Kawai ES8 Portable Digital Piano

The Kawai ES8 Stage Piano

Kawai Japan has been the leader in digital piano technology since the 1980s. They have invested millions of dollars in new equipment, a state-of-the-art R&D facility, and one of the best dealer networks of any manufacturer in the world. Over the years, Kawai has slowly grown their digital division, continuously releasing innovative products which offer a level of realism not often found in a digital piano.

The Kawai ES8 is a perfect example of Kawai’s ability to combine practical features and functions with world class sampling technology to create a very authentic playing experience. The Kawai ES8 features a fully weighted action w/ let off, a built-in recording studio, and many other great features. This would be a perfect choice for a professional musician, touring band, church, or even home user that wants the most authentic sounds and a very responsive action. The Kawai ES8 has been one of the top-rated digital pianos on www.pianoworld.com.

Although the Kawai ES8 digital piano has been on the market for a few years, it’s still a highly relevant model with great touch, surprisingly powerful onboard speakers, the SK-EX Concert Grand Piano sample set, and intelligent accompaniment.  It’s a member of a small but important part of the market which caters to customers who need a high-performance, self-contained piano that’s easily portable, feature-rich, and tailored to live performance vs. studio use.  And within this group, that includes Roland FP60 / FP90, and Yamaha’s P515, there’s a loud and prominent group of users that swear up and down that the ES8 piano experience is the absolute top in the category.  Let’s find out what they’re still so excited about!

Action

The ES8 uses Kawai’s Responsive Hammer III (RHIII) action, which they’ve utilized across most of their mid to upper-mid range digital pianos like the CN29, CN39, and MP7SE. It has a triple sensor that’s highly regarded as one of the most accurate in the industry for midi output, and a physical design that simulates the dynamic resistance of an acoustic well, with a realistic key-bed feel as well (i.e. there’s some give to it, just like an acoustic key hitting the felt punching under its front rail.)

Like the other RH3 installs, the ES8 action has a micro-texture similar to NEOTEX on the white keys and also has an escapement/let-off simulation as well.

The RH3 can also be found on Nord’s new “GRAND” model, a piano that is also receiving rave reviews for its action realism.

Sound

The Kawai ES8 and the CN39 share essentially the same tone generator (although the CN39 is loaded with an Onkyo motherboard which includes post-processing that the ES8 doesn’t have). It has a 256-note polyphony and Kawai’s latest Harmonic Imaging engine on its piano sounds. It’s loaded with their newest SK-EX sample set, and an excellent selection of other sound categories like E-piano, pads, organ, as well as a full GM2 soundbank.

One of the most innovative features of the ES8 is the isolated speaker boxes that have been built with air-ports on the bottom for better airflow and improved bass response. At 30 Watts of power, the ES8 manages to produce as much or more tone than other instruments with 10-15 Watts MORE.

Connectivity / Features

The ES8 is software/app compatible through a USB connection, much like Yamaha’s lineup requires. It also has separate audio outputs and a speaker switch so that you can turn the speaker on or off to your liking, rather than only being able to defeat it by inserting something into the headphone jacks.

The piano is available in a variety of colours, including White, Satin Black, and Premium Rosewood.

Summary of Features

• Harmonic Imaging XL™ Sound Technology with 88-Note Piano Sampling
• RHIII Graded-Hammer Action
• 34 Exceptional Instrument Sounds
• USB Digital Audio – Play / Rec WAV and MP3 Files
• Rhythm Section with 100 Accompaniment Styles
• 256-note Max. Polyphony
• Powerful Built-in Speaker System
• Elegant Gloss Black and Ivory White Finishes
• Optional Designer Stand and Pedal Lyre

Kawai ES8 Owner’s Manual

• [English] ES8 Owner’s Manual

Kawai ES8 Related Resources

• [VIDEO] Kawai ES8 Digital Piano Review & Demo
• [VIDEO] Yamaha P515 vs Kawai ES8 Digital Piano Review
• [BLOG] Kawai Digital Piano Series Overview