Kenwood KA-990V (1985)

Name: Kenwood KA-990
Brand: Kenwood

The Kenwood KA-990V is a high-power integrated amplifier released in 1985, sold in Japan at ¥79,800. It belongs to a family of KA-990 variants. The KA-990SD (around 1984) and KA-990EX (1987) are distinct models with their own internal architectures, so the specs below apply only to the V version. Almost everything documented about the KA-990V comes from a single specification database, so the record is thin. The numbers that survive are big ones.

The headline figures are 130W + 130W into 6Ω and 110W + 110W into 8Ω, both measured 20 Hz to 20 kHz, with total harmonic distortion rated at 0.006% and 0.004% respectively. At 1 kHz it's rated at 155W into 4Ω and 115W into 8Ω. Frequency response runs from 1 Hz to 180 kHz (+0/-3 dB), and the damping factor is a very high 1000 at 50 Hz. It weighs 13.9 kg and measures 440 × 158 × 420 mm.

The design centers on what Kenwood called the VIG-DLD circuit. A VIG (Virtual Ideal Ground) stage sits between the amplifier and the power supply to keep power-supply noise out of the amplifier stage. It also uses a "Σ drive type B" topology that extends the negative feedback loop to the speaker terminals, which pulls distortion-causing components inside the loop. The power supply has a large transformer with extra laminated cores and four 10,000 µF Chemi-Con block capacitors. The phono equalizer gets its own dedicated winding. All ground lines converge at a single point on the speaker terminals.

Inputs include phono MM (2.5 mV/47kΩ) and MC (0.2 mV/100Ω), plus tuner, AUX, and tape positions. That makes eight terminals total, with newly added CD and Tape-C inputs and a CD direct switch. The three tape loops allow full dubbing in any direction (A→B/C, B→A/C, C→A/B). Tone controls give ±10 dB at 100 Hz and 10 kHz, there's a subsonic filter at 18 Hz, and the phono stage holds a RIAA deviation of ±0.3 dB. Signal-to-noise is rated at 108 dB for line inputs and 88 dB for phono MM.

HiFi Engine lists the model as a "New High Speed Integrated Amplifier," which fits the rise time of 1.7 µs and slew rate of ±100 V/µs. The KA-990V appears to carry forward the Σ drive design concept from Kenwood's higher-end L-02A.

Little else survives. No independent period reviews have surfaced, and current market pricing is anecdotal at best. Listings on European and Russian classifieds suggest it still circulates among collectors, with asking prices from roughly 750 PLN to 28,000 ₽. At least one unit has appeared as a parts/repair listing on eBay.

Known specs at a glance: