Kenwood CT 203 Cassette Deck for $6.97!

I stopped by a local Goodwill shop today and managed to pickup 11 records, 5 cassette tapes and a Kenwood CT-203 dual cassette deck for $15.34!

The Kenwood CT-203 is a dual cassette with auto-reverse, dual capstan, Dolby B & C with HX Pro, headphone output, one button auto tape biasing, music seek and digital recording level control. It looks almost brand new with no major scratches or dings. Inside, it's clean and dust free. The heads on both decks look like new with zero wear. From the date markings on the chips inside, it looks like it was manufactured sometime in 1999.

I first tried playing back some store bought tapes and it sounded great. Deep, powerful bass, clean mid range and sweet highs with good extention at both extremes. I popped in a Maxell XLII blank tape, hit 'auto bias' for a quick bias calibration, then made a test recording. The recordings sound flawless, about as good as my Denon DRM-710 tape deck which sounds fantastic. The headphone output even had enough power to drive my HD 800's.

I took a few pictures and posted them in the gallery. 

For $6.97, I couldn't pass it up! 

SPECIFICATIONS:
Track System ................. 4 track, 2 channel stereo
Recording System .......... AC bias (Frequency: 105 kHz)
Heads
     A DECK
     Playback head ................... 1
     B DECK
     Playback/recording heads.... 1
     Erasing head ..................... 1
Wow and Flutter ............. ±0.17 % (IEC) ±0.28 % (DIN) 0.1 % (W.R.M.S)
Fast Winding Time ......... Approx. 110 seconds (C-60 tape)
Frequency Response
TYPE I tape ................... 30 Hz to 18,000 Hz, ±3 dB
TYPE II tape .................. 30 Hz to 19,000 Hz, ±3 dB
Signal to Noise Ratio
Dolby NR OFF ................ 56 dB (IEC, 250 nWb/m, TYPE tape)
Dolby NR OFF ................ 59 dB
Dolby B NR ON .............. 68 dB
Dolby C NR ON .............. 75 dB (3rd, H.D., 3 %, TYPE tape)
Harmonic Distortion ....... Less than 1.2 % (at 315 Hz, 3rd H.D., 250 nWb/m, TYPE tape)
Input sensitivity/Impedance
LINE IN ........................... 122.8 mV/47 kW
Output Level/Impedance
LINE OUT ....................... 775 mV/1.0 kW
Headphones................... 0.5 mW/32 W
[General]
Power Consumption .......... 30 W
Dimensions ...................... W: 440 mm (15-3/4”)
                                          H: 134 mm (5-9/16”)
                                          D: 369 mm (15-3/8”)
Weight (Net) .................... 4.6 kg (10.6 lb)

great deck, you should make a youtube video showing that 30 to 19000 hz on deck b. great and cheap find unit indeed!! congrats!!