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| Kenwood Excelon KDC-X579 |
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July 1, 2004
• Vol.2 Issue 7 Page(s) 26 in print issue | |
Kenwood Excelon KDC-X579 | |
 Kenwood Excelon KDC-X579 $280 www.kenwoodusa.com Car audio seems to be the last bastion of "good enough" sound quality. People who wouldn't dream of relying on built-in television speakers for home theater sound limp along with factory speakers and head units every time they get on the road. If you're looking for ways to extend your MP3 collection's range or have had enough muddy, low-powered car audio, an after-market head unit is your best bet. Kenwood's Excelon KDC-X579 will punch up your car's audio at a price you can live with, while keeping the door open for future expansion. The unit plays commercial, recordable, and rewriteable CDs, plus MP3 or WMA (Windows Media Audio) files from CD-R/RWs. At near-CD-quality (128Kbps [kilobits per second]) encoding, you can fit over 12 hours of MP3 music on a single disc. How's that for a one-disc road trip? The KDC-X579 has an adequate internal amplifier (22 watts per channel rms [root mean square]), and includes four preouts for connecting to an external amp. High-pass and low-pass electronic crossovers divide and direct audio frequencies to the appropriate channels through the amp. The included AMS (Amplifier Management System) controls compatible Kenwood amps directly from the head unit so you won't have to crawl in the trunk to fiddle with the amp's knobs. Kenwood provides System Q and other tone controls for choosing or creating equalizer profiles for the built-in amp. The Excelon line sports an attractive 12-character multicolor display, in a flip-down faceplate, plus a remote control and carrying case. We had our friends at AutoSounds in Lincoln, Neb., handle the installation, but the process is straightforward. Insert the unit in a single DIN cavity, connect it using a wiring harness, and you're good to go. There are plenty of ways to expand the system, as well. The unit is SIRIUS-ready, HD Radio-ready, and Music Keg-ready. After installation, take some time to read the manual and configure the receiver to your car's acoustics and your own preferences. It took us a little while to figure out all the menus and options (we'd have appreciated a "Quick Setup" guide to the basics), but it's well worth the time. The first thing we noticed when firing up the KDC-X579 was the silver volume control wheel on the front. It's a great concept, though the plastic wheel itself feels cheap and less articulated than we'd expected. The button in the wheel's center toggles between inputs and Standby mode, and the other controls are more or less self-explanatory. The model is easy to control, even when driving, and the Excelon's layout is both intuitive and accessible. The display does a good job of displaying the file and folder structure of MP3/WMA discs, and shows ID3 tag information for each track. The detachable faceplate swings down to reveal the CD slot and Eject button. It's an interesting setup and might save a few millimeters on the front panel, but isn't always convenient when you're driving. The Excelon's clarity and power overshadowed any minor interface tics, however. We were impressed with the unit's sound quality, compared both to factory equipment and other after-market head units we used in the same vehicle (with Blaupunkt TSx652 speakers). The internal amp's 22W x four channels (rms) provided enough muscle for any music type and delivered a crisp (if somewhat bright) tone. The head unit's front and rear channels were well balanced, and the equalizer controls were robust enough to provide quite a lot of customization. Kenwood's KDC-X579 is a good way to upgrade your car's sound system and provides plenty of opportunity to continue down the audio improvement path with other after-market equipment. We're interested to see how it integrates with other products and expect to cover a few in upcoming issues. Even on its own, however, this Excelon model provides enough features and enough power to warrant its price. The KDC-X579 will serve as a solid foundation for any midlevel car audio system.  by Gregory Anderson |
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