RAC
Pianos
Kawai’s Guide to Excellence
The five steps to perfection
A grand piano is an investment of a lifetime. Chosen wisely, it can offer a lifetime
of unmatched enjoyment in return. The selection of a grand piano can appear to be
a daunting task at first, until one breaks it down into a step-
Knowing what to look for in a grand piano can help even the first-
Every grand piano has five attributes which are critical to its performance, durability, and overall quality. These are:
Learn to recognize with your own eyes these five characteristics, to confirm and judge with your own ears.
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Tone is the rich, resonant sound quality that emanates from a well-
Only straight-
Full length ribs
Kawai's spruce ribs span the full length of the soundboard. Kawai engineers have devised a technique for strategically placing ribs in order to direct sound energy to the most responsive areas of the soundboard. This helps balance bass and treble and enhances both power and tone quality.
The resulting structural focus creates incredible strength as these converging strength centres, now joined and working as "one", provide a solid core foundation that maximizes the reflective capabilities of the rim. Greater power, longer sustain and more resonant tone made possible by optimum reflected energy.
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Selection of the finest woods
Kawai craftsmen use all the senses... smell, sight, touch, and sound... in the selection of wood. But it is only their "sixth sense"honed by years of experience that results in the final selection of wood worthy of a Kawai grand piano.
Solid spruce soundboards
The soundboard is the very heart of the piano's tone. Sensibility and its strength. Today, virtually all of the world's finest concert grand pianos possess a soundboard made of solid spruce.
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The Kawai "CORE" system
CORE is an acronym representing "Convergence for Optimum Reflected Energy". This convergence refers to the way the piano's "strength centres" focus toward one central point of the piano's structure. The rim, plate and three underside beams all converge toward a metal connector at the heart of the piano.
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The bridges
Bridges transfer the vibrations of the strings to the soundboard. All Kawai bass
bridges are made of the highest quality hard maple or beech. Treble bridges consist
of 13 vertical layers of hard maple and mahogany for maximum strength and optimal
transfer of sound. The RX-
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Playing a piano is as much an experience of touch as it is of tone. Hour after hour, day after day, the musician's hands come in contact with the piano's keys. The piano's responsiveness can make a critical difference which can affect the player's performance, confidence and overall playing enjoyment.
Consistent, ultra-
Key material
A piano key must be made of material strong enough to withstand the impact of extremely hard, repeated blows...yet light enough to return to its original position with proper timing under all dynamic conditions. Spruce is the ideal key material. Spruce responds with proper balance and timing on the upward keystroke and is exceptionally resilient to withstand years of heavy use. Kawai uses only solid spruce for the piano keys.
Weighted and balanced keys
Evenness of touch is crucial to the player. Every key must respond uniformly in relation to all other keys on the keyboard. The keys of the RX Series grands are individually weighted and balanced to adjust for differences in hammer size. Weights are scientifically positioned at different points in each key to provide an even, balanced touch across the entire keyboard.
Key surface texture
Many of today's synthetic materials, such as acrylic plastic and phenol, lack the
subtle texture and moisture-
NEOTEX™ is Kawai's exclusive keytop material made of cellulose fiber. It offers the
smooth, understaed texture of natural ivory and ebony...and a semi-
Action assembly
Kawai's Ultra-
The action for the european market is made only of excellent woods, of which durability was proven above all in practice in countless tests. The durability of the Kawai actions is highly regarded in colleges and conservatories, where the instruments are played up to 18 hours daily.
Aluminium action rail
The action rail is the spine of a piano's action. It is the foundation which holds the various action parts together. The "extrusion" process creates an action rail which is both strong and consistent. Aluminum is more stable than wood. It will not warp, crack, expand or contract under any climatic conditions. The result is an action rail which offers a lifetime of stability to the action assembly.
Die-
Because they are made from a custom mold, die-
Hammers
A piano's hammers consist of three components: the hammer moulding, the felt, and the hammer shank. All three play an important role in the hammer's ability to translate the player's intentions to the strings.
Mahogany hammer mouldings
Mahogany hammers are lightweight and extremely responsive. Usually found on only more expensive grand pianos, mahogany is used for hammer mouldings on the entire line of RX Series grands.
Oval-
High treble hammer shanks for the RX Series grand pianos are designed with an oval shape which is thicker through the vertical axis for greater strength to resist bending... and thinner across the horizontal axis to minimize weight. This oval design allows the hammer to move more swiftly, resulting in a lighter, more delicate touch. Kawai uses hornbeam for the hammer shanks on all models in the RX Series line. Hornbeam is a highly durable wood usually found on only more expensive grand pianos.
Hammer felt
All RX Series hammers are reinforced, stapled and double-
The strength of a well-
Rim and beam construction
The RX Series rims are built using cross-
Four-
Kawai joins the beams to the inner rim using four independent joinery techniques in a single process. Each beam is: (1) doweled... fitted with a hardwood rod, (2) mortised into the inner rim for precise fit, (3) glued, and (4) secured with hardened screws for aggregate bonding strength through the entire thickness of the inner rim.
Plate construction
The plate is the acoustically-
The seasoning process
Wood that contains too much moisture is subject to cracking and other structural
concerns. The wood is usually placed in large kilns during an initial de-
Kawai knows that there could be many climates within a state. For this reason Kawai waits patiently for this "equilibrium" to arrive to assure that the grand pianos will adapt to a wide range of climates.
Pinblocks and tuning pins
The pinblock is the multi-
Kawai tuning pins are made from the finest "machinery-
A grand piano animates the senses and expresses symmetry, elegance, splendor, and refinement. For centuries, the grand piano has been a preeminent symbol of grace and beauty.
The beauty of a Kawai grand is the reward of craftsmanship...not just a word at Kawai, but a way of life.
Ebony finishes
The finish of an ebony grand piano is made of polyester... a material which is not only attractive, but durable. It protects against spilled liquids, and other hazards which can badly damage a piano's finish. Polyester is a highly stable material, not affected by changes in humidity. In contrast, wood is a dynamic material which will change in size with changes in climate. Problems can arise if a stable material is applied directly to a changing surface. In this case, polyester can crack or come loose over time if a manufacturer applies it directly to wood.
Kawai uses the most advanced undersurface material available today, called a "phenolic
backer", as a buffer layer to provide a solid bond between polyester and wood. The
phenolic backer has two main roles:
Evens The Surface.
The phenolic backer smoothes
and evens the wood surface, eliminating the slight ridges or waves that would not
otherwise be removed, even by fine sanding.
Seals The Wood.
The phenolic backer seals
the wood from ambient humidity, thus preventing the wood from expanding or contracting.
The result is an exquisite ebony finish that endures.
Hard finish music rack
The music rack must support a variety of music books and music writing implements. Kawai's Hard Finish protects the music rack from being scratched or marred...preserving the piano's beauty.
Other finishes
No two piano environments are alike. Architecture, colors, furniture styles and room
designs differ widely from place to place. Therefore, it is important to have a selection
of grand piano finishes to satisfy a range of tastes and styles.
The RX Series line
includes an array of ebony and natural wood finishes to beautifully complement any
surroundings.
The "Quest for Excellence" demands dutiful thought and attention to every aspect of a fine grand piano. It is thoughtful attention to the subtleties that elevates one's work from the satisfactory to the sublime. At Kawai, detail is the "crowning touch" of excellence.
"Soft Fall" fallboard
The fallboard is designed with a dual-
Solid brass casters
RX Series grand casters are larger than those used by some manufacturers... making
them more durable and easier on floors and carpets. With the mirror-
Beveled topboard
The attractive routed edge of the topboard accents the stylish beauty of the RX piano's lines.
Lid props
Three separate lid props enable the RX Series grands to adapt to specific musical and acoustical requirements.
Black-
Beams finished in black offer a quiet elegance that can be seen whenever the piano is on stage. The dark beams in front of the light soundboard reach a charming contrast.
The plate
Resplendent with golden hue, the plate and Kawai insignia glisten with the warm satisfaction that accompanies the attainment of excellence.
RAC Pianos
Longfield Nursery, Epping Road, Roydon, Harlow, Essex CM19 5DW
01279 792129 www.racpianos@tiscali.co.uk
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