Acquired my first Kenny Receiver - Kenwood KR 9400

[SX828POWER]

Good afternoon, all,

I don't post on here as frequently as I would like, but anyways I felt compelled to share my latest audio purchase... I picked up a very nice KR 9400 last night not far from home. The guy was also offering a nice Eleven III, but I think the 9400 is a superior unit. The receiver is in great condition, I've already cleaned it up from the years of dust buildup under the cover and went over the pots and switches with DeOxit. It sounds great with my IMF TLS 80IIs and everything works as it should. Runs very cool. DC offset is fine at 11.6 and 12.3 which is good because there is NO adjustment on this one. This is my first Kenwood receiver (I'm a Pioneer and Sony guy) so I am excited to own this Kenny being a TOTL model. The only Kenwood product I own besides this is a pristine KA-8004 which I got for a song but have yet to listen to because I sent it over to a fellow AK'er for a proper going over.

I must say this is one heavy son of a b***. Kenwood seemed to build the crap out of this thing, and I am a fan of its understated appearance. Solid, industrial feeling controls and sturdy toggles. I realize the 9050 is heralded as the ultimate Kenwood Receiver (but the prices for them ), while the 9600 seems to be the most popular. Frankly I would take the 9400 over the 9600 any day just because of the serviceability issues on the 9600. The simulated wood sides do leave something to be desired though. You think they would have opted for real veneer on the TOTL unit, so I will be putting some real veneer on them asap. Doing a bit of research on Kenwood I noticed the 55WPC KR -7200 which was the TOTL before this one has a real wood cover. The KR 7200 will be my next sought-after Kenny receiver for sure, it seems to be made during the peak era of Kenwood quality.

Does anybody here have a favorite series of Kenwood receivers or any models that hit the sweet spot for them? I tend to prioritize build quality and sound vs features. Anyways, the 9400 has impressed me thus far, I think it's safe to say I have caught the Kenwood bug and my addiction may be spiraling out of control. Now, just gotta recap it and find a KD-500/600 TT.


Happy listening all,

Johannes

 

[ivandezande]

The 9400 is for sure the best compared to the big boxes of air they put out. I've had many.

 

[spicer]

Good afternoon, all,

I don't post on here as frequently as I would like, but anyways I felt compelled to share my latest audio purchase... I picked up a very nice KR 9400 last night not far from home. The guy was also offering a nice Eleven III, but I think the 9400 is a superior unit. The receiver is in great condition, I've already cleaned it up from the years of dust buildup under the cover and went over the pots and switches with DeOxit. It sounds great with my IMF TLS 80IIs and everything works as it should. Runs very cool. DC offset is fine at 11.6 and 12.3 which is good because there is NO adjustment on this one. This is my first Kenwood receiver (I'm a Pioneer and Sony guy) so I am excited to own this Kenny being a TOTL model. The only Kenwood product I own besides this is a pristine KA-8004 which I got for a song but have yet to listen to because I sent it over to a fellow AK'er for a proper going over.

I must say this is one heavy son of a b***. Kenwood seemed to build the crap out of this thing, and I am a fan of its understated appearance. Solid, industrial feeling controls and sturdy toggles. I realize the 9050 is heralded as the ultimate Kenwood Receiver (but the prices for them ), while the 9600 seems to be the most popular. Frankly I would take the 9400 over the 9600 any day just because of the serviceability issues on the 9600. The simulated wood sides do leave something to be desired though. You think they would have opted for real veneer on the TOTL unit, so I will be putting some real veneer on them asap. Doing a bit of research on Kenwood I noticed the 55WPC KR -7200 which was the TOTL before this one has a real wood cover. The KR 7200 will be my next sought-after Kenny receiver for sure, it seems to be made during the peak era of Kenwood quality.

Does anybody here have a favorite series of Kenwood receivers or any models that hit the sweet spot for them? I tend to prioritize build quality and sound vs features. Anyways, the 9400 has impressed me thus far, I think it's safe to say I have caught the Kenwood bug and my addiction may be spiraling out of control. Now, just gotta recap it and find a KD-500/600 TT.


Happy listening all,

Johannes


View attachment 3083770

I bought one new, took it out of the box. Good receiver, has a very good tuner. Note the Trio logo.

 

[rickl]

I also have a KR-9400. I posted this pic in another thread but thought you might enjoy it.

I think this is a great receiver.

 

[KingBubba]

I like those looks. If they sound as good as my 8010, you have a real performer.

 

[SX828POWER]

Thanks for the replies, all,

Spicer, the Trio logo is a nice touch and of course the indicator that this was one of Kenwood's finest. The KR 8010 seems to be an outlier unit in my eye in terms of model series and I can't quite tell which series it was part of. Perhaps similar to the 3090, 4070, and 6030 line. It is a real looker and reminds me of a slightly more updated/modernized KR 9400. From the examples I have seen online, it flies under the radar much like my receiver and is an excellent value.

Having used this for about a week now I am very happy with its performance and feel that it is thoroughly deserving of a full electronic restoration. The tuner has the best sensitivity and stereo separation of any receiver I have owned to date. The real treat has been the Phono section. Being fed with a very nice AR XA TT with Marc Morin upgrades, it is silent, natural, and very smooth. Listening to my better copy of Tommy - The Who last night, I must say I struggle to recall I time where I have heard sweeter sound!

More pics to come soon.

Take care,

Johannes

 

[spicer]

Thanks for the replies, all,

Spicer, the Trio logo is a nice touch and of course the indicator that this was one of Kenwood's finest. The KR 8010 seems to be an outlier unit in my eye in terms of model series and I can't quite tell which series it was part of. Perhaps similar to the 3090, 4070, and 6030 line. It is a real looker and reminds me of a slightly more updated/modernized KR 9400. From the examples I have seen online, it flies under the radar much like my receiver and is an excellent value.

Having used this for about a week now I am very happy with its performance and feel that it is thoroughly deserving of a full electronic restoration. The tuner has the best sensitivity and stereo separation of any receiver I have owned to date. The real treat has been the Phono section. Being fed with a very nice AR XA TT with Marc Morin upgrades, it is silent, natural, and very smooth. Listening to my better copy of Tommy - The Who last night, I must say I struggle to recall I time where I have heard sweeter sound!

More pics to come soon.

Take care,

Johannes

I agree about the 9400 and believe it was Kenwood's finest, not the most powerful but the finest. I believe it is 120 watts per channel. Great styling and layout of controls, very smart looking. They were known to be reliable. As a receiver it replaced the Pioneer SX 2500 I had at the time., also bought new, I mention this because of your screen name, SX 828.

 

[superdog]

I had a 9400 and one of the big G receivers.Its been a while but I do remember it sounding very good and the big G while larger, weighed a third less than the 9400.

 

[rickl]

i'm a separates guy but the 9400 seems like a keeper. it really doesn't get used much but I'll sell other gear before I let this one go.

I've had a few 'customer' big Kenwoods across the bench and haven't thought of getting a different receiver.

 

[SX828POWER]

Getting back my fully redone KA-8004 tomorrow, will post a separate thread for that one since it is truly eye candy how handsome that machine is. It will fill in for the 9400 while I go through it and replace all of the caps and get it up to spec. The tuner alignment is spot on, so I will leave it alone. I have a feeling it shares the same tuner circuit as the KT 8007 which supposedly holds alignment far better than the one used in the KT 8005. Select45rpm rips the 9400 apart for its use of ICs in the preamp, but it does have a tone bypass switch so I may refer to the spec to see just how many ICs are in the signal path. I do agree with many of the authors opinions about simple circuit design, but man that guy rambles. I've never seen such blather and their concept of paragraph breaks is nonexistent.

Frankly, I don't expect the 9400 to edge out my Pioneer SX 828 sonically, but I think the KA 8004 will be more or less equivalent with its neat layout and high-quality components. Spicer, speaking of the 828, the power supply board on mine is as crispy as a chicken sandwich near the R12 resistor. I'm going to put a higher wattage 5W resistor there, and remotely mount the neighboring transistor using extension wires and a bigger heatsink. Then she can sing reliably once again. What did you think of your SX 2500? That has been on my WANT list for some time. 72 watts per channel of cap coupled goodness.

Cheers

 

[ExtraCharity]

My baby. One of my favorite receives and is very underrated both in the scene and power. Its sound is unlike any other very warm and crisp. I have it paired with a mint set of Infinity RS4 and an also mint SL1200 MK1 serial #8. I don't listen to any other receiver. This one is a keeper and has yet to give me an issue.