Geoff L

H/K AVR-325, ~wanted~ all known bugs & problems?

What are (all) of the known bugs and problems of H/K's AVR-325???

Has H/K worked these out on later runs of 325's & also their refurb 325 units??

If possibly so, aprox where dose the serial #'s start in new No problem units, if such a thing?

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Is there anything that this AV-Receiver ~{Dose or Dose Not Do}~ that you like or dislike, and is different from the bugs and real problems asked about above????
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Any user information regarding the bugs/problems & dis-like/like questions specific to H/K's 325 would be very appreciated...!

Looking at a New or Refurbed H/K-325 as a cheap Pre, tho it's amp section might be used at a later date...

Thanks much
Geoff

AndrewErickson

I own a refurbished 325 so here's my list of likes and dislikes:

Likes

1. Strong amp section. Underrated at 50 WPC.
2. Easy to tweak speaker settings without using OSD.
3. Lots of DSP's including DPLII, Logic 7, DTS:NEO6.
4. Internal pink noise test tones to set speaker output.
5. Very clean sound and can easily push to deafening levels without distortion.
6. Bass Management. Can set crossover for fronts, center, surrounds, back surrounds independent of each other and the sub.
7. Front displays a lot of information.
8. Volume and channel punch through on remote. Can change TV channels or volume regardless of mode remote is in.

Dislikes

1. Takes about 1 second to lock onto digital signal, thus you lose 1 second of audio when switching modes during DVD playback.

2. Pausing and then resuming a DVD that is encoded in DTS causes the audio to drop out. Only fix is to swich receiver away from DVD and then back to reacquire signal. This may occur only with specific DVD players.

3. Buttons on remote are small and there is no back-lighting.

Geoff L

Hi Andrew

Thanks for the response it's appreciated.

I had hopes that refurb units & later run 325's might have gotten a fix for the digital delay, (1 to 3 seconds seems the norm).. You do confirm that this is not the case, as your refurb dose have the digital delay and even signal loss while in DTS & "paused". Tho this may be possibly player induced, I really doubt it.

A few more questions:
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Will the receiver hold separate settings (channel levels, crossover-selection, speaker sizes, tone controls, etc) for the different DSP and Digi formates.
NEO, L-7, DPLII, DD, DTS, etc..?

How HOT dose the receiver run when (just on for a period of time and at an idle), not producing sound...??

Also dose the heat increase "substansualy" when the amplifiers are in mild volume action...?
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Andrew or others,
Could someone provide a (case only)
measurment from the front to the rear of the 325 please???

On a side note:
I thought for sure the H/K haters, like the very vocal Yammi haters, would be all over this. Seems it just not the case & this is a good thing.
Really getting tired of the Yammi put downs, and other brand bashing, deserved or not. It just really serves no one to continue to grind on the Yammi wattage & bright thing over and over...

A case (for a put down) can be made for nearly every brand out their, if one looks hard enough.
Actual owner/user information (reardless of the model and brand being asked about), will serve the poster best unless (problems/bugs/personal-gripes) are asked for, "like here"..

Regards
Geoff

Harold Wazzu

Geoff L

Yes many receivers have the delay, some are worse than others.
1-second is tolerable certainly, but have read about and listened to receivers with digi input delay of up to 5-seconds. This even when playng a CD straight threw with no disc changing or song pause intailed..
5-seconds delay on CD play threw (between songs) is just unacceptable to me!

Thought I read that some H/K's (25-series) that came out had channel volume problems in one of the mains, and some with noise (hissing) in the rears. The ones with noise in the rears usually broke a short while later with both rear amps or one rear amp going poof...
Tried a couple searchs to re-locate this info, but could not find anything.

Those with the 325, how is the FM section on the receiver? Sensitivity, station rejection, S/N, seperation/stereo, and it's rated freq response....
It's an AVR receiver I know, but I do allot of FM listening in the summer. This is certainly not a deciding factor by any means, but is of interest to me and maybe others..

So, the H/K 25's being sold now, New or Refurbed, are just fine with no apparent problems????

Edit:
Is Ecost.com a authorized H/K seller and thus one retains the full H/K warranty?

AndrewErickson

It will save independent settings per INPUT and not per DSP.


It's certainly warm when idling and gets pretty hot when pushed. It does have a fan but is very quiet and doesn't come on very often. Mostly during loud 5 channel operation.


I don't have the main channel volume problem. I haven't run any rears so I wouldn't know if I have a problem with them. I plan on putting the rear channels to use with some outdoor speakers this spring. Oh! multi-room operation is a plus. It also comes with 2 remotes.

I have no experience with FM.

I believe ecost.com is an authorized dealer. I bought mine from www.onecall.com for $390.

Geoff L

Thank you Andrew for chiming in!

I had hopes that this thread would bring forth any and all issues that have or may have plagued 325 users, or receivers in the 25 series.
With the many threads coming up from time to time dealing with some type problem or another with H/K's receivers, it has all but shyed me away from intertaining the thought of picking one up.

I know that all problems of some sort are NOT just specific to the 325 model, but H/K problems still continue to pop up. (The 20 series allot) tho the 25 series certainly seems NOT immune either.

I'm really stuck in a rutt now and not really sure if I should gamble or not on the H/K~325.
It's a terriable way to think about a purchase I admit. Not owning a piece of H/K equipment for some time, I really would like to try the 325 out. It has all the things I desire in a med priced receiver/pre, except podssible reliability!!

So talk me into or out of it, I'm really stuck here and if I was to buy, which one might be the smarter purchase, new or refurbed..???

Still would like a case measurment ~{from front to rear}~ in inches please....????
NO knobs or jacks just the case....

Regards
Geoff

AndrewErickson

Let's compare a new vs. refurbised receiver...

NEW
2 year warranty
could have problems

Refurbished
2 year warranty
extensively tested and problems fixed
substantially lower price

Case dimensions...

http://www.harmankardon.com/specific...%20325&sType=H

Geoff L

Thanks once again for your take Andrew

I have thought all along that a refurb by H/K would be the best buy, not just for price, but because it has been gone threw a second time. Any newer fixes that may have come about, will have been hopefully applied. Given H/K's some what scared track record, in this case it makes more sence to purchase this way...

Thanks for the link, but I've been their and have those measurments.

I'm looking for ~{just the case depth).

The depth measurments at H/K's site, and generally for most brands, "will include" the volume knob and the furthest protruding object in the rear. Generaly the in/out jacks. This can add as much as 2 inches on some receivers...

Over all:
I'm certainly not lazy and looking for others to do my home work, just thought maybe my thinking might be flawed in looking to the refurb instead of new (by something I missed/or had not thought about.
Seems the warranty is the same as long a purchased from an authorize dealer/seller, so really nothing lost in the warranty for sure.

I live over 60 miles from the nearest H/K service center, so if an unfortuanate problem arises, it's not a quick little trip down the block to have it looked at and fixed.

Even a B&M store to look at a 325, measure the needed depth, and demo the H/K, is well over 50-miles away. This is why I asked for the 325's (case depth measurment only) no knobs and jacks.. I have a limited depth space for the receiver to fit on the top shelf of the floating rack. It is open on the top and sides, so no problem their...

Regards
Geoff