Harman Kardon AVR 7300 Test Report page 3

TEST REPORT
P LU S
Flagship performance.
Faroudja DCDi video processing.
Composite/S-video inputs
upconverted to component-video.
Bass management and synthesized
back surround channel for
SACDs and DVD-Audio discs.
M I N U S
Complex remote control.
Audible cooling fan.
trol is elegant to look at and sensibly laid
out, but its small keys and tiny lettering
made it difficult to use even with the back-
lighting on. (And you need two hands to
push the Light key way down in one cor-
ner.) The pair of big, four-way keypads
— one for volume and channel selection,
and the other for cursor directions — look
enough alike to be confusing, though tell-
ing them apart by touch is easy.
On the plus side, a single key on the re-
mote (and the front panel) is dedicated to
each major "family" of surround modes
DOLBY DIGITAL PERFORMANCE
Output at clipping (1 kHz into 8/4 ohms)
1 channel driven .... 202/343 W (23.1/25.3 dBW)
5 channels driven (8 ohms).....145 W (21.6 dBW)
7 channels driven (8 ohms).....139 W (21.4 dBW)
Distortion at 1 watt (THD+N, 1 kHz)
8/4 ohms...........................................0.03/0.04%
Noise level (A-wtd) ............................. –75.0 dB
Excess noise (with sine tone)
16-bit (EN16)........................................... +1.4 dB
Frequency response
20 Hz to 20 kHz +0, –0.3 dB
MULTICHANNEL PERFORMANCE,
ANALOG INPUT
Distortion (THD+N, 1 kHz, 8 ohms)....0.01/0.03%
The AVR 7300 performed exceptionally well in
the lab. Power output was unusually strong,
especially with five and seven channels driven.
Crossover response was generally consistent,
but the 12-dB-per-octave low-pass subwoofer
output was a little unusual — steeper, 18- or
24-dB-per-octave slopes are more common.
Noise performance ranged from good (multi-
channel analog) to excellent (Dolby Digital and
CD stereo) except for 96-kHz/24-bit stereo
(all stereo figures omitted for space — for
complete lab data, see our Web site). The AVR
7300 was actually a shade noisier with those
signals than with standard CDs. Since the
64 NOVEMBER 2004 SOUND & VISION
— like Dolby, DTS, and Logic7 — and
you step through the variants in each fam-
ily by pressing the same button again. Un-
fortunately, the remote's library of prepro-
grammed control codes didn't include either
my cable box or my DVD recorder, neither
of which is particularly exotic.
To my surprise, once the receiver had
been on for 30 minutes or so, its automatic
internal cooling fan ran much of the time
regardless of the volume setting or actual
power demands. Though the fan was by no
means obnoxiously loud, I could hear it
from my listening position during pauses
and even over very soft musical passages.
For serious listening I usually power down
both my TiVo and my computer for just this
reason, so maybe I'm overly sensitive. But
powering down the receiver to quiet its fan
isn't an option!
Putting my relatively incon-
BOTTOM LINE
sequential gripes aside, the Harman Kardon
AVR 7300 is one helluva digital surround
receiver. If you want tremendous setup flex-
ibility, top-drawer performance, truly su-
perb surround options, and unusually cus-
tomizable video outputs, it's one you really
should check out.
in the lab
Noise level (A-wtd) ............................. –83.1 dB
Frequency response
below 10 Hz to 166 kHz +0, –3 dB
BASS-MANAGEMENT
PERFORMANCE
Subwoofer-output frequency response
(crossover set to 80 Hz)
12 dB/octave above –3-dB rolloff point of 74 Hz
High-pass-filter frequency response
(crossover set to 80 Hz)
12 dB/octave below –3-dB rolloff point of 81 Hz
Maximum unclipped subwoofer output
(trim at 0)................................................ 6.5 volts
Subwoofer-output distortion (from 6-channel,
30-Hz, 0-dBFS signal; trim at 0).............. 0.05%
receiver performed well with 96/24 signals in
all other respects, I suspect this was its digital-
to-analog converters misresponding to our
dither-only test signal rather than a "real" noise
problem.
The receiver handled all sources and media
types consistently except for slight changes
(a few hertz) in the –3-dB points with analog
inputs. Bass management was provided for
all media, including digital stereo and multi-
channel analog (defeatable with the Direct
mode), all channels can be set to "small," and
speaker-distance compensation is available for
all main channels and all inputs.
S&V
— D.K.
soundandvisionmag.com