Kawai Novus NV10S Hybrid Digital Piano

Model Overview

The Kawai Novus 10S (NV10S) is without question the most authentic acoustic piano experience ever available in a digital piano. It sits at the very top of Kawai’s digital/hybrid piano lineup and features the most advanced sound and piano technologies ever put into a digital piano. It’s built mainly for musicians or settings where sacrificing piano realism simply isn’t an option, but where digital capabilities are still needed.

The NV10S includes some ground-breaking features such as: the new Shigeru Kawai SK-EX Concert grand acoustic rendering technology, amplification technologies along with the speaker system developed collaboratively with Onkyo, Kawai’s Millennium III Action as well as an innovative cabinet design in Ebony Polish which incorporates both grand and upright piano case elements.

The Kawai Novus 10S is the most advanced hybrid instrument on the market today and is now the benchmark of what’s possible in a non-acoustic piano today. The NV line from Kawai (including the NV5S) is their top line of digital pianos, and features among other things the most advanced ACOUSTIC piano action – the Millenium III Carbon Fibre actions. Simply put, Kawai has thrown down the gauntlet with the Novus NV10S, far surpassing what even the most ambitious minds imagined a digital piano could be capable of.

Action

Millennium III Carbon Fibre Action

As Kawai’s flagship digital piano there’s a ton of premium features worth exploring, but perhaps none more so than its real grand piano action. The NV10S is outfitted with the exact same acoustic action you’ll find in every single acoustic grand piano in Kawai’s lineup, all the way to the $100,000+ Shigeru Kawai’s. As far as acoustic piano actions are concerned, Kawai’s Millennium III Action is unanimously held as one of the top actions available, at any price point. Some of its advanced design features include the use of carbon fibre components, extra-long key sticks, and even concert-length key buttons. While there have been digital pianos with authentic acoustic actions before, this action dramatically raises the bar.

In place of traditional felt hammers (since the NV10S doesn’t have strings), Kawai actually makes the entire hammer out of carbon fiber. This improves the actions durability and is the perfect material for interacting with the piano’s optical sensor. All digital pianos require some type of sensor technology to interpret and transmit information to the speaker system, and you’ll typically some type of triple sensor configuration in a high-end digital piano. The optical sensor is the next evolution beyond this, offering a greater sensitivity range and thus greater potential for subtlety and nuance.

Factoring all of this in, it’s hard for anyone to argue that this isn’t the best touch any digital instrument has ever offered.

Sound/Tone

You’ll probably think you’re hearing a real acoustic piano the first time you’re in front of a Novus 10. The basis for the main acoustic tone comes from the Shigeru Kawai SK-EX Concert Grand Piano. Every note of the SK-EX is recorded at different volume levels to produce this multi-channel sampling “SK-EX Rendering” sound engine. The result is a breathtakingly complex acoustic piano sound.

Kawai partnered with Japanese audio company Onkyo a few years ago now to develop their entire sound systems, from the circuitry, amplifiers, headphone amplifiers, and speaker systems. The NV10S even features the new Discrete Spectramodule ™ Headphone Amplifier to enhance the experience when playing with headphones.

As far as the advanced speaker system is concerned, it consists of an extensive 7 speaker array. Four top speakers convey all frequencies of the mid-range, two dome tweeters handle the higher range, and there’s a woofer for the bass frequencies. The top speakers are equipped with 360-degree speaker diffusers to project the sound in every direction, thus mimicking how an acoustic piano works.

With the level of tonal complexity and detail found in both the Shigeru-EX Rendering (pianist mode) and Classic Harmonic Imaging XL (sound mode) tone generators in the Novus 10, Kawai understood the level of audio fidelity needed to take advantage of a sound source like this, and with the help of Japan’s leading audiophile company Onkyo, equipped the Novus 10 with the most powerful, and high-quality speaker system ever put on a digital piano. Did we mention it has 135W of total speaker power?!

Connectivity

The NV10S checks off all the boxes when it comes to what anyone would want in a high-end home digital piano. It has both Bluetooth MIDI and Bluetooth Audio, which is especially nice as it effectively allows you to turn your NV10S into a high-end Bluetooth speaker by connecting it to a smart device and streaming music. Outside of super expensive, audiophile setups, the NV10’s speaker system will easily outperform most home stereo systems.

As far as other connectivity options go, the NV10S has USB to device as well as Host, both MIDI In and MIDI Out, dual distinct Stereo Jacks, 1/4″ lines out Line Out (L/MONO, R), and as well as a 1/8″ Line in.

Notable Features

• SK-EX Rendering Piano Sound Engine (with SK-EX Rendering Characters and Resonance Modelling)
• Kawai’s Acoustic Millennium III Hybrid Grand Piano Keyboard Action (full length wooden keys)
• Grand Piano Damper Mechanism (with damper simulation) – Damper Pedal, Sostenuto Pedal and Soft Pedal
• High-tch 5″ LCD Touchscreen Display Embedded in Cheekblock
• Premium Audio Processing and Amplification developed by Onkyo
• Premium 7-Speaker System Array
• Bluetooth® MIDI and Bluetooth Audio
• Kawai’s Virtual Technician Function which offers 19 Adjustable Parameters (cabinet resonance, touch curve, damper noise, key volume, reverb and ore)
• MP3/WAV/SMF Playback, Record, and Overdub to USB
• Stunning Polished Ebony Cabinet with “Soft Fall” Fallboard Closing System
• Discrete SpectraModule™ headphone amplifier for Enhanced Experience
• High precision IHSS optical sensors for greater accuracy
• Extensive Collection of On-board Piano Music
• On-board Recorder
• 256 note polyphony
• Grand piano Music Rest

Here at Merriam Music, we have chosen one of the best current Kawai models to add to the offerings in our digital piano showroom.

Kawai NV10S Owner’s Manual

• [English] NV10 Owner’s Manual

Kawai NV10S Related Resources

• [VIDEO] Kawai Novus NV10 Hybrid Digital Piano Review & Demo by Merriam Pianos
• [VIDEO] Kawai Novus NV10 vs NV5 Hybrid Digital Piano Comparison
• [VIDEO] Kawai Novus NV10 Hybrid Digital Piano – “Hallelujah” by Leonard Cohen – Piano Cover
• [BLOG] Kawai NV10 Review & Demo