Harman kardon cp40?

Question

How do you like this product? Do you wish you got another home theater for the same price? I've been looking at the logitech z5500 since its cheaper and puts out more watts, but I know the harman kardon would sound much better than pc speakers, also the onkyo SR800 is the same price which is a 7.1 but it wouldnt be neccesary to have in my room since my room isn't so big. Out of the 3 which would be a better setup to have? thanks

Answer 1

A review site (at the link) was undecided. They found the feature set underwhelming. So you may want to read a bit more to see if anything missing is important to you.

HK have a bit of a reputation for slightly high prices for what you get. BUT they offer good quality and generally good sound. So, if you can get a good price and/or the things a reviewer finds as "cons" don't matter to you the CP40 could be a good choice. For example, my wife just bought an HK Go-Play speaker system for her iPod ... reviewers loved the sound but found it somewhat overpriced and had a couple of features they didn't like. But she got it on sale and the features they didn't like were not a concern for her ... so it was a great choice for her.

I have Logitech Z680 surround speaker system ... which is an earlier version of the Z5500. It's a good computer speaker system but not comparable to the CP40 since that is a complete HTIB system.

The Onkyo SR800 is a very good receiver (see review at 2nd link), but doesn't include speakers or DVD player, so again it isn't really comparable.

In general, HTIB systems offer good value for the money since they tend to match quality of the various components and give you a whole system for one price. That said, few manufacturers make the best of everything, so doing research and buying individual components has it's advantages. A third option is to buy a system assembled by a reputable store who choose compatible components and can offer an attractive package price.

But the most important thing isn't price or reviewers opinions, its your preferences. I strongly advise you to think about your needs (now and for the forseeable future (e.g. flexibility to upgrade or incorporate additional components)) and buy accordingly based on features and sound that works for you.

Hope this helps. Happy listening.