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Yes but in the picture TYR has placed it right at the wall. And he is not complaining about muffled or boxy sound. Yet this was one of the major issues with the CA 98, I have one and I also had to place it couple inches away from the wall. I wonder if the NV5 can be placed right AT the wall like on TYRs picture.

It's just weird since it is using the exact same technology

Thank YOU for such a comprehensive review and enjoy your new piano.

It's not weird at all ...All I see here is a difference of opinion. Some people hear "boxy", and some do not.

Lacking any quantitative observations there's nothing to say. Except: Judge for yourself.

Hi, I am new on the forum, and started to learn piano as my first instrument only one year ago.
Started with korg grandstage and headphones with a fine amplifier. The sound of the german sample, steinway, is excellent.
But I was frustrated by the huge gap in touch with the piano at school. As I live in an appartment, I decided to buy either a n1x or nv5.
Went to a shop in Paris where both were exposed and thankfully a good player was testing them. I also tried (when everyone was far enough, didn’t want to be ridiculous playing Alfred lesson 22). I found the sound much richer on the nv 5 and liked the touch better.
In another shop in Germany, I could compare the nv5 to the nv10, to the k300 aures and to an acoustic sauter. The sauter was by far the best, then the k300.was excellent with rich bass. Nv5 was a bit flat compared to acoustic and aures, but touch was good and I anyhow have no option for an acoustic.
When the piano arrived at home, the technician played a minute and I found the sound awfull. Too loud, unbalanced.
I was amazed by the reactivity and dynamic range, but was missing the nice steinway sound of the korg.
Then I moved the piano forward by 20 cm and found the sound so much better. I liked best when not parallel to the back wall, but my wife found this awful. So I found a compromise with the piano parallel to the wall and 10 cm space behind.
I like the piano a lot.
It is still different from the acoustic upright at school : touch is harder, pedal is really hard (especially as I plan bare foot), sound is very good, except some notes which sound a bit artificial at low level, and bass is not as powerfull as an acoustic. But this is exactly why I couldn’t get an acoustic (weight and neighbors).
Thanks fr the nice advises on the forum

Congrats Marc, on the new piano. May you have a lot of fun with it!

And nice seeing this thread take off, with already a second owner checking in. Hope there will be many more!

Thanks Marc, hope this thread will grow.

K300Aures has a bigger soundboard and more transducers(4 vs 2) than CA98/99/NV5, so should have rich mid-low frequency.
I guess tne next generation of NV10(NV11?) will probably have bigger soundboard speaker than 3rd one of Kawai at present.

Actually, if we can get a complete units including four transducers and their AMP, we can even modify them to K-series or other upright AP but need external sound source input from line-in.

Thanks @ all and Congratulations MarcBlux for your Purchase.

The Position wasn't final in the pic. I had to move the Piano because i wanted connecting the sheet light and now it's roughly 10cm away from the Wall. It doesn't changed much the sound. I think it's also important which type of Wall you have. Some have Plaster Boards or Wooden Panels which can have a positive or negative effect. Imho the Bass is very good and suited perfectly for Home use.

Tyr, thank you very much for sharing your thoughts on the NV5.

Your piano does look terrific in that picture - that space is ideally suited to the instrument's dimensions too.

By the way, if you feel that the damper pedal is a little stiff, please contact Kawai Europe for assistance.

Kind regards,
James
x

Hi Tyr,
Acoustics of the room plays a major role indeed. I guess I would never have a Steinway sounding great in that room. However impossible to reach that room and would be like feeding pigs with marmelade ( french expresiion ;)). There are many different sounds of acoustic pianos, takes a bit of time to get used to each signature. What is amazing with the Kawai is the feeling, responsiveness, dynamics. Now that I got used to the sound, I like it a lot as well.
In other words, I must spend much more time in practicing than in reading on the forum, from now on
Marc

It would be nice if any of you proud NV5 owners could record a demo 🎹

I second that!

I only have half (rather 3%) of the ingredients required for a demo. I have the good piano but I miss the good player.

Where's the point of a demo if its recorded via line-out or to a USB stick?
The sound that it would produce is well known by now (see CA78/98 and NV10).

Although from a purely sound point of view that holds true, a demo can show how the piano responds to touch, etc., for instance it's often apparent that a piano is too sensitive with velocities jumping around. Also, an upright action might be challenging to play without fully releasing keys which can reveal in trills, etc. I know it all depends on the player and his level, of the repertoire and how adapted he is to his instruments of course, etc... But it's a demonstration that's better than nothing and can still show a lot. A piano is not just its sound.

There is also very little content to be found on YouTube or other places so every little piece of information and demos is very interesting.

What's the point of a mic'd live-air recording if ...
Your speakers don't match those of the piano?
Your room doesn't match that of the recording venue?

You could still judge it against your experience with recordings and live listens of real acoustic pianos, or just enjoy the authentic reverb/ambiance afforded by whatever environment the piano is sitting in. A bit part that sets the NV5/CA99/Aures apart is the speaker/soundboard system, and you just don't get that with a recording straight out of the tone generator.

Also, fake/algorithmic reverb is one of the noticeable and illusion-breaking elements of DPs for me, which is why I find Garritan CFX so compelling (the far mics make the environment part of the instrument).

As far as I'm concerned, no point at all. But as Gombessa's post shows, not everyone thinks so, so what do I know? 🤷‍♂️

I think everybody speaks and asks about different things...

- I wanted to see the playability of the piano: too far fetched to judge from a video of another player but still better than nothing.
- JoBert assumed I wanted to hear only the sound of the piano which is the same as the CA78/98 and NV10, hence it doesn't make sense, so why should anyone bother
- MacMacMac is as always dismissive about anything (sorry mate, don't take that as an insult but that's the truth ;)), this time about why bother recording a digital piano with microphones if it won't be recorded in Abbey Road studios by the best recording engineer with best microphones and preamps perhaps
- Gombessa thinks that any recording with microphone is actually worth it because it will give you real ambiance (BTW I agree with that, remember AmyC who recorded her N1X through an iPhone and everyone commented how real it sounded)

Well... 🤦🏻‍♂️

This was not my intended point.I'm not vying for the finest mics in the finest studio. Quite the opposite.

My point is this: for evaluation purposes, it makes sense to take a recording of the raw audio output of the piano or VST under consideration.
Your listening equipment (phones, speakers, room) will color the results, of course.
But if you instead listen to an mic'd recording of the piano/VST, then you're adding yet another layer of coloration. This offers nothing ... and, instead, it hampers your ability to evaluate the piano.