Exciting new addition

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Superduper

Superduper

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I haven't purchased much these past few years, and there isn't much on my radar any more. But one thing that I've always wanted but was starting to feel like maybe I'd never see one in real life in my lifetime, is this HD case for the Kenwood DC-20. I know it exists, I've seen photos of them, but I've never seen one offered for sale. Ok, the DC-20, complete, is itself already quite rare, but the carry case looks impossible to find. I love this Kenwood, in my estimation, it is arguably THE most sophisticated and well built units, if not THE best one. In truth, while it is compact, every cubic mm of the interior is packed solid. The only downside is that there really isn't a mechanism to tie everything together like in the Sony FH or the Pioneer CK systems. If you want to move the system, you carry them in pieces.

Well, uber thanks to super sleuth Reli :bow::thumbsup:who gave me the heads up, we found this case in Germany. It wasn't cheap, and shipping costed even more, but the seller was willing to ship here and I wanted it badly. Took almost a month, but here it is. My wife said "you have a stereo came from Germany, I put it in the garage." I thought "stereo"? I just bought an empty box. No wonder she thought it was a stereo, this case weighs 11 pounds empty, so with the carton and padding, it was closer to 20 pounds. With the stereo, the whole shebang tips the scale at just shy of 42 pounds! I simply love this thing, and now that it is properly dressed and easy(er) to move around, I love it even more.:cake: Looks like Santa came early this year. I immediately unpacked and populated the crate.

Thought I'd share this for you Kenwood fans. Yes, this thing does exist!

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floyd

floyd

Boomus Fidelis
Awesome yeah people don't know about these a lot of times they're missing the speakers and they still want $500 for them .
Ole Hans he always has the inside scoop lol.
 
floyd

floyd

Boomus Fidelis
floyd said:
Awesome yeah people don't know about these a lot of times they're missing the speakers and they still want $500 for them .
Ole Hans he always has the inside scoop lol.
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If you think your boombox box is badass think again. might not be a Boombox but this m*********** don't play.
 
Radio raheem

Radio raheem

Requiem Æternam
Congrats Norm lad i nearly bought one a month ago i think it was about 300 without the case but i am trying to wind down my collection now

anyway congrats mate stunning looking box
 
Superduper

Superduper

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Reli said:
Congrats! :clap:
Can it be connected to power while still in the case?
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Hey Reli, here's how it works: The stereo is a really tight fit. In fact, if you don't angle it to insert bottom side first, you won't get it in. The foam (I don't like the color, see the greenish ring?) is more than just something to keep the unit from scratching. The bottom has molded recesses to perfectly fit the speaker and amp bottoms in place. This centers the unit front to back. The top panel has just enough give so you can shoehorn the system in, 1 piece at a time. The front and back covers are just that, covers. So when you intend to use it, just place it where you want with the front and back covers off. Then you can plug it in and use it like any other 1 piece sets. Theres enough clearance on the backside for all the cables connected, I checked, no issues. When you want to transport it, just snap the covers back on and go. The unit can stay in the structure indefinitely.

floyd said:
Oh so you got the complete package you're way above me man.
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floyd said:
If you think your boombox box is badass think again. might not be a Boombox but this m*********** don't play.
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Floyd, I have this one unit here that I use a lot. I also have at least 1 more someplace in storage, maybe an extra center unit, I can't recall. As for it not being a boombox, that's not completely true. The center unit is actually a boombox, internal batteries, stereo speakers (they face the sides). Is it an M90 without the rest of it? Not by a long shot. But having only the center isn't very attractive anyhow unless you use that as a starter to make a much more powerful system with external amp and speakers and if you do that, you might as well hold out for the whole shebang instead of having a mismatched mishmash. However, you need to own one (in good shape, of course) to experience how nice it is. Except for the volume control, which is an analog pot and subject to static oxidation, the bass and treble controls are solid state up/down buttons only, all the switching is digital. The flourescent tuner reminds one of an '80s home stereo. Sound is very clean and the speakers have small drivers but they pound out some sound too. Plus the amp is the real deal, you can hook up external big speakers if you want. $300? Go for it. Remember, you can get 10 of them for the price of a single M90 these days. I would sell all my M90's before I consider selling one of these DC20s. If I find a minty one, even if it costs $1,000, it's worth it. Remember, an M90 costs 3x that much these days, and an M90 can't touch this in quality.
 
Superduper

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AE_Stereo said:
It looks as if the Kenwood folks didn't know how to make a boombox, and so they encased one of their midi systems in a briefcase and sold as boombox :-)!
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To be fair, nothing in Kenwood's marketing brochure lists it as a "boombox", it's noted as a mini-component system. The brochure describes it as a product filling the gap between true hifi sound, and space saving minaturization and portability, to which I believes it does very well. The "portable" part is the lift off center unit which by itself without the power amplifier is rated at 3.4 wpc which isn't mind blowing BUT keep in mind that it does it at 1.0% THD. All other boombox marketing rates their gear at a full 10% THD which in all honesty isn't listenable to my ears. If you derate the specs by capturing the power at 1% instead of 10% distortion, you might be surprised how much less the true power is. The encasing part is for those folks that wants to make the "full" complement of components integrated and portable. But in all honesty, no product that weighs 41+ pounds can be considered truly portable anyhow unless you are the Rock, and even then, I'm gonna guess that his arms would eventually tire after a significant walk down hollywood blvd.

Regardless, whether or not Kenwood was successful in making the point or marketing to the intended crowd, it's clear they didn't sell all that many but that's to be expected since I'm sure the retail price at the time was very high and competing against large empty boxes from a price aspect this stereo isn't going to win many such competitions. I suspect that the product was too unconventional aesthetically (without forward facing speakers on the main unit) to be attractive to the "portables" crowd, and when the full set of components are considered, then it is much more attractive but the price creeps up too high, and too heavy for that same crowd. Therefore, if you exclude the typical boombox buyer as consumers, it's no wonder they sold such low numbers. It's a niche product and the sales reflect that.

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floyd

floyd

Boomus Fidelis
AE_Stereo said:
Great possession.

It looks as if the Kenwood folks didn't know how to make a boombox, and so they encased one of their midi systems in a briefcase and sold as boombox :-)!
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I know Kenwood made at least two different Boombox models.
 
Superduper

Superduper

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:clap::blink::lol: They made their walkmans like they made the DC-20. Separates stuffed into a silver case, mini me style.
 
trippy1313

trippy1313

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Never seen one of these before! Literally a briefcase boombox. Wow. Really actually pretty cool styling of the actual radio as well. Very very cool Norm! I like it.
 
floyd

floyd

Boomus Fidelis
I've tracked down several other Kenwood boomboxes.
Cr50
Rx 8
Cr 100
Mdx g3
Mdx j3
Rx 5
.
 
Superduper

Superduper

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