Ultimate Harman Kardon Integrated Amp - HK 990

I want it!!!! Looks like the HK 990 will be available in the US (as it is listed on HK's US website):

http://www.harmankardon.com/EN-US/Pr...x?PID=HK%20990

First off, this thing is beauuuuuutiful... But more importantly, it has the most advanced set of features I've ever seen on an Integrated Amp:

Room Correction
DAC
2.2 Channels - meaning 2 subwoofer outputs
Balanced Inputs
150 watts per channel @ 8 ohms, doubling to 300 @ 4 ohms

I haven't been able to find a US price yet, but in the UK it goes for 1000 GBP, so I'd expect it to retail between $1K and $2K....

Looks like the Harman Group have finally produced an amp that makes sense to pair with Revel's more affordable Concerta and possibly even Performa Series...

The Amp and matching CD player have already received rave reviews in Europe (for both sound quality and features)...

Did I mention that I want it??? I want it now!!!!

Looks impressive. My first HK was an integrated amp.

My 930 Twin still rocks me...

http://www.vintageaudio.com.au/tuner...3-4_Sm2427.jpg

both look very nice and powerful! harman kardon makes only good amps and receivers!

A 5 Star review of the Amp and matching CD player from Hi-Fi Choice (UK):

http://www.techradar.com/reviews/aud...-594768/review

Also, the Amp received the EISA Award for Best European Audio Amplfier 2009 - 2010:

http://www.eisa.eu/awards

The AMP and CD are also in HiFi News' Products of the Year (though you have to keep in mind that HiFi News is one of the mags on the panel for EISA, so this can be seen as an overlap).

According to the HiFi News measurements, the Amp's power is conservatively rated and actually delivers 215 watts @ 8 ohms. Further, it can deliver peaks of 1.5kw at 1 ohm!!! So it really should be able to drive just about any speaker...

I can't wait to see what Stereophile or TAS think of it....

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Ajani

I want it!!!! Looks like the HK 990 will be available in the US (as it is listed on HK's US website):

http://www.harmankardon.com/EN-US/Pr...x?PID=HK%20990

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It just looks like any of the other amps they've put out in the recent past. The room correction feature is a very nice touch. Personally i find they offer too many features but that may suit some people. However the room correction, if good, I would be happy to have as feature.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by audio amateur

It just looks like any of the other amps they've put out in the recent past. The room correction feature is a very nice touch. Personally i find they offer too many features but that may suit some people. However the room correction, if good, I would be happy to have as feature.

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True... it has the now standard HK look... but that look is damn sexy (IMO)...

Also, while some people won't need all those features... the options exists to bypass all of them (for purists) AND more importantly, according to the reviews: the amp would still be a good deal at its current price (1000 GBP) without the extra features (based solely on sound quality)... so the features are just a bonus (if you want them) or something to be ignored/bypassed (if you don't need them)...

MM and MC phono intputs....Pretty impressive there, AJ!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Auricauricle

MM and MC phono intputs....Pretty impressive there, AJ!

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Good Point AA, I totally forgot about the phono inputs since I don't use a turntable, but they are another selling point for someone who does...

Too many AA's on this forum. By the way, he's Aa.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Ajani

I want it!!!! Looks like the HK 990 will be available in the US (as it is listed on HK's US website):

http://www.harmankardon.com/EN-US/Pr...x?PID=HK%20990

First off, this thing is beauuuuuutiful... But more importantly, it has the most advanced set of features I've ever seen on an Integrated Amp:

Room Correction
DAC
2.2 Channels - meaning 2 subwoofer outputs
Balanced Inputs
150 watts per channel @ 8 ohms, doubling to 300 @ 4 ohms
...

Did I mention that I want it??? I want it now!!!!

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It does lack a built-in subwoofer crossover. There are integrateds with this feature and certainly it's standard on AV receivers.

A good subwoofer crossover should allow for selectable high-pass, (to feed the main speakers),as well as low-pass filters, and stereo as well as LFE outputs.

To be sure, it's good to see digital inputs; a USB connection would be handy too.

Aha!!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Feanor

It does lack a built-in subwoofer crossover. There are integrateds with this feature and certainly it's standard on AV receivers.

A good subwoofer crossover should allow for selectable high-pass, (to feed the main speakers),as well as low-pass filters, and stereo as well as LFE outputs.

To be sure, it's good to see digital inputs; a USB connection would be handy too.

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It has crossover settings for the sub: 40 to 200hz in 10hz steps... you have the option to set this manually or let the room correction/eq do it for you...

Only thing missing is the USB input (though frankly I'd prefer wireless streaming).... but I guess we can't get everything...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Ajani

It has crossover settings for the sub: 40 to 200hz in 10hz steps... you have the option to set this manually or let the room correction/eq do it for you...

Only thing missing is the USB input (though frankly I'd prefer wireless streaming).... but I guess we can't get everything...

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Right. I missed those sub outputs when I first looked.

The 990 gear just came to my attention, so I called HK customer service and was told the units were discontinued in 2009, which really sucks!

UPDATE:

So Harman has finally released the HK990 AMP and matching HD990 CD Player... The CD player is priced as I'd expect $600 (retails for 500GBP in the UK)... While the Amp pricing is either a mistake or a sick joke at $2400 (considering the amp retails for 1000GBP)... So about $1500 sounds right... anyway, only time will tell if the pricing is a mistake...

http://www.harmankardon.com/EN-US/Pr...=1&tsT=0&ovT=1

Even stranger is that the prices on the official press release are $2600 and $700 for the amp and cd:

http://hometheaterreview.com/harman-...e-of-products/