Kenwood KR-V7030

Author's product rating:   

Sound Quality	Good
Ease of Use	Very Easy
Look & Design	Good
Range of Features	Average
Value for Money	Excellent

Advantages:	Attractive, durable, easy to use
Disadvantages:	A bit on the large side

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I got my Kenwood KR-V7030 on my 18th birthday, a present from my mum & dad. That was 14 years ago now, and this piece of metal still keeps going.

The amplifier is set up in a really simple format, with buttons for CD, Tape 1, Tape 2, Video 1, Video 2, Phono and Tuner. The Tuner is built in to the amp and recieves both am and fm. The connections for adding any of the above is really simple - a straightforward jack plug into the back of the amp, and hit the appropriate button.
If you buy Kenwood separates to attach, there is the availability to link them into the amp via cable, so that the one master remote controls all actions (very handy by the time you have a CD player, tape deck, and TV set-up tied in to the amp!!)

The sound system is equally easy to arrange for personal taste. There are two main channels (A and B) which can be switched on or off at will. So you can either have 4 main speakers running, or have a pair in another room, and control which ones the sound comes out of.

There is also a complete secondary set of speaker connections, to which you can connect surround sound (not bad considering I hadn't even heard of surround sound when I recieved the amp!!)This is again really simple to do. Just plug in all of the surround speakers (and the system takes up to 5), link the TV into the sockets at the back of the amp (I just use a scart/jack cable), and hey presto - you've got full TV surround sound in your living room.

A new feature that is particularly handy I only came across the other week. My baby daughter had boosted the volume up to max (this is 50 on the dial, and I have never listened to anything above 18 before now!)and I forgot to check before hitting the on button...
There was a split second of Concorde landing in my living room, before an "auto-protect cut off" kicked in, saving me the cost of repalcing several speakers - nifty huh.

As I said above, I have now had this amp for 14 years, and occasionally have a look at potential replacements. BUT, between the fact that my amp has NEVER let me down, has nothing currently wrong with it, and the fact that nothing that is currently on the market appeals more, I cannot see myself replacing my trusty Kenwood any time soon.