JVC KD-1636 (circa 1978–1979)
Little is documented about the JVC KD-1636 outside of period equipment directories. It appears to have been a portable cassette recorder/player, offered in at least a Mk II revision, and sold alongside the smaller, lighter JVC KD-2. A comparative table in HiFI-Stereo (March 1979, p.63) puts the KD-1636 Mk II in the "Portable Field Recorders" category and lists these known specifications:
- Original price: $370
- Weight: 11.7 lbs
- Dimensions: 14.6 × 4 × 9.7 inches
- Wow and flutter: 0.08%
- Signal-to-noise ratio: 57 dB
- Frequency response: 30–16,000 Hz
- Battery life: 12 hours
- Notable features: Super ANRS noise reduction, master gain control, microphone attenuation
Additional JVC advertising from late 1978 promoted a new series of cassette decks with Super ANRS. The company claimed it cut tape hiss by raising the signal-to-noise ratio by up to 10 dB above 5,000 Hz. The KD-1636 probably belongs to that series, but the surviving press records no design or circuitry details for this model. It almost certainly had twin VU meters, three-position bias and equalization switches, separate mic/line controls, and a three-digit tape counter - features common to JVC's portable decks of the time - but the available sources can't confirm any of that.
eBay Listings
As an eBay Partner, we earn from qualifying purchases. This helps support our independent vintage technology research.
Related Models
- JVC KD-35
- JVC KDV-6
- JVC TD-W501
- JVC TD-W718
- JVC TD-W777
- Akai CS-M40R (1983)
- Akai GX-7 (1970)
- Akai GX-8 (1975)
- Akai GX-F44R (1979)
- Akai GX-F71 (1982)