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My Kawai MP7SE has gone crazy

When I received my new KAWAI MP7SE, 3 weeks ago, I noticed that the first SI BEMOL sounded very loud regardless of the pressure exerted on the key. The remaining 87 sounded beautiful. 10 days later my KAWAI MP7SE went crazy. Now only 3 consecutive notes sound whenever you play very slowly, then you have to wait about 5 seconds to play another 3 consecutive notes. The chords cannot be played since pressing keys at the same time only one of them sounds. My KAWAI MP7SE also lost the ability to understand when a key is pressed softly or hard and my KAWAI MP7SE decides whether it will sound loud or piano.

I bought the piano in AMAZON and brought it to Guatemala, where I live, and the money will be refunded. However there are freights and taxes that I paid and it will be a lost money.

It bothers me that Amazon focused a lot on the fact that I brought it to Guatemala rather than accepting that they sold me a broken piano. Perhaps a stage piano should not go from stage to stage and even from country to country? However, I will recover at least what I paid in the USA.

For years I have had a KAWAI MP6 and it works perfect, only that the KAWAI MP7SE is much more expressive and with better piano samples. In my opinion. That's why I bought it.

I would like to know how many have experienced something similar with their KAWAI MP7SE and if they managed to solve it I would like to know exactly what causes this problem and how to repair it.

I'm about to buy another one but I'm afraid.

Thanks in advance for your opinions and comments.

Sad story George, I think you’ve been unlucky, although it is true that some MP7se pianos have problematic key contacts (I had two!), it doesn’t sound like this is what is wrong with yours. Indeed it may be as simple as a connector that is not properly pressed home into position. But you’d have to open the unit to check this and so invalidate your new product warranty.

One thing that comes out quite often in these forums is how unequal access to products is over the world. The internet connects us together with deceptive ease. Physically accessing the same level of keyboard technology across the globe is much more challenging.

Wishing you good luck.

Hmmm, sounds like a loose connector, dry joint, etc but given the OP post I wonder about the power source? Just musing, but easy to eliminate before exchanging, without invalidating the warranty, and incurring shipping costs.

Hi George,

The problem with shipping instruments is that handlers in transit might throw the instrument to the floor or mishandle it and the internal electronics can get dislodged etc without much external damage to the packaging.
If you arranged the shipping yourself, then they will blame your couriers as it might then be them who caused the fault, exonerating Amazon. If Amazon arranged the shipping and you paid shipping costs through amazon, then they are responsible right?

Maybe take the instrument electrician to diagnose the fault --- given that you might get it fixed for much less hassle and cost.
One way of doing this would be to contact Kawai or Yamaha etc and find out if they know of any qualified people in your area who could have a look. Or maybe google instrument repair in Google Maps.
Amazon should pay for the repair under warranty if they are at fault, but they might just want it back to replace like-for-like. This will take much longer and you've no guarantee that the next instrument they send will safely make the trip (especially if the carrier system they have caused the issue in the first place).

Finding out the fault and fixing it might leave you with a working instrument in a week. Shipping these back to Amazon etc probably will take much longer.

Kind regards,

Doug.

KAWAI has really good customer service. Of course, it's pain in the butt to get it serviced, but in the end, you will be satisfied. I was lucky that I got mine in North America and the warranty was taken care of properly and fair and so far, it's doing fine (fingers crossed!).

This is a common issue with early generations of MP7SE (2017). I'm sure at one point KAWAI has addressed the issue on its later models.

The unfortunate matter is that KAWAI has made the best stage piano with an amazing action, but due to poor handling of this case by KAWAI, this amazing keyboard has lost its reputation. The action is fabulous, the sound compared to the top of the line stage pianos, is superb.

A recall was necessary, including the items in the inventory, or not sold yet. At this price range, it's very hard for someone to accept early failure, especially if it is a common case.

I think this is good advise.

Kawai list Guatamala distribution here

INVERSIONES W.G., S.A. (MUSICAL)
6 Avenida 20-88 ZONA 10, Guatemala City, Guatemala
Tel: +502-2367-3845

Which is this
https://musical.com.gt/index.php/en/pianos.html

Maybe call shops like "Domisol" or "Musicales La Quinta" for service. If they don't have a service department maybe they have ideas and contacts.

Or you could contact the local electronics repair shop. In Guatemala, I would expect some real talented techs in the generic electrodomestic shops.

Amazon is terrible. But you should pursue them very hard as sometimes the wealthiest man in the world will bend.

Thank you very much for your comments. From what I have read, it is very likely that something is happening to the KAWAI MP7SE that is common for this MODEL and that produces the same type of fault. This is why thinking that a possible mistreatment of the package is the cause of what happens to my KAWAI MP7SE becomes less likely. The package was in perfect condition and the piano does not have the slightest scratch.

For me to enjoy the guarantee is expensive because when the piano re-enters the country I will have to pay taxes again, according to my customs advisor.

Since I need to buy, I think of a KAWAI ES8 because I prefer KAWAI but I would like to know about other brands that are at the same price level and that offer more or less the same as the KAWAI MP7SE.

Thank you! I am in contact with MUSICAL, who run one or two models of KAWAI here in Guatemala and according to his representative told me they are only responsible for these models. MUSICAL has offered to bring me a KAWAI MP7SE from JAPAN that would arrive in JANUARY 2020. Of course I have to pay at this time.

I just made up a mock shopping basket at Thomann Music and it seems like it will allow me to buy an MP7SE for shipping to Guatemala for $1249 USD + $65.86 USD shipping. (Does not include VAT or import duties.) I did not complete the order, of course, so I don't know if it will fail later on because of the shipping to Guatemala, however the website has live chat with customer service, so you could get on and ask customer service if they will ship to Guatemala. BTW, they have an export department too that you could speak to at +49-9546-9223-532, export@thomann.de.

George,

I would recomend to you, to document the defects with a proper video with good audio recording. You might upload it with some background info to YouTube as private video.

Then I'd contact your reseller and Kawai directly for a a repair agreement in Guatemala, so that the repiar costs would be covered by whatever qualified repair shop Kawai has closest to your location.Amazon and Kawai as global corporations might both want to have this resolved, to server as positive PR.

HTH

PS: In Guatemala you might get a real acoustic for less?

Hello George,

I'm sorry to read that your MP7SE has developed a fault.

It can occasionally happen that keyboard sensors fail and need to be replaced, as I believe was the case with Abdol's instrument. However, from your description, it sounds like a different and/or more serious hardware problem has occurred. This is not a common problem with the MP7SE.

As you may be aware, because this instrument was purchased in the US, the provided warranty will unfortunately not be valid outside of the country. According to (what I assume is) your review on Amazon.com, the instrument was sold by the Adorama Camera retailer. I do not believe this retailer allows international shipping, however it might be worth contacting the store to double-check the situation, and what options are available to you.

In addition, may I kindly ask you to contact Kawai Japan via the enquiry form on the Kawai Global website. This message will be forwarded to one of my colleagues responsible for your region who may be able to assist you further.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,
James
x

Hello Abdol,



I mentioned this in my response to George above, however I don't believe the fault described in his initial post is a common issue - it's certainly not something that I have any knowledge of. If George was based in the US (where the instrument was purchased), I'm confident that this matter would be resolved promptly by the retailer and/or Kawai America under warranty. However, because the instrument has since been imported into another country (where the warranty is no longer valid), the situation is more complicated.

As you will have seen, I have recommended that George contacts Kawai Japan to see if a satisfactory resolution can be found.

Kind regards,
James
x

Again stating that the instrument has been exported to Guatemala. Please ask yourself why I did not buy a KAWAI CN SERIES. The KAWAI MP7SE is made to carry and bring. In fact, it's the first thing you read on the MP series digital piano page: "Whether you're in the studio or on the road, the MP Series Stage Pianos provide maximum performance for pros on the go. Voted MMR Magazine's" 2018 Pro Digital Keyboard Line of the Year, ”the MP Series models are the best in their class.". If a musical group buys an MP7SE must stay in the USA so that it does not fail ?.

I admire a lot and read whenever I can the comments of KAWAI JAMES. In fact, that's why I bought my first KAWAI MP6 which is a faithful instrument and has never failed me in the least. My KAWAI MP6 have already spent their keys and the time has come to change. That's why I want and notice that I say it in the present tense, I want a KAWAI MP7SE.

What I don't want is all this that has nothing to do with having a piano and being able to use it.

It is my perception that with the KAWAI MP7SE there are several comments pointing out similar problems and I say similar because it is about pressing a key and the expected does not happen. This is why I think there is something happening specifically with the KAWAI MP7SE.

When I chose the KAWAI MP6 I found nothing but praise and well justified, in my opinion, from my experience.

The fact in the end is that I chose a KAWAI MP7SE and it doesn't work. It is not what I wanted but it is what I have.

Amazón has told me that I can return the instrument and I will receive a refund. I hope so, and the taxes are lost. Nothing to do.

My intention here in pianoworld is to have elements to decide if I buy a KAWAI MP7SE again (something I want to do) or maybe it is a better decision to opt for a KAWAI ES8 or a different one.

Thanks in advance for the opinions that help me in my goal.

Hello George,



The MP7SE is a stage piano, and therefore designed to be used in live performance environments. Transporting the instrument should not result in faults, and I don't believe exporting your MP7SE to Guatemala is necessarily the cause of the issue that you are experiencing (although it's impossible to rule-out completely). The reason I mentioned exporting the piano to another country, is because this act has unfortunately complicated the process of returning the instrument and receiving support under warranty.



Thank you for your positive feedback. I'm glad to read that the MP6 has served you well for many years. It's perhaps worth noting that the MP6 and MP7SE both use Responsive Hammer keyboard actions. The versions are different, of course, with the latter's RHIII action offering more features than that of the original RH action in the MP6, however the mechanism, structure, and overall action design is largely the same.



I can appreciate your point, however as mentioned above, I believe the issue with your MP7SE is different to the sensor irregularity issue that affected Abdol's instrument. Moreover, the MP7SE's RHIII keyboard action is exactly the same as that found in the ES8, and CN27/CN29, CN37/CN39 etc. These are very successful models, with an excellent reputation.



My recommendation would be to contact Kawai Japan to see if it's possible for the issue with your MP7SE to be resolved.

The ES8 is also a very good instrument, however given that you have owned and enjoyed an MP6 for many years, I believe the MP7/MP7SE is the logical progression.

Kin regards,
James
x

THANKS KAWAI JAMES, please tellme how to contact KAWAI JAPAN?

George, please refer back to my first response on this topic.

Kind regards,
James
x

Please follow this link and see what is hapening with my KAWAI MP7SE: https://youtu.be/3rTJ3-xGD_Q

THANKS.

Hello George,

Thank you for uploading the video.

Yes, there’s clearly something wrong with the instrument. I don’t believe this is simply a faulty key sensor.

I will show this video to my colleagues in R&D and ask if they have any recommendations. In the meantime, may I ask you to confirm that you have already performed a factory reset of the instrument, and have disconnected any non-essential additional devices (e.g. MIDI, USB, pedals etc.) to ensure there is nothing interfering with the piano.

Finally, may I kindly ask you to change the status of the video from Public to Unlisted in the video’s YouTube settings. It will of course still be possible for everyone to watch the video by clicking the link in your post.

Kind regards,
James
x

It's like something wrong with the data sent by the sensors, but it's unlikely that all those sensors broke in a few days. I think there could be some oxidation on the pins that carry the data from the sensors to the main sound processor. Excessive humidity during transport and/or storage in humid warehouses could be a cause of this problem.

Kawai James

Thanks for your support. I will change the status of my video on youtube but may I kindly ask you to continue suporting and helping me please?

I only have connected the AC and the sound output. I perform a factory reset and update to 1.03 v.

A friend of mine who works at ELECTRONICA PANAMERICANA (they sell yamaha's) told me that it seems like if no power reach the keys. May I ask you if some power shoud be connected to the keys? I should mention that nobody has checked inside the KAWAI MP7SE .

by now the status of my video is NOT LISTED.




magicpiano:

Thanks for your comment.

Humidity?. My piano was in Florida without being able to be delivered due to the Hurricane. Through Amazon tracking I found out about this. But when I received the product, the box and the packaging in general were fine.