Kenwood KX-3080

A mid-tier cassette deck from Kenwood's 1990s component line — 3-head transport for off-tape monitoring, Dolby B/C noise reduction, the standard rack-format component look of the era.

Overview

The KX-3080 is part of Kenwood's 1990s cassette deck lineup. The 3-head design (separate erase, record, and play heads) was an important step up from 2-head decks because it allowed off-tape monitoring during recording — you could hear what was actually being recorded as it happened, which made bias and level adjustments much more practical.

The deck is built to the typical 1990s Japanese mid-tier standard: stamped-steel chassis, plastic tape door, mechanical transport with belt drive. It supports Type I, II, and IV (metal) tapes and the standard Dolby B and C noise reduction systems.

Specifications

Type3-head cassette deck
Tape compatibilityType I, II (CrO2), IV (Metal)
Noise reductionDolby B, Dolby C
Frequency response (Type IV)20 Hz – 19 kHz
Wow & flutter0.06% WRMS
S/N ratio (Dolby C, Type IV)74 dB

Applications and Legacy

1990s rack-format component systems. Working examples trade for $60-150. Like most cassette decks of the era, expect to refresh belts and idler tires before reliable operation.

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