Kenwood does it again! (updated)
Written: Apr 17 '03 (Updated Apr 18 '03)
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Pros: Feature packed, high power, clear sound, Sweet looks
Cons: Expensive, not enough Optical inputs, Minature nuclear reactor
The Bottom Line: A solid performer from a reputable company, top-notch equipment.
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| spunkyjivl's Full Review: Kenwood VR-5700 6.1 Channels Receiver |
This unit was purchased through an overseas Military store with the ability to offer deep discounts, I was able to get this thing dirt cheap...$699, I couldnt pass it up. It is an indespensible, powerful foundation for my home theater system.
Overall appearance of this unit is top-notch. Reminds me of something sitting in a NASA lab or some secret Government compound, but contemporary enough not to alienate the masses. Materials are superlative, solid and durable. Controls and indicators on the unit are simple to operate and easy to understand. The first thing I noticed about this receiver, besides its hefty weight is its smooth almost featureless face. The only controls on the front are the large volume knob, power/stand-by button and component slection buttons. The rest of the controls are under a small flip-down door, all of which have redundancies operated from the remote control.
This system has just about everything you would want in a high-end home theater receiver. It plays all formats including: 2 channel Stereo, 7 modes of Signal Processing, Dolby ProLogic, Dolby ProLogic II, Dolby Digital 6.1, DTS 6.1, NEO 6.1, and THX. Most formats have their distinct sound and properties and can be dialed in to your specific tastes. When the unit is receiving digital streaming the only aspect that may be altered is the balance and fade to each speaker.
As for all the hype aobut THX, I personally have found it an expensive extra with no real benifit or change in sound imaging when engaged. I actually notice a less clear sound sort of like the teweeters have a very fine layer of cotton over them. I also notice a faint hissing or scratching sound during loud or intense scenes, like a musical interlude or a loud jet aircraft, this however may be due to my Sony speakers not brandishing the THX logo.
The 2 way LCD remote control is a jewl. It is large, easy to read and fully programable. The LCD screen gives a redundant display of the information that is being displayed on the receiver itself, such as volume, your selected component and a nifty little thing which gives you a a graphical representation of what kind of media is pumping in and which speakers are broadcasting it.
Programing the 2 way LCD remote can be a daunting task until you learn the ins and outs of it, but when you do, you will never need another universal remote control again.
Power handling is great. 5 chanel, 120 watts per with an unpowered sourround-back output for 7.1 sound, and a single unpowered subwoofer output, 2 would have been nice.
Sound produced from this system is clean, clear and powerful while playing DVDs. However while playing CDs I find the sound to be muddier, not as crisp and lacking clarity not too terribly bad but some people will notice and others who desire concert clarity in their music may find this annoying. This however, may again be due to my Sony speakers and not the receiver.
The only thing this is lacking are more optical inputs. There are enough RGB, Coaxial, and RCA inputs to make you head spin, but are only 2 optical inputs and 1 optical output. This makes it difficult when you add your CD player, DVD, Game system and other goodies and want digital streaming sound. For example I had to plug my XboX into the DVD input, and run my DVD player through a digital coaxial cable. It was kinda tricky but worked, additional optical inputs would have avoided this.
As for being a "minature nuclear reactor", this puppy puts out some heat. Especially if you have other components stacked ontop of it as I do. To remedy this, I hard wired a 60mm cooling fan from a computer and put it in inside so the the generated heat is forced out and exits to the rear of the receiver through the rear cooling vent, this helped significantly.
All-in-all this is an excellent performer with loads of features, even your experienced user would find this an attractive addition to power their home theatre needs.
If you have any specific questions or concerns about this piece of equipment, feel free to email me.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 699
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Epinions.com ID:
spunkyjivl
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Reviews written: 7
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