Excellent intro to HT and DolbyPro II
Written: May 25 '02
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Pros: Great learning remote, Great for music as well as HT duty
Cons: no banana plug binding post for rear surrounds, no pre-amp outs
The Bottom Line: As an introduction to Home Theatre or even as a second system for the bedroom or the family room, the Kenwood VR-509 is a great choice.
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| jc_ignacio's Full Review: Kenwood VR-509 5.1 Channels Receiver |
I decided that I had wanted to partake in this home theatre phenomenon. After a 6 month search for a qualified receiver that would fit my musical tastes as well as my wallet, I chose the Kenwood VR-509. I looked at most of the Circuit City and Best Buy offerings as well as Audio Advisor and even mail order brands such as Outlaw, but wanted local presentation as well as a handy return policy if needed. For now, as I become more accustomed to terminology in the mid to high end audio world, I preferred to keep my purchase simple and uncomplicated without going into the seperate componentry, pre, amp, monoblock territory. For an all-in-one the VR509 was neck and neck with the Onkyo, Denon, and HK receivers in the same price point. The two things that swayed me was the sound that was produced from a 13 year old pair of college speakers and the very highly configurable remote. My old Technics SB-L75 seemed to have become resurrected after hearing everything from Van Morrison, Zoot Sims, and Yo Yo Ma on this new receiver. This receiver sounds warm and natural with higher sensitivity speakers, albeit highly colored (over 91 db/W). The sound changed when I upgraded to Boston Acoustics VR950, the sound became more detailed, more analytical, yet presented a transparent midrange as well as a robust bottom end. I am in sonic nirvana with this combination. As the old cliche goes, I am rediscovering my cd collection and finding nuances in Anita Baker's performance as well as a more emotive and detailed playing from Gato Barbieri. For someone just entering the HT arena, Disney's Fantasia 2000 is absolutely a must to test the Dolby Prologic II as well as DTS of this system. Soundstage is deep and imaging is close-your-eyes-your-there stuff. Although the 0.07% THD may be high to many audiophiles, in this case it did not color or interfere with the musical and theatre enjoyment. I recommend the use of Bobby Caldwell's "Time and Again" cd that reveals the resolution and comparison of original analog recordings as opposed to digital encoded on this HDCD format. You definitely find the differences from this so-called mid-fi equipment. One caveat: I did not find the true character of this receiver until after a 40 hour burn-in period. Sounding a bit compressed to start, the dynamics started to open up after some time of listening.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 400.00
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Epinions.com ID:
jc_ignacio
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Reviews written: 3
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