JVC IPOD KABOOM RV-NB50 UNBIASED REVIEW.. FINALLY!

[TMR]

well.. i had a few minutes before i had to go to work.. so i started dissasembly of the Kaboom..

ummm.. the words piss poor come to mind..

the innards are pathetic at best..

man did they go cheap.. and not just regular cheap.. but super cheap..

the subs do list at 20 watts.. and there beefy.. but the power supply is gimp.. it can get pleanty loud.. so perhaps they figured out how to make it more efficient? doubt it though..

anyways.. i'll have a more detailed breakdown tomorrow with pictures..

looking at it as it is though.. i cannot recommend this at it's current price point.. they cut blocks.. no corners..

 

[hemiguy2006]

I thought JVC stood for Japan Victor Company
Sad to hear about the cheap build but it is to be expected anymore.
it seems no one cares about whether a $300. + product will last more than three years.
I guess the Altec IMT-800 will be the better bet for a modern day boombox that has a nice build
quality too it.
Unfortunately Altec's product is made in China as well so only time will tell how long it will last.
Will it out live any of my 30+ year old boxes????

 

[bill]

yes as hard as it is to believe jvc actually was not jvc anymore even before it was sold.

 

[vladi123456]

What a sad story about JVC. One would think they made a fortune on VHS - but I guess not. I still like them though - and hope they don't follow Aiwa

 

[Superduper]

Over here on the west coast, it's my understanding that our new Bay Bridge replacement project is built in China in sections, then hoisted up in place. Sorry dudes but China owns us now.

As for quality, I'm sure that JVC, Altec etc does the engineering and specifications for their items. Even though China does the manufacturing, they don't just build it whatever way that they want -- there are still specifications to how it's done. The plastic thickness, the color, texture, materials used, where the gussets are, what components to use, etc.

So if the build quality is cheap, and the company that engineered, commissioned and selling the device is JVC, then the blame falls entirely on JVC for coming up with the specifications and approving said device.

For $250, I still might buy the thing. The ipod and usb host features are interesting enough for me to keep it on my list but I think I'm in no particular rush now, maybe subsequent releases will be better, and I guess it's not REPLACING the kaboom I currently have.

 

[vladi123456]

I don't think it's JVC's fault - it might be their new owner's decision - to recoup the investment

 

[MasterBlaster84]

Plastic is cheap so they could have beefed it up for pennies and made it tougher as well as give it a more solid feel. Downsizing the Woofers from 6" and change to 5" and change couldn't have saved more than a few dollars. The bottom line is the bottom line and that's pretty much the first, second and third priority of CEO's and those that make decisions. Pride in ones products has taken a back seat to profits and it's sad. These days CEO's come in on the Mega Dollar Pay train and tear up companies, cheapen product lines, cut quantities, etc. just to increase the bottom line.

Ultimately I'm sad that JVC took this route because for just a few dollars more they could have made it better but even more it represents the direction businesses in general have been headed for a long time. I may still get one but I will certainly keep at least one old Kaboom to crush the new Miniboom when I feel like it.

 

[oldskool69]

All you have to do is look at brands we all took so much pride in because of the quality of build and reliability...

TEAC, Akai, Nakamichi, Sansui, Pioneer, Kenwood, Infinity, Technics and on and on.

Doesn't matter if it's a boombox or a home system. It's all about how much can be produced cheaply to make repairs non cost effective, thus you throw it away and buy another.

And of course quality and sound suffer for it.

 

[bill]

its a different world now than it used to be.
once things were made to last a lifetime now they are made to last five years.

 

[MasterBlaster84]

its a different world now than it used to be.
once things were made to last a lifetime now they are made to last five years.

Bill I think your right and for those of us old enough to remember the 70's and 80's or even the 50's and 60's we have first hand experience with what you said. Maybe this is one reason I like vintage boomboxes and other items so much.

 

[bill]

honestly tho i think that if you are lucky enough to remember back in the last century the way things were from 1950-1980 for the consumer goods we could purchase you are lucky indeed.
we had it so good that no one who didnt live during these times would even believe it.
why do you think they encourage people to crush there old cars and to turn over there old electronics to be turned into new items under the guise of being good for the environment.

 

[Johnny]

I'm still gonna list my DP200 on ebay to buy one of these new ones, I'll keep my NB1 as the rule.

 

[TMR]

ok.. i took pictures.. and will be posting them later today.. but here's some interesting info.. it has one amp chip.. the chip number is TDA7266SA.. here's the specs.. http://www.datasheetcatalog.org/datashe ... 0139fy.pdf

it's 7watt X 7watt

and you can buy one on Ebay for $4.85 lol.. can you say cheap?

the heatsink is pathetic at best.. nothing like the original Kaboom..

the original Kaboom power supply had a huge beefy tetriodial transformer.. this one? dinky.. the size of a half dollar.. and it's soldered on the power board.. sad..

 

[Johnny]

Anyone know the chips(s) inside of a old kaboom? Such as NB1?

 

[redbenjoe]

this new thread directs us to all give our old big fat kabooms--
a community hug

 

[Johnny]

this new thread directs us to all give our old big fat kabooms--
a community hug

I know, I went from I have to "HAVE" a new Kaboom to... well if I get one for $200.... maybe!!! Just dusted off my NB1 - it will rattle my siding!!

If it was waterproof, I'd take a bath with mine

 

[analogboi]

If you want a good laugh, that same amp chip is used in this:

http://www.amazon.com/Milwaukee-259...ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1265728390&sr=8-3

No, I'm not kidding.

It's an OK amp chip. I've used it for other projects. 5W per channel is about all it can do cleanly with 12VDC input. In production quantity, it is extremely cheap (about $1.00).

I hope in the Kaboom (more like Kapoof now!) they use it with 8 ohm speakers. It doesn't have the current for 4 ohm speakers. The amp chip runs an internal bridged mode.

 

[jaetee]

Thanks for the review! Why am I not surprised...?

$300 = (a pretty decent working-tape deck vintage M70 + RCA cable to plug into iPod or Minidisk or portable CD player) = Money better spent.... Well, that's just my opinion.

At least a well kept M70 has a chance to appreciate over time rather than depreciate. Not to mention that it takes up less footprint. And looks retro-cool and will be the envy of all your friends...

I guess the one factor that comes into play then, is that the JVC kaboom is easily replaceable if broken, whereas a box that appreciates can eventually turn into a shelf queen. But, as far as I'm concerned, for this argument $300 = $300, I'd just rather have the retro cool tape deck boombox. Even without the super-deep bass that you get from kabooms.

And I was just using the M70 example to keep with the JVC theme, you could swap "M70" out with any nice model Sanyo, Aiwa, Sharp or whatever vintage box you prefer... There are lots of good options available for around $300.

 

[MasterBlaster84]

If you want a good laugh, that same amp chip is used in this:

http://www.amazon.com/Milwaukee-259...ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1265728390&sr=8-3

No, I'm not kidding.

It's an OK amp chip. I've used it for other projects. 5W per channel is about all it can do cleanly with 12VDC input. In production quantity, it is extremely cheap (about $1.00).

I hope in the Kaboom (more like Kapoof now!) they use it with 8 ohm speakers. It doesn't have the current for 4 ohm speakers. The amp chip runs an internal bridged mode.

Wow this just backs up the built on the cheap for maximum profit and damn the quality theory.

 

[redbenjoe]

Thanks for the review!

And I was just using the M70 example to keep with the JVC theme, you could swap "M70" out with any nice model Sanyo, Aiwa, Sharp or whatever vintage box you prefer... There are lots of good options available for around $300.

i more than agree --
$300 can often buy/win a fabulous old box --
and there are about a hunderd of them !!