Pros and Cons
The Kawai CN-301 is the new top model of the CN series and succeeds the CN-39. With the new model, Kawai introduced several changes, for example concerning the sound generation. This allows you even more to simply enjoy playing great-sounding pianos. Moreover, improvements in the details mainly benefit the sound and the playing feel.
If you know or own the CN-39, you will immediately notice that on the CN-301, the upper rear side of the case has a different design. This is an important innovation: the CN-301 has a completely even surface. Further, a discreet fabric covers the top-mounted speakers.
It’s hard to tell whether this is just because of the redesign. In any case, the CN-301 sounds noticeably better – not only compared to its predecessor but also to the smaller CN-201. While two speakers on the underside of the instrument have to suffice for the latter, the CN-301 has additional top-mounted speakers.
This system not only sounds more powerful and clear but also makes the acoustic piano sound much more vivid than the CN-201. The 360° diffuser system, adopted in a smaller form from the larger models of the CA series, likely plays a large part in this. The manufacturer also points to the CN-301’s redesigned power adaptor, which contributes to the instrument’s high-fidelity sound.
With the SK-EX Concert Grand, you get an excellent concert grand piano sound – Kawai’s flagship: Shigeru Kawai SK-EX. The sound, which is active once the instrument is turned on, instantly creates joy. I am always impressed by the expressiveness of Kawai’s piano sounds and the fine nuances in the articulation.
A great sound that is complemented by another large concert grand, the EX Concert Grand. A more accentuated attack and an overall richer, more brilliant sound make it ideal for pop and piano pieces in need of a powerful “punch”.
Next is the SK-5, a smaller grand piano sound that is overall more direct and has a charm of its own. Great for bar jazz and intimate piano solos. An upright piano completes the acoustic piano range with a well-balanced – and fortunately not too shrill – piano.
Home pianos rarely focus on effects. However, this section should not be underestimated – the advantages of a good effects section become apparent with electric piano sounds. Especially vintage electric pianos such as Fender Rhodes and Wurlitzer live off effects such as tremolo, phaser, chorus, and amp simulations. Consequently, they sound very authentic on the CN-301. Moreover, it is nice to know that you can adjust the most important effects to your taste.
All of Kawai’s acoustic pianos support the editing functions of Virtual Technician: adjusting the piano sound to make it softer, more brilliant, or even more dynamic – thanks to voicing, this is no problem at all and can be done in just a few simple steps. In addition, the acoustic piano sounds take into account all kinds of dynamic sound details such as string resonance, damper noise, key-off effect, and more. You can adjust all of these to suit your taste.
Using the Kawai CN-301 is already a comfortable experience thanks to the control panel. However, the PianoRemote app makes this even more convenient – Kawai offers it free of charge for Android and iOS devices. Thanks to Bluetooth MIDI, the app wirelessly connects to the CN-301, which allows control of various functions. Selecting sounds, and adjusting settings such as transpose, dual, or split are just a few examples to name.
In this respect, there’s no difference to the smaller CN-201. The RH-3 keyboard is a high-quality hammer-action keyboard with Ivory Touch, triple sensor technology, and let-off simulation. Accordingly, it also provides a comfortable and precise playing feel on the CN-301.
The RH-3 keyboard has already proven itself in several Kawai home and stage pianos. However, the new version featured in the CN-301 comes with an improved keyboard action and key cushioning to reduce the action noise.
While a hammer action will always cause this noise, Kawai clearly demonstrates that damping is nonetheless well possible here. It may not make the biggest difference in the world, but the CN-301 plays even more comfortably than its predecessor.
Keyboard and sound quality make the Kawai CN-301 perfectly suitable for piano lessons. However, these are not the only functions helpful for learning and practicing. First of all, there is a metronome and a recorder – useful for recording piano pieces for practice.
The loop function can also be convenient for practicing specific passages. The CN-301 offers even more possibilities, as it also has a 16-track recorder with a loop function. Moreover, you can record audio and save it as a WAV or MP3 file to USB storage media.
The stored repertoire of well over 500 pieces of classical piano literature, including scales and finger exercises, is another great lesson feature. In addition to PianoRemote, Kawai also offers the free PiaBookPlayer app for Android and iOS devices, which allows you to display sheet music in sync with the corresponding etudes being played back. For each of the etudes, you can turn on and off the left-hand and the right-hand part separately.
As the top model of Kawai’s CN series, the CN-301 offers upscale features for its price range. Learn more about the differences between its predecessor and other Kawai digital pianos.
There are some conceptual changes: while the CN-39 had over 200 sounds, the CN-301 comes with “only” 45. Obviously, the predecessor model was designed to offer a wide variety of sounds.
A positive aspect of the CN-301’s streamlining is that it lets go of accessory sounds (which in most cases, you’d rarely use anyway). Instead, it concentrates on the important sounds you would expect from a digital piano: pianos, pianos, pianos.
A subtle but successful improvement concerns the RH-3 keyboard, which plays even better thanks to more precise keyboard action and optimized key cushioning. Last but not least, the CN-301 has a new speaker system.
The biggest difference concerns the speaker systems. Even though both digital pianos are equally powerful with 2×20 watts, there is a clear difference in sound. Thanks to the additional top-mounted speakers, the CN-301 sounds clearer, richer, and more voluminous.
There are many similarities in sound, as the CN-201 and CN-301 feature the same type of sound generation: Progressive Harmonic Imaging with 88-key sampling. The difference, however, is in the polyphony: the CN-201 has 192 voices, while the CN-301 has 256-voice polyphony. The CN-201 does not have the split function of the CN-301, and the CN-301 also has a wider range of effects.
There are also differences in the recorder: the MIDI recorder on the CN-301 not only has a larger recording capacity but also offers 16 tracks and a loop function. The recorder section of the CN-301 also lets you record the performance as an audio file (WAV, MP3) to USB media. The metronome comes with more time signatures as well as rhythms that the CN-201 does not have at all.
These two Kawai models are identical in price, although the CA-49, as the smallest model of the CA series, scores with a wooden-key keyboard and a more powerful hammer action. When comparing the CN-301 and the CA-49, it should be noted that the CA-49 has an older sound generation system, but also fewer features in terms of speaker system, learning and recording functions, as well as a smaller sound selection.
The Kawai CN-301 is a modern home piano that is a great choice for both beginners and advanced players: Expressive piano sounds – of which there are a few more than on the smaller CN-201 model – a high-quality hammer action keyboard, many good sounds and effects, learning and practicing functions.
The manufacturer has improved important details that make a noticeable difference to the previous model CN-39. The new CN-301 feels even more comfortable to play thanks to optimized key action and cushioning. A striking innovation that positions the CN-301 at the top of its price range is the 360° speaker system, which makes the piano sound expansive and three-dimensional.
Pros and Cons
Jörg Sunderkötter
... a state-of-the-art home piano that beginners and advanced players can't go wrong with.
CN-301 B : 1.559,00 €
TO THE OFFERCN-301 W : 1.555,00 €
TO THE OFFERCN-301 R : 1.559,00 €
TO THE OFFER
CN-301 B : 1.559,00 €
TO THE OFFERCN-301 W : 1.555,00 €
TO THE OFFERCN-301 R : 1.559,00 €
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