ballpark with my TsC ASW-10. They spent more time making a pretty piece of furniture than a good functional subwoofer.
Run from this thing don't walk except down the isle to another brand !
Customer Service is as poor as it gets. It is always the cable's problem never the 254 or you have bad HDMI cables. ( which I switched out and changed nothing ) They also say they will get back to you in 24 hours or less when
they should be saying if we get back to you at all your lucky.
The poorest piece of electronics I have bought in my 54 years and yes I am an electronic technician by trade.
There is a lot of fine equipment out there but the HK 254 is not one of them. I also have had great results with onkyo as have everyone I know who owns one. I was told not to buy the HK. I should have listened to the salesman for a change
Great entry/mid level system! Aug 07, 2010
I bought this receiver (re-furbished) on e-bay about 3 months ago and I must say I am very pleased with it. It is 7.1, has 1080 upscaling for picture quality, PAL to NTSC built in converter for any of your units that you may have bought from Europe (my PS3 is PAL and this unit saved me over $180 on a digital PAL to NTSC converter.) But the best thing I love about this receiver is the Zone 2 option. I basically can watch a blu-ray movie using my PS3 in the basement and listen to music from my I-river in our patio at the same time. One key note about Zone 2 setup is that if you do this, you can only use 5.1 sound in the main room and your Zone 2 equipment should be connected via analog.
There are a bunch of inputs (3 HDMI among many others) in the back of this unit and it is very versatile. It looks extremely cool but I must say it is very heavy especially due to its 1080 upscaling and PAL to NTSC conversion components. I paid about $220 for this receiver and I must say it was worth ever dollar.
On the downside, sound level is a problem for me. I also have an Onkyo 3300 and I really have to crank up the volume to about -14 dB to get some decent movie theater like experience on my HK (highest is +8 for reference.) In comparison, Onkyo delivers the same level of sound at just half. My speaker system (Yamaha NS-SP1800BL 5.1-Channel Home Theater Speaker Package) could be a reason but I doubt it as I called the customer service number for HK and they said this was the sound level I should expect.
In summary, I strongly recommend this system especially if you want a solid 7.1 receiver with 1080 upgrade and/or you need PAL/NTSC conversion and Zone 2 use at this price point. The only reason I gave it a 4 is because of the sound level. I still must say that you get a great quality sound from this system vs a lot of other systems out there at much higher prices.
Let me know if you have any questions...
 5 Star Review with Caveats Feb 27, 2010
The specs of this unit are obviously good, but when it came to actual function, I experienced several of the problems detailed throughout the reviews listed on Amazon. After trying the multiple firmware upgrades and still experiencing issues, Harman Kardon agreed to send me a new unit entirely free after over a year of owing the unit. The new box was the AVR2600, which has an additional HDMI port, the ability to add am iPod dock, and 15w more per channel. Not bad at all. And while I have to admit the customer service was a little bit of a roundabout, in the end, I received a product that I can't complain about.
Enjoying the sound Nov 04, 2009
I moved recently and treated that as an excuse to buy a new stereo system to replace the large and aging one that I had previously. The main feature that I was concerned with (aside from sound quality) was HDMI upconverting and switching, as I hoped to do away with the inconvenience of switching two sources all of the time on the TV and receiver.
I paired the receiver with a set of HKTS-18 speakers (a matched set of 5.1 speakers from HK). Setup was nothing out of the ordinary - hook up the sources, speakers, and go. No surprises there. When I turned it on, I was pleased to find that it has a robust on-screen display menu system (showing up on the TV) which makes setting up sources very easy. All I had to do was choose a source, and set the inputs for audio and video on that source. Done! The shortcut method for this is to select a new source, then turn on that source for the first time. The receiver will detect the inputs which just started and automagically set them up as the inputs for that source. It also lets you set default surround sound modes for different content types on each source. Finally, it has an automatic speaker tuning system where you place a microphone (included) near where you will sit when listening and it plays sounds to determine the proper level and tuning (bass, treble, phase, etc.) for each speaker. Very cool.
Because of the easy setup process, I was able to get right down to listening very quickly, and I was very impressed! It sounds crisp and clear at low-to-normal listening volumes, where my older system often sounded muffled. The subwoofer also sounded nice and level at low volumes, and blended well with the smaller satellites, which doesn't always happen with 5.1 systems. Some of this is because of the speakers themselves, but the crossover and auto tuning in the receiver also gets some credit for the smooth transition. I tried out some of the Logic 7 stereo upmixing filters and found them to be okay, but nothing special. For watching stereo TV, though, the movie mode works fine, and sound a bit better than simple stereo since it pulls out the voices and directs them to the center channel. Nothing that ProLogic doesn't already do, but they're not bad. On surround sound sources (blu-ray, dvd, etc.) it sounds fantastic! It can apparently do downmixing, too, but I haven't tried it. Over the weekend I threw a party and cranked up the system for the first time, and was pleasantly surprised by its performance at higher volumes. At only 50 watts/channel, I didn't expect it to really pump out dance music over a crowd, but it did an admirable job, and with no noticable distortion. I didn't even have to get it all the way up to full volume for it to be heard loudly over the crowd of 25 or so people dancing and chatting in the apartment.
The only slight annoyance that I have found with the receiver has to do with the HDMI support. I have a Motorola cable box, and from time to time the sound would cut out, forcing me to switch sources to get it back. After reading several pages on the internet about this, I thought I might need to upgrade the firmware on the receiver, but I already had the latest version. After looking around a bit more, I found out that the particular model of cable box that I have has issues with HDMI handshaking when changing channels. Ridiculous! So I hooked it up with component and optical audio instead and have had no problems since. Because the cable is only 1080i anyway, there's no loss in quality. That's the only problem I've had - everything else has been fantastic!
 good when works... that is not often Sep 19, 2009
it was my second HK, first a 247 replaced by the 254. problems in software and lost of image and sound. by HK CS i sent the receiver to HK service... for what... same issues.
Now the receiver is in a box in the basement... and a Denon 889 is taking care of the HT.
the HK has a very good sound and more power than the Denon... when works... the Denon works every day.
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Consumer Reports said that while no single retailer scored excellent in all shopping categories, Amazon.com and Crutchfield.com came closest.
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Consumer Reports Says: Buy HDTV at Amazon!
Washington, D.C. (July 2010) -- When it comes to price, Consumer Reports says shoppers are most likely to find the best deals online. And the publication called three ecommerce sites "standouts" in this year's Consumer Reports ratings of electronics stores: Amazon.com, Crutchfield.com and B&H (bhphotovideo.com)
The magazine's survey was based on more than 38,000 purchases of electronics, including flat-screen TVs, between January 2009 and June 2010. The report indicated that online stores consistently offered better prices. (The magazine's full report can be found in its July 2010 issue.)
"Buying online can be better," the magazine said in a press release. "The higher-rated electronics retailers in Consumer Reports annual reader survey are Web sites. Readers who bought online rated their overall satisfaction at 90 out of 100 -- higher than those who bought in a store. Additionally, many Web merchants offer free shipping, even on TVs, which could spare the hassle of struggling to fit a bulky carton in the car or paying a local store for delivery."
Consumer Reports said that while no single retailer scored excellent in all shopping categories, Amazon.com came closest.
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