Kenwood CM-9 (1993)
The Kenwood CM-9 is a compact 2-way bass reflex speaker system from 1993, originally priced at ¥29,800 per pair. It's a small bookshelf speaker - 220mm wide, 150mm tall, 164mm deep, 2.3kg. The engineering is more interesting than the size suggests.
The low end comes from a 12cm cone woofer made of polypropylene loaded with mica. The tweeter is a 2.5cm soft dome. The odd part is the crossover frequency. Kenwood set it at 6kHz, which is unusually high for a two-way design. According to the documentation, this was deliberate, to get a "full-range speaker-like sound." The woofer's surround material and ring shape were also revised to smooth out large-stroke vibration. That suggests Kenwood wanted the little 12cm driver to cover more of the midrange than usual.
The enclosure is a special polypropylene cabinet, chosen to suppress unwanted internal resonance while keeping appropriate internal loss. Kenwood claims this improves strength against external forces while minimizing internal standing waves. The speakers also have magnetic shielding, so they can sit near CRT televisions, which was a practical concern in 1993.
Rated input is 80W with an instantaneous maximum of 120W. A Russian listing cites 35W nominal and 90W max, but the manufacturer's figures are the more authoritative ones. Impedance is 8Ω, output sound pressure level is 83dB/W/m, and the playback frequency band runs from 50Hz to 25kHz.
Kenwood also sold a matching stand, the SR-CM7, for ¥9,800 per pair. The literature says it allows "more freedom of installation." One Russian seller described the CM-9 as "quite spirited despite their small size, playing quite maturely," and another noted they "play as they should."
Beyond that, the historical record is thin. No production timeline beyond 1993, no market context, and no documented failure modes. What survives is a well-specified little speaker that Kenwood put real thought into — especially in that unusual 6kHz crossover and the polypropylene cabinet.
Known Specifications
- Type: 2-way, 2-speaker, bass reflex, magnetic shielding (EIAJ)
- Woofer: 12cm cone (polypropylene with mica)
- Tweeter: 2.5cm soft dome
- Crossover frequency: 6kHz
- Frequency response: 50Hz – 25kHz
- Rated input: 80W / Instantaneous max: 120W
- Impedance: 8Ω
- Output SPL: 83dB/W/m
- Dimensions: 220 × 150 × 164mm (W×H×D)
- Weight: 2.3kg
- Original price: ¥29,800 per pair (1993)
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