The Harman Kardon® AVR 1700 has virtually everything that you want in an audio/video receiver. Do you want sheer power? The AVR 1700 has 100 watts per channel. Want a variety of entertainment sources? The receiver includes vTuner® Internet radio, DLNA® 1.5 and AirPlay for wireless reception of your music and.

• Harman Kardon Software Update Avr 1700 Reviews

If you own a Harman Kardon AVR1700 receiver that has locked up after displaying a BCO Update message, this fix may work for you. It worked for us.

First, the unit was completely frozen. It did not respond to button inputs. Unplugging it had no impact.

We searched the forums (yes we did) and this solution worked for us:

1. Connect your HK to your home network using an ethernet cable.
2. Login to your home network (type 192.168.1.1 into your browser) and find the HK. On our Frontier network, it showed up as “new-host”
3. Type the IP address for the HK in a new browser window or tab
4. Browse to a small txt file on your computer, then select “Upload”
5. The system will reject the file as being a non-BCO file, but your unit should “unfreeze.”

No guarantees, but this BCO “fix” worked for us!

Things that did not force a reset:

• Hold the Surround Sound button for 5+ seconds
• Press and hold the standby/on button

harman/kardon AVR 1700

Summary

• Product Name: AVR 700 & AVR 1700
• Manufacturer: harman/kardon
• Review Date:November 27, 2012 16:59
• MSRP: $299-499
• First Impression: Mildly Interesting

harman/kardon AVR 700

• 5.1-channelsurround sound receiver
• 75watts per channel (two channels driven @ 6 ohms, 20-20kHz, <0.1% THD)
• 100watts per channel (two channels driven @ 6 ohms, 1kHz, <1.0% THD)
• ThreeHDMI inputs with 3D, Deep Color, and Audio Return Channel
• DolbyTrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio decoding
• USBport for MP3/WMA music-file playback and system upgrades
• Nightmode
• IRremote control
• Dot-matrixfront-panel display

harman/kardon AVR 1700

Harman Kardon Software Update Avr 1700 Reviews

• 5.1-channelsurround sound receiver
• 100watts per channel (two channels driven @ 6/8 ohms, 1kHz, <0.1% THD)
• 95watts per channel (two channels driven @ 8 ohms, 20-20kHz, <0.07% THD)
• Eco-friendlydigital power supply design
• SixHDMI inputs with 3D, Deep Color, and Audio Return Channel
• DolbyTrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio decoding
• USBport for MP3/WMA music-file playback, i-OS docking, and system upgrades
• EzSet/EQcalibration
• DLNA1.5 certified network connectivity
• HARMANMusic Manager and HK remote control app
• AirPlay
• vTunerInternet radio
• RS-232and 12V connections
• Nightmode
• IRremote control
• Dot-matrixfront-panel display

Executive Overview

Updating the budget end of their productline, the long established harman/kardon brand has announced two additions to itsaudio-video receiver offerings, the AVR 700 and the AVR 1700.

harman/kardon AVR 700 Frontpanel View

The AVR 700 and AVR 1700 receivers are both5.1 channel configurations that support HDMI 1.4a including 3D video, DeepColor, and an audio return channel with the requisite DTS-MA and Dolby TrueHDdecoding, along with the other standard Dolby and DTS modes and a number ofhomegrown processing modes. Othersimilarities between the models include five-way binding post speakerconnections, a two-prong detachable IEC power cord, and a front USB port withplayback of MP3 and Windows Media audio files.

After that, the similarities end, and in manyways, the two models are different beasts. The AVR 700 & 1700 diverge from common product lineschemes where slightly more of everything, in the way of features and performance,is offered at a higher price as the model number increases. In addition to the AVR 700 and AVR 1700featuring different amplifier power supply designs, they have a different focuson connectivity.

The physically larger AVR 1700, rated at 100watts per channel, weighs in at 12.8 pounds, which is significantly less thanthe AVR 700, rated for 75 watts per channel, at 20 pounds. Harman ascribes the difference to the use ofa custom designed switching power supply in the AVR 1700 and bills this aseco-friendly due to higher efficiency, while the AVR 700 uses a traditionallinear amplifier power supply design. It isworth noting that switching power supplies, while more efficient, often involvecompromises that are typically considered undesirable in audio applicationswhen cost is a limiting factor. PerhapsHarman has managed to overcome or minimized some of these shortcomings with aclever bit of engineering, but without independent testing and careful comparisonlistening, one cannot say if such is the case just based on marketingmaterials.

Harman has traditionally been consideredconservative with wattage ratings, but we did notice that some of the publishedspecifications leave us with questions. The wattage ratings that are provided for both models are based on onlytwo channels driven and not at the more common 8 ohms, but rather at 6 ohms forthe 700 and an ambiguously labeled 6/8 ohms for the 1700, giving the appearanceof higher output to the unaware. Onepossible interpretation of the impedance ambiguity is that amplifier of the1700 does not play nicely with lower impedance loads and is rated at the veryedge of its capability. This issupported by also considering the second measurement, which is clearly labeledas 8 ohms, but shows that an increase of just five more watts, from 95 to 100,increases the THD by two orders of magnitude. The AVR 700, on the other hand, does not seem as highly stressed and canpush out 25 more watts for only a single order of magnitude increase of THD.

We also noticed that the specifications alsoflip back and forth between FTC ratings at 1 kHz and wide band output over 20 -20 kHz. There is also some ambiguity inhow the ratings are labeled, particularly on the AVR 1700, where power is citedunder headings of stereo and multi-channel, but both numbers are then specifiedfor two channels driven and not all channels.

Aside from wattage differences, the twomodels are focused on different methods of connectivity. The AVR 700 features a greater number oftraditional analog connections, for both video and audio, while the AVR 1700forgoes some analog connections to focus on network connectivity andinteroperability.

harman/kardon AVR 700 backpanel

AVR 700 Connectivity

• HDMI: Three in and one out, rear
• Digital Audio: One coaxial and twooptical in, rear
• Analog Audio: Four stereo in and twoout, rear, and one stereo in, front
• Analog Video: Two composite in and two out, rear, onecomposite in, front
• USB: One port, front

harman/kardon AVR 1700 backpanel

AVR1700 Connectivity

• HDMI: Six in and one out, rear
• Digital Audio: One coaxial and twooptical in, rear
• Analog Audio: Two stereo in and oneout, rear, and one stereo in, front
• Analog Video: Two in and one out, rear
• USB: One port, front
• Network: One RJ-45 Ethernet port, rear

The most significant differences between thetwo models appear on the AVR 1700 with the Ethernet port and network relatedfunctionality. When connected to anetwork, the AVR 1700 supports DLNA 1.5 and AirPlay as well as vTuner Internetradio. Additionally, the front USB portsupports iOS device docking, the AVR 1700 can be remotely controlled usingAndroid and iOS devices by downloading HK remote control app, and Harman alsoprovides a music manager app for the receiver. Other feature differences found on the AVR 1700 include EzSet/EQsetup/calibration, RS-232 and 12V trigger connections, and a learning remotecontrol for up to five other devices with an extensive list of compatibledevice codes included in the users manual.

So, there you have it, two new entry levelmodels in the harman/kardon receiver line up and despite the apparentsequential numbering scheme, two different focuses on function sets. The AVR 700 clearly seems rooted in a moretraditional A/V setting while the AVR 1700 seams geared towards accommodatingevolving entertainment options, both with limited overlap to allow for the mostfunctionality while still meeting a budget price point.

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