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I recently bought a Kawai K300. It was shipped directly from the warehouse to our home and the technician attended the next day to tune & regulate. This happened about two weeks ago.

Now the honeymoon period is over I'm noticing a few inadequacies. The strings sing nicely, but there is an audible "thwack" accompanying the ringing of the strings in the couple of octaves below middle C. To use an analogy, it's like having a high noise floor on an otherwise pleasant recording. It's becoming more annoying with time and, given that I play for a few hours a day, I'm wondering how long I can put up with it.

Being mildly autistic and living five hours away from the nearest piano dealer, trying it out in the showroom wasn't an option. Is this a common problem with entry level pianos like the K300? Do you think it will go away without intervention as the felt settles into place?

Thanks!

Kawai K300 is not a really an entry level piano.
Usually described as on the same level as a U1.
Being straight from the warehouse is often a
situation which brings a bad dose of "new piano
syndrome "
So the piano will really only start to sound better
after about 6 to 8 tunings later .

This could take up to 18 months to 2 years for
the piano to adjust.
The strings need to stretch for a start .,and they do.

I would phone the dealer ,to send the head technician
to voice those hammers .It will need to be done a few
times.This must be thought of as a warranty problem.
(apart from tuning )
Part of the price you paid towards your piano should
cover these problems. Both Kawai and Yamaha recognize
these problems in a very new piano.
Best wishes on your new Kawai upright.

Since your piano was shipped directly from the factory, it did not have the normal prep work done by the dealer. I do agree that you Should contact the dealer to get that prepped and now that it’s been delivered. Don’t despair!

Yes I think voicing should be done after tuning .The preparation of the piano
at least take few hours on its own .This is more than a "mini regulation "

Is the noise you hear a metalic sound ,or is it a buzz .Try and decide how to
describe what you hear .
Does it happen after the string is struck by the hammer or at the same time ?

Isn't it also that the felt on the hammers needs "playing in"? Although this should happen soon enough as OP is playing 3 hours a day?

We have something like Kawai K300 and K500 at my college (I'm not sure the exact model). And they are excellent pianos and I didn't think of them as "entry level".

We had a very new U1 before the Sauter and yes Stargazing I was told by the dealer it had to be
"played in" I suppose that heped the hammers and the strings .It is difficult to have new fairly expensive new piano with these problems. That U1 had so" many moods " it was not pleasant.
Perhaps Vancouver's humidity range made it even worse. I never had a dehumidifier at that time.
That piano had only been in the dealer only a short time It had some prep work done. I made sure more was done at my home .We traded in that piano when we upgraded.

I still think that piano had very good potential , a good bass ,a nice treble when .(when it
was not in its "metalic mode" or mood .

Yes straight from the warehouse, your K300 (nice piano by the way) hasn’t had any dealer prep done. Depending on the technician, dealer, and piano, it can take several hours over several days. I would call the dealer and ask for the tuning, voicing and regulation touch ups a brand new just inboxed/uncrated Piano typically needs. Congratulations on your new piano. Best Wishes!

Without hearing how it sounds it is difficult to give an answer or solution to your problem. A sound clip would help.

Patience, leave it a few, maybe 6 weeks of solid playing and have the technician come and do a full set-up. Next day was probably much too soon.

Any new piano won't be at its best till after at least it's 2nd service, possibly 4 or 5th.

K300 is a great piano - not an entry level piano.

Why would a thwack noise that some keys have go away by itself?

I don't agree with the "let the new piano settle in" advices given here. They don't apply to this case.

IMO, you should call the dealer right away. A thwack noise is not normal.

Are you able to post a recording of the offending noise?
Ian

Well, just an amateur here but I’ve read, been told, and been shown that a piano, even a brand new Kawai, needs dealer prep before it’s put on the showroom floor or before delivery to the customer. IMHO, no piano should be delivered straight to the customer’s home from the warehouse. IMHO a responsible dealer should know this and should arrange to have it done at the customer’s’ convenience. If it turns out that the dealer won’t supply this necessary service to the OP, shame on the dealer! It’s not the end of the world, the OP can certainly arrange for a qualified piano technician to do the necessary work but unfortunately the OP would have to pay for the service. If it were me, I’d be calling the dealer who sold me the piano and explain that the piano needs “the dealer prep” done, because the OP is quite unhappy with the piano as it sits. Come to think of it, I should probably send my piano dealer a thank you card. The pianos in the showroom have all (or at least the ones I’ve tried) been fully prepped, but then I’ve never ordered a piano or bought one sitting in the warehouse. My 2 cents.

We don’t know what agreement the OP had with the dealer re prep, do we? Or why it was directly shipped from the warehouse. Both would be good to know

This incident is one reason it is recommended here to purchase exactly the piano you have played. We don’t know why that didn’t happen

Regarding delivery of piano straight from factory to home, I don't think it's that uncommon with Kawai pianos to do so. Since their pianos are pretty consistent in manufacture and setup with a prep/tune prior to shipping out as part of their QA process.

The purchase also comes with a complimentary first tuning/setup by the dealer's tech which I believe is covered by Kawai and an opportunity for any issues with the piano to be resolved. I'm a little surprised they had a tech visit the next day though.

When I bought mine it arrived in tune and played great from the factory, however after about three weeks it did start to drift out of tune (as expected). In addition after a few weeks playing/getting used to the piano I realised two keys were sticking when released slowly.

With my purchase though a tech was arranged to visit and do the first tune up/regulation 8 weeks after delivery. So that the piano had time to settle and the new strings time to stretch a little through play. I didn't have anyone out the day after and tbh I'm glad I didn't as a new piano will go out of tune quite quickly. Although the dealer did phone me and check everything was ok with the piano and to let me know they'd be back in touch to arrange a tech in 6-8 weeks.

Is your piano dealer doing another complementary visit in 6-8 weeks? Or was the visit the day after the complementary one? Either way I would certainly raise your concerns with your piano dealer so that they have a record of a reported problem early on.

Regarding the _thwack_ you're hearing. I can't say I've noticed that with mine. As another poster said, is this something you could record happening and not happening so we have a clearer idea of what you're hearing?

Very true- dogperson. Perhaps the OP got a special price buying it straight from the warehouse. If that’s the case, then the typical dealer prep would be the owner’s responsibility and on the owners dime. And this is my opinion only but buying and selling a piano straight out of the warehouse can be tricky. It’s not the end of the world, it just means in all likelihood it needs some more time to settle in and needs a trained piano technician to go over the piano fully to bring out its best, which someone will have to pay for.

This is the third thread in a little over a week that the new piano owner is disappointed with their brand new piano. New owners should be “over the moon” with joy and excitement, not trying to troubleshoot issues on this Forum, why their brand new piano doesn’t meet their expectations. Just saying.

My new Kawai UST-9 was prepped when it came to me, but it still took about a year and a half to reach tuning stability. I would imagine a brand new, fresh-from-the-warehouse piano would take longer still. They just need time to settle down. After my 7th tuning, I was happy. 😊

It was my first ever new piano, so I was certainly not aware of how they are and it was disconcerting, to say the least. My tech was great, though, and we got there in the end. 😂

Did your piano disappoint you right after delivery? Did your tech tell you it was very typical for new pianos? Did the dealer or your tech mention that it needs more frequent tunings the first year?

No, it didn't disappoint me, I was thrilled to have a new piano! I was already aware that it would need settling in for at least a year, but I wasn't aware of what that process would be like because I never went through it before. So having it out of tune again and making odd sounds a month after I bought it was quite disconcerting. I had a few different tuners over the course of those first 18 months and all of them said it was normal string stretching. They made a few adjustments here and there, as well, but what it really needed was just time. It was still a challenge to go through, though, and I was really glad when it was over! 😊

Speaking with dealers for Kawai, they are apparently less consistent in voicing from piano to piano than they were in the past (I have no direct experience, just lunch meeting with friends at NAMM).

This alone does not make them a bad piano, but based on that information, it would make me recommend to a client to play the piano they are getting, if possible.

Having said that, from the "tone" of your post (so sorry for that) it sounds like a normal settling in kind of adjustment and is not something I would worry about at this point. I would just make an appointment for the tech. to come by and I think you may be set, at least for this issue.

Cheers,