Fully Restored Kenwood KA-9800 (KA-8300 Variant) 80WPC Stereo Integrated Amplifier - Cool/Unique Blackface Kenwood, International Voltage Options, Amazing Performance!

For sale is a fully restored KA-9800 (blackface european KA-8300) 80WPC stereo integrated amplifier. This is one of the rarer euro designs that was most likely purchased in the PX exchange in the 70's when a soldier was over seas! Even ignoring this and the traveling it must have done...cosmetically the amp is in wonderful condition and sounds incredible after the restoration!

Please study the pics carefully for cosmetics, overall the amp is in fantastic condition!

The amplifier received a full recapping, every single electrolytic/tantalum capacitor was upgraded to long life, high temperature, low impedance types made by Nichicon and Panasonic. Any known troublesome transistor types were upgraded to modern lower noise types as well. The large filter caps were tested for ESR and capacitance and found to be well within spec still with good seals and were left intact. All boards were pulled one by one and gone over carefully, touching up any questionable solder joints and replacing any other components that were out of spec. The power supply and protection circuit received additional attention with with better performing transistors which will allow that entire section to run cooler. The power amp was rebuilt with new high temp caps, refreshed thermal paste and all solder joints were gone over. All controls were cleaned carefully multiple times and the entire unit was disassembled and detailed thoroughly inside and out. All functions were tested carefully and perform flawlessly. DC offset was set and checked/rechecked periodically after restoration and are rock solid. All knobs are ultrasonically cleaned to remove hard to get to dirt.

The performance of the amplifier is stellar - great overall balance and a lot of "air" to the sound, like it's always ready to deliver more power to the speakers without distorting. The amp has a very warm yet clean sound that can be attributed to Kenwoods low distortion yet simple design philosophy in these amps. There is great high end detail/clarity without being harsh or fatiguing to listen to for hours on end, even at higher volumes. The phono stage specifically is great because of it's lack of coloration - it follows the RIAA curve very closely and thus the tone and volume controls don't need to be touched when switching between sources.

Kenwood is known for building reliable, robust and easy to service audio gear - this amp is no exception! The overall build quality is fantastic and the clean internal layout shows that Kenwood really focused on optimizing the signal paths and keeping noise to a minimum (you cannot tell the amp is on until it starts playing music, exactly how it should be!

The amp will be packaged and shipped carefully using UPS with full insurance.