Hi all! We're getting our kids into music and need to pick up a piano. We live in a condo so want to go with a digital. My wife and I both grew up with Yamaha uprights so that is our primary experience. From the reviews it appears the Kawai CA701 is great for budget/performance. I tried it in the store and liked it and I probably would have just gone for that if it was just up to me but my wife tried a hybrid (Casio GP-510) and preferred the action there. My research into hybrids has lead me to the Kawai NV5S. It's almost twice the price, but since we're planning to have it basically forever that's not the biggest deal? Though of course I would rather pay less if I could get away with it. I was hoping to get the opinions of the fine people here.

Do you think the realistic action of the NV5S is worth the price difference from the CA901? Also, since the impetus for this purchase is so our kids can learn the piano, do you think growing up playing a CA701 or 901 could negativily affect a child's ability to switch to a real piano in the future?

the CA901 is newer gland theoretically has the better newer sk ex concert grand piano, when only using good headphones, does the CA901 sound better? or does the NV5s has advanced techniques so that it sounds even better? and how is the latency for the piano samples? I only use a cheap midi keyboard Axiom 61 with Cubase + Kontakt player / piano library Ivory, it sounds extremely good, but I hate the latency (reduced with audio interface scarlet 2i2 to about 7 ms, but it's still too much and nearly unplayable for me, I am very sensitive). is a normal piano from kawai better? lower latency? more direct? I never played an original acoustic piano, I have no comparison, but I think they are very direct...

Qualcuno ha avuto modo di confrontare direttamente il kawai nv5s e il ca 901? In termini esclusivamente di suono del sistema integrato avete percepito grosse differenze?

Hi There,

I played piano for 2 years on a clavinova and now want to upgrade on something where my little kids can play and really get a great experience from the early years throughout their teens.

I don't have a fixed living area, so a fixed piano won't be an option, but was more thinking about something modern like a digital / hybrid piano where you can plug earplugs and listen.

I was looking to spend around 5-6k€ but also a bit more as I would like this to be a perennial decision.

What would you recommend me?

I tested both and liked the Yamaha better, but then again, I only have 2 years of experience and my kinds will probably be much better after 2 years ;)

Thanks in advance

Hi all! Professional pianist here who's been looking to upgrade their studio piano for a while. I'd settled on the Kawai CA99 a while ago but after months of waiting just as I was about to purchase it I notice that low and behold Kawai have realised a new model the CA901 which seems to be an upgrade as far as I can tell from a prelimenary glance.

That being said it seems to mostly be fine tunings upgradewise (new sampled voices, speaker systems etc.) rather than a fully redesigned and improved model. I know it's early day so this is unlikely but I'm wondering if anyone has any experience with the CA901 yet who can speak to the differences between it and the CA99 and whether the added price tag is a worthwhile investment.

Thanks in advance!

I've been looking to replace my native kontrol s88 mk1. Partly because the keybed makes a lot of noise, partly because native instruments ceased to support it and partly because the action is not that great compared to grands I have access to (Kawai at my teacher, yamaha disklavier at a friend).

So I've been looking at different digital pianos. After testing, the best I found in term of both feeling and sound is the Kawai CA701 and CA901. There's only about 700 euros difference where I am between both so I'm leaning towards the CA901. I do have a few questions:

1. I won't be able to have a big gap from the wall. It'll be around 5-10cm maximum. I know that this will impact the soundboard but I'm wondering how much. I read that Kawai says 3.5 cm minium is needed with Wall EQ. I just want to confirm if a CA901 that's 5 or 10cm from the wall will sound much better than the CA701

2. I plan to also use VSTs and output the sound back to the speakers. I've read that using usb midi with audio sent to the line causes ground loop. Any effective way to mitigate that?

3. I live in a place with a very humid climate sometimes reaching 85-90% inside the house. Will that be problematic for the instrument?

4. It seems that where I live (HK) the warranty is only 3 years compared to 5 years in other countries. How often do problem appear between year 3 and year 5?

I have a decent digital piano now but I worry that I might be developing bad habits on it. I live in a condo so full acoustic is currently not an option, but I don't have a budget. I'm also an advanced player with 25+ years experience. What would you recommend?