Hello to all Kenwood KD-500 / 550 and KD-600 / 650 owners.
I am new on this forum and I would like to share some pictures from my new turntable.
First, a brief summary of my journey into the wonderful world of turntables and vinyl records. A few years ago, I bought a pristine Pioneer PL-12D turntable for a few bucks. I used this turntable to rediscover the world of vinyl records. A year and a half ago, I bought a Denon DP-60L with all its original accessories. It was a huge step-up from the Pioneer.
And about 3 weeks ago, I sold it to buy my new turntable. A Kenwood KD-650 that needed a little love in order to work perfectly. After a careful reading of the maintenance manual, I adjusted the speeds to 33.33 rpm and 45 rpm. I set the overhang to 15 mm (unfortunately, the original 45 rpm adapter is missing). I polished the lid to give it a very nice appearance. Even if a few original micro-scratches remain. I've kept them to keep it looking authentic. I also have the original headshell. Like all owners of KD-500 / 650 series tables, the lid hinges are damaged. The original platter mat is pristine and very well damped. I do not plan to change it at all. As you can all see on pictures the plynth is a bit '' yellowish ''. If some of you guys have an effective solution for restoring whiteness to the plynth, it is most welcome.
My first impressions of the KD-650 are as follows. The build quality is really superb, the factory tone arm is really good, the well-balanced platter is heavy, and it's all made for excellent sound and upgradeability.
I am using a AT-VM95EN/H combo. I used it previously on my Denon DP-60L so I am able to compare, even if, as everyone knows, auditory memory is quite short.
Now what about sound quality?
First of all, I'd like to point out that I'm using a highly upgraded Rotel RQ-970BX-OM phono stage. This unit was sent to Partsconnexion in Canada and several upgrades were performed. This phono-stage performs to a level far beyond it's original state. Now using fully discrete opamps ( Ayre acoustics territory )
According to Partsconnextion nothing under 2000$ USD will compete and I can use MM and MC cartridges.
Compared to the Denon DP-60L, the Kenwood KD-650 is quieter. I can listen at higher sound levels without hearing the background noise I used to hear with the Denon.
The soundstage is wider and more '' aerated ''. The vocals are much more present. The treble are smoother and I get more detail everywhere. The engineers were not sleeping when they designed this turntable. I listen to a bit of classical music, pop, rock, heavy metal and especially a lot of jazz records.
My plans for the future are to replace few things : A better power cable ( nothing fancy but a DIY solution ) - a longer Low-capacitance RCA phono cable - new feet from MNPCTECH : https://www.mnpctech.com/products/kenwood-kd-turntable-isolation-feet
But the most important move would be to change the cartridge for a better one. I am thinking about a Soundsmith Ottelo one. This model is 22 μm/mN compliance
and would fit perfectly with the medium mass tonearm. All suggestions are welcome
I am new on this forum and I would like to share some pictures from my new turntable.
First, a brief summary of my journey into the wonderful world of turntables and vinyl records. A few years ago, I bought a pristine Pioneer PL-12D turntable for a few bucks. I used this turntable to rediscover the world of vinyl records. A year and a half ago, I bought a Denon DP-60L with all its original accessories. It was a huge step-up from the Pioneer.
And about 3 weeks ago, I sold it to buy my new turntable. A Kenwood KD-650 that needed a little love in order to work perfectly. After a careful reading of the maintenance manual, I adjusted the speeds to 33.33 rpm and 45 rpm. I set the overhang to 15 mm (unfortunately, the original 45 rpm adapter is missing). I polished the lid to give it a very nice appearance. Even if a few original micro-scratches remain. I've kept them to keep it looking authentic. I also have the original headshell. Like all owners of KD-500 / 650 series tables, the lid hinges are damaged. The original platter mat is pristine and very well damped. I do not plan to change it at all. As you can all see on pictures the plynth is a bit '' yellowish ''. If some of you guys have an effective solution for restoring whiteness to the plynth, it is most welcome.
My first impressions of the KD-650 are as follows. The build quality is really superb, the factory tone arm is really good, the well-balanced platter is heavy, and it's all made for excellent sound and upgradeability.
I am using a AT-VM95EN/H combo. I used it previously on my Denon DP-60L so I am able to compare, even if, as everyone knows, auditory memory is quite short.
Now what about sound quality?
First of all, I'd like to point out that I'm using a highly upgraded Rotel RQ-970BX-OM phono stage. This unit was sent to Partsconnexion in Canada and several upgrades were performed. This phono-stage performs to a level far beyond it's original state. Now using fully discrete opamps ( Ayre acoustics territory )
According to Partsconnextion nothing under 2000$ USD will compete and I can use MM and MC cartridges.
Compared to the Denon DP-60L, the Kenwood KD-650 is quieter. I can listen at higher sound levels without hearing the background noise I used to hear with the Denon.
The soundstage is wider and more '' aerated ''. The vocals are much more present. The treble are smoother and I get more detail everywhere. The engineers were not sleeping when they designed this turntable. I listen to a bit of classical music, pop, rock, heavy metal and especially a lot of jazz records.
My plans for the future are to replace few things : A better power cable ( nothing fancy but a DIY solution ) - a longer Low-capacitance RCA phono cable - new feet from MNPCTECH : https://www.mnpctech.com/products/kenwood-kd-turntable-isolation-feet
But the most important move would be to change the cartridge for a better one. I am thinking about a Soundsmith Ottelo one. This model is 22 μm/mN compliance
and would fit perfectly with the medium mass tonearm. All suggestions are welcome
