# Kenwood KDC-BT8044U - Headunit review



## Hanatsu (Nov 9, 2010)

Hi,

thought I'd do a small review on this headunit. What's good and what's bad... Found another review posten on talkaudio so I linked that one aswell. I suck at reviews so read it if you want, but don't complain. I warned you!! Here's a few pictures:

Kenwood BT8044U - General info

Talk audio - review




















I bought this headunit for my wintercar, I currently use it together with a Audison bit10 for added processing. The 8044 features quite a few functions, it got 3x4V RCA outputs, 5-line display, full iPod control, bluetooth builtin, 24bit DAC, T/A, high/low pass filters for front/rear/sub adjustable between 20-180Hz (6-24dB/oct slope), both AUX and USB inputs, 5band GEQ, reads lots of formats = MP3, ACC, Wave, WMA. It got more than you can expect in this pricerange. Some of the featured abilities are only used in highend headunits. 

_Enough about specs. What do I think about this headunit?_

I believe this to be an overall good player. Display is top notch, easy to read even in sunlight. Cannot complain about USB/iPhone speed either, reads iPhone 4s without any issues. You can control the HU from the iPod or other way around, I highly recommend manual control from iPod. Search system kinda sucks. Even if it reads info fast, the search mode ain't fast... at all. You will have to search by track number in folders if you got many songs and not all functions are available from the remote control (which by the way is huge for a headunit). Menu system is not the most user friendly out there, some things are a bit illogical. For example 2 different submenus for sound settings, one would be enough. Other than that its usability is pretty straight forward. Bluetooth Parrot works fine, easy to sync. However if you play music over BT it might lag at higher bitrates, use USB for that. Knobs are multifunction based ones but seem to be of high quality. No issues with them after 1,5 years abuse. RCA outputs are hardplugged right into the unit, no short cables coming out from the back which is pretty common otherwise. (Edit: I should add the display glass doesn't scratch easy, good quality plastics)

*Quality: 8/10*
*Usability: 6/10*
*Features: 9/10*

_How does it sound?_

Hard to describe how something sounds with words. So I stick with the basics. There are NO noise whatsoever, completly quiet at all levels. Better than my Alpine 9887 which had noise issues. What's more impressive is that it's impossible to clip, even with 6dB EQ bass boost, loudness and bassboost level2 it does not clip RCA outputs. With DSP set to through output voltage is steady 2,8V (sine tone 50Hz, measured with o scope). If you engage DSP and activate bass boosts etc, I was able to push the unclipped output to 3,91V at maximum volume. It does not clip at any frequency even with EQ maxed out, really nice! Sound is clear, I would say that it qualifies as an competition machine. CD input is behind the screen, tilt is made manually and works fine. Removing the front panel is easy and it got a red LED flashing the it's removed for theft protection, pretty neat. Even builtin amplifier is good, 4x23W unclipped power and the output is clean, much cleaner than most HUs. It had a lot power and got the Dayton RS180-4 moving pretty good. Nice snap in midbass even with the limited power output. You won't get much better than this for the money. Time adjustment is good, nothing to complain about. Straight forward, it even have presets (note this machine have lots of presets) but stay away, far away from them. The EQ is a 5-band graphic one, imo this not enough. If it had a L-R function or if it was a parametric I wouldn't complain but 5band GEQ is kind of pathetic. I give it a 9/10 sound rating, better EQ and it would had gotten a 10. But the ability to precision tune T/A, the 24bit DAC, nice noise floor, ability to bypass DSP and clean (unclipped) signal makes it a winner nonetheless...

*Sound: 9/10*

*Overall impression: 8/10 *


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## piyush7243 (Sep 9, 2009)

Nice Review..


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