Refurb! JBL DCR600 - Home Theater Reciever (DTS, Logic7, Dolby Digital) - $181.04

[vugty]

I've been shopping around for a home theater receiver this week and came across this:

DCR600

-------Description from the site ----------
Packed with features, the DCR600 includes Dolby® Digital and DTS® decoding; Logic 7® Cinema and Music surround modes; two modes of VMAx® virtual surround sound; MP3 decoding; Dolby® Pro Logic®, Dolby 3 Stereo, 5-Channel Stereo and Theater surround modes; 192kHz/24-Bit output DACs; five digital inputs, including 2 on the front panel; two digital outputs; four A/V inputs with S- and Composite video; two analog audio inputs; an FM Stereo/AM tuner with 30 presets; and programmable power-up volume. Factory remanufactured.

100W x 5 Dolby® Digital/DTS® Receiver With Logic 7®, VMAx® and MP3 Decoding
--------------------------------------------

After doing some comparisons I found this model to be very similiar to some of it's more expensive Harman Kardon cousins. Both JBL and Harmon Kardon are owned by Harman International. After looking at the PDF specs online I've come to the conclusion that at least by appearance, button locations, and rear panel configuration that the DCR600 is similiar to the Harman Kardon AVR-x10 line. Additionally, Harman Kardon is the only "consumer" brand of receivers that offers Logic7 decoding which is similiar (some say better) to Pro Logic II for 2-channel (non-digital) decoding. I called harmanaudio.com and they confirmed that refurb receivers still come with the 2-year manufacturers warranty.

Can any audiophiles confirm the above? Regardless, under $200 for a receiver of this quality and specs seems to be a decent deal.

 

[Chudilo]

What would MP3 decoding be doing in a reciever? Sounds like some extra fancy Copyright protection to me.

 

[vugty]

<edit>see DAL-150 post below</edit>

I also found this which doesn't make too much sense to me but maybe one of you can explain:
Harman Kardon MP3

 

[Rio Rebel]

$19.14 ground shipping to Indianapolis.

Probably worth it, but over $200 for a refurb - even a high end name - borderline.

I like the 2 year warranty, though, so maybe...

 

[cheesehead]

I was hoping not to spend that much, but what the heck! Out of curiousity, is it a 5.1 speaker setup, and does it support the S/PDIF outputs on many computer soundcards?

 

[Neyd3400]

The digital inputs on receivers do support comp. S/PDIF outputs. Most big name recievers now adays offer a coax. and/or optical input.

 

[vugty]

Ok after further research I am going back on my claim that MP3 decoding just means digital inputs.

After poking around ebay and google i found this:

DAL-150 USB -> PCM

Interesting little device. I guess this would be useful for someone that doesn't have a soundcard with digital outs. So the idea is to to connect the DAL-150 to your computer and receiver which will then decode the MP3 stream. So I'm guessing that doing the MP3 decoding at the receiver level would sound better than an analog connection from your soundcard to the receiver?

It's about $7 on ebay