KAWAI MP10 STAGE PIANO

It may not have the gravitas of a grand piano,

but the MP10 certainly plays like one.
Text: Greg Walker

NEED TO KNOW
Price
MP10: $4595
MP6: $2995
Contact
Kawai Australia
(02) 9882 2000
mark@kawaioz.com.au
www.kawai.net.au
Pros
Great action and weight
in the full-length 88-note
keyboard.
High fidelity grand
and electric piano sounds.
Lots of handy extras
like speaker simulators,
reverbs and EQ.
Well laid out with lots
of hands-on control
over sounds.
Cons
Heavy for a stage
instrument.
Limited amount of piano
varieties and alternative
sounds.
Sounds may be a bit too
pristine for those working
outside the traditional,
classical and jazz genres.
Summary
Kawais MP10 offers full-tilt
grand piano emulations in
a heavy-duty package. It
delivers a large degree of
expressive control over a
limited but quality set of
sounds with a lot of subtle
tweaks available under the
bonnet.

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Kawais new stage piano is all about realistic

performance and nuanced sounds just dont try
throwing one under your arm on your way out the door to
rehearsal!
Kawai has been in the piano business for over 80 years now
and is probably best known for its acoustic piano offerings.
As with many of its competitors, Kawais electronic pianos
can be broadly divided into two camps: the portable type
that sacrifice a certain amount of playability for flexibility
and space saving, and the full-scale piano emulations that
strive to make the playing experience as realistic as possible.
The MP10 falls like the proverbial ton of bricks into this
second category.
A GRAND ADVENTURE
The MP10s impressive 88-note keyboard does indeed play
beautifully, the result of its RM3 Grand wooden-key action.
This is essentially a comprehensive emulation of a grand
pianos action, featuring contrasting hammer weights, bass
key counter-balancing and see-saw pivot points for each
individual note. Theres even a special let-off feature (if you
please) that recreates the feel of the subtle click felt when
playing the keys very gently pretty darn impressive. It
really did allow me to play with more sensitivity than any
electronic piano emulation Ive previously come across. The
only possible downside was the rather synthetic feel of the
Ivory Touch key surfaces after going to all the trouble of
recreating the feel of a grand pianos action it seems a shame
to surface the keys with something so plainly fake. But to
put this concern into context, other people who played the
instrument thought I was nuts when I pointed this out, and
as the manual points out, this textured matte substance
absorbs moisture and prevents fingers slipping, which might
be an advantage during sweaty piano work under bright
lights.

All this playing action realism of course comes at a cost

in portability. The MP10 weighs in at a somewhat beastly
31.8kg and Id imagine that by the time its appropriately road
cased it would be bulky enough to cause the drummer to
smirk during those long lug-ins. If that all sounds like too
much weight to carry around, Kawai also offers a slightly
stripped down model of the keyboard, the MP6. The MP6 is
a somewhat lighter and less bulky affair than the MP10, but
offers some of the same sounds (and same number of keys)
as its big brother. The MP6 also has a smaller control panel
and different hammer action but still plays very well. One
noticeable difference in the MP6 is the addition of organ
sounds to the keyboards palette, which makes it a bit more
of an all-rounder. The MP6 offers most of the same MIDI,
effects and USB features as the MP10 but in a shallower and
lighter frame.
ULTRA SOUND
Allied to the realistic touch of the MP10 is the digital sound
engine that makes all the noise. While the variety of sounds
are comparatively limited, what is presented here is very
good quality. The highlights are the quite subtle variations
of grand and concert pianos, all sampled note by note from
top of the line Kawai acoustic piano models and available for
tweaking in the main control section. There are also some
useful electric piano sounds in the second control section.
Use of Kawais proprietary Ultra Progressive Harmonic
Imaging technology allows for very effective dynamic
performance and again the strength here is in expressive
playability. Once youve settled on a sound you like theres
a tremendous amount of fine-tuning that can be done via
onboard EQ, reverb, amplifier and speaker emulation effects.
In fact, the MP10 is quite a deep instrument when it comes
to these features. A sub-section offers strings, pads and
other sounds as well as ADSR parameters and a resonant
filter. Extensive MIDI facilities, external input, memory

The smaller MP6... well, not this much smaller! The MP6 still has a full
complement of keys (88), but this model is both lighter and less bulky than the
MP10. The MP6 also has a smaller control panel, different hammer action and
extra organ sounds. More of an all-rounder than the MP10 but also less of a
two-man lift.

Small,
Versatile
& Under $1000
52mm

Kawai deserves credit for

delivering superior playability
and some very tweakable
sounds in a monster package

116mm

storage and USB connectivity are also provided and the

neatly arranged groups of button and slider controls on
the MP10 provide simple and quick navigation of all the
main parameters without the deck feeling too crowded or
confusing.
REALISM VERSUS REALITY
Its been interesting having the MP10 in my studio at around
the same time as a rather beaten up old upright arrived.
Curiously, while I thought old Gladys would only get a
guernsey on the odd sepia-tinted track, the upright has
proved to be a hit on numerous projects, wonky action,
dubious tuning and all. Its got me wishing that these highend sample-based pianos would include some slightly more
character-based upright sounds as well. Its amazing how
useful they can be, especially when punching through a busy
mix, where no matter how perfect the sampling techniques
may be, the pure tonality of immaculate tuning can lead to
a distinctly artificial sound. This is no criticism of Kawai in
particular as all the major brands are the same in this regard.
These instruments are mainly aimed at the soloist or classical
accompanist who probably has no need for these kinds of
sub-standard sounds but I think it would open up the range
of uses for an instrument like the MP10 no end. I would
also have liked to see some form of onboard speaker, so the
pianist can noodle around while the monitor guy finishes his
kebab and gets his levels sorted at soundcheck.
KNEE BENDER
Kawai deserves credit for delivering superior playability
and some very tweakable sounds in a monster package that
will suit those looking for a high-end performance-based
electronic piano down to the ground. Just remember to bend
from the knees when lifting!

TLM 102
The newly developed TLM 102 features include:

Cardioid directional pattern

Newly developed large diaphragm capsule
Maximum S.P.L. 144 dB
Exceptionally fast transient response
...it was a testament to the TLM 102 that it remained
my main microphone choice for days on end, on
everything from strings to dulcimers to junk metal
Greg Walker: Audio Technology: Issue 76 August 2010
Audition one today!

For more information contact Syntec International;

Australia: Free Call: 1800 648 628
New Zealand: Free Call: 0800 100 755
www.neumann.com

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