Denon 3803 or HK 7200?

hamzahsh

I can get Denon 3803 for $1500 CDN. and Harman Kardon 7200 for $1900 CDN. Price is not an issue to me. I have a budget for about $2300 CDN.

I'm tied between these 2 great receivers. I watch 90% Movies and listen only 10% of music. I heard Denon 3803 is a great choice for HT but for music HK 7200 does better job. The only thing puts me down to get HK is the reliability issues. HK makes one of the best sounding receivers no doubt but there have been many problems reported by the users.

Denon seemed flawless to me. Every single review was in favour. HK has better bass management called Triple Crossover which is good for SACD and DVD-A listeners. Since I don't listen to both of those but in future I might get a SACD/DVD-A player. I really don't care for it now. HK 7200 has more power because of extra 75 AMPs of high current and massive Torroidal power supply.

I read the HK reviews and reviews were also in favour. Users said its a sweet sounding receiver and better than Denon 3803. Fuller sound because of 75 AMPS! Sounds good to me. HK is also great for HT too.

Which one should I get? I want buy a receiver by March of next year.

Tour2ma

Wouldn't you use the future SACDP's DAC's for music? Based upon your post in the Denon thread, and your HT/ 2 ch listening split, it would seem you'd want the Burr-Brown DAC Denon for your HT then. Yes?

The 3803 has a lot of proponents 'round here, as you likely know. Run it with a good sub to reduce the amp demands on the Denon and/ or add a Denon outboard amp to enable bi-amping and you'll make up its power deficiency PDQ.

Dr. Spec

Tour makes the best point. If you are high passing the speakers and using a sub with a dedicated amp, the current demands on the AVR are quite minor. Either one will suddenly act and feel like a 200 wpc powerhouse when feeding a high passed signal to an 8 ohm load.

If you will be running full range into a impedance reactive load, the H&K makes more sense.

The better SACD and DVD-A players have onboard bass management, so this should not really be an issue, and you will still be sending the AVR amps a high passed signal.

I would let it boil down to features, reliability, and sound quality. I wouldn't let power/current be the deciding factor unless you will be driving LSi or any speaker full range.

Doc

hamzahsh

Since I'm more into HT Denon is my best choice. I would defenitely go with Denon 3803. This receiver is very hard to beat especially the features and value for the money compare to other AVRs. Denon rocks!

Thanks for your help!

Tour2ma

Originally posted by hamzahsh
Thanks for your help!

You're welcome...

Actually this was an easy one since you'd already stated your DAC prefences in the other thread... Just pointed out you can have it both ways and economically overcome your power concerns...

hamzahsh

So lets say, if I want to buy a 2CH AMP add it to my 3803 in future just to satisfy my music needs what AMP should I get. Something not too cheap but not too expensive either. Effordable!
What brand and what should I look for?

Any suggestions!

Tour2ma

Safest move is match your AVP, so Denon. It's likely to have all the response characteristics of your AVP's amp section, but not guaranteed. Need to compare spec's to be sure, e.g., FR, input impedance, input sensitinity, damping factor, Rise time and slew rate.

Other manufacturers' amps may also match. You'll have to do some digging.

When it comes time don't forget that you can add a modest outboard amp and bi-amp your mains. It's an option worth considering.

hamzahsh

If I Bi-Amp my RT800i towers with 2 different wattages would that be safe. For e.g., Denon 3803 has 110w per channel but my question is If I buy an AMP For e.g HK PA2000 with 100w per channel (2ch) would that be safe for my 800i's.

High Freq connects - 110w Denon
Low Freq connects - 100wAMP(2CH)

or the other way around. I hope you got my question?

Safe or not?

Tour2ma

Yes. It is not necessary to match wattage.

Actually an outboard of lesser power for the High frequency service is an option. Not a lot of power demand there. Bass is where you need the oomph...

I'd either look to double the watts for bass service, i.e., 200 wpc, or look for 60 or so for the tweets.