Kawai ES8 Digital Piano, Black

Full Description

The grand piano experience

Thanks to Kawai's class-leading Responsive Hammer III keyboard action, you can now experience the supreme touch of an acoustic grand piano. With its realistic movement and rigid, springless design, you will never look back at your old piano again. Kawai's attention to detail has resulted in structural noise and key wobble being kept do a minimum, even during staccato and fortissimo passages.

Similar to all of Kawai's pianos, the ES8's keyboard has been weighted to mirror the heavier bass hammers and lighter treble hammers of an acoustic piano. For additional realism, the ES8 features counterweights which have been embedded within each key. These balanced weights will lighten the touch of the keys during gentle passages, while adding a greater feel of grandeur when playing with power. The ES8 even features let-off simulations which recreates the subtle notch felt when playing the keys of a grand piano.

World-class sounds

To ensure you have the best possible experience, the sounds of the SK-EX, SK-5, and EX have been placed into the heart of the ES8. These Shigeru Kawai instruments can be found in the most prestigious concert halls and musical institutions throughout the world, and are recognised for their outstanding tonal clarity and exceptional dynamic range. Professional pianists often select these pianos for prestigious events such as the Chopin, Tchaikovsky, and Rubinstein international piano competitions, among others. Now you can play on a Shigeru Kawai. All 88 keys of the SK-EX, SK-5, and EX concert grand pianos were painstakingly recorded, then accurately reproduced as high-fidelity digital waveforms. Unlike other piano manufacturers, Kawai records each note individually to preserve the grand pianos' unique harmonic character. This way, you always get an accurate representation of the original instruments.

But the ES8 doesn't just come with piano sounds. It includes 34 high-quality tones from all over the world, including electric pianos, church organs, strings, choirs, and rhythms. For extra experimentation, the ES8 features Dual playing mode, which enables you to play two different sounds at the same time, such as a piano and strings. The ES8 even includes a Four Hands mode which divides the keyboard into two separate keyboards. This is a must-have for teachers as it enables a teacher and student (or student and student) to play at the same time, while only requiring one instrument.

Personalise your tone

If you wish to manipulate the sound to your own personal preference, the ES8's Virtual Technician will enable you to refine even the smallest details. The ES8 enables you to refine touch weight and voicing adjustments, regulate hammer, and key release noises, and fine-tune string and damper resonances. It is even possible to adjust the precise tuning, volume, and character of individual notes – all in real-time.

Kawai 5 Year European warranty

As an expression of the confidence Kawai have in the design and manufacturing of their instruments, they offer a 5-year warranty for parts and labour with all their digital pianos. Within the first two years, which is covered by Gear4music, simply contact our Customer Services team on 0330 365 444 and we will organise the repair/replacement, subject to issue. Kawai will honour any manufacturing defects after this two year period subject to completing the warranty information which will be enclosed with your piano and Kawai will organise the repair/replacement as deemed necessary.

Specifications

Keyboard

• Action: Responsive Hammer III
• Key Material: Plastic
• Key Surface: Ivory Touch
• Let-off simulation: Yes
• Sensors: 3
• Velocity Curves: Light+, Light, Normal, Heavy, Heavy+, Off (Constant), User

Sound Source

• Sound Source: Harmonic Imaging™ XL, 88 Key Sampling
• Sounds: 34, Grand Pianos: Shigeru Kawai EX, Kawai EX, SK-5
• Polyphony: max. 256 notes
• Virtual Technician: Voicing per key, Damper Resonance, Damper Noise, String Resonance, Key-off Effect, Fall-back Noise, Hammer Delay, Topboard, Decay Time, Soft Pedal Depth, Minimum Touch, Tuning, Volume and Tune of each key
• Keyboard Modes: Dual, Split, 4Hands (Volume/Balance adjustable)
• Reverb: Room, Lounge, Small Hall, Concert Hall, Live Hall, Cathedral - each with Depth and Time
• Effects: Stereo Delay, Ping Delay, Triple Delay, Chorus, Classic Chorus, Tremolo, Classic Tremolo, Auto Pan, Classic Auto Pan, Phaser, Rotary and 4 combination effects - each with Dry/Wet, Time, Speed, Feedback, High Damp, Depth (Parameters depend on Effect type.)
• Tuning: Equal (Piano Only), Pure (Major), Pure (Minor), Pythagorean, Meantone, Werckmeister III, Kirnberger III, Equal (Flat), Equal (Stretch), USER

Music/Recording

• Metronome/Beats: 10 Beats, Tempo and Volume adjustable; 100 Backing Rhythms with Chord recognition
• Recorder: USB Memory: MP3/WAV Recording and Playback, A-B Loop; Internal: MIDI 10 Songs, 2 Tracks – max. 90,000 notes
• Demo Songs: 27

Features

• Display: 16 x 2 Character (LCD)
• Registrations: Yes, 28 Memories
• USB Functions: Playback: MP3, WAV, SMF ; Recording: MP3, WAV ; Functions: Audio Overdub, Song to Audio Convertion, Load internal Songs, Save internal Songs, Save SMF Songs, Load Registration, Save Registration, Delete File, Format USB Memory
• Other Features: Key Transpose, Song Transpose, Tone Control (incl. User EQ), Speaker Volume, Headphone Volume , Line In, Line Out Volume, Audio Recorder Gain, Tuning, Damper Hold, LCD Contrast, User Memory, Reset, Lower Octave Shift, Lower Pedal On/Off , Split Balance, Layer Octave Shift, Layer Dynamics, Dual Balance, MIDI Channel, Send PGM#, Local Control, Transmit PGM#, Multi Timbral Mode, Channel Mute, Auto Power Off

Sound System

• Sound System: 12x8 cm x 2 Full range speaker with Bass-Reflex-System
• Amplifier: 2 x 15W
• Power Consumption: 35W

Construction

• Pedals: F10H Sustain Pedal with Half-Damper function included. Optional: Double Pedal F-20 or F301 3-pedal unit (only in combination with the HM-4 stand)
• Music Rack:Yes
• Jacks: USB to Host, USB to Device, MIDI (IN/OUT), LINE IN STEREO, LINE OUT (L/MONO, R), DAMPER (for F-10H), DAMPER/SOFT (for F-20), PEDAL (for F-301), Phones x 2, AC-adapter PS-154
• Finish: Satin Black

Dimensions

• Height in cm: 14.9
• Width in cm: 136.2
• Depth in cm: 36.1
• Weight in kg: 22.5