"dbx" Wonder? Yamaha K-1X

The Yamaha K-1X is a Japan domestic model but also called KX-1020 in international export markets. I am not sure if the are any difference internally between them 

For some reason or another, I was never quite taken by Yamaha hifi components. Yes I do have a Yamaha AVR for my living area 5.1 HT system, and that's it. Even that is because I got it bundled with the Bose Acoustimas speaker system for a good price! So why is this in the cards? you asked. My buddy Mr Oh's influence!

This is good deck, you try, this one got dbx noise reduction system, otherwise you don't know what you're missing, he said! And so I did try with an open mind, plus I was curious about the dbx NR system. On spec, it seems to be great deal better than the generic Dolby B/C & HX Pro, which is now default features on most cassette decks. 

The Yamaha K-1X sitting in my audio rack, as usual just below the Aesthetix Janus Signature pre-amp 

The Yamaha K-1X is from 1985 vintage, it self is a further evolution from the K-2000 & K-1000 flagship decks from 1982. Key features of the K-1X includes 3 heads, dual captan transport, Sendurst tape head, Dolby B/C & HX Pro and lastly, dbx noise reduction system. Styling wise, the Yamaha looks chunky with it's rather deep width and tall box, and one peek inside shows why. While the box is compartmentalized inside, Yamaha doesn't go the whole 9 yards & copper coat it either. I see money being spent on the important things like a reliable and high spec transport with a bright green illumination, the Sendurst tape heads, detachable tape well cover made from real glass & aluminum, decent size PS transformer & thick, non detachable power cord. Yamaha chooses to go prudent with other things, like no remote, plastic face plate, no copper chassis coating as mentioned before. The tape well of the Yamaha is well designed for easy access to perform tape head and pinch roller cleaning.

The insides of the Yamaha K-1X. On the right there's 4 pcs of standing PCB for the dbx noise reduction system. With this system, there's a requirement for the audio circuitry to accommodate an extra headroom for signal to noise ratio. Weighting in at 6.9kgs the Yamaha K-1X is not the heaviest battleship around, but is solid enough nevertheless. If I have to rate it, may be at pocket battleship level? 

Another area that I love about the K-1X is the styling, this unit finished in stain brushed black has the usual tape well on the left, a recoding level slider on the right next to tape well, then flanked by an unusually long tape counter and peak level meter display. The display really sets this unit apart by use of bold typeface and very striking blue & red illumination. I think the extra long peak level meter is to accommodate the extra headroom of up to 60 db as required by the dbx noise reduction system. At the bottom of the display are six major transport control keys and a flip down flap on the right to hide all the recording adjustment knobs & noise reduction selectors for a clean facia appearance. On the whole, the styling reflects a image of bold power, yet classy altogether.  

That detachable tape well cover is made from real glass, sandwich at the bottom and insides with real aluminum frame. Very solid and chunky when removed for tape head and pinch roller cleaning 

The tape counter in red illumination has big chunky typeface, making easy viewing from near or far. The peak level meters is extra longer than usual, but does not have peak hold feature

All recording adjustment knobs & noise reduction selectors are hidden inside a flip down flap on the right side of the cassette deck

It all looks very neat on the facia when the flap is up, covering all the recoding functions, making the deck look less busy in comparison to others. The recoding level slider in use here is OK, but I much prefer a big master rotating knob for that purpose 

The sound of the Yamaha K-1X or KX-1020 in export markets is incredible, with or without dbx system in use! I used mostly pre-recorded & tapes recorded from my previous Teac V-670 and those tapes all sounded much better than I ever experienced them before. The sound is big scale, bold, and very dynamic to boot. The bass kicks ass with well defined kick drum, and clean note to note transfers, no woolly bass notes as normal cassettes. I think part of the credit goes to the strong dual capstan, 3 head transport. There's a certain kind of sweetness in mid range & highs. The highs in particular are airy & will bite if the music calls for. There's also a clarity and dynamic range that most other decks will find hard to match. In comparison, the Yamaha did lost out slightly on resolution, compared to my resident Akai GX-95 MKII deck.

I then made a CD recording using the dbx noise reduction, and on playback there was total silence in the back ground just like CD, with the dynamics and slight coldness all included. I would say this Yamaha makes the most true to source recordings one can ask for. I also tried play some of my previously recorded tapes with Dolby C on the dbx system, but the sound came out weird, very loud, and also seemingly boosted to the point of clipping. So Dolby B or C recorded tapes must be played without the dbx switched ON. But even then, the benefits of the extra headroom that this deck offers is highly evident, yes even without the dbx system. I just usually switch OFF all noise reduction during playback, yet this Yamaha is so engaging to listen to everytime, all the time!

 

In 1987, Yamaha introduced the KX-1200U, which looks almost identical to it's predecessor, but come with remote control, and other modern era tape deck functions such as track search 

 In the end, I told my poison buddy Mr Oh, that I don't want to return this deck to him! He was reluctant to sell to me because he wanted to keep it for his own "collection" of cassette decks! And yes, he has many top decks. In the end I managed to convinced him to let me continue to use the Yamaha K-1X, rather than see it sitting on his shelf as a collection.

Mr Oh also have another bullet in his amoury, he said I should try the newer version of the Yamaha K-1X, in the form of 1987's Yamaha KX-1200 U! Stay tuned for that to come next..........