I've been out here in Tokyo on business all week and had a few hours free today so Kawai James and I met up today. We went to a large music store in Ochanomisu today where I was able to play the Kawai ES7 and James played the PX-5S. We were planning to have lunch but we spent too much timing talking and playing gear.

James is a really cool guy, Kawai is really lucky to have such an intelligent guy on their team. Hoping to see you next time I'm out here James.

Here is a quick picture from the train station.

Nah then. Is James the one on the LH side o` the picture? He looks like a James. And t`other one looks like a Mike . . .

Wow, that is really great you guys had a chance to connect and mostly get a chance to play ES7 and PX-5S in each others presence. Both of you are extremely knowledgeable and intelligent. Without question a huge asset to Kawai, Casio, and the PW forum. Only regret is no video of you guys playing at the music store. Maybe next time ;-)

Mike is the one with the beard.

We on this forum are grateful to have you both participate. If only the 'others' did the same. It has to help the bottom line, a little, even if unsanctioned.

Now KJ, what is your honest objective opinion of the 5S, and Mike you of the ES7?

I am afraid they both agreed they can't comment on that, or they will both praise the other instrument into heaven (if that is an English expression?) .

To hijack a bit; I know both machines quite well and they are both good and very different at the same time. Keys on PX and ES have a distinct different feel , but are both very pleasant to play. Other than that the ES and PX are of another category - ES being more a basic stylish home/stage DP with accompaniment , the PX5 so much designed and configured to create great gigging setups. I say no more. Let the two experts have their say ( if they dare ;-)

Hi everyone,
It is very early in the morning here in Japan but I am leaving my hotel for the Tokyo airport to fly home. I probably won't have access to the internet for a while. I wanted to make sure that you know that was my reason for the lack of response. I'll put a more thoughtful answer to the question when I get back to the US.

Yes, it was really great to meet-up!

Ochanomizu is a fantastic place for all things musical instruments, with lots of great shops stocking a broad range of boards - it's definitely worth a visit for anyone spending time in Tokyo. Many of the stores in that area don't open until after 10am, so Mike and I sat down at a coffee shop and chatted about our respective backgrounds and various things.

Mike's a terrific chap, with a wealth of knowledge and experience about the industry. Casio instruments have improved considerably in recent years, and while there are surely many factors and individuals (behind the scenes) responsible, I'm certain that Mike's active role at the company is one of the driving forces.

Regarding the PX-5S itself, this is one seriously scarily good board! The quality of the base samples is already very impressive, but the amount of flexibility available to adjust and shape the sound truly takes everything to another level.

Of course, it helped that Mike was demonstrating the various features directly (I could tell he was extremely proud of the instrument, and for good reason!), but I got a real sense of just how much everything could be adjusted, controlled and re-assigned. The pedal-wah effect (using a switch pedal instead of an expression pedal) was very cool - it took a little getting used to, but worked incredibly well. Other aspects such as the arpeggiator and hex-layer functionality (and indeed combining the two simultaneously) allow very broad, immersive sounds to be built-up - and again the quality and sheer flexibility of every aspect is unbelievable.

Yes, it was a real pleasure to meet-up with Mike, chat, and experience Casio's latest board first-hand. A great day out in the big city.

Cheers,
James
x

Wifi at Narita Airport.

The ES7 is a great instrument. I enjoy the Kawai action and it certainly has a great speaker system too. James eveb showed me some of the cool speaker sims on the ES7 has for the electric pianos. Remarkably flexible and sounds fantastic.

As a musician that speaks English and Japanese, Kawai really has a great resource in James. I suspect he is having a dramatic influence on product at Kawai. I think this shows in their inovation including their venture into other areas like the VPC-1.

Yes definitely a great day. Looking forward to the next time.

You guys should marry each other's sisters or something

By the way, I wish Kawai would have more of a presence here in Norway

When I saw that picture my first thought:


FIGHT!


Too much Mortal Kombat I suppose.

So cool!

James,

I had a completely different picture in my head as you being perhaps a distinguished looking oriental fellow... sorry, for that!

Have to wonder as to how many other PW members thought you looked something like this, as the photo below is of 33-year-old Shigeru Kawai:



Also, hope that all of those train tellers speak English as I see a lot of Japanese writing on the wall behind you in the picture.

Anyway, that is a very nice photo of you and Mike.

Nah, KJ is a Brit afaik. I had a faint idea of how he looks from a few vids on his YouTube channel. Nice to see him and Mike in such a detail.

Can one call a train ticket vending machine gidouhanbaikiiiii~? Because that's all I know!