🎹 Dive into the Power of the Kawai CA901 | The Digital Piano You Need to Experience 🎹

#KawaiCA901 #KawaiCASeries #DigitalPiano

0:00 - Video Introduction on the Kawai CA901
0:15 - Opening Playing Demo on the Kawai CA901
0:29 - Video Overview and Kawai CA99 Discussion v.s. CA901
0:54 - First Impressions of the Kawai CA901
1:56 - Piano Action Review on the Kawai CA901
3:48 - Action Playing Demo
8:46 - Piano Tone Review on the Kawai CA901
10:57 - SK-EX Competition Grand Piano Demo
13:23 - Rendering Engine Discussion
15:00 - Virtual Technician Discussion
15:50 - EX Concert Grand Piano Demo
17:14 - Kawai K60 Upright Piano Demo
18:18 - Speaker Review on the Kawai CA901
22:14 - Features Review on the Kawai CA901
26:15 - User Interface Review on the Kawai CA901
34:28 - Audio Demo Line Out v.s. Speaker Comparison

Hello! We’re back with another piano review as today we’ll be looking at Kawai’s new CA901 hybrid digital piano.

The follow-up to the successful CA99, the CA901 is the flagship model of Kawai’s vaunted Concert Artist Series.

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First Impressions
Kawai had a very tall order in trying to come up with a replacement for the CA99 as it was universally acclaimed during its production run.

While Kawai has one tier of digital pianos still above the CA series - the top-of-the-line NOVUS pianos which incorporate a genuine acoustic piano action - our first impressions with the CA901 are that Kawai has managed to bring the tone engine and speaker performance very close to what the NOVUS 5 is capable of for instance.

The acoustic experience is noticeably better than the CA99, and that’s what really jumped out at us from the start.

Piano Action
The CA901 brings back Kawai’s still relatively new Grand Feel III action. The GFIII is notable in the market for being an all-wood action, with extended-length key sticks and pivot length. A long pivot length ensures a higher level of control, and it also means the key will feel the same regardless of where you play it, which becomes very important with a more advanced repertoire.

The keybed itself and the structure of the hammer mechanism are also built to replicate the feel of a grand piano. As a result, this is an extremely durable action, built to last a long time and withstand a ton of use.

The touch curve can be widely adjusted, but out of the box, the action feels weighted slightly on the lighter side. There’s a nice texture on the keytops for a good combination of grip and glide, which is standard at this point for the price range.

Other action-related specs include escapement, counterweights and triple sensor key detection.

Piano Tone
Kawai has come out with a brand new sample set for the CA901 and CA701 which they are calling the Shigeru Kawai SK-EX competition grand. Kawai actually improved the acoustic SKEX a few years ago with a different rim structure, resulting in a more mid-heavy sound with a cleaner, clearer treble.

The original SKEX sample was based on a recording of the original SKEX, whereas this new competition sample is based on the updated SKEX concert grand.

The old sample is still included here as well, but comparing them side by side, it’s apparent that the competition grand has beefier upper partials which get more pronounced the higher you play in the range. The bass on the other hand is still quite similar.

In both cases, we’re working with a super in-depth multi-channel sample, fed through Kawai’s Rendering engine which offers a number of different preset options with different tonal configurations of the same core samples. There are also editable resonance engines, as well as their Virtual Piano Artisan function which allows you to edit 20 more sound-related parameters.

Outside of this mode, Kawai’s HIXL engine is included as well, with 96 total sounds including 3 core grand pianos and a great sample of a Kawai K-60 upright piano which happens to be one of the best upright piano samples we’ve heard on a digital piano.

Speakers
The CA99 had a great set of speakers, yet Kawai has managed to level this area up as well. We’re now working with 2 top speakers with diffusers, 2 front speakers and 2 tweeters. The highs are now much more directed towards the player, better simulating the sound of an acoustic upright piano.

Connect with Merriam Music:

[stevenqirkle]

Great review! I’ve been playing a CA901 for a couple months now and really love it. One thing I’ll say is you’ve got to turn up the volume to get the most out of the speakers/soundboard on this piano. At least 50% volume, which is loud enough so everyone in the house (and maybe even people walking by outside) will hear you. For people in apartments, it might actually be a bit too much. But when you do turn it up it sounds so good… puts a smile on my face every time.
The other thing that surprised me is how much I use the SK-5 sample. When played through the speakers it’s got a lot of color and I find it’s just really fun to play.

[scdobserver]

A very comprehensive review, Stuart. Thanks for adding the audio demo from where you sit vs line out at the end. Hope this is the constant feature in all your subsequent reviews (I noticed it also in CA701). Keep up the good work!

[cedmelancon]

I got one of these 2 weeks ago and couldn’t be happier, my practice time has increased significantly lol!

[AnotherAnonymousMan]

Always a delight to listen to Stu play! I just bought a CA99 les than 6 months ago so, I'm not even shopping!

[lauramayfair]

I always enjoy your reviews. I got an excellent deal on a CA59 recently as Kawai is making room for these higher end / newer models. It replaced my Yamaha Clavinova 535. I love the more mellow sound of Kawai and the fantastic action, although my Clavinova served me well. I absolutely love my Kawai. It's amazing how the tech just keeps getting better.

[geoff]

Excellent review. Kawai continues to impress.

[abath]

11:57 I prefer the gentler attack on the original SK-EX 11:42 the Competition is voiced brighter.

[hvrijsse]

You've made my life hell - sort of. Which model should replace my 30 year old piano? This video, together with playing the different models for months over and over again, made it clear that it had to be the CA901.

In real life the difference between the 701 and 901 was much more noticeable than on YouTube.

Anyway, thanks!

[Author-RiseOfTheLittleHorn]

You are a beautiful piano player. WOW!

[JoseTorres-ftxk]

What a nice rendition of waltz for Debbie. Beautiful. Got me thinking of the 501.

[richardgordon]

stu, you have convinced me to buy this piano

[hotfirecaster]

Fantastic review ! Thanks from Paris France.

[marcusholder]

May Yahweh bless you brother we love you and thank you for the video

[howardrosen]

I have had the CA901 for a while, like it a lot. Your video motivated me to explore more of the features.One plus I didn't see mentioned however-the sound. especially from the top speakers comes from the location of the keys you are playing-very impressive and simulates an actual piano experience even more . One question-I would like to put Piano Remote on an Android tablet- Android 12 to have larger display. Play Store says it is not compatible with my device. Any thoughts? Thanks for you excellent review-the best online IMO -and any answer to my question.

[kaisiangst]

Another great review, thanks! Would love to see a comparison between CA 701 and the CLP 875, or CA 901 and the CLP 885.

[dunewalks]

Hi Stu. Where would you rate this be the Roland LX708 you reviewed previously? Many thanks for your information as always. Really appreciated. Mark

[JohnSmith-zjul]

Hi Stu, I've recently come across your channel and was absolutely astonished by seeing how much work you put in your videos. I appreciate your work and have already watched many more videos of yours than I had to, simply because how good they are :D
Currently I'm in doubt if I need to buy a Kawai CA901 or Roland LX708. Roland is a little bit cheaper in my area. I've tested both quickly but I have mixed feelings and no longer have an opportunity to go to the showroom to compare them both. Can you recommend something to me? Do you think that Kawai CA901 is superior?

[FredCacti]

Hi Stu,  
Great playing as usual. Very interested in upgrading my current piano to either the CA901 or the NV5s.
Do you see much difference between CA901 or the NV5s sonically now?
Should we be concerned that the NV5S action would require more care/ maintenance than the Grand feel 3 action from the CA99?

[Morris_Off]

Hi, do you (or anyone else) have a comparison between the Kawai CA901 and the Yamaha CLP 785?
This would help me a lot! Thanks in advance!

[adamyohan]

Any plans for a video on the Korg Liano? It's in the 300$ range with a 3-layer sample, which is unheard of. I'd love to see what Stu thinks.