| | Points Possible | JL Audio C5-650x |
| Sound Quality | 5 | 3.5 |
| Treble | 5 | 3 |
| Midrange | 5 | 4 |
| Bass | 5 | 4 |
| Value | 5 | 3 |
"Average" is half points possibleAdditional sizes: 5x7
Kenwood Excelon KFC-X1710
MSRP: $240
Kenwood's eXcelon KFC-X1710 is a 6.75-inch coaxial set built upon a good-looking cast-aluminum basket. However, the craftsmanship falls shy of impeccable as the PCB holding the 12dB tweeter crossover is open to the elements, the wires for the tweeter are distastefully glued to the backside of the frame, and the tinsel leads to the woofer were nearly touching the legs of the frame. Yikes! The 19mm soft-dome tweeter is held in place over the center of the driver by a plastic bridge that mounts around the outside of the woofer's butyl-rubber surround. The mount affords the tweeter a small amount of swivel so it can be angled more appropriately when mounted in positions off-axis to the listener.
Driving the lower frequencies is a hybrid cone derived of carbon and polypropylene. It has a nice machined black finish to its face and a doped, woven dust cap. Interestingly, Kenwood chose to use a 2-ohm voice coil, hence the caution on the side of the packing box warning to use an appropriate amplifier.
The set comes with adapter plates for use when mounting the drivers in 160mm (6-inch) holes, a set of grilles, Kenwood badges, mounting hardware and, a bonus, speaker wire. Like many of the Japanese brands, instructions and specifications are located on the outside of the packing box. While mostly pictures, they are thorough if you can decipher them. The warranty is given as one year.
Listening
The tweeters hanging out front of the woofers steal the show. They are bright even when positioned away from my location, thanks to their stunning off-axis response. However, they weren't overwhelming to listen to on most tracks, but those with a lot of upper frequency information, such as the guitar backing Raul Midon's vocals, tended to be overemphasized in the soundstage.
The vocals from Tracy Chapman and Toni Braxton were solid and well focused with an exceptionally smooth lower end. Others, such as the raspy tone of Phil Collins, tended to disconnect on the upper end as the tweeters unleash. Even though, just as you think the system is going to break up, another rotation of the volume doesn't seem to phase it. Which brings me to one of Kenwood's selling points-the KFC-X1710's get loud with integrity that rivals speakers costing considerably more.
While the tweeters were a little more aggressive than I prefer, I was impressed with what I heard. The Kenwoods not only sound pretty darn decent, they handle power with civility and without breakup, just as a system should.