Name: Kenwood KAC-M1824BT
Brand: Kenwood
SKU: 113M1824BT
Rating: 4.5 (33 reviews)

Overview

by Crutchfield's

Power your music on land or sea

Kenwood's KAC-M1824BT 4-channel amplifier will pump up your car's audio system with 45 watts RMS per channel — that's more than twice the power of most car stereos. The super-compact KAC-M1824BT will add new clarity and impact to the basic sound system of almost any kind of vehicle on land or water, and it'll fit in a lot of places when space is tight. The amp uses plastic plugs that protect its power and speaker connections, and features a conformal coated circuit board that keeps out moisture and salt, so the party won't stop just because of a little wetness.

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Power your music on land or sea

Play music wirelessly — no receiver necessary

If you store all your music on your phone or other portable device, you can use the KAC-M1824BT's wireless Bluetooth connection to play your tunes — a great feature if you don't have room to install a receiver. The wired remote controls the volume and track selection. A USB port on the amp lets you recharge your device, so you won't miss a beat of the fun.

It also works with a receiver

The KAC- M1824BT comes with RCA connections so you can use it with an aftermarket receiver. It can handle speaker-level signals as well, so you can still get input from a radio without RCA outputs. The amp senses incoming high-level signals and turns itself on, eliminating the need to install a separate remote turn-on wire.

Bluetooth note: Use of this amplifier's Bluetooth features will depend upon your phone's Bluetooth capabilities. Learn more in our article explaining Bluetooth profiles.

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Product highlights:

compact 4-channel amplifier for car, motorcycle, and boat
45 watts RMS x 4 at 4 or 2 ohms
90 watts RMS x 2 bridged at 4 ohms (4-ohm stable in bridged mode)
CEA-2006 compliant
wireless Bluetooth connection via wired remote controller
- Apt X technology improves Bluetooth sound quality
- supports AAC files for iPhone® users
USB port for charging your portable device
conformal-coated circuit board — suitable for marine applications
MOSFET power supply and Class D amp technology

More Features:

preamp and speaker-level inputs
preamp outputs
signal-sensing turn-on on speaker-level inputs eliminate need for a separate remote lead
16-gauge power and ground leads recommended
fuse rating: 15A x 1
dimensions: 6-11/16"W x 1-13/16H x 3-7/8"D
warranty: 1 year
Our 60-day money-back guarantee
MFR # KAC-M1824BT

What's in the box:

Kenwood KAC-M1824BT owner's manual

Bluetooth 4-Channel amplifier with a 15A ATM mini-fuse installed
59" Wiring harness (22-pin Molex plug on one end)
Remote control/Bluetooth control unit with attached 10.5' cable (12-pin Molex connector on one end)
Remote Unit mounting bracket
4 Self-tapping screws (M4 x 16mm)
Two 13.5" Plastic wire ties
Dual-sided adhesive tape
Protective Cover for Controls (1 sheet)
Instruction Manual/Warranty Card

Featured review

Installed in 2017 RAM 1500 with base audio system. Nice improvement over stock. Only thing I wish it had was adjustable gain.

David from Washington

See all 33 reviews

Customer Q&A

Can you use two of these Bluetooth amps at the same time; using signal from iPhone? I╚??d like to use one amp for front/rear sparklers and the other for two 8╚?? under seat subs.

No need! The AMP has both speaker outputs (2 CH or 4 CH) and low-level outputs (i.e RCA Cables) to drive your sub AMP. This is how I run it.

Reviews

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Kenwood KAC-M1824BT reviews

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33 reviews

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Details

Researched by Crutchfield's Mark G.

Features & specs

Performance
RMS Power Output (Watts x Channels)	45 x 4
Peak Power Output (Watts x Channels)	---
Power at 2 Ohms (Watts x Channels)	45 x 4
Bridged Power (Watts x Channels)	90 x 2
Minimum Impedance Bridged	4
Minimum Impedance Unbridged	2
Minimum Impedance	2
Best Frequency Response	20-20k Hz
THD at Rated RMS Power	1%
Signal to Noise Ratio	90 dB
Input Voltage	14.4v
Features
Amplifier Class	D
Low-Pass Crossover Frequency	N/A
Low-Pass Slope (dB/octave)	N/A
High-Pass Crossover Frequency	N/A
High-Pass Slope (dB/octave)	N/A
Bass Boost	No
Bass Boost Frequency	N/A
Fan Cooled	No
Fuse Rating	15
Speaker Level Inputs	Yes
Preamp Outputs	2
Width (inches)	6-11/16
Height (inches)	1-13/16
Depth (inches)	3-7/8
Parts Warranty	1 Year
Labor Warranty	1 Year

The Kenwood KAC-M1824BT replaces these items:

Kenwood KAC-M1824BT

Product Research

Features
Connections

Features

Compact Amplifier: The Kenwood KAC-M1824BT is a compact Class D 4-channel amplifier with Bluetooth wireless technology. The amp features a conformal coating on the circuit board to protect it from moisture. This allows you to use the amp for motorcycles, marine applications, or on All-Terrain Vehicles (ATVs). The KAC-M1824BT delivers 45 watts RMS x 4 channels at 4 or 2 ohms. It also gives you 90 watts RMS x 2 at 4 ohms bridged. The amp operates at full frequency range, and is not designed to power subwoofers.

Bluetooth: The built-in Bluetooth wireless technology lets you use your smartphone or Bluetooth digital music player as your primary listening source. This makes the amp ideal for putting a sound system in a classic car, ATV, motorcycle, or other motorized vehicle. The amp comes with a wired controller for raising or lowering the volume and changing tracks. The attached 10.5' cable allows you to place the compact amp in a remote location. The KAC-M1824BT is compatible with Bluetooth Ver.3.0 + EDR, and supports SBC, AAC, and aptX for better sound quality.

Remote: The supplied Remote Control unit's Source button lets you pair the Bluetooth device, as well as switch between sources (Bluetooth or RCA/Speaker Input). Other controls include Play/Pause, Backward Skip/Fast Backward, Forward Skip/Fast Forward, and Volume Up/Volume Down. The remote can be surface mounted using the supplied double-sided tape, or flush-mounted in the included bracket. It also has a 1/4"-20 thread (same as a camera tripod thread) that allows you to attach the remote to an optional bar mount kit.

Protection Circuitry: The amplifier features protection circuitry for thermal overload, DC offset, and short circuits. The amp stops operating when it goes into protection mode. (There are no LED indicators.)

Signal-sensing Turn-on: When the amplifier is connected to a factory head unit, or an aftermarket unit without preamp outputs, you can splice the head unit's speaker wires to a speaker-to-male RCA adapter. In this case, the amplifier's Signal-sensing Turn-on feature will turn on the amp when a signal is detected on the input. This eliminates the need to connect a turn-on lead to the amp's Power Control (blue) wire.

Note: If your only using Bluetooth and no other input (speaker-level or RCA) you will need to hook up the turn-on lead.

Mounting: The KAC-M1824BT can be mounted onto an installation board (5/8" thick or more) using the supplied M4 x 16mm self-tapping screws. Two 13.5" plastic wire ties are included for securing the amplifier to a 2x4 board or other narrow item.

Connections

Power Connections: The power, ground, power control, and speaker output wires are included in the supplied 6' wiring harness. The 16-gauge yellow power wire can be spliced into the continuous power wire for the head unit. It is not necessary to run the power wire directly to the battery. The ground wire should be run to the vehicle's chassis.

Power Control: The Power Control (blue) wire should be connected to the head unit's remote turn-on lead when an aftermarket unit is used. This wire does not need to be connected if you're using speaker level inputs. The Signal-sensing Turn-on feature will turn on the amplifier when an input signal is detected.

Line-Level Inputs: The amplifier is equipped with two pairs of RCA inputs for connecting stereo RCA patch cables from the head unit to the amp. If using a factory head unit, or a unit without preamp outputs, you can splice the speaker wires to an RCA plug, maintaining the same polarity.

Line-Level Outputs: In addition to the line inputs, the KAC-M1824BT has one pair of RCA line outputs. This allows you to feed the input signal to another amplifier, if desired.

Speaker Outputs: The included harness has eight 20-gauge wires for connecting your speakers to the amp. You can connect the eight wires to the 4 speakers in a Front Left & Right and Rear Left & Right configuration. By bridging the amplifier, you can get higher power output to two 4-ohm speakers. The amp's Output Mode switch should be placed in the appropriate position depending upon how the speakers are wired: Stereo 4-channel or Bridged 2-channel. The wiring diagram for both configurations can be found in the instruction sheet.

USB Charging Port: A Type A USB port is provided on the amplifier for charging an iPod, iPhone, or Android device. For charging your device, you should use the cable included with your device or the optional KCA-iP102 (30-pin), KCA-iP103 (Lightning), or Micro USB 2.0 (Android) charging cable.