Kawai CE220 Digital Piano Review: Is It Worth the Money?

Kawai is a well-known piano company in Japan, and they make very high-quality pianos from upper entry to professional level. Kawai has been expanding its business outside Japan, and many people are asking which brand should they consider when buying a digital piano.

If you are considering the CE220 you probably want to know if this model is worth the money before you buy. We will review the model and the brand in-depth below to help you decide for yourself.

Kawai CE220 at a Glance

Short on time? Take a look at an overview here.

Features

• 88-key
• Three types of built-in sounds: Grand Piano, Electric Piano, and Harpsichord
• DSP effects
• 2 inbuilt speakers

Pros:

• Affordable
• Great sound quality with beautiful tone
• Nice feel

Cons:

• Some found poor pedal action
• Limited song choice

Bottom line? We say yes to the Kawai CE220. For its reasonable price tag, we think the sound quality, look and quality of the instrument are excellent!

Buy on Amazon

Kawai CE220 Review

The Kawai CE220 is a digital piano designed for the performance and education of beginner to advanced students.

Features

It features an 88-key keyboard with a graded soft-touch action, which provides a lighter feel at the lower keys and progressively builds in firmness to mirror an acoustic piano’s heavier keys.

The Kawai CE220 also comes equipped with three types of built-in sounds: Grand Piano, Electric Piano, and Harpsichord. In addition, the sound system contains DSP (Digital Signal Processing) effects such as chorus, reverb, brilliance, etc., which can be applied to any sound.

For amplification, the Kawai CE220 comes with two speakers custom-tuned speakers to match the output from its keyboard.

Kawai CE220 sound options; Each mode has its own set of parameters to adjust to your personal preference. For example, in the split mode, each octave can be used as a layer, or it can have its voice with different parameter settings. This is done via the internal menu system controlled by three buttons and a rotary control knob.

Usage and portability

The Kawai CE220 is a great option if you are looking for an advanced model digital piano that can be used for both performance and personal use. The CE220 would also fit well in school settings, where digital pianos get put through their paces by students of all playing abilities.

For players who want to continue taking lessons and practicing at home, the CE220 provides the same playability and feel of a traditional acoustic piano while retaining all of the features needed to improve technique and musicianship.

It’s great for students of all levels who want to practice at home but is also portable enough to be used in different settings.

Furthermore, its price falls well within the average range that most people are willing to spend on one of these instruments; there isn’t another option with this kind of bang-for-buck value.

When you consider everything that goes into making a quality digital piano like this one, Kawai has done well with the CE220.

Buy on Amazon

Price

The Kawai CE220 costs about $1600 US. You can find cheaper digital pianos, but not many provide such a high level of realism as this one does. It won’t break any new ground in terms of technology; it simply delivers a great, piano-like feel in a lightweight and portable package.

If you’re serious about learning the piano, the CE220 will make an excellent choice for both home and studio use. When it comes to digital pianos, there are plenty of options available on the market, but few offer as many features as Kawai’s CE220.

The three built-in tones give players a range of sounds to choose from, while DSP effects provide even more options. While other brands may offer additional instrument voices, there is no better instrument than a grand piano when playing real music.

The same goes for its keyboard action, which feels authentic enough to detract from your learning or performance experience. Whatever your skill level, if you’re looking for a digital piano with quality sound and feel, Kawai does not skimp on these features when designing their instruments.

Long story short, the Kawai Ce220 is an excellent digital piano that will suit most situations.

Sound

Right from the start, you can tell that Kawai puts a lot of time and effort into making their digital pianos sound as close to an acoustic piano as possible. The CE220 is no exception, which may be one reason why many consider it to be among the best available on the market.

Despite being more affordable than most other options, it still has a beautiful sound with great tone. As far as digital pianos go, a few models stand out from the pack, but none have been able to perfect what Kawai has with this model.

The Kawai Ce220 is suitable for beginners and intermediate players who won’t mind forking out a little extra cash to get the best touch and sound possible.

The model would also make a solid choice for anyone looking to use it as part of their teaching studio or for use by more than one person at home. Other instruments on the market can match these features, but they all come with much higher price tags.

Buy on Amazon

Pros:

• Excellent sound
• Good keyboard feel
• Affordable
• Beautiful tone
• Authentic touch

Cons:

• Weak pedal action
• Limited song selection

Why People Like Kawai Ce220 Piano

• Kawai is a well-known piano brand. This piano was established in 1927 and was produced in Japan. We all know that this country has a long history of musical instruments, so it is no wonder that they make their pianos.
• Famous people like Michael Jackson also used Kawai’s pianos during his concerts.
• This brand makes keyboards and acoustic pianos, which are famous for their high-quality sound and elegance. Many people like playing on them because they are very comfortable playing with the touch response feature to keep your hands steady when you start playing more complex pieces. The keyboard allows the sounds of many instruments to be played through one device by connecting headphones or loudspeakers.
• The Kawai Ce220 is one of the most famous products of this brand and has a high-quality sound that allows you to play your favorite songs very quickly, allowing you to stay on the right track without too many mistakes. Its touch response feature lets you feel each tone as if it was coming from an acoustic piano. Also, the weight and size make it easy for anyone to carry around or store in their house, making it perfect for those who want to take time out and relax at home playing some music.

Kawai – the brand

There are three essential things to understand about Kawai critical action design philosophy:

Mission statement

Kawai’s mission statement is “delivering authentic touch and tone,” They take that very seriously. Only a few companies own their acoustic piano factory – Yamaha and Kawai–, and both do not outsource any parts for their acoustic pianos, which is a scarce sight in this business.

Kawai uses the same factory to make its acoustic pianos and their digital pianos, and they do not use any lower-cost parts.

Build

Every electric piano needs an electronic device but not every electric piano needs “hammer action.” While other brands tend to focus on adding hammer-action mechanisms for marketing purposes, Kawai first focuses on their sound engine and builds everything around it.

All the models in this guide have the Kawai Advanced Stereo Sampling system, which is much more potent than the sampling engine in other brands.

Durability

Even their entry-level models are designed with long-term use in mind. You can find Kawai key action mechanism inside high-end pianos and lower-level models, so it is possible to upgrade your piano by just replacing its necessary action without worrying about any loss of sound quality and function (unlike other brands).

Buy on Amazon

How Kawai differs from other brands

So based on those three factors, it is easy to say that there are ways to tell Kawai apart from other brands:

1) Look for the “Advanced Stereo Sampling” logo on the box or the internet – this feature allows you to play with different timbres even if you don’t press a key

2) Look for “Concert Play,” which means each piano voice has a built-in concert accompaniment

3) When comparing prices of models from different brands with similar specifications, look for the number of keys because Kawai has 88 weighted keys as a bare minimum even on its entry-level pianos. If you see anything with less than 88 keys, it is not a Kawai.

Verdict

We personally think the CE220 is a great choice for a digital piano at an affordable price tag. We highly recommend it and think you won’t be disappointed with the quality and features.