Kawai CA701 Digital Piano

What they say

Combining Kawai’s industry-leading Grand Feel III wooden-key keyboard action, brand new SK-EX Competition Grand sounds with multi-channel sampling and resonance modelling, premium audio processing and amplification technologies, and a powerful 6-speaker output system, the CA701 delivers grand piano playing authenticity at a competitive price.

A piano that will encourage enthusiastic players to become accomplished pianists, and transform living rooms into grand concert halls.  This is the ambitious philosophy behind Kawai’s latest Concert Artist series – premium instruments that capture the essence of playing a magnificent concert grand piano, and inspire musicians to realise their true artistic potential.

Embracing many of the long-established principles associated with an acoustic piano, the Grand Feel III keyboard action utilised by the CA701 combines realistic materials, motion, and mechanism to recreate the exceptional touch of the finest concert grand pianos.

All eighty-eight black and white keys are crafted entirely from long pieces of wood, with finely textured ivory and ebony-like surfaces applied to absorb moisture and assist control. Each wooden key pivots smoothly on a balance pin – the ends rising and falling to replicate the familiar ‘seesaw’ motion of an acoustic piano action. When pressed, the back of the key lifts, triggering a grade-weighted hammer to strike a pressure switch. The amount of force applied to this switch is then measured, and the corresponding note played with authentic tonal character and volume.

Extra-long key length, Extra-long pivot length

In addition to featuring extended, fully wooden keys, Grand Feel keyboard actions also boast some of the longest key pivot lengths – matching that of a Kawai grand piano.

This extended key pivot length provides a more evenly balanced touch weight from the front to the rear of each key, allowing greater fluency and expressive control, while also minimising the need to readjust one’s technique when playing an acoustic grand piano.

88-key Graded Counterweights

In addition to grade-weighted hammers, the Grand Feel III action also features metal counterweights, attached beneath each key, and graded across the length of the keyboard.

As with an acoustic piano, these additional weights help to balance the touch of the keyboard during pianissimo passages, while providing a feeling of greater substance and solidity when playing with force.

Triple sensor key detection

The Grand Feel III keyboard action also features an accurate triple-sensor key detection system for enhanced playing realism.

The added third sensor improves responsiveness when playing the same key repeatedly, and unlike conventional two sensor keyboard actions found in many digital pianos, allows the sound of a single note to be gradually ‘layered’ without the previous tone being lost.

In addition, Kawai’s action technology also monitors the speed at which each key is lifted, influencing the release character of piano sounds, and providing a greater range of expression between staccato and legato playing.

Ivory & Ebony Touch key surfaces

The exceptional CA79 features Kawai’s highly regarded Ivory Touch white key surfaces as standard. This finely textured material gently assists playing control, and possesses a natural, matte finish that is smooth but not slippery.

To complement these premium white keys, Kawai has also developed Ebony Touch, a special black key material that reproduces the finely-textured grain and rich lustre of real ebony wood. The result is a keyboard surface that looks and feels as luxurious as some of the world's finest grand pianos, inspiring musicians of all levels to become better pianists.

Let-off Simulation

As the most authentic digital piano keyboard action, Grand Feel III even reproduces the ‘let-off’ characteristic of acoustic piano actions. This subtle ‘notch’ sensation can be felt when playing the keys of a grand piano very gently, and may be used by experienced pianists to aid control when playing pianissimo passages.

In addition, the Grand Feel III action supports playing notes from the let-off point (sometimes referred to as playing ‘off the jack’), allowing the most advanced piano techniques to be performed.

The Sound of a Grand Piano: Shigeru Kawai SK-EX

Eponymously named after the company’s second president, the Shigeru Kawai range of luxury grand pianos were conceived as the next step in evolving the art of the piano. Each world-class instrument is hand-crafted by experienced piano artisans, using the finest available materials to ensure optimum touch, tone, and artistic expression.

Powerful 6-speaker output system

The latest Concert Artist instruments feature high fidelity speaker systems that have been specially designed to deliver deep bass and crisp treble frequencies. The high specification CA701 boasts an improved 6-speaker output system, with lower range frequencies delivered through the underside of the instrument, and mid and high frequencies projected outward via top-mounted speakers and front-facing tweeters. The result is a broad, resonating tone that closely mirrors the immersive sound field of an acoustic grand piano.

The Variety of a Digital Piano: Convenience & Flexibility

Complementing the instrument’s class-leading Grand Feel III keyboard action and stunning SK-EX Rendering piano sound engine, the CA701 also offers a strong selection of digital features that further enhance one’s musical enjoyment.

Full Bluetooth® V5 connectivity and USB audio record/playback allows musicians to extend the functionality of their piano, or play-along with their favourite artists, while the convenient metronome and integrated lesson functions, featuring classical etudes and Alfred course books, ensure that regular practise is both productive and engaging for aspiring pianists.

All functions are accessible from the CA701’s 5" anti-glare touchscreen display, which allows sounds and settings to be selected from an attractive user interface simply by tapping or swiping the display with a finger.

The screen can also be set to fade out automatically while playing, thus preserving the instruments’ acoustic piano-like appearance, and minimising any visual distractions to the performer.

Specs

Keyboard: Grand Feel III action: 88 wooden keys, Grade-weighted hammers, Ivory Touch white key surfaces, Ebony Touch black key surfaces, Let-off simulation, Triple sensor key detection, 88-key Graded counterweights
Pedal: Grand Feel Pedal System: Damper (with half-pedal support), Soft (with half-pedal support), Sostenuto
Piano Sound: SK-EX Rendering, 88-key multi-channel sampling, SK-EX Competition Grand Piano recording, SK-EX Concert Grand Piano recording, Harmonic Imaging XL (HI-XL), 88-key stereo sampling, SK-EX, SK-5, EX recording, 256 note maximum polyphony

Piano Resonance: SK-EX Rendering: Resonance Modelling, Damper Resonance, String Resonance, Undamped String Resonance, Aliquot Resonance

Harmonic Imaging XL: Acoustic Rendering:, Damper Resonance, String Resonance, Undamped String Resonance, Cabinet Resonance
Piano Adjustment: Virtual Piano Artisan (20 parameters): Touch Curve (incl. User Touch Curve), Voicing (incl. 88-key User Voicing), String Resonances, Damper Noise, Undamped String Resonance, Cabinet Resonance, Key-off Effect, Fall-back Noise, Hammer Noise, Hammer Delay, Topboard Simulation, Decay Time, Release Time, Minimum Touch, Stretch Tuning (incl. 88-key User Tuning), Temperament (incl. User Temperament), Temperament Key, Key Volume (incl. 88-key User Key Volume), Half-Pedal Adjust, Soft Pedal Depth

Virtual Piano: Artisan presets (10 presets)
No. of Sounds: SK-EX Rendering: 5+5 rendering characters
Harmonic Imaging XL: 96 voices
Reverb SK-EX Rendering: Ambience (10 types)
Harmonic Imaging XL: Reverb (6 types)
Brilliance: ✔
Other Effects: 24 types
Speakers: 13 cm x 2 (woofers), (8 x 12) cm x 2 (top speakers, with diffusers), 5 cm x 2 (tweeters)
Output Power: 110 W (55 W + 55 W)
Headphone Enhancements: Premium headphone amplifier, Spatial Headphone Sound
Display: 5" LCD touchscreen (480 x 800 pixels): Anti-glare display
Key Cover: Sliding type
Music Rest: Collapsible type (6 angle adjustability), Score support pins

Width: 145 cm (57")
Depth: 49.5 cm (19 1/2")
Height: 97 cm (38 1/5") [music rest flat]
114.5 cm (45") [music rest raised]
Net Weight: 76.5 kg (168 2/3 lbs.)/80 kg (176 1/2 lbs.)
Basic Functions: Dual, Split, Four Hands, Transpose, Tuning, Low Volume Balance, Favorite
Internal Songs Sound Demo: 39 songs
Piano Music: 29/42 songs
Concert Magic: 176 songs
Lesson Songs: Burgmüller 25 (25 Etudes Faciles, Opus 100), Czerny 30 (Etudes de Mécanisme, Opus 849), Czerny 100 (Hundert Übungsstücke, Opus 139), Beyer 106 (Vorschule im Klavierspiel, Opus 101), J.S. Bach: Inventionen, Sonatinen Album 1, Chopin Walzer (Chopin waltzes series), Chopin Etudes (Opus 10), Alfred’s Premier Piano Course Lesson 1A, Alfred’s Premier Piano Course Lesson 1B, Alfred’s Basic Piano Library Lesson Book Level 1A, Alfred’s Basic Piano Library Lesson Book Level 1B
Alfred’s Basic Adult Piano Course Lesson Book Level 1
Internal Recorder: Total Memory approximately 90,000 notes
No. of Songs: 10 songs
Parts: 2 parts
Metronome Time Signatures: 1/4, 2/4, 3/4, 4/4, 5/4, 3/8, 6/8, 7/8, 9/8, 12/8
Drum Rhythms: 100 patterns
Bluetooth: Bluetooth (Ver. 5.0; GATT compatible), Bluetooth Low Energy MIDI Specification compliant, Bluetooth Audio (Ver. 5.1; A2DP compatible)
USB Audio: Recorder Record/Playback MP3, WAV, SMF (Playback only)
Other Functions: Overdubbing, Line In recording
App Functions: PianoRemote (iOS/Android), PiaBookPlayer (iOS/Android)
Connector Jacks: Headphone 1 x 1/4", 1 x 1/8" Stereo jacks
MIDI: USB-MIDI, Bluetooth MIDI
Line Out: 1/4" L/MONO, R [unbalanced]
Line In: 1/8" Stereo (with volume adjust knob) [unbalanced]
USB to Host: ✔
USB to Device: ✔
Power Consumption: 45 W
Power: Power cable