Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Digital Pianos - Electronic Pianos - Synths & Keyboards How about Kawai KDP90 vs. yamaha YDP142

Hi, there

Now I'm looking for my first digital piano.
Then I have 2 choices in my budget.
Its yamaha YDP142 and kawai KDP90.

Which one is better on Action weight and Sound quality ?
- Kawai's AHA IV-F action vs. Yamaha' GHS action.
- Kawai's HI sound vs. Yamaha's Pure CF Sound.
- Sound sampling on both is full 88 keys sampling ?


Please recommend for my decision.
Thank you

Well, that's a tough call. They are both sort of entry level console pianos, so they are going to be comparable in the sense that some people will prefer one and some will prefer the other.

Usually AHA-IV is compared with Yamaha's more expensive GH action. The GH action is noticeably heavier than GHS. I've never been able to compare them side by side but I would assume that AHA would be heavier than GHS. You may like one better than the other. It seems like many people prefer AHA.

Personally, especially if we are looking at the entry-level models, I tend to prefer Yamaha's tone engine, but you may not. My piano has the older HI (the non 88-key sampled version) and I like similar level Yamaha sounds better.

The Kawai is 88-key sampled but the Yamaha is not. Yamaha will use a sample for every three keys or so, I'd say. I've never personally found this effect troubling or noticeable but there are others in the forum who feel differently.

If I had to pick one I'd go with the Kawai. I don't care much for GHS.

HuKi, I would recommend playing both instruments for yourself, rather than relying solely on the opinions of others.

Kind regards,
James
x

Thanks, gvfarns & Kawai James

more questions , which one is better?

1. Speaker & Amplifier
- kawai kdp90 has circle speaker size 12cm , Output power 13W on each, Power Consumption 15W
- yamaha ydp142 has oval speaker size 12cm x 6cm , Amplifier 6W on each, Power Consumption 9W

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@James : I like kawai sound more than yamaha, but with my budget , I can't get CN24. Then I looking for lower price so I found KDP90 & YDP142

@gvfarns : You are first person who tell me "AHA is heavier than GHS" , Others as piano seller they told me "GHS is havier" , I have no experience on piano. And i have play on both , but i can't tell which one is heavier. So i have to ask some one who has experience on piano. to tell me which one is heavier & durable for long time.

HuKi,not sure if this helps or only complicates things even more.

I have a Kawai CL25, which uses the AHA-E action, against the KPD wich uses AHA.F. I have recently had the chance to try some new Kawai pianos with the RHA action and ivory feel keys. I have no doubt that they are far better than the AHA. When I tried new models from other brands and went back to my old CL25 I still preferred the AHA, but the RHA action is much better.

For that reason, if I were you and the CN24 is out of your budget I would be also considering the CL36, as it's slightly cheaper and better action than the KDP90. 15W each speaker, but less polyphony. It seems that it's got good reviews by users here.

For me the missing thing in the CL36 is a nicer cabinet with lid, but I'm still considering it as for me the most important is the key action and sound.

Of course, if you can it's always advisable to try the pianos yourself as even a better product on paper might be not for you once you try it.

GHS is pretty light. The primary difference between GHS and GH is that GHS is lighter. Now, as I mentioned I haven't put GHS next to AHA IV and played it myself, so I can't say for sure. Also there are a couple of definitions of heavy (static weight: how many grams it takes to get it moving; dynamic weight: related to the overall mass and feel of accelerating it once it overcomes the initial friction and starts moving).