🎹 Kawai K300 | K-Series Explored: More Expensive than the Yamaha U1? | Upright Piano Review 🎹

#KawaiK300 #KawaiKSeries #UprightPiano

0:00 - Video Introduction on the Kawai K300
0:43 - Piano Sound Demo
2:53 - Stu’s Take on the Piano Sound
4:24 - FAQ #1
5:00 - FAQ #2
6:14 - FAQ #3
7:49 - FAQ #4
11:26 - More Playing on the Kawai K300
12:56 - FAQ #5
16:27 - Final Thoughts

Let's now dive into some of the internet's most commonly asked questions regarding the Kawai K300.

Where is the K300 made?
For North American markets, the K300 is made in Japan. The Made In Japan sticker is easy to see and unambiguous, and I've been to the factory 3 times to watch them come together. They also produce K-300s in Indonesia for some other markets, and in those cases, it's marked clearly on the back as a "Made in Indonesia".

This isn't unusual for Kawai - they have parallel manufacturing lines for the GL10 as well, and in that case, those bound for the Japanese market are made in Japan, and for all other markets they're built in Indonesia.

What Year Did the K300 Come Out?
The K300 came out in 2013, but what customers may not know is that there are some evolutionary differences between a K300 today vs one of the originals. By and large the scale design has remained the same, but the bass strings seem to have received improvements and the action rest rail now has the microcell absorber strip to improve repetition speed even more. Generally, I like the fact that we're now 10 years in with no signs of Kawai moving from this model. The stability and the consolidation in Kawai's product lines allow more customers a chance to get to know and trust them - something Yamaha always did extremely well with their U and C series pianos.

Are Kawais cheaper than Yamahas?

So short answer is they used to be, but now not necessarily. As usual, the final price is up to you and your local dealer to work out and local market dynamics, dealer size, and logistics costs will always factor in, so my observations here shouldn't be taken as anything more than pointing out a long-term trend of approaching pricing parity between the brands.

Which is better, Kawai K300 or Yamaha U1?
Few questions in the piano business elicit as passionate a response from all camps as this one - at least in the upright piano realm. Both Kawai and Yamaha have reams of content full of hyperbole and bold claims, but there are some very real differences between these pianos - a few of which I think you could objectively consider to be better or worse.

Firstly, to many people not soaked in piano lore, these two at first glance don't have a lot of daylight between them: both are very well made, both companies have stellar reputations for after-sales care, factory fit-and-finish are top of the industry, and from what I can tell customer satisfaction is high in both cases.

But let's look at those differences...

The U1 uses premium materials and receives considerable factory preparation, and generally sticks to the same designs that have been present on the instrument since the 1990s. They have continued to update the aesthetics on the piano, and the instrument has a nice crisp action with a strong bright attack and good even sustain. It's less basey than what you can get out of other 48" uprights, but not hollow by any means - and in a typical room in a house, it produces a balanced tone with a slightly lighter action feel.

Connect with Merriam Music:

[bobmocarsky]

Stu, this is the first piano demonstration I've heard on Youtube that actually shows the full range of the keyboard and all dynamics. I really have a clear notion of what this piano sounds and feels like from your choice of notes chords and loud/soft touch. Thankyou!

[Ari_M]

I love the Kawai upright tone. Warm and bloomy but never muddy. Full of character.

[youngAu]

Thanks for a comprehensive comparison of the Kawai K300 and the Yamaha U1. Worth every second listening to.

[jonos]

Outstanding playing from Stu as always. 👏👏👏

[blaupunkt]

After lots of study over "the biggest challenge ever" on my price/room range (Yamaha U1 vs Kawai K-300), I've decided on the K300 to upgrade my actual 50" upright. Of course any of them would serve me very well - no doubt about it. But after playing on a friend's U1J and listening to your K300 reviews on Youtube, I felt it would fit better my taste on sound. Remember this, Stu: YOU sold me the K300, even without knowing me at all.. 😁 The time has come, I took a deep breath and purchased it. Today. In a little while I'll upload a video of the unboxing. / Like always, an amazing review. Keep up the good work! Cheers from Brazil!

[geoff]

I hear a lot of color. It's a beautiful sound. That, coupled with the Millennium III upright action, would make this a great choice in an upright piano. This would be an inspiring piano for a student.

[Guidussify]

Great review and great piano. When feasible, this over a digital any day for a beginner.

[Osvaldo-bn]

Another great review from Merriam Pianos and Stu.
I am a great fan of European pianos, my experience with Kawai and Yamaha is very limited, but after this video I will pay more attention to them.Thank you

[MERCEDES-BENZSGUARD_V]

@Merriam Music you're welcome❤❤❤🎹🎶

[FingersKungfu]

My piano teacher is Japanese. He grew up playing both Yamaha and Kawai but developed a prejudice against Kawai pianos. He said that while Kawai is a reputable company, he didn't like the Kawai pianos he played growing up. He acknowledged that Kawai's reputation has gotten better recently, but he still recommended Yamaha pianos over Kawai's without an afterthought (despite me trying to persuade him to read comtemporary reviews of Kawai pianos). From what I know, Japanese tend to be biased in favor of older companies; for age and tradition command respect in Japan. Yamaha has been making piano for over a century but Kawai only came to the scene after WWII.

[areag]

Piano sounds great, very balanced, as always came for the info, stayed for the music ;-)

[edg]

Great review. Greetings from Mexico. I still haven’t decided between the Kawai 300 and the Essex EUP123, but after watching this I think Kawai is on the lead

[tentoff]

you really broke this down well. for such a topic that people have subjective beliefs about, you found objective points to really discuss. This video was very helpful. thanks!

[lachezardochev]

Watched several of your videos. I consider them most informative and educative of all I've seen. Thank you! I wonder if have the chance to try one of the Austrian Feurich uprights which are getting quite popular in Europe. I am currently hesitating between this Kawai K300 and the Feurich 122 for my son - in sixth grade in our local music school with piano. Would be very useful to hear your opinion on the Feurich approach and models.

[faragher]

Excellent and helpful review, thank you.

[jamesa]

in europe the K300 is about 5800 euros and the U1 is 11090 euros enormous difference.

[MERCEDES-BENZSGUARD_V]

@Merriam Music thanks! I'm only able to listen to the vid so I thought there was 1 no pun intended on the (1) haha! A head up for blind listeners out there🎹🎶

[HenryLy-mxxg]

That K300 sounds great and was captured wonderfully. May I ask how did you guys record it? Which mics and which position were used?

[michaelbrown]

What about K300 ATX4, do all the good things regarding the action still hold when playing a silent K300 in acoustic mode? Sometimes one reads here and there that it's not so easy to play ppp on a silent piano because of letoff changes.

[whoahdudeman]

I almost traded my U1 for a K600 Aures last year but I couldn't come to terms with the Kawai sound—it sounds to muffled to me. I like that it's warmer than the Yamaha, but for my taste the sound wasn't clear enough—on any Kawai upright I tried. I decided to get my U1 voiced a bit softer, saving myself some money as well.