kenwood x993 face plate has poor contact

[Steveopevo 10+ year member]

Every time I push a knob the face plate menu screen reboots. Is there any way to fix this?

Click to read more...

 

[zako 10+ year member]

I have seen this issue with my X994. Eventually, the problem spread to all other buttons. I cleaned the external terminal connections with a toothbrush. I also opened the face plate, and cleared dust with a can of compressed air. None of this helped. Apparently, a lot of people have had the same problem with these Kenwood units. They're basically disposable. I bought a Pioneer DEH-80PRS and have been much happier since then. I would not recommend these Kenwood Excelon units, any model all way through X996, to anyone unless the intention is to replace them every couple of years.

 

[jteske88 10+ year member]

only thing you can do is try and clean up contacts and or if your good with electronics take the faceplate apart and see which contact is losing signal and correct it.

 

[whitedragon551 5,000+ posts]

The problem is the contacts from the back of the faceplate push apart the contacts on the headunit. The more you play with the face, tilt it down, etc. the worse it will get. My suggestion is to contact warranty if its still covered or United Radio for a repair quote.

 

[nateberrier 10+ year member]

Youll notice that Crutchfield almost always has these series decks in their refurbished section. I only had occasional issues with mine, but I would def warranty it out and put it on craigslist. I dont see any reason to buy kenwood again. Pioneer has stepped their game back up. I forget where alpine is, but youll pay more

 

[zako 10+ year member]

The more you play with the face, tilt it down, etc. the worse it will get. My suggestion is to contact warranty if its still covered or United Radio for a repair quote.

I think I took off the face on my X994 maybe 4-5 times, when parking my car in seemingly rough areas. I always used USB thumb drive instead of CDs. It still failed..

I heard that Kenwood's media players (KIV-702, etc) do not have the same problem. I don't know to what extent that's true.