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Kenwood (ケンウッド, Ken'uddo) is a Japanese brand of consumer electronics. It has been owned by JVCKenwood since October 2011, when Kenwood Corporation merged with JVC. Kenwood manufactures audio equipment such as AM/FM stereo receivers, cassette tape decks/recorders, amateur radio (ham) equipment, radios, cellular phones, speakers, and other consumer electronics.
Logo used since 2011
| |
Native name | 株式会社ケンウッド |
|---|---|
Romanized name | Kabushiki-Gaisha Ken'uddo |
| Formerly | Kasuga Radio Co., Ltd. (1946–1986) |
| Company type |
|
| Industry | Electronics |
| Founded | December 21, 1946; 77 years ago (1946-12-21) (in Komagane City, Nagano Prefecture, Japan) |
| Defunct | October 1, 2011 (2011-10-01)[a] |
| Fate | Merged with JVC |
| Headquarters | Hachiōji, Tokyo, Japan |
Key people | Shoichiro Eguchi, CEO (since 29 January 2003) |
| Products | Consumer electronics |
| Revenue |  US$$1.71 billion (2014)[1] |
| US$20.51 million (2014) | |
| US$5.4 million (2014) | |
Number of employees | 4,424 (2006) |
| Parent | JVCKenwood |
| Website | www |
The company was established year 1946 as the Kasuga Radio Co. Ltd. in Komagane City, Nagano Prefecture, Japan. In 1960, the company was renamed Trio Corporation. In 1963, the first overseas office was founded in Los Angeles County, California, USA.[2]
In the early 1960s, Trio's products were rebranded by the Lafayette Radio Company, with a focus on citizens' band radio.
A&A Trading Co. was an importer of Japanese-made electronics for RadioShack. William "Bill" Kasuga, a bilingual Japanese-speaking manager from A&A, partnered with George Aratani and Yoichi Nakase to establish a company that would be the exclusive importer of Trio products.[3]
The name Kenwood was invented by Kasuga as being the combination of "Ken" (a name common to Japan and North America that had been tested and proven acceptable to American consumers in the name of Kenmore appliances), and "Wood" (referring to the durable substance, as well as suggesting a relation to Hollywood, California).[3] The brand recognition of Kenwood eventually surpassed that of Trio, and in 1986 Trio bought Kenwood and renamed itself Kenwood. George Aratani was the first chairman of Kenwood USA Corporation, and was later succeeded by Kasuga.[2] In October 2008, Kenwood merged with JVC to form a new holding company, JVCKenwood.
Kenwood introduced its Sovereign line of components in 2001. In 2007, Kenwood discontinued its line of consumer audio receivers, home theater systems and other home electronics.
Today, products marketed by the company to consumer and commercial audiences fall within the home audio, car audio aftermarket and OEM, in car entertainment, amateur radio, professional two-way radio and DECT wireless intercom sectors.
Kenwood offers a vast range of speakers at different grades ranging from stage sound to hi-fidelity.
| Amplifier Tech-Spec | Maximum Output Power | RMS Power at 4 ohms | RMS Power at 2 ohms | Bridged at 4 ohms | Frequency Response | High Pass Filter | Low Pass Filter | Speaker Level Input | Signal to Noise Ratio | Dimensions W × D × H (mm) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XH901-5 | 1800 W | 60 W × 4 ch + 400 W | 75 W × 4 ch + 600 W | 150 W x 2 ch + 400 W | 20 Hz – 50 kHz | 50 Hz – 200 Hz, -12 dB/oct | 50 Hz – 200 Hz, -24 dB/oct | Yes | 100 dB | 260 × 169 × 51 |
| XH401-4 | 800 W | 75 W × 4 ch | 100 W x 4 ch | 200 W x 2 ch | 20 Hz – 50 kHz | 50 Hz – 200 Hz, -12 dB/oct (Low Range) 2.5 kHz – 10 kHz, -12 dB/oct (High Range) | 50 Hz – 200 Hz, -12 dB/oct (Low Range) 2.5 kHz – 10 kHz, -12 dB/oct (High Range) | Yes | 100 dB | 220 × 169 × 35 |
Kenwood has offered lines of HF, VHF/UHF, and portable amateur radio models, including some with built-in digital data modes (Automatic Packet Reporting System, built on AX.25 packet radio) and modems needed to send and receive these protocols.
Kenwood's series of "Integrated Amplifier" stereo power amplifiers, launched in 1977 and produced through the mid-1980s. The design for most of these products feature a true dual-mono path for stereo output (no electrical components are shared between left- and right-channel amplification). Front plates were typically made in brushed aluminum with aluminum knobs and switches, glass covers, and in some cases analog VU meters.
Amplifiers in this series included (in no particular order):[4]
These were a series of mini hi-fi systems launched in 2000, featuring a new design aesthetic.
The NV-301 and NV-701 both shared a three-layered half-mirrored design with the main difference lying in the specification of the two systems. The NV-301 was the basic model with two speakers and with a line input (marked for MiniDisc and DVD players) while the NV-701 was a 5.1 Dolby surround sound model with A/V inputs. Both featured a three-disc carousel, a cassette player with Dolby B noise reduction, a natural display, intelligent features and the ability to save up to 40 radio stations, utilising microcomputers to reduce the size of the unit.
Kenwood is a brand of JVCKENWOOD Corporation making two-way radios including wireless DECT intercom systems, PMR446, dPMR446, dPMR, P25, DMR and NXDN. The Kenwood communications product range includes hand-portable and mobile terminals (including Intrinsically Safe and ATEX / IECEx hand-portables), repeaters, infrastructure and application solutions.[clarification needed]
