Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Digital Pianos - Electronic Pianos - Synths & Keyboards Kawai CN 24, Kawai KCP80 or others ?

Hi, greeting everyone
I'm from Indonesia.
I'm looking for any advice which help me to decide between Kawai CN 24 (1027 usd) or Kawai KCP80 (1142 usd).
That prices all found in my local dealer.
I've been playing guitar for nore than 10 years and now interesting to learn piano solo, some classical and pop songs was my obsession since long time ago.

My Question are:
Is it a newer cn24 sound and key action is much better than kcp80 sound with AHA IV key action?
I'm often layering 2 sound, when play some slow pop music. Are there obvious difference between 96 compare to 192 polyphony to do that?
There are several features in KCP80 I found much helpfull, for ex. LCD display, and more function buttons.
Hundreds extra sound in KCP80 apart piano sound itself, i count as a bonus.

CN24, however AFAIK, have new key action, tri-sensor, but lack of line-in or even line-out, which is dissapointing me, because this very important, as i plan to use ext music player source for helping me learn songs.
I dont know if cn24 headphones are good enough to plug onto line-in to any mixer/amps without decreasing sound quality, while i can plug my ext music player to another mixer line-in.
If thats possible, it easier for me to choose this series.
Anyone experience with this?
Any advice are very welcome.

And also, how Kawai CN24 and KCP80 compared to Yamaha YDP161, privia PX3BK (stage piano), PX330, AP420, a new AP250 ? those are have similar price range in my local dealer.

Many thanks and sorry for my english.

Hello rayden, welcome to the forum.

To answer your queries:



Yes, the RHII action utilised by the CN24 is a considerable upgrade to the AHA IV action, with superior weighting, Ivory Touch key surfaces, let-off simulation, and triple-sensor key detection.

As for sound, the CN24 features a brand new tone generator, with higher quality reverb and resonance effects, while the core acoustic piano sounds are more detailed and expressive.



This largely depends on the style of playing, however sustained chords with many notes will likely benefit from the superior polyphony.

As you note, the KCP80 offers a number of useful additional features over the CN24, including a large LCD display, a superior interface, hundreds of sounds, accompaniment styles, and the line out jacks. If these features are important to you, the KCP80 is a good choice. However, if your priorities are key touch and sound authenticity, the CN24 is probably the better bet.

I would strongly recommend play-testing both instruments in order to assess their different strengths.

Regarding alternative models, I would also consider the Casio PX-350...especially if you hope to use many sounds and accompaniment styles in your playing.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,
James
x

Thank you Kawai James for your answer.
I really appreciated.
And fyi, I just wondering why its so hard to find a store who sell Kawai DP.
Its a little bit strange, since as far as i know, the factory is only 45 mins away from Jakarta.
I would stretching my budget to get CL-36, CN-33 or even better, CN-34, if they are available on my local dealer.

Regards,
Rayden

Hello Rayden,



Kawai opened a sales and distribution office in Jakarta earlier this year, so I'm confident that the availability of Kawai instruments will improve in the months ahead.



The CN33 and CN34 are both very good instruments (although the keyboard action of the CN24 is superior to the CN33, due to the third sensor). The CL36 is based on the hardware of the CN23, and therefore a lower specification than the CN24.

Kind regards,
James
x

Nice information, thank you Kawai James San

Hi there James from Kawai,
I am wondering if you can advise me on the pros and cons of a Kawai KCP80 and a Kawai CN33. This is for a family piano for the kids to upgrade from a keyboard. My local dealer has both of these pianos.
Thanks,
SallyO

I'm also interested in the CN24. Tried it again today and will buy one in the very near future. Only wish the CN34 is available in Thailand.

Hello SallyO,



Well, first off, I'm confident that either Kawai instrument will provide a considerable improvement in touch and tone over your childrens' keyboard.

Now, which model to opt for really depends on your (or your childrens') preference. Is it more important to have the superior keyboard action and piano sound (CN33), or additional entertainment features such as hundreds of instrument sounds and accompaniment styles (KCP80)?

The CN33 utilises the 'RH' keyboard action, which is highly regarded for its realistic touch, while the main piano sounds features 88-key sampling. The instrument includes USB jacks to load/save recorder songs and MIDI files to a memory stick, or play/record MIDI using a computer. There is also a built-in 'Lesson Function' feature for learning classical etudes or Alfred songs (this actually depends on market location, however I am assuming you are based in Australia). On a personal note, I actually rather like the CN33 cabinet design.

The KCP80 utilises the older 'AHA IV-F' keyboard action, which was Kawai's standard action for a number of years, but is perhaps a little dated compared to 'RH'. The piano sound also features 88-key sampling, however the level of detail/expressiveness is significantly less than that of the CN33. This instrument does not offer any USB functionality, however there are standard MIDI and Line Out jacks, and a large LCD display. In addition, the KCP80 features over 380 sounds, and 40 accompaniment styles, with Intro/Ending/Fill-ins etc.

So in summary, weighing up the pros and cons of both models:

CN33:

+ RH keyboard action with 'Ivory Touch' and 'let-off'
+ PHI piano sound (88-key sampling)
+ USB to Device, USB to Host, standard MIDI jacks
+ Lesson Function
+ Attractive cabinet design (with legs)
+ Line In, Line Out jacks
- Small LED display
- No rhythm accompaniment
- Relatively small selection of sounds

KCP80:

+ Hundreds of sounds (full GM2 compatibility)
+ Rhythm accompaniments, with intro/ending/fill-in
+ Large LCD display
- Older AHA IV-F action
- Less expressive HI piano sound (but still 88-key sampling)
- No USB support
- No Lesson Function
- Slightly less attractive cabinet design (and no legs)


Given the above comparison list, I would suggest opting for the CN33 over the KCP80. Furthermore, if your childrens' keyboard features rhythm accompaniments and supports MIDI, you could potentially connect it to the CN33 and reproduce some of the KCP80's functionality.

Finally, if you are considering the CN33, it may be worthwhile to delay your purchase until the CN34 arrives at your local store.

I hope this helps.

Cheers,
James
x

I wish to add to the RH-II action. It's best-in-class. Period.

Also, I wish to congratulate Kawai for it's detailed design. Amongst Kawai, Yamaha and Casio that I have tried, only Kawai has that sustained note from F5 onward, just like a real piano. Even the sales person I was talking to had no idea about this, until I tapped the same note on an acoustic to show him. Also, even the higher end, much praised Yamaha CLP440 doesn't have this well-detailed feature.

Way to go Kawai.

By the way, my brother used to live in Japan and played for concerts there, he has always say that Kawai is better.

Thank you for your positive words Clumsy.

It's unfortunate that Kawai's Thailand distributor does not market the CN34 (or previous CN33) in your country. My colleagues and I are keen to improve Kawai's digital piano presence in South East Asia. Entry-level instruments are proving popular, so I'm hopeful that we can expand into the mid-range and perhaps high-end models in the near future.

Kind regards,
James
x

Hi James,
Thanks very much for all the information. It is really helpful.
SallyO