KAWAI DS80B Upright Grand Piano Review
With not much of information available online for this European Model KAWAI DS80B, we classified it as one of the rarest upright grand piano in Malaysia. According to the serial number, DS80B was made in Japan during 1990s. With its 132cm height and well designed scale, the KAWAI DS80B offers a rare combination of power dynamic range and tonal richness to meet the musical demands of any studio environment.
1. Performance of a Grand Piano
Drilling into the details of where DS80B originated from, It was Made in Japan during 1990s, a professional 132cm acoustic piano that is a part of the DS Series family which succeeded US series. DS series consist of DS55, DS60, DS70, DS80, DS85, DS10E which generally can be found in European market as these models were designed in a European style, the curvy piano leg and also RED WINE COLOR as European favors Mahogany color than black. Compare to US series, DS series have additional key length, energy absorbing key rest material, improved scale design, tapered soundboards and Neotex key tops that absorb the hand’s natural oils. In other word, alot of improvement.
2. Specification
|
Size |
132 x 153 x 65 cm |
|
Action |
Millennium 2 |
|
Soundboard material |
Solid Sitka Spruce |
|
Backpost |
6 |
|
Tuning pin |
Nickel Plated Stainless steel |
|
Key surface |
Neotex |
|
Hammer |
Royal George |
|
Year of making |
1990s |
|
Center Pedal |
Practice pedal |
|
Music rak |
Grand style |
|
Fallboard |
Grand style |
Kawai DS80B is a huge upright piano with the height of 132cm, the string length is longer than some of the baby grand such as KAWAI GM10K
The hammer is an important part to present its sound quality, volume and also tonality. The KAWAI DS80B uses ROYAL GEORGE hammer, extremely rare hammer set made in UK. Even the World’s renowned brand such as Yamaha, Steinway and son ordered custom made hammers from ROYAL GEORGE.
3rd generation iron frame
Mahogany hammer
3. Tonality and Voicing
Starting from the bottom of the piano, KAWAI DS80B features a longer bass string than an average pianos, which gives a more pronounced grand type of feeling, the treble is also now giving you that thickened strengthened tone that you would again expect from a baby grand. And through the mid-range, the uniform key give precise termination and nicely controlled overtones. Moving to the top of the range, there are alot more color up there than you typically get in an upright.
The KAWAI DS80B features a tapered solid spruce soundboard that certainly contributed to an improved sustain and huge dynamic range. The backposts give structural strength to assist in increasing the resonance of the sound.
The DS series generally got a very nice aesthetic red wine body and kawai designed the leg of the piano to be curvy in order to make it more ” European” which can easily blend into your house.
5. Conclusion
|
So, DS80B is a very capable instrument, it is very reliable, very consistent instrument that can deliver a big range of tone and dynamics. Quite frankly, there just isnt the space in the house to accommodate it. Musically speaking, i would say that DS80B is going to deliver a broader musical experience than a typical RM25K baby grand piano, and i prefer DS80B to GL10 in many aspect. We have got the Kawai DS80B in our showrooms so if you are interested, feel free to visit us. Thank you so much for watching ! Good luck with your shopping !
|
