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HK AVR8000 as pre/pro? (1 Viewer)

AntonS

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Dec 18, 2001
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As the idea of of getting AVM-20 from Canada for a pretty good price has flopped, I'm looking for a pre/pro again.
As I don't see too many choices on the pro/pro market, I'm toying with the idea of buying a good receiver (online) and using it as pre/pro.
Basically I have narrowed down my search to Sony DA5ES and HK 520 for budget receivers, and HK AVR8000, Onkyo 989 and Pioneer 49-TX as more upscale. From these the AVR8000 looks most interesting.
From what I see it has dual Crystal DSP and Analog Devices 192kHz/24bit DACs (are these good?) It seemingly has very flexible bass management with variable crossover and 4th order filtering. It can decode all possible formats. It seemingly has full blown Logic 7 which works even for DD5.1 sources (Lexicon on the budget?) It's THX Ultra (not Ultra2 though). It has pure direct mode. It has several separate power supplies. It can memorize settings for different inputs. It supports multizoning and even comes with 2 remotes. Icing on the cake is automatic calibration, some fancy VMAx processing (may be used with headphones, but who cares), MP3 decoding (who cares), HDCD decoder. It has 5 channels amp, but I don't really care as I'll be using external amp (although may need two channels for rears, or may use some channels for 2nd zone). Right now I see only one drawback - no RS232 port, so if they find a bug in the software there's no way to fix it.
So all that for just $1600-1800 street? C'mon there just must be something wrong...
I cannot find much online on this unit. Anybody has it? How is it built? It it good for music? Any gripes about it? How would it compare sonically to a good (or not so good:) pre/pro or receiver? To AVM-20? To Rotel 1066? To Denon 5803? To 49TX? To Outlaw 950?
Anyway, is it a good idea to use it as pre/pro? The rest of my system is Paradigm setup with Studio 100 for mains, and Sherbourn 5/1500A amp (still waiting for it.)
 

DonJ

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I would have to say that would be pretty expensive to not use the equipment that way it’s supposed to be 2,500 at Crutchfield. I would buy the avm20 at the 3,200 and most likely get more for my money. This is coming from an owner of an H/K 320
 

Richard Burzynski

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Anton:

True, not too many user reviews yet. If you search this forum you will find 1-2 owners - they're the ones that verified L7 for DD & DTS. On paper, it would be the ideal prepro (+amps for surround channel speakers if you so choose). The only "risk" here is that the 7000 was a little buggy. If you can get a few people to tell you that the 8000 is fairly bug-free then you should be very happy.

Rich B.
 

AntonS

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DonJ, It's questionable if I get more from my money if I pay MSRP for AVM-20, and that's what our greedy local dealer asks. Actually looks exactly the opposite. Crutchfield is also always way overpriced.

All high end pre/pros now use same or similar DPSs and DACs. So it's also questionable that AVM-20 will sound better than AVR8000 when connected to the same amp. But that's exactly what I'm trying to get feedback on. Have you had a chance to listen to both of them?
 

Angelo_Petralba

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If I had the MONEY to buy the AVR 8000- I would definitely consider it. I'm a Sony 5ES owner and I love this machine but if I had the extra cash, I would have picked up the AVR 8000 just because I know it will SOUND better. I've heard it at a local shop and I am also a previous AVR owner.

Another PLUS about the AVR 8000 are the ASSIGNABLE amps which is PERFECT if you are going to buy a separate amp.

Good Luck
 

Dalton

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I am also very interested in hearing more about this unit from proffesionals or owners. I am on the waiting list for the Outlaw 950 but this receiver has some great features and sounds like it would make a great pre/pro. I already have a 5 ch. amp and i like the fact that the 8000 has main amp inputs so i can assign the channels any way I like. I also love the fact that L7 can be applied to 5.1 sources. I would love to demo this unit.
 

Michael Lee

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I have not heard this receiver with external amplification or in 7 channel but, I have heard it running plain ole' 5.1 and it was awesome. I would not hesitate to buy one of these if I did not plunk down the cash to get a Denon 5803. It is not confiremd but I heard that these are much more reliable then the 7000--H/K may have gotten their act together after that shaky performance with that one.
 

AntonS

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Dalton,

I spoke with a couple of owners of AVR 8000 today. Basically they confirmed that there are no any [known] issues with the unit. So I've ordered one! I'll be posting review in a few weeks as soon as I get the whole setup (I'm still waiting on Sherbourn 5/1500A amp), get comfortable with the features, and gather enough experience with the unit.

I bought from ecost.com about $1650 shipped. To me it's a real steal for top of the line DSPs and DACs plus pretty thorough implementation of Logic 7 (!!!) plus very flexible bass management plus whole bunch of features and enhancements plus 5 channels of high current assignable amplification (with separated power supplies) for extra needs. Comparing to bareboned Outlaw 950 (cannot even save separate setting for different inputs???) or Rotel 1066 (96kHz DACs in a dedicated pre/pro in 2002???) it looks like a no brainer. It's not upgradeable, but as long as it can decode all current formats, and no other formats are pending to appear any soon (do you know of any?), and other companies charge you $400-$800 for upgrades, I think I'm fine... I'd better buy something new it 3-4 years anyway and retire the AVR 8000 to the bedroom (thanks for its built-in amps.)

Now, having said all that - if I was tough on the budget, I'd be looking at HK 560 or Sony DA5ES as pre/pros. It seems like for the money they are hard to beat. They both have similar (and quite extensive) features and seemingly very good DSPs and DACs. As pure pre/pros - and I wouldn't even try to load their amps - they look a lot better (and cheaper!) than ubiquitous Outlaw 950 or Rotel 1066.
 

Angelo_Petralba

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Now, having said all that - if I was tough on the budget, I'd be looking at HK 560 or Sony DA5ES as pre/pros. It seems like for the money they are hard to beat. They both have similar (and quite extensive) features and seemingly very good DSPs and DACs. As pure pre/pros - and I wouldn't even try to load their amps - they look a lot better (and cheaper!) than ubiquitous Outlaw 950 or Rotel 1066.
AMEN to that!
I think I'll just save a little more money and buy the Sherbourn 5/1500A, maybe the price will go lower next year.
Congrats on your Purchase:emoji_thumbsup:
 

DonJ

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All I'm saying is that if your not going to use the H/K 8000 as a full reciever and use the amp section of the unit you could spend else where and most likely get more for yuor money. Now if you were going to use the Avr 8000 as a Full reciever you couldn't get more for money.
 

Gabriel_Lam

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They're $1600 from some HK authorized dealers. THX Ultra, Logic7 from digital sources, and a host of other goodies. What Pre/Pro is better for the same or less?
 

Dalton

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AntonS,
Thanks for sharing your findings on the 8000. It is darn tempting for me to try one out. I am going to my dealer tommorow. Sometimes he will match an internet price. If not, I might try ecost. It is a tough call for me right now between the Outlaw 950 and the 8000. One thing is for sure, the 8000 has the Outlaw beat in the looks dept. !!:)
 

DonJ

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Where can you buy a H/K 8000 for $1600. LEt me know because I will buy one.
 

Gabriel_Lam

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OneCall is an H/K authorized dealer who have been selling right about there. They pricematch. There's also a bunch of less reliable dealers right about that price range.
Link Removed
If you know someone who works at Circuit City or something, we're talking closer to the $1300 price range.
 

JeffMuller

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Apr 18, 2000
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As an aside, as an AVR-7000 owner, I have had no (major) problems with the unit. I would not consider it buggy at all. The only problem I have had is that the outlets on the back have blown, and that's because they internally used the wrong fusing on earlier runs. I decided it wasn't worth pulling my system apart to have it fixed.

My only complaint about the 7000 is that the bass management isn't flexible enough: I'd like to crossover at around 60 Hz, but the lowest it'll do is 80. If I had the dough, I'd get an 8000 in a second!

... and I'd have no problem with using the internal amps to drive my Studio 100s!
 

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