The Kawai K4 is a 61 key
synthesizer
A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...
manufactured in 1989 by
Kawai. It contains several features beyond those offered on Kawai's K1, adding resonant filters and a
DAC PCM
Pulse-code modulation (PCM) is a method used to digitally represent sampled analog signals. It is the standard form of digital audio in computers, compact discs, digital telephony and other digital audio applications. In a PCM stream, the amp ...
wavetable. The K4 incorporated a new type of synthesis called Digital Multi Spectrum.
Features
* 2 line LCD screen
* 256 16 bit, 32 kHz internal waveforms (96 Digital Cyclic waveforms and 160 PCM samples)
* Drum section (61 drum patches)
Interestingly, the K4 uses a system that splits 16 bit samples between two
read only memory (ROM) chips, while reserving a third chip for 8 bit sound samples that naturally have more noise (such as cymbals, snares, and other noisier percussion) in order to have more functionality for a cheaper manufacturing cost.
Kawai K4R
A 2U rack mounted module was also produced by Kawai.
It has six separate audio outputs in addition to standard left/right stereo outs and a headphone socket. The effects are removed in the rack mounted version as it is presumed outboard effects will be used with the unit.
References
Further reading
*
External links
Kawai K4 Owner's Manual
{{Kawai
Kawai synthesizers
Digital synthesizers
Polyphonic synthesizers