| Type | Musical Instruments Manufacturing |
|---|---|
| Industry | Musical instruments |
| Founded | August, 1927 |
| Founder(s) | Koichi Kawai |
| Headquarters | Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan |
| Area served | Worldwide |
| Key people | Shigeru, Kawai - Hirotaka Kawai |
| Products | Grand pianos and upright pianos |
| Revenue | $1,000,000,000 Annual Sales |
| Employees | More than 4,000 |
| Website | http://www.kawaius.com/ |
The Kawai Musical Instruments Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (株式会社河合楽器製作所 Kabushiki-gaisha Kawai Gakki Seisakusho, TYO: 7952) of Japan is best known for its grand and upright pianos, electronic keyboards and electronic synthesizers. The company was established in August 1927, and has its headquarters in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka.
Contents |
Kawai pianos' action is made of synthetic polymer material rather than traditional wood or metal. In their early editions, it was a styran plastic. Afterward, it evolved to a more sophisticated carbon fiber action. Both solutions allow for no swelling due to humidity, lengthening the life of the piano greatly.
In 2009, the Kawai RX series grand pianos were replaced by the RX-BLAK series. These pianos are very similar to their RX predecessors with a few minor changes. These include a new Acoustic Resonant Solid Spruce soundboard and the addition of phenolic stabilizers on the hammers, which improve performance by adding more positive motion to the hammer shank during forte playing. A variety of minor cosmetic improvements are also featured in the RX-BLAK line, which one may find pleasing in personal opinion.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Kawai started manufacturing synthesizers in the beginning of the 1980s under the brand name Teisco. These instruments were all analog and included the following models: 60F, 110F, 100F, 100P, SX-210, SX-240, and SX-400. At some point, Kawai stopped using the "Teisco" brand and so some of these products can be found labelled either Teisco or Kawai.
During the second half of the '80s, Kawai developed and released a number of digital synthesizers. The most known of these are the K series: K1, Kawai K1mkII, K3 (filters and envelopes are analog), K4 and K5. Except the K5, which is an additive synthesizer, all instruments employ subtractive synthesis. Uniquely for their price range, all instruments feature aftertouch. Kawai also manufactured rack versions of most of these instruments, and an external programming device, Kawai MM-16. Kawai XD-5, a drum synthesizer based on the K4 engine, was produced in 1989-1990.
Later developments resulted in Kawai KC-10 and KC-20 (produced in the beginning of the 1990s), both are simplistic PCM synthesizers. In 1996 Kawai released the K5000, an additive synthesizer that greatly improved on the K5 and is now regarded as one of Kawai's very best instruments. It was manufactured in three versions: K5000S, which had 16 knobs for real-time control and an arpeggiator, K5000W which added a sequencer but lacked both the knobs and the arpeggiator, and the K5000R, a rack version with an arpeggiator, but no sequencer and no knobs. A Knobs Macro Box was sold separately for use with the W and R models. Kawai originally planned to release K5000X, which would combine the features of the S and W models with a 76-key keyboard and enhanced memory, but this was cancelled in the late '90s due to bad sales. Shortly thereafter the company stopped producing synthesizers.