I AM ONE OF THE LUCKYST GUYS. THIS RECEIVER PUSHS MY SPEAKERS REAL GOOD AND I HAVE A PAIR OF 12 inch Q power stereo speakers.And i got this exact same receiver at the pawn shop for 25 dollars the reason why i got it so cheep beacouse it was Christmas sale and it was missing the volume nob but i just replaced it.but yeah that was the best deal ive got.

Positive:
Great audio quality, i love to hear music videos in 5.1 chanels with a digital audi conecttion using the optical input. you can connect a lot of devices on it. phono, deck, VCR, DVD player, Sat, game console, Ipod and a also it has a huge radio included. high power output with minimal distorsion.

Negative:
I had troubles with the remote control reception.

Kenwood ser.# 10100597

Audio- video surround receiver vr-407

The sound!!! You can play anything from bagpipes to Boston, from AC/DC to Evanesence, from Opera to Bluegrass. Cleanest sound for under 1000 bux you will ever hear.

If you truly want to test out you system, use Herbie Hancock's "Dis is da drum"...you'll find the cheap speakers won't handle it at top levels.

I have to admit that my old KR-V7030 outperforms it in some areas, but for all the extra lil nifty things it does, I can't complain. The Pro-logic setting is a little weak compared to the KR-V, which is odd since they are both 100 watt systems. I'm tempted to do some owner modification and frankenstein them to see what would happen, but not just yet...adding the NAD amp resolved my bass issues and gave a little extra "oomph" to the Redline mains...so I'm happy.

I wonder if they should have put in a better heat sink...I may solder one in at a future time.

Big Weakness...since Circuit City quit carrying Kenwood, it's damned hard to find in a regular store. One usually has to order online or find used priduct in a pawn shop or yard sale. On the flipside, they are highly underpriced and an Excellent bargain anywhere.

Things one should know about Kenwood Products...

Ok, Kenwood is well known for having a very crisp, clear & clean sound. It is undeniable that Kenwood is the best "Bang-for-the-buck" in any price range...from their cheapest unit to their more expensive models. What most folks don't know is that to have proper sound for your sub, you will need a powered sub or an amp driving your sub. I do not know why, but the subwoofer jack has never really pumped power on subs like other receivers
,
Also PAY ATTENTION to the ratings on your main speakers...if it says 200 watts each...USE 200 WATTS!! It will sound MUCH better. THe 407 is a 100 watts per channel system which works wonderfully with mated speakers in that range...over the last 20 years I've tried a godawful amount of speaker setups and come to the conclusion that if your wattage is properly worked out you get great sound. My A pair is a set of Bang & Olafson Redlines and my B pair was a set of Sansui's and I'd generally blow someone out of the room at half volume....so I repeat, mate your watts or amp the lines that need more power.

Buy the top of the line for that model year...usually denoted by a 070 depending on whatever code Kenwood is using that particular year...since the top end is usually around 300 bux, it's well within most folks price range...

Kenwoods are also VERY HOT...as some of you have noticed. I always set the receiver up with at least 3" of clear space above it...and Iif you have it in an enclosed rack, please be kind enough to add a cooling fan to the back of your rack...a 5" computer fan works nicely for this.

Customer Service

Btw...Kenwood VR9070 is MSRP'd at $308 for 2006....better believe that's on my X-mas list!

Similar Products Used:

KR-V7030

Price, Performance, Price, features (Dolby digital AND DTS, back when I bought this amp DTS is still kinda new)

Remote feels cheap, Pro-logic sounds VERY weak compare to my dad's old amp (a VERY VERY old Kenwood), infact overall the amp claims 100w per channel but somehow it doesn't feel that much. I really need to crank the volume up quite high to get some decent boom going on my speakers

Got it on sale at Frys, for 200 bucks you really cannot beat the price. I originally got the 405, but the 407 is MUCH better, 100W per channel and DTS, you can't really beat that. I really do like how clear sound is, in fact I expected it to sound worse for the price I paid. I've mainly used optical digital input as my source and the sound is GREAT in digital mode, the difference between having a Dolby Digital Amp and not having one is simply staggering. Speakers are Infinity Crescendo CS3007 in front, 3006 in the back, and Infinity Center Channel speaker (I think it's a Kappa, donno it's my dad's). No subwoofer...

Similar Products Used:

V405

Lots of things in the back you can plug into it.

Everything else, Can cook an egg on top of the system.

I have nothing but trouble from this unit. I have gone threw three of these now and have now bought a vr-606. The 407 gets way to hot - it will burn your hand if you put it on the top of it - and it will screw up the inside of the unit due to the heat. My speaker outputs would stop working one at a time. Kenwood teck even told me they have problems with this. Don't buy one.

Similar Products Used:

vr-606

Very good sound quality on DVDs

I bought the system in a box less than two years ago. It has been a great system for me with great bass. The problem I have with it is the sound output went out on me in the middle of a movie I was watching. Everything else still functions on the unit, just not the sound. I bought a two year warrenty extension, ,but lost the receipt, and of course, the store has no record of me on file. It was a good unit, but now it is usless to me

very clear sound in dd,dts.very attractive unit.should be priced more.

poor remote

overall a very good product. its hard to find better value for the money. where do you get svideo in the front. only kenwood. remote could be a little better.poor manual. hard to beat value.go kenwood.

Digital sound & DTS sound AMAZING. I would only buy this receiver if you're looking for digital sound for your DVD player.

Prologic sound big time on this. Even when you hear the 2 side speakers in prologic... you'll want to go back to 2 speaker stereo mode. The prologic sound is too weak.

I've had the Kenwood V407 for over a year now. I bought the Home Theater in the box so it came with the 5 speakers and the sub. After a years use, I pretty much know everything it can, and cannot do. I have it hooked up the my DVD, video games consoles, and cable. The cable and DVD I used opitcal wires. THe 407 is really a mixed bag. The 2 speaker stereo is average. The sound won't blow you away. 3 speaker stereo is about the same. Prologic mode is very dissapointing. There is a very noticable drop in bass when in prologic mode. Even with the bass turned all of the way up. It's sounds very tinny. The upside is the digital sound and DTS sound AMAZING. Crisp sharp treble and booming bass. All 5 speakers come to life when you have this receiver playing digital sound.

I''ve used this receiver (i bought it in Europe so it is KRF-7030D not VR-407 in US) more than year now. Finally after year of tweaking my system it sounds good for its price. I would like to notice first that i''d heard Yamaha and Pioneer in the same price field (not Onkyo 494 or Marantz 4000 unfortunately) and all of them had the same problem - they sounded mechanically in stereo (there''s no life in this sound) so i went for Kenwood because it was simply cheaper and well-featured. At the beginning i used this receiver with some Sansui cd player it sucked completely. Then i went and bought Marantz 4100 DVD player and , wow - the sound has been changed significantly (because of the Maratnz of course). Then i bought $30 interconnect GSI twisted-pair cable for stereo mode (i use IXOS Toslink cable for DVD playing) and - it had changed again (i was surprised by the difference of the sound between generic interconnect and this one). Then it started to sound OK. Still the receiver has splashy trebles and boomy bass - but i guess it well expected from such a priced receiver (again - i am sure this is good receiver for price/features/sound quality). Finally after tweaking normal/large settings for all speakers ,etc i have found the best position for my room, but it wasn''t all. If you use this receiver for playing stereo - for god''s sake - use "source direct" button and you will be amazed how good this receiver can sound (of course it depends on your DVD player DAC) but if you have got more than "average" DVD player it should be OK - so just go and push "source direct". Of course in this way you cannot adjust trebles and bass - but surprisingly i do not need to. It just sounds great! I guess it happens because the receiver sends signal directly to amplifier without sending it to the "digital domain" for processing. That''s it. You''ll get pretty clear and more live sound then if it would go thru digitalized "stereo" mode. Only one question: is it possible to use subwoofer in 2-channels mode with this receiver? I am sure it is impossible to do so in "source direct" mode. Happy listening. Daniel.