Harman Kardon AVR7550HD 7.2 Channel Audio Video Receiver

The AVR 7550HD 7 x 110W 7.2-channel A/V receiver with HDMI V1.3a repeater, audio/video processing and upscaling to 1080p was among the first receivers to offer Dolby Volume technology, which automatically adjusts volume levels when switching between sources and channels. In addition, the AVR 7550HD delivers 110 watts of power to each of its seven channels and two subwoofer outputs. It accepts a universe of inputs, including HDMI, component video, S-video, USB and broadband Internet, as well as The Bridge II docking station (included) for iPod A/V playback, control and charging. Every Dolby and DTS technology is here, as is Faroudja DCDi Cinema and our exclusive Logic 7 processing. Zone II remote, Zone II OSD and A-BUS technologies work together to greatly simplify multiroom A/V applications. And the EzSet/EQ II system fine-tunes performance to the acoustic needs of your space in just a few easy steps. If there's something the AVR 7550HD can't do, it probably shouldn't be done.

Ultra High Performance, 7.2-Channel, iPod and Internet Radio Ready Home Theater Receiver with Dolby Volume & ABUS

The AVR 7550HD sets the standard for flagship features and performance. View larger.

Designed to Entertain
For more than 50 years, Harman Kardon products have been engineered to deliver the ultimate listening experience. In 1954, Harman Kardon produced the world's very first high-fidelity receiver, and the company has introduced many of the technologies associated with the world's best amplifiers. One example: high-current, ultrawide-bandwidth amplifier design, which is still in use. Today, Harman Kardon leads the industry in the pursuit of the finest audio and video quality, and its commitment to performance continues with advanced high-definition A/V receivers. Delivering a complete package of performance, design, flexibility and ease of use, Harman Kardon products are perfect for enjoying everything that today's high-definition digital content has to offer. So treat yourself to the ultimate at-home listening experience--one that only a Harman Kardon system can provide.

The AVR 7550HD incorporates Harman Kardon's acclaimed, high-current, ultrawide-bandwidth amplifier design

The included EzSet/EQII microphone automatically calibrates and equalizes your AVR 7550HD View larger.

Make Your Movie Library Look and Sound Its Best
Harman Kardon receivers have earned worldwide accolades for their uncompromising sound quality, and the AVR 7550HD builds upon this renowned heritage. The AVR 7550HD is Harman Kardon's most powerful receiver, incorporating the brand's acclaimed, high-current, ultrawide-bandwidth amplifier sections. The AVR 7550HD generates 110 watts for each of the receiver's seven channels while producing 60 amps of instantaneous current for the ultimate in sound performance. Whether it's the exciting sound of explosions from the latest movie or the detailed nuances of your favorite musical artist, the AVR 7550HD's amplifier delivers sound with uncompromised realism, dynamics and subtlety.

And what the AVR 7550HD does for audio, it also does for video. You know that the latest Blu-ray Disc movie or high-definition broadcast is going to look great on your high-definition display, but what about everything else? The Harman Kardon AVR 7550HD improves the look of standard-definition video with advanced Faroudja Torino processing, automatically upscaling lower-resolution sources to the 1080p HD standard. You can also independently configure your display settings and specify the optimal picture quality and aspect ratio for sources such as game consoles or your DVD collection.

When it comes to surround-sound decoding, the AVR 7550HD has you covered. In addition to decoding the latest Blu-ray Disc and surround formats such as Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio, the AVR 7550HD also includes proprietary Logic 7 processing, which is capable of generating discrete 5.1-channel or 7.1-channel sound from traditional two-channel sources.

Dolby Volume makes enjoying your system at the listening level you want easy.

Set It and Forget It
Tired of constantly having to adjust the volume on your current A/V setup? Do loud commercials send you running for the remote control? Are you experiencing dramatic differences in system performance at lower volume levels? Harman Kardon and Dolby Laboratories have the solution. The Harman Kardon AVR 7550HD is equipped with Dolby Volume, Dolby Laboratories' latest sound-processing technology. Set your preferred listening volume once, and the AVR 7550HD will use Dolby Volume to maintain that same volume level across all of your content, no matter what source produces it. In addition, Dolby Volume on the AVR 7550HD improves surround-sound performance at low listening levels. The AVR 7550HD even allows you to customize the performance of Dolby Volume to match your listening preference.

Fine-Tune Your System Like a Pro
There's an important difference between your home audio system and the systems that you hear in movie theaters and concert halls. Professional systems are precisely calibrated by audio technicians to deliver the best possible surround-sound experience. Harman Kardon's powerful EzSet/EQ system gives you all the tools you need to achieve professional sound calibration at home. This proprietary, automated room-equalization and system-calibration feature simplifies system setup and achieves optimal audio quality in any listening room. It automatically measures the frequency-response dips and peaks in the listening room with an advanced, omni-directional microphone and applies a precise, compensating equalization curve to achieve extraordinary sonic accuracy. Speaker-output levels and delay times are calibrated as well. As Harman Kardon's flagship receiver, the AVR 7550HD takes EzSet/EQ one step further by employing the most advanced version of this system that Harman Kardon has every had. Using EzSet/EQ II, the AVR 7550HD delivers more precise equalization by allowing near-field calibrations and as a 7.2 receiver, EzSet/EQ II calibrates for the use of dual subwoofers. The system sounds complicated, but using it couldn't be easier. Just connect the included microphone to your Harman Kardon AVR 7550HD receiver and follow the on-screen instructions. With a few simple steps, the AVR 7550HD will automatically adjust the sound to suit your exact room parameters.

The AVR 7550HD makes enjoying high-quality sound in another part of the house easy.

Playback audio and video from your iPod with complete control. View larger.

Connect to Your Favorite Content No Matter Where It May Be
Today we have so many options when it comes to finding and connecting to our favorite musical artist, favorite movie or favorite show. Many of us are using our computers and the internet to bring much of what we listen to and watch into our homes. As Harman Kardon's flagship receiver, the AVR 7550HD is on the cutting edge of allowing you to access and interface with these new sources of content. By plugging in an Ethernet cable to the included network jack, the AVR 7550HD is capable of playing music and photos from your networked PC or Mac. Through this connection, the AVR 7550HD has the ability to connect to the internet and stream any available Internet Radio station across the globe. If you find yourself using a USB flash drive to share music and photos, the AVR 7550HD even has a front panel USB input for full playback of all your favorite music and latest photos. And with the AVR 7550HD's unique user interface, accessing all this content couldn't be more simple and straightforward.

Listen to What You Want, Where You Want
As any family will tell you, a two-zone entertainment system can be a real crowd pleaser. While the kids watch their favorite movie on the theater system in the den, for example, you can be out listening to your favorite CD on the deck or in the back yard. As Harman Kardon's flagship receiver, the AVR 7550HD can even distribute video to second zone via composite for a complete two-zone entertainment system. The AVR 7550HD makes setting up a basic multi-room system easy. First, build a high-performance, 5.1-channel home theater around your video display. Then assign the two remaining channels to a second zone, wire an extra pair of speakers to a nearby room or outdoors, and you're done.

If you're planning a state-of-the-art, 7.1-channel home theater, you can still take advantage of the AVR 7550HD's multi-zone capabilities. Either integrate a dedicated multi-zone amplifier for a high-powered second zone, or integrate the latest A-BUS distributed audio system for more flexibility and control, and you can still enjoy sound in another part of the house.

Of course, with the AVR 7550HD, people in each zone can choose to listen to what they want to. And with the included second-zone remote or an A-BUS keypad, local control is only a button press away.

The AVR 7550HD features advanced connectivity, simplified set-up and even future upgradibility. View larger.

High definition on-screen displays makes setup and use easy.

Spend More Quality Time With Your iPod or iPhone
The iPod isn't just a great way to take your favorite music and videos anywhere, its also a great way to simplify the entertainment experience at home. The Harman Kardon AVR 7550HD makes it easy with the Bridge II docking station for iPod. A universal dock that connects with a single cable, the Bridge II lets you navigate your music and video libraries with high-resolution on-screen menus using the AVR 7550HD remote. Browse your iPod the way you usually do, whether by artist, album or genre. Audio is played back in rich, room-filling detail that only a Harman Kardon audio system can deliver. Videos are automatically upscaled to the HD standard, even including 1080p, and the Bridge II keeps your iPod fully changed even when the receiver is powered off.

Taking the Complexity out of a Cineplex-Quality Home Theater
There's no denying that a typical home-theater system can be challenging to set up and use, but Harman Kardon receivers are far from typical. The AVR 7550HD comes with the Quick-Start Guide, which walks you through the color-coded connections that you'll need for even the most elaborate multichannel systems.

* With four HDMI connections for the latest high-definition sources and a host of additional possibilities, connecting the AVR 7550HD to nearly any device is easy and straightforward. Once connected, you'll discover a Harman Kardon exclusive: a newly developed, high-definition, full-color on-screen menu system that utilizes both pictures and text to guide you in setting up a home-theater system and verifying that its components are connected and configured properly. The HD-resolution graphical interface uses alpha blending, a technique that allows the menus to be partially transparent and the video image to remain visible while you use the menus. The menu system also enables you to customize the name of each source as it appears on the AVR 7550HD's on-screen and front-panel displays. Complementing the interface's unmatched ease of use, the AVR 7550HD includes a newly designed, backlit remote control with an intuitive, ergonomic design.

Adding to its appeal, the AVR 7550HD features Harman Kardon's strikingly new, minimalist design. It is elegant and distinctive, with gracefully rounded corners, a gloss-black and dark-graphite lower panel, and soft-white illumination.

And if that isn't enough, the front-panel USB input for potential future software upgrades will enable you to enjoy the look and sound of your AVR 7550HD for years to come.

*Harman Kardon Receivers to Ship with HDMI v. 1.4 3D Compatibility
Starting in September 2010, all Harman Kardon AVR 2600, AVR 3600 and AVR 7550HD models will be shipping with HDMI v.1.4a with 3D. This will allow full compatibility with all 3D formats from either Blu-ray players or satellite and cable services.

What's in the Box
One high-performance AVR 7550HD Audio/Video receiver, one Bridge II docking station, one system remote control, one second zone remote control, one AM loop antenna, one FM co-axial antenna, one EzSet/EQ II calibration microphone

AVR Receiver Feature Chart

	AVR 1600	AVR 2600	AVR 3600	AVR 7550HD
Enjoy powerful, high-current amplification	50 watts X 7	65 watts X 7	80 watts X 7	110 watts X 7
Enjoy the best HD picture quality from all sources	1080p Pass through	Full 1080p up-scaling from all sources Full control to adjust picture by source to keep picture quality consistent	Full 1080p up-scaling from all sources Full control to adjust picture by source to keep picture quality consistent	Full 1080p up-scaling from all sources Full control to adjust picture by source to keep picture quality consistent
Enjoy the best high definition experience when using a Blu-ray Disc player	Dolby True HD and DTS Master Audio decoding	Dolby True HD and DTS Master Audio decoding Deep Color	Dolby True HD and DTS Master Audio decoding Deep Color	Dolby True HD and DTS Master Audio decoding Deep Color
Have easy system setup and control	Text based OSD	1080p User Interface with full color graphics	1080p User Interface with full color graphics	1080p User Interface with full color graphics
Set preferred listening volume with Dolby Volume circuitry
Play music and movies from your iPod or iPhone and stream music from the internet	Auxiliary Stereo Jack for headphone cable	Optional Bridge III iPod dock for full audio / video playback and control even from and iPhone	Included Bridge III iPod dock for full audio / video playback even from an iPhone	Included Bridge II iPod dock for full audio / video playback and control Ethernet for internet music streaming
Have easy speaker setup and Room Correction	EzSet/EQ auto calibration microphone	EzSet/EQ auto calibration microphone	EzSet/EQ auto calibration microphone	EzSet/EQ II auto calibration microphone for near/far field & 2nd sub
Enjoy sound and/or video in another part of your house	EzSet/EQ auto calibration microphone	Assignable channels for Zone 2 Audio only	Assignable channels and Pre-amp out for Zone 2 Audio only A-Bus Zone 2 Remote	Assignable channels and Pre-amp out for Zone 2 Audio and Video A-Bus Zone 2 Remote

Owner Reviews, Ratings, Comments and Criticism
I have been a HK fan for years. My last HK product was the DPR2005. I had great luck with it and really enjoyed it until I went with HDMI hookups in my home theater and it had none. A high end pro-audio store along with a number of reviews for current HK product lines convinced me to try another brand. After trying in my home Denon, Sony, Onkyo, Marantz I finally settled on Marantz. The sound that I was used to just wasn't there but it was fine. I suspected that the difference was the digital path receiver. I replaced every speaker in my 7.2 surround system to try to capture the sound I like and was moderately satisfied with the sound when I was done. Just recently I decided to try to give the HK AVR 7550HD a try since it was closeout priced and not a big risk. I was wrong, the sound I missed is in the HK products and not in the others. This receiver is extraordinary! For anyone that has the opportunity to buy one why they are still left I suggest they do so. Just a word to the wise though, I would, as with any quality electronic device use a good power conditioner to protect it. I believe that most problems encountered with electronics today are power variation related and not the fault of the devices whatsoever. I spent thousand replacing speakers that were completely unneeded, had I just purchased the Harman Kardon devices that I have come to enjoy so much since I bought my first HK seperates in the 70's