The church I play organ in just bought the CA49 at its clearance price! Amazing deal for an amazing piano. Best action Ive ever played on a digital piano. I loved it so much, I bought a CA49 for my apartment.
Thank you very much for that introduction. Do you feel that after the keyboard became a little bit heavier, it got better in terms of movement response and playing habits, or did it not much different?
I do think the response has improved on the CA401. I still own a CA49 (which is what I mostly practice on), but I did notice a difference when I spent time playing the CA401. Hope this helps!
Very curious about the new speakers system, especially on the 501. Given that this is no longer developed with Onkyo, who went out of business, I'd be very interested to know how it compares to the CA59 speakers.
Kawai's website says that the speakers have been reconfigured with 360° diffuser panels for improved sound distribution. I wish I had the ability to do a side by side comparison with the CA59, but we haven't had this model at our showroom for a few months..
Many thanks for the review - I had the feeling that the action mechanism on the CA401 has slightly changed, for the better - as you described it in your video. Unfortunately I couldn't compare it side by side with the CA49. However, do you think the difference could be due to heavy use of the CA49?
Thanks for watching! The CA49 I compared it to had not been heavily used--it was a newer CA49 that had just come back from a short-term rental. So I don't think the difference that I felt on the CA401 was due to the CA49 having heavy use. Hope this helps!
thx! how would you rate them against the CN301wich is significantly cheaper but has almost the same (or more) features. The big difference are the wooden keys but is that worth the price bump for the CA series?
The major differences between the CA501 and CN301 are the action mechanism (GFC wooden key action vs. RHIII plastic key action, as you mentioned) and the sound sampling and selection (the CA501 has new piano sampling, and a new piano sound: SK-EX competition grand). I personally think the price difference between the CA501 and CN301 is justified. But I also have owned a CA49 for the past 2.5 years, and I just really like the GFC action.
It seems to me like the sampling quality has improved, at least with the piano sounds. Kawai's website mentions that the SK-EX Competition Grand sound has been specially recorded from the player's perspective. And the speaker system has been reconfigured with 360° diffuser panels for improved sound distribution. I am not sure if Kawai is working with another company or doing the speaker production in-house since they are no longer partnered with Onkyo (Onkyo went out of business).
Hmm I'm not sure what you're referring to. The CA501 and CA701 both have the spatial headphone technology. And the CA701 has an additional set of speakers (tweeters) compared to the CA501.
I was hoping to hear the difference between them!
The church I play organ in just bought the CA49 at its clearance price! Amazing deal for an amazing piano. Best action Ive ever played on a digital piano. I loved it so much, I bought a CA49 for my apartment.
That's great! I love my CA49 too. It's a great instrument.
Thanks Louise - that was quick!
Thanks for watching!
Thank you very much for that introduction. Do you feel that after the keyboard became a little bit heavier, it got better in terms of movement response and playing habits, or did it not much different?
I do think the response has improved on the CA401. I still own a CA49 (which is what I mostly practice on), but I did notice a difference when I spent time playing the CA401. Hope this helps!
@@BayAreaPianoMasters Very helpful! Thank you for your reply.
Very curious about the new speakers system, especially on the 501. Given that this is no longer developed with Onkyo, who went out of business, I'd be very interested to know how it compares to the CA59 speakers.
Kawai's website says that the speakers have been reconfigured with 360° diffuser panels for improved sound distribution. I wish I had the ability to do a side by side comparison with the CA59, but we haven't had this model at our showroom for a few months..
Onkyo is still in business. They filed bankruptcy and were bought out.
When will it hit the market?
We currently have the CA401 and CA501 in stock and ready to ship
Many thanks for the review - I had the feeling that the action mechanism on the CA401 has slightly changed, for the better - as you described it in your video. Unfortunately I couldn't compare it side by side with the CA49. However, do you think the difference could be due to heavy use of the CA49?
Thanks for watching! The CA49 I compared it to had not been heavily used--it was a newer CA49 that had just come back from a short-term rental. So I don't think the difference that I felt on the CA401 was due to the CA49 having heavy use. Hope this helps!
@@BayAreaPianoMasters Thank you, this helps! I thought I was crazy thinking the mechanics are somehow different, but seems to be true.
thx! how would you rate them against the CN301wich is significantly cheaper but has almost the same (or more) features. The big difference are the wooden keys but is that worth the price bump for the CA series?
The major differences between the CA501 and CN301 are the action mechanism (GFC wooden key action vs. RHIII plastic key action, as you mentioned) and the sound sampling and selection (the CA501 has new piano sampling, and a new piano sound: SK-EX competition grand). I personally think the price difference between the CA501 and CN301 is justified. But I also have owned a CA49 for the past 2.5 years, and I just really like the GFC action.
So the speaker system and sampling quality remains the same in CA501 when compared to CA59?
It seems to me like the sampling quality has improved, at least with the piano sounds. Kawai's website mentions that the SK-EX Competition Grand sound has been specially recorded from the player's perspective. And the speaker system has been reconfigured with 360° diffuser panels for improved sound distribution. I am not sure if Kawai is working with another company or doing the speaker production in-house since they are no longer partnered with Onkyo (Onkyo went out of business).
@@BayAreaPianoMasters So does it have the spatial speaker technology as in CA701?
Hmm I'm not sure what you're referring to. The CA501 and CA701 both have the spatial headphone technology. And the CA701 has an additional set of speakers (tweeters) compared to the CA501.
CA501 vs CLP 745?
If we had a CLP745, I'd love to do a comparison between the two!