The Kenwood KR-9600 is a vintage stereo receiver and is probably the very best tuner ever built. It was debuted as Kenwood’s flagship stereo receiver with plenty of power and made with high-quality internal components. It is still quite sought after even to this date but may not be as popular as other vintage receivers. Are you planning to get a matching pair of speakers to partner with your Kenwood KR-9600? If it is a yes then please read on as we will be sharing a list of the best speakers to go for.
There is a sea of speakers to choose from and to find the right ones, we will need to have a better understanding of Kenwood KR-9600’s sonic characteristics and strengths. With this knowledge in our hands, we will then be able to start listing out matching speakers to pair with the Kenwood KR-9600 and so without further ado let us begin.
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Sonic Characteristics and Important Specifications of Kenwood KR-9600
The Kenwood KR-9600 has a striking and bold appearance which belongs to the Silver Era receivers. The vintage design gives off a sense of power and quality, the colorful displays do help to tone down the metallic feel by a little. The Kenwood KR-9600 will definitely stand out in most listening rooms and will look great with vintage speakers. It is a powerful stereo receiver with rated power outputs of 160 Watts per channel into 8 Ohms and with a frequency response of 20Hz-40kHz. It is able to drive speakers with a load impedance of 4 Ohms to 16 Ohms. The KR-9600 vintage receiver should be able to drive most bookshelf and floor-standing speakers which further widens our choice of potential speakers.
The most notable feature of the Kenwood KR-9600 will be its tuner which still can be used today as some enthusiasts have had them modified. The quality of the tuner is no doubt one of the finest even when compared to current standards. Another notable feature will be the high-quality phono input where it will delight turntable users. The weight of this Kenwood stereo receiver is no joke, we will suggest you move it with caution or ask for additional help. It does take up a lot of space as well.
There is no doubt that the Kenwood KR-9600 is powerful as it can go loud with ease and sound clean while doing it. The transparency of this vintage stereo receiver is superb and you can hardly detect any colorations, giving you a faithful music presentation. The midrange sounded so natural and detailed, the highs are crisp and do not sound harsh. The way the Kenwood KR-9600 accurately reproduces the instruments and vocals provides that sense of realism but can be a bit thin sounding to some listeners. Still, there is a bit of vintage warmth to the overall sound reproduction and brings you back to the good old days.
The bass reproduction is well controlled and has above-average agility. The low-frequency performance is still good which is quite an impressive feat for a decades-old stereo receiver. Deep bass delivery is good as well, not to mention, it is solid and with ample weight. The pleasant-sounding music delivery of the Kenwood KR-9600 should please most listeners’ ears, allowing us to listen for hours and at very high volumes without feeling cringe or fatigue.
Clean and clear sounding, the Kenwood KR-9600 remains competitive even after so many years. I could only imagine how well-received it was back in the day. All in all, the KR-9600 receiver sounded natural with a hint of warmth, the background is quieter than expected too. The musicality of this stereo receiver is refined and quite pristine, still, we would have loved it if is a bit more dynamic and forward-sounding. We will be listing the best speakers that you can choose and match with the Kenwood KR-9600 receiver. The listed speakers’ price point will vary by quite a margin due to the selling price range of this vintage stereo receiver.
Kenwood KR-9600 Specifications
- Power Outputs: 160 Watts per channel into 8 Ohms (RMS)
- Frequency Response: 20Hz-40kHz
- Total Harmonic Distortion: 0.08%
- Speaker Load Impedance: 4 Ohms to 16 Ohms
- Inputs: 2 Play/Tape inputs, 2 Phono inputs, 1 MIC input, 1 AUX input
- Outputs: Headphone output, 1 Pre-out, 2 Tape REC outputs
- Dimensions: 580mm x 169mm x 420mm (22.8″ x 6.7″ x 16.5″)
- Weight: 24kg (52.9lbs)
Best Speakers to pair with Kenwood KR-9600
The Kenwood LS-408B is one of the very best speakers to pair with your Kenwood KR-9600. The sonic characteristics of these Kenwood floor-standing speakers match really well with the KR-9600 and the stereo receiver has no problem driving these vintage speakers. Both are made almost at the same time period and by the same company, so you can expect the sound signatures are incredibly seamless with one another. The tightly controlled bass response and the clean-sounding crisp highs of the Kenwood LS-408B will easily make you fall in love with these magnificent vintage floor-standers.
The Klipsch Heritage Series Heresy IV is also one of the best floor-standing speakers to pair up with the Kenwood KR-9600. You can easily drive these Heresy IV speakers with the KR-9600 receiver to very high volumes that you likely will scare away the neighbors. It is not just loud, the clean sound delivery of the Klipsch Heresy IV is well-match with the vintage stereo receiver and has an amazing midrange reproduction to boot. The bass performance is highly accurate and clearly delivered as well which blends seamlessly with the rest of the higher frequencies. The clarity of these Klipsch floor-standers is superb too.
More Details at Amazon – Klipsch Heritage Series Heresy IV
The JBL L5 scales really well with power and the Kenwood KR-9600 has the muscles to drive these floor-standers with ease. The full-range capability of the JBL L5 is astonishing as it is able to produce powerful and clean sound quality. The dynamic range of the L5s does help to add more liveliness to the music and the KR-9600 vintage receiver helps to ease the hard edges by a little. The highs are crisp and expansive, certainly one of JBL L5’s greatest strengths and it has plenty of them. If you can find a pair in great working condition, you should really hear them out.
If you want a modern full-range loudspeaker without breaking the bank, the GoldenEar Triton Three+ will be an ideal choice to pair with the Kenwood KR-9600. It has a built-in 800 Watts subwoofer that helps to reproduce subterranean bass of down to 21Hz. The GoldenEar Triton tower speakers have a neutral sonic character, producing clean and faithful music, which matches well with the Kenwood KR-9600 stereo receiver. The soundstage that the Triton Three+ could project is very wide and the stereo imaging is equally impressive. They do need space to breathe and will be suitable for medium-sized listening rooms onwards.
The Kenwood LS-P9000X will be a classic full-range speaker that is suitably matching with your Kenwood KR-9600 vintage stereo receiver. The frequency response of these floor-standers is incredible, it is from 20Hz to 48kHz, able to deliver very deep and clean lows. These also make them a great pair of stereo speakers for home theater use, as they can effortlessly produce room-shaking sound. The scale of the sound and presence the LS-P9000X delivers is incredible, the lively performance is well above what we have heard from other Kenwood speakers. We would suggest having an audition with the Kenwood LS-P9000X first before really considering.
There are other popular vintage speakers which you can check out and that will be the Pioneer HPM 100, Pioneer HPM 150, Acoustic Research AR 11, and Klipsch KG 4. For warmer sounding speakers, you might want to take a look at the Wharfedale’s loudspeakers such as the Dentons and Lintons. The Klipsch Heritage series loudspeakers are worth exploring as well, if your budget permits, you might want to take look at their Cornwall IV. If you prefer modern speakers that are bang for the buck, you should definitely check out Q Acoustics such as their Concept 20 stand-mounters and Concept 40 floor-standers.
More Details at Amazon – Klipsch Cornwall IV
More Details at Amazon – Q Acoustics Concept 20 Bookshelf Speaker Pair
To Sum It Up
Whether you use Kenwood KR-9600 for stereo music playback or tuner capabilities, this vintage receiver will perform both functions really well. These speakers here are some of the top choices which you can go for and pair them up with your KR-9600. It is recommended to listen to these speakers first and judge the sound quality with your own ears, from there you can decide which one of them sounds the best to you. For vintage speakers, you should only audition those that are in excellent working condition for a more accurate result.
