Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Digital Pianos - Electronic Pianos - Synths & Keyboards My personal comparison of pianos in €900-€1200 range.

. . . Another option could be CN 24 + Pianoteq. . .

<p>Another update (after visiting a Kawai showroom):</p>

<p>
<table>

<tr>
<th>Piano</th>
<th>Decay H1</th>
<th>Decay H3</th>
<th>Decay H5</th>
<th>String resonance</th>
<th>Dynamic range</th>
<th>Notes</th>
</tr>

<tr>
<td>Baumgardt</td>
<td>25 s</td>
<td>11 s</td>
<td>7 s</td>
<td>Yes.</td>
<td>Very good.</td>
<td>Acoustic tall (135 cm) upright anno 1904. The action is quite light (~40 g static weight).</td>
</tr>

<tr>
<td>YDP-162</td>
<td>9 s</td>
<td>5 s</td>
<td>2 s</td>
<td>No.</td>
<td>Mediocre.</td>
<td>The action feels "inert", a bit heavy to play. Boring, unengaging sound.</td>
</tr>

<tr>
<td>CLP-525</td>
<td>12 s</td>
<td>7 s</td>
<td>4 s</td>
<td>No.</td>
<td>Bad.</td>
<td>Keys are stiff initially, then "falls through". Difficult to play dynamically - there's no forte/fortissimo in this piano!</td>
</tr>

<tr>
<td>RP301-R</td>
<td>12 s</td>
<td>6 s</td>
<td>2 s</td>
<td>Yes (ghostly wail).</td>
<td>Good.</td>
<td>Sound is very synthetic/flat sounding. I don't like it at all. Action is quite "bouncy". Edit: Actually sounded better to me the second time I played it. Better than YDP-162. Doesn't "sing" (resonate?) like the Baumgardt though.</td>
</tr>

<tr>
<td>F-130R</td>
<td>10 s</td>
<td>9 s</td>
<td>5 s</td>
<td>Yes (ghostly wail).</td>
<td>Good!</td>
<td>"Distant" sounding (not enough amp power for my headphones?), somewhat tiring sound. Weak bass, shrill treble.</td>
</tr>

<tr>
<td>PX-860</td>
<td>15 s</td>
<td>8 s</td>
<td>2 s</td>
<td>Short, 2 s?</td>
<td>Bad - won't really play pp nor FF.</td>
<td>Keys have a rougher surface than other pianos (feels OK though). Black keys difficult to depress further in (short fulcrum distance?). Only tried it without pedal connected, so cannot really judge the sound.</td>
</tr>

<tr>
<td>CN 14/KDP90</td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td>Action (AHA IV-F) feels a bit "mushy" - a bit more weight and friction than I'm used to, and not much mechanical feel. Very bouncy (when played on the ES100).</td>
</tr>

<tr>
<td>CN 24</td>
<td>13 s</td>
<td>11 s</td>
<td>6 s</td>
<td>No.</td>
<td>Good.</td>
<td>I like this action (RHII)! After playing the "Grand Feel II" (on the CA 67) it feels a bit spongy/springy though.</td>
</tr>

<tr>
<td>CN 25</td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td>I'm having trouble playing softly on this action (RHIII). The notes disappear/does not trigger.</td>
</tr>

<tr>
<td>CA 67</td>
<td>25 s</td>
<td>11 s</td>
<td>6 s</td>
<td>Yes. A lot weaker than on my acoustic, even at max setting. Difficult to hear if it sounds "right".</td>
<td>Very good.</td>
<td>This is a > €2300 DP, included for comparison. The decay length is nice, but only the first 4-5 s (of bass note B1) sounds natural: it then turns very "dead" into a slow "fade-out", pretty unlike a real piano. The action ("Grand Feel II") is clearly nicer than the CN24's RHII - it feels pretty much like a real piano! :)</td>
</tr>

</table>
</p>

<p>This is probably my last update to this table. The CN25 has the same sound engine as the CN24 ("PHI"), so I'm guessing that the decay times are identical.</p>

<p>Conclusion? I'm not that happy with any of the pianos in this price class (except possibly CN 24 as a fallback option). They are not similar enough to my acoustic piano for it to feel fun to sit down and practise for an hour. The short decay times make it impossible to learn a sane pedal technique. And they're still a lot of money; too much money for something that I know from the start that I won't be satisfied with.</p>

<p>Right now I'm hoping that something in the €1700 segment will make me a lot happier (e.g. Kawai CA 17 or Roland HP-504). Another option could be CN 24 + Pianoteq.</p>

Dunno bout thart. . . I quite like my trade off. Wouldnt want it any other way. Uncontrollable resonance aint for me.-

Let's disagree, but one of the pleasures of an acoustic is getting the best out of its timbre, dynamics, sustain, etc. and that means learning to control the beast.