sounds great with cd and dvd.

I bought the kenwoord vr-409 reciever in the summer of 2001 but i think its the 2000 model. Has Great sound... I have 2 mtx floor standing speakers with 15" woofers on each, bass sounds awesome but i still need more. I've looked into powered subs but they don't sound any better than what i have. I need the bass i can feel and i can only achieve that when its on -25-30db which makes the mids and highs extremely loud. If you have any advice on what i can do for more bass, email me Uwish7284@Aol.com. The audio for video 2 and 3 (if that makes sense) were dead when i bought it. They fixed it and nows its as good as new. The remote is a little tricky at first but you get used to it. IT DOES EAT BATTERIES. This reciever was worth every penny... Im going to stick with kenwood for future ones.

Great sound, can be found cheap, lots of features

Having owned one of Kenwood's first "AV" - type receivers for over 10 years and having been wholly satisfied with its features and sound quality, I immediately sought out Kenwood's line of Dolby Digital receivers when I was ready to upgrade last year. As usual, Kenwood offers a tremendous "bang for the buck" value in terms of sound quality and features for the price.

No one will accuse Kenwood of being audiophile-level gear, but I could not pass up true 5.1 Dolby Digital reproduction, two types of digital inputs (coax and PCM), S-video outputs, and a host of other features for the price. I bought mine from yourinsider.com.

When this unit was first introduced, it was at the top of Kenwood's midrange consumer product line (it has since been replaced by the KVR-3090 and others). Again, for the price at which you can get one, the features and sound quality cannot be beat. You have plenty of inputs, outputs, and plenty of power to drive your speakers.

Unfortunately, the unit suffers from one of the worst remote controls and poorly-written manuals of all time. The remote is big, bulky, complicated, and badly laid out. The buttons are small, labelled confusingly, and impossible to read in low light. The manual is worse, in that it is actually TWO separate manuals -- one for the receiver and one for the remote. This means that you have to look in two separate places in order to try and figure out how to do something.

I've had this unit nearly a year and still have not been able to master the remote control, or all of the functions of the receiver -- simply because the manuals and controls are so arcane.

That aside, the real reason I bought the receiver -- the sound -- is downright amazing. Dolby Digital sound reproduction is deep and natural, and the receiver is able to "fake" multi-channel separations for soundtracks that do not have them. Once you figure out the right combination of settings necessary to actually get the receiver to produce sound (correct output type on DVD player, correct input type on receiver, correct speaker setup on receiver, correct speaker selection on receiver), you will be impressed. Promise.

My previous Kenwood receiver lasted me more than 10 years. I fully expect the KVR-409 to last just as long, though I expect to relegate it to the bedroom or kids' playroom eventually as I continue to upgrade my home theater.

Digital Modes, S-Video

Bass, Mode settings - sound modes vs. listen modes

The price for this was to good to pass up. That was my main reason I bought it. I was set on the new 507 but I found very little difference and again the price.

But I wish I had heard it in the store or read all your reviews. The main thing missing is Bass from standard music modes.

For DVD's it perfect. The Digital Modes are great.

However, I listen to music alot and I kept thinking that something was missing in my living room speakers where there is no sub and it's attached to Speaker B. The crispness was missing as well as deep base.

I guess the good thing is that I can return it with 30 days. Any suggestions for a replacement for the same price. It's going to be hard to beat. Please e-mail with any suggetions.

Similar Products Used:

Pioneer

Kenwood quality. Excellent bang for the buck. Monitor loop for EQ. Circle surround works well. Three DSP modes that are actually different from each other. Lots of inputs, including three S-video. Very nice front panel layout. Easy to navigate. Learning remote with display is great.

Learning remote with display (not a misprint, read review). Cannot set input attenuation/bass/treble for individual channels. That darn remote. No FM/AM preset buttons on receiver face.

I'd used my trusty Kenwood 1060VR Prologic reciever for years. I decided to join the digital video age, so I needed a Dolby Digital receiver. After the first DVD, I almost burned my VHS tapes! No comparison there.

I narrowed it down to the VR409 and the Sony DTS845 (I think that's the model number). Almost the exact same price and feature level. The Sony has about 100 DSP modes that no one will ever use, and they all sound alike. Also, the front panel layout was confusing to me. Not that I couldn't figure it out, but something you're going to live with "forever" should be intuitive; the Sony wasn't. OK, so Kenwood it was.

I then compared the VR409 with the VR410. The only difference is that the 410 has 6 preouts for all channels. Great for building a monster system using six outboard amps. But, if you have that kind of $$$$$, you probably won't be getting a midprice product like the 410 anyway, so it's a moot point. The 409 has the exact same power ratings, S/N ratio, inputs as the 410, at $100 less. Decision made.

For $350, I got a lot for my money. First off, I've used Kenwood products in the home and car for years. I'm very hard on electronics and I've never had any Kenwood products break. Your mileage may differ, but I like Kenwood. Setting it up was easy enough. Took about two hours to get all the wires hooked up.

Many have complained about lack of bass. Well, my main speakers have 8-inch woofers (which are really midbasses anyway!) so I've always had a powered subwoofer. Recently upgraded to a Cerwin Vega LW-15, so bass is not a problem.

The receiver automatically detects a digital signal from the DVD and switches on Dolby Digital automatically. A nice touch. At first, I was ticked that when DD kicks in, the monitor loop is disabled. I have a 27 band digital eq that is the heart of my system. I'm "a tweak" and to me, nothing sounds right without eq. (Sorry to those tube amp purists out there!) Anyway, even though the eq is out of the loop, DD sounds great! Don't know why, but it does. You do need to turn down the sub preout level with DVD, but that's no big deal as you need to do that every time you switch sources.

As far as power goes, it's plenty for me, and I like it loud. To be fair, 100 watts isn't really a lot of power, especially for bass. Most folks that have a decent stereo in the car have at least 150 just for bass. So, 100 isn't a lot for big home speakers. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I haven't tried this receiver with main speakers that have 12 or 15 inch woofers. I would imagine that it might sound a bit underpowered. But, 99.9% of everyone reading this is into home theater and has a powered subwoofer anyway, so this shouldn't be a problem. Even if you have mains with 12's, setting the fronts to "normal" instead of "large" will direct much more bass frequencies to the sub preout. Letting your subwoofer do it's job and relieving the receiver stress of trying to power big speakers from 20hz to 20khz...but you all knew that already. (Not being snotty, just rambling)

Tuner, CD, DVD, VHS, the sound is great. This receiver is a bargain at $400 or less. You won't get more for the money. Check the specs, you'll see for yourself.

The remote. Ah, the remote. (Grit teeth and try not to throw it across the room) My only gripe about the 409 is the remote. Yes, it works. But.
I've never had a learning remote before. I was looking forward to having one that can't become obsolete. The instructions for enabling the remote to learn are written in English...but make no sense. I quick call to 1800Kenwood solved it though. The instruction manual for the receiver is well written, well illustrated and easy to understand; standard Kenwood fare. The SEPARATE instruction manual for the remote is a piece of junk.

I've multiple gripes about the remote. First off, the remote can only learn 5 functions per source. The remote didn't come preprogrammed to operate my Hitachi DVD, and since it can only learn 5 functions, it's not a true "universal remote". I can't do everything (heck, not even half!) the functions of the DVD's remote w/the Kenwood remote. The display on the remote is backlit. Nice. But
it's small and hard to read. I'm sure this was to control battery consumption as well as cost. Niggling here, but saying it anyway.

This remote is supposed to have two transmitters: an IR and an RF, enabling it to operate from anywhere in the room, thru walls, etc. Baloney. Unless you point it directly and I mean directly at the component you're trying to operate, you get nothing. Yes, I changed the batteries! The remote on my old 1060 VR didn't have 1/3 the functionality of this remote and it worked 10 times better. It didnt'go thru walls either, but you could have it pointed backwards and it operated the component. Everyone *itches about the remote...Hopefully Kenwood addresses this in future iterations of the 409/410.

In conclusion, the receiver rocks. You won't be disappointed. The only thing I'd change about the reciever itself is the lack of FM/AM presets. Sometimes, I just walk over to the receiver and turn on the radio w/o using the remote. You can't choose a preset from the receiver itself, you have to tune manually. Again, niggling here.

In conclusion:
For value for your $$$ you can't do better. Period. Sounds awesome and has more features an inputs than boxes costing $200 more.

Overall, its' a four, because there is no 4 1/2. If the remote was just......that much........better, it'd be a five. You can live with the remote.

Similar Products Used:

Kenwood 1060-VR.

Lots of inputs, has SRS Circle sound, has Midnight mode, Phono input, the 3 DSP modes actually work, has preamp outs

Weak Bass, remote not easy to program or use

This unit has lots of inputs, outputs and features. The Dolby pro-logic has lots of front/rear seperatation. The only set-back is the lack of bass. I am going to pick up a subwoofer to see if that fixes the problem. If it doesn't, I will be looking to exchange this unit for one that has better frequency response and has a phono input.

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Harmon/Kardon, Technics

Inputs, circle 5 surround

Have to have 6 speakers

Just got this reciever about 2 weeks ago, and after playing with different speakers, I'm finally happy with it. You definately need all 6 speakers for the effects and Digital to respond properly. I had Bose AM-7s with Model 100s for the rear, and ended up adding a Klipsch center channel and subwoofer, but it sounds great now. Big difference from my old Pro-logic reciever! Using the Optical inputs for CDs and DVD is worth the cable investment. The Kenwood web page has a very good support bulletin board, answered all kind of questions. The remote is kind of a pain, a big LCD display would be better. My bass is very good, but it is also running 2 sub-woofers.

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Pioneer, Kenwood

5.1 Circle Surround, Attractive, easy to use Remote, Lot's of in's&out's

Hardly any Bass, cannot be used without a Sub-woofer !

I really wanted a receiver with SRS's Circle Surround because I spent most time listening to CD's. So I had no choice but the Kenwood. Well it's going back next week: the bass is startling week. It's really surprising how a low end HKJBL gives such a much better bass: easy & controlled sounding. I did some tests at about 80 dB Spl. With the Kenwood ye really have to STRAIN to hear the bass, where as the HK just gives bass. And it does't get better at higher levels (90 dB). I don't use a sub-woofer and with the HK never felt I needed one (Mission 701 LF&RF, 700 LS&RS and C70center)! Must say that the Kenwood produced highs a bit better. The 409 could be a (very !?) good receiver for those with a good sub-woofer...

Circle Surround DID sound very good with music and TV, nice soundstage. MUCH better then the DSP modes of the Kenwood or ProLogic.

Don't know yet what I'm gonna do. Can get my money back (and wait for Prologic II to arrive which does more or less the same as CS: Full Range AND left&right rear channels) or go for the HK AVR300. I know the AVR500 has Logic7, which is a bit like CS but for me to pricy. Yes, I've read about all the problems HK receivers had for some time. But it seems that HK solved those problems and I DO like HK's sound... Still have a PM645 amp lying around wich also sounded much 'bigger' than the 2*45 Watts HK specified.

STARS: 3-3 (with a sub-woofer 4-3)

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JBL JSR635i (= HarmanKardon AVR11 with JBL Frontplate, Made in the UK, bought it 2 years ago)

2 digita coax inputs - 1 optical - S-Video

Quality and reliability

I thoought this was the best bargain I ever bought, for 1 month this unit blew me away. I left a perfect review here months ago but then came the following problems. 1 the display would cut in and out until it never came on any more. I can solder and am very handy and it was not a simple loose connection. Next one of my digital inputs went out, I used the other and blindly had to select my other components with the remote. Next all my RCA audio jacks went out. Also the s-video would cause the screen to jump on a high impact audio sceens with dvd 5.1. I would have said this is the best thing going when it works for the money BUT!!! Yamaha has just come out with the deal of the century. The RX-v496 for $200.00 is the way to go. I has it all over the kenwood without ic chips but direct current BUY THE YAMAHA RX-V496.

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Aiwa - Yamaha

Versatility, lots of inputs, clarity, learning remote

manual very vague, digital mode bypasses EQ

I've had my 409 for almost two months and can finally say I love it. The remote is complicated, but once you play w/ it and figure it out(dont depend on the manual) you can use it easily. The learning feature is great to eliminate all the other ones. I use a satelite reciever, a DVD, a CD player, a VCR and my TV all with 409 remote. You can teach it to use all the features you need. Even the picture in a picture if your TV has it. I was discouraged at first because the manual is so simplified that it leaves out alot of the features the reciever has. Lots of different speaker settings. If you set it for "large front speakers" though, it bypasses any sub you may be using except in digital mode. Once I figured that out and switched the setting to "Normal front Speakers" the sub kicked in. All of these other reviews on this model are right in the bass dept UNLESS you have a sub. I also use an EQ and connot use it when the digital mode kicks in. The quality of sound in digital mode is outstanding though and don't even need it. I'm very happy with this product now that I figured it all out.

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HK110

Nice sound quality for the price

Owners manual is not detailed enough, LCD remote not user friendly, must operate unit with a sub-woofer.

When I first purchased unit I was more than satisfied, the sound quality was outstanding with the exception of the bass. After listening to other brands such as the JVCrx8000vbk and various Sony brands, I noticed that my unit did not compare well with them. One day while operating the unit, it started overheating, the unit went into the stand-by mode. After turning the unit back on, I noticed that I had blowned my entire left side audio out-puts i.e. DVD,CD,Phono, you get the pic. I was really devastated especially when the volume was not turned half-way up. I guess thats why the manufacture only offer a 12 month warranty vice a 24 month warranty from JVC and Sony. As of now I am strictly a JVC man

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JVC, Sony