Arcam Solo Neo vs Harman Kardon kh980

[admin_exported]

Hi, I have just bought the B&W 684 speakers and want to know which of these will sound better with my speakers, I listen to various artists and genres so nothing in particular, but want my setup to have tight deep bass, but do not want it to be too over dominant affecting the mids and highs.

I have found the:
Arcam solo neo for £999
Harman Kardon for £699

so will the Arcam be worth the extra £300?

I would greatly appreciate any help you can offer!
Cheers, Dan

 

[John Duncan]

Strikes me as a slightly odd comparison, since they're very different things. And I make the HK-980 about 300 quid...

 

[Anonymous]

Sorry i didnt make it clear that i would be buying the cd player and tuner for the harman kardon.

http://www.superfi.co.uk/index.cfm/page/moreinfo.cfm/Product_ID/5419 - £699

They can both do the same things i believe but the Arcam has networking capabilities! But if sound quality is similar then i do not want to pay an extra £300 just for that gismo, i cant believe SQ being that great by streaming via spotify although it would be cool.

Plus the HK looks stunning!

 

[Anonymous]

Also will the Harman Kardon hk990 have too much power for the B&W 684 speakers?

 

[John Duncan]

If you're not that interested in streaming audio and want to concentrate on CD, then the Solo Neo is just the wrong thing for you tbh, irrespective of sound quality. Note also that it doesn't have digital inputs, so it's difficult to make the best of other streaming services like Spotify, even though it's how I listen to the vast majority of my music, streamed into a NaimUniti (a very similar device to the Neo, albeit with digital inputs).

I agree that the HK pair looks very nice, though I'd also be considering the Marantz CD/PM6003, Cambridge 650A/C combo and Yamaha A-S500/CD-S300 which are all very good value at Richer Sounds. Your aesthetic view on them may not be the same as mine, of course.

Don't worry about amp power into your B&Ws, they'll be fine.

 

[John Duncan]

EDIT - sorry, just seen that you're including the tuner as well, which makes my combinations somewhat more expensive. Is the radio a must?

 

[Anonymous]

Not necissarily a must but for this sort of money i would prefer the system to have the whole lot. Such as the Arcam, also is the SQ good then when streamed from spotify?

Also what do you mean is doesnt have digital inputs? I thought i would only need an ethernet cable or use wifi to connect to PC in next room, correct me if im wrong.

Also i could use an ipod dock thats comapatible with the Arcam, and HK 980. Sorry dont know what a digital in is LOL

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all your help BTW, you have been verry helpful, and i appreciate the time you have given me!

 

[Anonymous]

Does the hk980 or hd980 have RCA inputs?

 

[the record spot]

Yes - they're pretty much standard across the board. The HD990 has balanced XLR inputs as well as does the HK990.

 

[Anonymous]

If you had to make the decision which would you get and why?
Thanks

 

[the record spot]

At the moment, I have some fairly specific needs, but mostly my musical ones are being met, so the only thign I would be buying anything for right now would be TV connectivity to the amplifier and sound of course and the HK990 gives that. That aside, my opinion probably doesn't matter here as my requirements are different to your ones.

 

[bluebrazil]

hi danny, could you please explain clearer what you need your intended purchases to do. are you only interested in cd and radio or are you after any other features like streaming from your p.c.?

 

[Helmut80]

Is the Rotel RCX1500 comparable to the Arcam Solo Neo?

 

[Anonymous]

In the end i went for the Arcam solo neo as it could do everything i wanted it to do! And the sound is amazing!

Thanks for all your help!

 

[Anonymous]

Hallo Danny

I have bought the same setup as you last X-mas. That is the Arcam Solo Neo and the B&W 684 speakers. I would very much like to hear a little about your experience with seting up the system. Becaus I have found it a bit tricky to get the balance between the speakers and the Arcam, hence the bass and treble setting, just right so i can get a detailed and open soundimage, without having to turn up the volume to nearly 80% of max. volume.

Do you have any advise on this?

Many kind Regards

Jimmi