Buy Harman Kardon Signature Series 2.1 Multichannel AmplifierHarman Kardon Signature Series 2.1 Multichannel Amplifier Product Description:
- 100 watts per channel x 5
- High current, ultrawide-bandwidth design
- Low negative feedback and low harmonic distortion
- Auto turn-on triggered from HK Signature 2.0 preamplifier/surround processor
- Fanless cooling design
Product Description
Large chassis requires even larger space for good ventilation Slightly dry top end (high frequencies) Product Description The Signature 2.1's brute-force high-current capability (over 100 amperes!) belies the sonic delicacy and fine detail that this power amplifier is capable of delivering. With an astonishing ultrawide bandwidth of 1kHz to 170kHz (?3dB), the 2.1 provides tight, fast, controlled bass down the lowest reproducible octaves; a panoramic, three-dimensional soundstage; and open, articulate treble. It's warm and natural-sounding at any volume level.Weighing almost fifty pounds, the 2.1 is designed to deliver the full impact of the wide dynamic range of today's movie soundtracks and digital music media. Five separate channels each deliver 100 watts into 8 ohms or 150 watts into 4 ohms, all channels driven 20Hz to 20kHz, with less than 0.03% total harmonic distortion. Yet its efficient design and generous convection heat exchanger totally eliminate the need for noisy forced-air fans.
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
20 of 21 people found the following review helpful.
Amp with Atl. Tech. THX select
By Andrew A. Edmonds
This seems like a really nicely built amp. I bought a demo model for under $500 which makes is a real bargain. It runs warm but not hot to the touch. It sounds very dynamic and clean, I can't detect any kind of coloration from the amp. If anything it's too transparent because it will make bad sources sound as they are: bad. I haven't tried it with any big speakers to see how well the bottom end hits, but the top end seems real good. Very dynamic for movies with my Atlantic Tech. System 270 THX Select speakers. The retail prices are a bit high, for $1200 I'd probably prefer other amps such at Outlaw's Model 750 for $1099 or others from Parasound, B&K or Rotel. But if you can find a decent price on this amp it is a high quality product. It could easily meet THX Ultra specs for power and performance.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful.
Killer Amp -- all five of 'em
By Jason P. Gold
I bought a Sig 2.0/2.1 combo because my speakers are 25 years old, the size of small coffins, and have low impeadances. They love current. Even with 45 amps of current, the protection circuits in my old HK AVR500 would kick in under heavy (cranked to the max) loads, and shut the unit off.Specs:The amp has 5 X 100 watts per channel for home theater applications. Frequency response is <1Hz - 170kHz, +0dB/-2dB with ?100 Amps of current. Total Harmonic Distortion is rated at <0.03% at rated output.IMPRESSIONS:I did an a/b comparison between my Harman Kardonn AVR500 and the signature 2.1 amp. The AVR500 has some of the best amps available in an home theater receiver. The 2.1 amp is made by Madrigal, the division of Harman International which makes Mark Levinson and other ultra high end products, so, I expected some improvement over the 500. I plugged the preamp outs on my AVR500 to the Sig 2.1 using some midgrade RCA cables. To my surprise, the 2.1 is a real improvement. It is fast, detailed, articulate, controlled and powerful. The soundstage is very, very good. The balance is excellent, with a slight low midbass prominence.What this means is that my speakers found bass I thought they lost to room accoustics or maybe never had. I put on the Fleetwood Mack DVD "The Dance." The grit at the edge Stevie Nicks' voice showed up along with the air over the mike. I put on Guennevere from the Crosby Stills and Nash 4 CD compilation. You could hear the flutter of the bass string along with the note. I always though my speakers were a bit analytical, but they found a warmth in the vocal harmonies I didn't think they had. Yes! (Keys to Ascention DVD) - Emerson, Lake and Palmer (Royal Albert Hall DVD) -- George Benson (DVD Audio) - The Doors (LA Woman DVD Audio) - Horowitz in Moscow (CD) - Cheryl Crow (CD). They all sounded better.I subsequently bought a Carver M500t amplifier which is a low end audiophile quality amp with 200 watts per channel. The Carver aparently was designed for a "tube" sound, and sounded soft and colored in comparison. The Carver was swiftly sold on e-bay.Life is good.Strengths:Lots of amps. Warm, open sound. Lots of value for the money if you can find one. Made in the USA!Weaknesses:I had some problems with one channel of the the amplifier working only intermittently and had to take it back to HK several times. Made in the USA! They couldn't fix it, and eventually replaced it.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.Silent and Powerful
By Conrad B. Senior
A friend gave me one of these in trade for some work I did for him. The trigger circuit was bad and it just needed a new diode to fix it. If you have any issues with your amplified, check that circuit out--it is a cheap and easy fix.No fans=no fan noise VERY NICE to have a quiet powerful amp. Place it in a place with good air circulation. I've put my receiver on top of it, for visibility, but if you can reverse that and put this on top, so much the better for cooling--it does get hot.It is heavy and well built, five independent channels of 100 Amps of power is a bit of over kill, particularly for the surround sound speaker channels.I was also given a powerful sub woofer which mates up to this nice. Unfortunately my receiver is old and a few of the capacitors are gone and it take a long time to warm up. I will be taking a look at that soon as it is a pretty nice receiver and worth keeping.In any event, this amp is an outstanding solid state amplifier, one of the best, and cost over $2000 new. If you can pick one up for under $1000, you scored a fantastic amplifier that will last a long long time.I know many people claim tube amps sound better. Trust me, I have heard many tube amps that audiophiles rave about, and I can't hear any difference. This amp has so much power it is certainly to be operating in the linear portion of the amp without any distortion.I like this so much I'm thinking about getting the mating pre-amp.
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