Kawai K4

Kind of a pain to configure at first, but after a couple of minutes of playing w/ it, I was able to program it w/ ease.

16 note polyphony. The keys remind me of my DX-7 in the way it responds to pressure.

The best part of the synth are the original sounds that come out. The pianos sound tingy and the strings are really fake, but other than that I love the sounnds that this thing can make.

It runs like a Timex...

Pretty simple to operate.

FX are tragic. Polyphony - 16 voices, I believe? Typical early '90s fare. I'm trying to think of some good features.....hmmmm

Are some instruments very realistic? You mean are ANY instruments very realistic? No. Usable? No. There is an old, wheezy quality to these sounds that is so irritating. I borrowed one for a while, but had to trigger a Korg module, just for working on some arrangements. It is totally unlistenable.

I suppose it is fairly rugged. But who cares??!!

Kawai? Isn't that an island in Hawaii? Don't they make mediocre pianos?

I believe collecting insurance money on a stolen K4 would be a happy day. Compared to just about anything else in this genre in this price range, I don't know if there is a worse sounding set of samples in a rompler than this. Maybe something by Technics or Suzuki that I haven't been around. If you can find one for $200., don't buy it. Take your significant other to a fancy restaurant, and keep looking for a decent instrument.

Very easy to use, didn't begin reading the manual until wanted to program my own sounds and upload sysex.

32 note poly, 16 doubled (of course). nice effects. Sending MIDI through this beauty is easier and better sounding than my Korg! Has an expansion card slot for more presets. Yes, it has volocity sensistive keys.

Piano sounds are excellent (better than my Korg), strings not so good. Squeeks can be heard if the unit is overloaded.

Very reliable! Stopped working once (bad ps) but Kawai Canada (in Toronto) fixed this for no charge in less than 4 days.

Excellent

I should note that I was so happy with the first, I purchased another about 9 years later for $550.00 CDN (used).

The presets are terrible. this thing is a much better noisemaker than a bread and butter synth(which my preset banks seemed geared for , but i bought it used so i dont know what the origional ones are like.)the sythesis engine is very versitile which would be great if the sound quallity wasnt so crappy.I have found it extremly easyto use ,it has been my primary keyboard in my studio for 8 years, and my only controler.I have used it for everything from live metal and techno to studio newage and trance work. it is versitlie and with the manual realy easy to use

16 note poly(8 in 4 partial mode)8 tracks midi.the keyboard is light and portible (and durable)but lacks serios subtilness in its response to velocity for light passages. thepressure sensitivity is also tweeky ,. its not very expressive .i use it to open filters or as an off on for vibrato. the effects SUCK. i usualy bypass them 9except for ocasionaly using the chorus /delay algorithim to thicken pads, and leads . it definately NEEDS outboard efx(particularly eq and chorus ) the distortion reverb and flanger settings are nearly useless . no sequencer .not expandible. realy nice synthesis engine (to bad the sound quality sucks

and first i loved its 'realisim"but all else i had was 4 op fm stuff . but as i saw what else was out there i felt i had screwed myself with the choice id made. i like the bowed and padded string sounds and the choir sounds ALLOT. i use them to thicken up arraingements and for "rear" voices.I also like it for padded and lead strangenesses. the multiple waveform design makes for very versitile sound design. it is dark and muddy and thin , with weird ,unnatural overtones that are very jarring and unnaturall sounding, making the sounds stand out in unmusical ways timbrely. there are always odd artifacts in the sounds ,particularly loud pops that kick in when i use the envelope on the filter(even without rez, does this happen to everyone or did i get a lemon) with shittonnes of efx and eq you can get awesome padds and leads, but the gigo law is in effect.just usefull enoug that id miss it if it were gone but DEFINATELY NOT good as youre primary synth. the analog stuff if WAY thin. id program my old juno sounds(pulse saw, ansd squarewave stuff) and a/b them and the k4 would not come close (particulaly for bass and comp sounds)better off using the filter on some of the other waveforms for weirdness. the odd overtone stuff is particularly noticable on the single cycle stuff.it wont do for rock ,metal or dance bread and butter , but for wierdess and padds it is a good choice(if you like indistict sounds)and you dont mind running it thru 2 or 3 efx processors just to get a decent tone.

ive found it to be a workhorse . i abuse my boards and it does fine . ive gotten dirt in mine and now the keys are screwed , but im getting it fixed (if i decide i love it enough, i have a serious love hate relationship with mine)iits an awesome , light controler if you dont need a versitile setup

i wish to hell , with a synthesis engine this versitile that it just SOUNDED better(particularly in the odd unitentional noise artifacts and wipyness and garisness of waveforms catigory). it has been part of my studio for8 years so it has grown on me . if mine were stolen id get something else quickly , then probably miss it and get the rack version (the efx suck anyway ) right now im so poor that it is my only sample based rig now so if i want anything other than tx81 z and dx100 sounds in my music ,or anything with a lpf, without it im screwed9 i envey my friends with kurzwiels. i wish people would design INSTRUMENTS as opposed to electronic noisemakers . yess its versitile but tibrely and tonnicly it sucks.tone is importaint . the k4 to me produces auric fatigue way to early. the sounds overtones are painful,(and that popping thing has got to go.)on the other hand its ability in a sample based synth to make pads and wierdnesses that dont sound like samples (YAY Am on samples) has grown on me,as have having ok strings and choir sounds to thivcken my arraingments with(i do etheric trance and 'new age (gods, i hate tht word!!!) and it is useful. all in all if you have the money and the space buy one and play . it may give you some neat timbre to use,orsample and use as a waveform for a kurzwiel sound!!!:} good luck time to go to ebay and shop fore a replacement for it as my main board!!!

The presets sound great, with a few modulations... ;)

The strings SUCKS, but the kinda' choir type sounds are GREAT for Heavy Metal and Black Metal music!!
Serves me well in Heavy Metal, Rock, Classical and Pop...
The effects? Hmm... Rather dull... But ok!
I get the best feeling when playing on this one... =) =)
It's velocity/aftertouch sensitivity is not so good, not on mine anyway... But it's ok...

NO! It has failed me twice! My K4 is rather is rather "jumpy", sometimes it feels like reseting itself...
=/

I haven't dealt with the company itself (YET), but I will...
They are probably very friendly!
The local dealers, however, can't help me with my problems...

I would certainly buy it again if I loose this one... I love the keys... They are so easy to play with...
It was well worth my money, it's been maaaaany years since I bought it, and it occasionally still works...
=)

I've been playing keyboard for about 9 years now, but I had a dead period for more than 5 years in the middle... I've started using it very much in 1999, but not anymore... Grr...

The sounds are great, with a few modifications they sound even better, much better than a Korg Wavestation or M1... But I guess they are more dependable... =/

had mine for ten years - very easy to program - still one of the more versitale boards

for its product position the features are great as are the sounds. specifically touch/vel and 8 zone capabilities.

again, at its level the sounds are great - particularly the new age - pianos decent, organs could be stronger as could the horns

absolute work horse - never been down in 10 years

excellent...excellent...excellent

have a yamaha vecter, kurzweil pc88mx, korg wave station, etc...
am prepareing to upgrade my rig some more but will always have a k4

Allthough the K4 is my first Synthesizer, i had absolutely no problem
learning how to use it. I strongly recommend using a software for editing
the sounds. (eg. K4Win is a good option). The adaptation for EMAGIC's
Sounddiver is nice too, but it lacks some features (no Drum editing,
no Effects editing). Editing the sounds directly on the Synthesizer
is easy, but it requires pushing lots of buttons for browsing through the different
parameters.
The Manual is fine. also the Sysex is well documented. (for programmers)
The Factory presets are Ok, but frankly i would not recommend buying a K4
if you have no computer for accessing the thousands of patches
available on the internet (SYSEX)

Polyphony:
The K4 plays up to 32 Waves simultaneously. In single patches you have
either 16x Polyphony (using 2 waves) or 8x Polyphony (using 4 waves).
In Multi-patches, you can layer up to 8 single patches, so theoretically
you could build a Multi-Patch that uses 8x4=32 Waves, resulting in
1x Polyphony.
Effects:
One great feature of the K4 are the Effects (Reverb, Chorus, Overdrive,
Flanger, Delay). There exist many variations for each effect.
The effects are the spice for your sounds.
Expansion:
The K4 accepts an expansion Card, which doubles the memory of the Synthesizer.
(The K4 has memory for 64 single Patches, 64 Multi Patches, 32 Effect Patches
and the Drum Section. Using a Memoy Card you'll have 128 Singles, 128 Multis,
64 Effects.) Allthough the Cards are quite expensive (some >50 USD),
i'd definetly recommend using one. (eg i store my favourite sounds on the
Card and i use the normal K4 memory for switching between various SYSEX Banks)
Midi:
The K4 has nice Midi-support. One interesting feature is: You can setup
a Multi-Patch using 8 different single patches.Any of these single patches can then
be assigned to a different midi channel. Thus you can create midi-songs with
up to 9 tracks (1 drum track) and play them back on the K4.
(No GM support)
Sequencer:
The K4 has no facilities such as a sequencer or an arpeggiator.

The sounds of Real Instruments are average. (certainly not better than the sounds
of todays Midi-Soundcards).
Best are: Organs, E-Piano, Brass.
String an Voices are Ok, but they are more usefull in Synth Pad sounds
Synth sounds are great, ranging from fat analogish sounds, to layered pad sounds.
Allthough the K4 is a digital synthesizer, it simulates analog sounds very well.
One Top feature are the Digital Resonant Filters. In the so-called 'double-mode',
the K4 connects two filters in Serial-mode. If you use that mode and set resonance
to maximum, this results in extremely sharp sounds (sounds like 1000 women getting murdered :-))
Another great Sound feature is AM (Amplitude Modulation). The AM
produces some very unusual synth sounds (eg effects). You'll need a lifetime
for exploring all the potential of the AM.
Live-playing:
The K4 offers a great number of parameters, to modulate sounds according
to Velocity and Aftertouch.(eg route Cutoff to Aftertouch)
It has 2 realtime controllers:
1 Pitchbend,
1 Controller assignable to Cutoff, Vibrato or Mudulation
The one thing i miss on the K4 are realtime controllers for parameters
such as ADSR curves.

The keyboard is very robust, you can hit the keys hard.
I've had no problems yet.

I found it hard to trigger the Aftertouch on the K4, so i asked the
Kawai Support for help. They nicely explained how i could adjust the
aftertouch sensitivity (internally). You'd expect a company not to be
pleased when customers are opennig up their keyboards and screwing some
potentiomenters in the machine. However the Kawai support helped, no problem.

It's my first synth and frankly i did not buy it because i knew much about its
features, but rather because it was the cheapest used synth i could find.
But what a surprise: The instument provides a wide range of sounds ,ideal for
a newbie who wants to explore all kinds of synth sounds, from analog to weird AM sounds,
from Jarre to Techno.
A Computer with MIDI IO is definetly a must. (for transmitting SYSEX)
You'll find lots of fine SYSEX Banks on the internet.

At the current used-market-price of <300 USD , i can definetly recommend the K4.

This synth is fun and intuitive to program. The sounds are not very realistic,but you can get some wild sounds out of this thing. I personally think Kawai should have skipped any attempt at realistic sounds altogether and just preset this baby with the wacked out sounds it does so well. But since they didn't, it's available cheap!

So the keyboard has velocity issues,at least it can take a beating! I play live and hit too hard. I am constantly replacing keys on my Korgs and Kurzweils. It is also very easy to take apart and clean. This is a major consideration if you play bars and frat houses!This is a great live synth. It's cheap,easy to clean and takes a beating!

Realistic? Maybe in some alternate dimension,but not here. Effects? In the K4's defense,the effects routing is way cool-far superior to that "Global" crap in my other synths. React to my playing? Sure, I hit hard and it plays loud. It is really good at BOOMING resonant filter sweeping bass sounds-great live,thump along with the drummer.

10? I can only give it a 10? Imagine 200 shows a year in frat houses and rowdy bars. It takes beers,it takes crashes to the floor,it takes crappy,crappy power,it takes "fans" crashing into the stage and desperately flailing,latching onto it as they both slam into the floor.Comes back kickin'. K must stand for Kevlar.

Never tried. I bought my first one new in Augsburg,Germany.I bought another one used. I still have both.But I've never HAD to call. It may be a cheap-o synth,but it won't die!

O.K. it doesn't sound like my korg T3 and it most certainly can't touch my Kurzweil K2500,or even my Kurzweil K2000. It is old and outdated,but for the price and to play live it's great.I would never consider using it in a studio. I would however reccomend it for live use. again,it's cheap,easy to clean,and takes a beating. I like it.

Dead easy. Its nearly as easy as having the old fasioned ADSR knobs on the front of the machine (whoops, showing my age there!). It's actually a pleasure to sit and 'fiddle' with the sounds as you hear the results right away. The manual seemed pretty average but i am a bit of a one for only reading the manuals when i get stuck.

The one thing, for me, that stopped the K4 being a great synth was the keyboard. A friend of mine bought one at around the same time as I did and he also complained of the same problems. The keyboard action is terrible. perhaps it was because i came from using an Ensoniq ESQ-1 and i was used to a high quality keyboard, I don't know, but I found that i got a different response from the black keys then I did from the white. How can you play expressivly with something like that? I still have the k4, but sadly it is boxed up in my attic. Perhaps I will dig it out one day, but in the meantime i am on the lookout for a Ensoniq.

The instrument sounds are mediocre, The piano sounds are OK, but its main streangth comes from creating atmospheric sounds. I used it as part of a live setup where I would use a TG-55 for a piano sound, a TG-33 for a bell sound and the K4 for a kind of spacey choir sound. The Effects are noisey, but i used a boss SE-50 so it didn't bother me.
As with most 'cheap' midi keyboards it has the annoying miminum sensitivity on the keyboard, meaning no matter hos softly you hit the keys you will always get at least a certain level of velocity. Give me my old ESQ-1 back anyday.

For all its faults, it never crashed (something my ESQ-1 did on more than one occasion). I could always depend on it.

Never tried.

It was worth what i paid, I would'nt buy another one, but then again, I don't think i will get rid of the one i have. Appart from its keyboard, I have to say that everything else was ok. I would consider 'looking at' a K1 to see if they got things right on that model.

Some of the presets are OK, except I bought it used and someone had changed quite a bit of them. I really started to love this synth more when I started using K4edit, a PC / Windows Ed / Lib.

The keyboard action is nice, the actual keys are a bit noisy upon rebound. It has some nice built-in effects (Especially the Ping- Pong Reverbs.) Some are a tad noisy, but may be adjustable.. No Sequencer, but works well with software sequencers, MIDI setup is very intuitive.

Most of the presets are not (and are not meant to be) realistic. This is definitely a synth-pop keyboard, or rock, dance, etc. Wonderful realtime control via the Mod Wheel and Aftertouch which can be assigned to RESONANCE, to make some great tweaked, vintage Analog type sounds. Can make fat patches and can have the oscillators modulate each other thru AM Ring modulation.. Get an editor librarian for this one..

Never has gone south on me a single time, though mine stays in the studio.

Never dealt with them. Their homepage didn't work the last time I went there.

I would buy it again, in fact, if anyone has a K4 R (rackmount version) Notify me by email: dialtr@miavx1.muohio.edu.. I use it not only as a sound source but as a controller. Where else could you find a 61 key controller with vel and Aftertouch for under $400? And this has SOUNDS to boot!!
I'm working on a bank of analogue-ish sounds. They are free to whoever wants to trade with me. I also need the original patches on disk.