Ad: Manage updates with the Download App
ie8 fix

kardon

JBL runs TV ads; watch out, Bose

I nearly fell off my couch when I saw Harman Kardon and JBL ads in the middle of the Grammy Awards show on Sunday night.

Audio-brand awareness in the mainstream is mostly limited to Bose and Beats by Dr. Dre, but now it looks like Harman, the parent company of AKG, Harman Kardon, JBL, Mark Levinson, Lexicon, and Infinity is starting to flex its muscles. I spoke with Chris Dragon, the senior global marketing director of Harman, to learn more about the campaigns.

JBL's "Hear the Truth" ads will feature many of the world's top musical … Read more

Harman Kardon's sound bar goes for $800

Harman Kardon's SB 16 established that the company could charge a premium for its sound bar ($600), but actually back it up with superior performance.

Harman is upping the ante even further with the SB 30, the company's newest sound bar selling for a whopping $800. From the outside, you don't seem to get much more for your money, with it featuring a similar exterior design to the SB 16 and a wireless subwoofer. But inside, the SB 30 is packed with drivers, including six 2-inch woofers and seven 1-inch tweeters. Harman is also touting its dual … Read more

Cars that rock, and roll

These five cars have the best-sounding stereos we've tested all year.

To get good sound in a car, you used to have to visit an installer, who would rip out four tinny speakers and replace them with six-by-nines, a sub, and an amp. But now many automakers are partnering with known audio companies to put high-quality audio components in cars at the factory. These systems are designed specifically for each car by professional audio engineers. We picked out five cars with the best-sounding audio systems we heard this year. These systems produce the kind of sound that will have you driving around the block until your favorite song finishes playing.… Read more

Harman Kardon SoundSticks III review: Bright lights, big sound

The first version of the Harman Kardon SoundSticks came out around the same time as the translucent iMac G3, and there's a reason why they look so similar: both were designed by Apple's lead designer, Jonathan Ive.

There are three parts to this PC speaker system: dual 10-watt satellite speakers and a 20-watt subwoofer that sits on the floor.

But even though Apple has since moved away from the see-through design, Harman Kardon retains the clear plastic transparency across the board, this time lowering the intensity of the internal blue lights so they aren't quite as distracting … Read more

Harman Kardon HKTS 20BQ review: Stylish surround speakers for less than $500

Harman Kardon has a reputation for exceedingly stylish design, and the HKTS 20BQ 5.1 speaker system is no exception. Aesthetics are subjective, but the Harman Kardon is easily among the best at this price range, along with the Energy Take Classic 5.1 and Boston Acoustics SoundWare XS 5.1 systems. The Harman offers particularly detailed sound quality and we appreciate that Harman includes handy swivel wall-mounts, a step-up over some other packages.

However, as much as we like the Harman Kardon HKTS 20BQ, we'd still recommend most buyers go for the Energy Take Classic 5 instead, as it sounds just a little better and generally is a little cheaper, too. (And Pioneer's SP-PK21BS sounds significantly better, although it's a much larger system.) But if you're a fan of Harman's style, the HKTS 20BQ is a very solid value if you can find it for less than $500.

Read the full review of the Harman Kardon HKTS 20BQ

… Read more

Harman intros four new 2011 AV receivers

Most of the major AV receiver manufacturers have already announced and released their new 2011 line, but Harman Kardon is playing catch-up and rolled our four new midrange AV receivers yesterday. All of the details are already available on Harman's website (including excellent owner's manuals for each model) and we've broken down the most important features throughout the line.

Harman Kardon AVR 1565

Key features of the Harman Kardon AVR 1565:

5.1 AV receiver, 50 watts per channel Three HDMI 1.4a inputs 3D video pass-through and audio return channel Front panel USB port (for firmware updates only) Three digital audio inputs (two optical, one coaxial) Basic text on-screen display Logic 7 audio processing $400 list price; available now

Harman Kardon AVR 1650

… Read more

Harman Kardon brings music to kitchen cabinets

Fancy kitchens may be regarded as the domain of the culinary inclined, but that isn't stopping Harman Kardon from attempting to make them a haven for audiophiles as well.

In what could be the first high-end audio system built into kitchen cabinets, the Harman Kardon MaestroKitchen 100 boasts iOS device connectivity and no messy wiring--except for that one cable that connects your iPhone or iPod.

When we say the speakers are built in, we aren't kidding (refer to image below). The main drivers are embedded within cabinet doors, while the subwoofer unit is perfectly concealed behind the skirting boards at the base. A glass control panel with the Harmon Kardon brand subtly emblazoned has a small color LCD screen so users can see what's playing. … Read more

Harman gets into the sound-bar biz with SB 16

Harman Kardon is best known for its stylish, component-style AV receivers, but the company is expanding its lineup to include a sound bar. The newly announced SB 16 is available now, and will join the crowded market of sound-bar home theater systems, with its $600 price pushing past the standard price of a system like this.

From Harman Kardon's product page, we're not seeing anything that would distinguish the SB 16 from its many competitors. It's a 2.1 channel system with a wireless subwoofer and it includes "3D" virtual surround processing, which is included … Read more

Possible fix for Harman Kardon iSub problems with PowerPC Macs

When Apple released some of the final updates to OS X 10.5 for PowerPC systems, a number of Harman Kardon iSub owners found their speaker systems no longer worked properly with their computers. The problem appeared to be a driver-related error but neither Harman Kardon nor Apple stepped up to fix the issue and owners had to resort to other speaker systems.

Recently, an open-source project "iSub Fix" has become available, which is a small driver replacement for PowerPC-based Macs running OS X 10.5.8, which should get the iSub working again. The package comes with … Read more