Kenwood eXcelon KDC-X998

Awesome

I bought this for the preamp voltage.. but I was very pleased when I purchased this. ... it looks great and I look all of the options that comes with this head unit. It takes a little getting use to if you aren't accustom to Kenwood products... I would definitely recommend it...

Top of the Line!

I bought this Head Unit to replace a entry level Sony Xplod, and what an upgrade it was. I really have started to get into car audio hardcore and I wanted a really nice head unit to go along with all of my nice aftermarket products. I currently have all Rockford Fosgate Punch speakers and Fosgate Power amps along with all Fosgate wiring. The thing I love about the Excelon line is that they all have 4 volt pre-outs. It just makes for a cleaner signal to me.This x998 makes my speakers and sub sound so clean and makes them get super loud if I want. The features this radio have make it worth the money to me. I love that I can choose the speaker size and sub woofer size. The custom 13 band EQ is awesome. If you are not familiar with advanced settings this radio can be a bit overwhelming. I however am pretty tech savvy so it was easy for me to pick up on everything. There is an awesome review on how to use this radio on YouTube for those who have trouble. The Pros are its a top of the line radio. The look is sharp and clean. The Bluetooth sounds awesome on my Galaxy S3, the phone calling and receiving option works good, the CD and USB have a dust cover, the 4v pre-outs, and it just produces a nice clean sound. Also I love the sound elevation feature( I'm 6'3 so its nice to make the sound come from up high in my truck, really nice feature) The only con for me is its kind of hard to read the screen during the bright daylight (But i don't mind that, the Pros far outweigh this con) Overall its a great upgrade for me and it makes a huge difference in sound quality. Definitely worth the money. Sonic is the best place to buy from!!! I highly recommend this radio!!!!!

If it didn't have these problems

My radio has locked up a couple times since I've had it. You have to change the presets for every source. instead of making things simple and having to change the preset one time, you have to change it for every source which is annoying. It is especially annoying if you have to do this over and over again because of it freezing up and you having to reset the radio to make it work, or if something happens to your battery and it gets reset anyway. I can't go between auto 1, 2, or manual with the remote. If your operating this radio with the remote and you left it on preset mode, you can't get out of it with the remote, which means you have to physically press the button on the radio. In other words, backseat listeners are out of luck! The display is too hard to read. You're screwed if it's sunny out, which is almost always.

Kenwood KDC-X998 is a good souce unit

The Kenwood KDC-X998 does what I want: (1) play CD's, (2) stream Rhapsody via Bluetooth from my iPhone 6 and iPad and (3) has HD Radio. No complaints here.


You can program up to 18 presets on one band and combine whatever you want AM/FM/analog/HD. No changing from band to band to band after you get past 6 presets like on most head units.


I tried a Pioneer DEH-X9600BHS but it had Bluetooth issues. I then tried a Sony MEX-GS810BH but it had issues with the radio [both analog and HD].


The Kenwood just works. It also has some DSP options that some folks may be able to leverage. At the very least , users should use the time alignment feature.


It is currently paired with a Helix DSP 8-channel digital signal processing unit, JL Audio XD700/5 power amplifier, JL Audio 10TW3-D4 subwoofer and the front OEM drivers in a mid-sized SUV. The front OEM drivers consist of 6x9's in the doors, 2-1/2's in the dash corners and tweeters in the pillars. I am still dialing in the Helix DSP and will most likely install aftermarket component drivers, but the Helix DSP really helps the OEM drivers sound better.


I would certainly recommend this head unit.

Amazing head unit.

It is a little confusing at first if you haven't had an audiophile type head unit but once you get the hang of it you'll never want anything's ng else. The sound quality is amazing, and it seems to be clean clean even at high volume. It's best thing I've bought for my car so far.

Nothing easier

I have had five Kenwood receivers. One is a double din. I have never been so delighted to use a stereo as I am with this model. It is simply easy to use. I usually use Aux, HD Radio, and BT Audio. I don't use more, but switching between could not be easier.
The looks are sweet too. It has a highly refined look to it. I make it show me the clock all the time. I have it showing the screen in negative so the clock is highly visible in strong sunlight.
There is simply not one thing not great. I need to shop for a Sirius/XM add on.
This receiver has great sound. I just changed all four speakers to four-way Pioneer's. My little Ranger pickup sounds great.
Sitting in traffic on my commute is now awesome.