The Kawai K5000 is a series of digital
synthesizers
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 ...
/
music workstation
A music workstation is an electronic musical instrument providing the facilities of:
*a sound module,
*a music sequencer and
*(usually) a musical keyboard.
It enables a musician to compose electronic music using just one piece of equipment.
Origin ...
manufactured by
Kawai Musical Instruments
is a musical instrument manufacturing company headquartered in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan. It is best known for its grand pianos, upright pianos, digital pianos, electronic keyboards and electronic synthesizers. The company was founded in Augus ...
of Japan.
History
The first of the series was the K5000W keyboard workstation introduced in 1996. Soon afterwards the K5000S was introduced, followed its rackmounted sibling the K5000R. In Japan, Kawai stopped production of all models of the K5000 by the summer of 1999, although they were officially discontinued months earlier in other parts of the world. The K5000 is credited as one of the few commercial synthesizers to use
additive synthesis
Additive synthesis is a sound synthesis technique that creates timbre by adding sine waves together.
The timbre of musical instruments can be considered in the light of Fourier series, Fourier theory to consist of multiple harmonic or inharmoni ...
. Even today this technology is mostly found in
software synthesizers
A software synthesizer or softsynth is a computer program that generates digital audio, usually for music. Computer software that can create sounds or music is not new, but advances in processing speed now allow softsynths to accomplish the sa ...
. It was Kawai's second attempt at additive synthesis. The first was the
Kawai K5
is a musical instrument manufacturing company headquartered in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan. It is best known for its grand pianos, upright pianos, digital pianos, electronic keyboards and electronic synthesizers. The company was founded in Augus ...
nearly ten years earlier.
Synthesis
A K5000 sound is composed of up to six different layers, each of which could use the "advanced additive" synthesis engine or perform fairly standard subtractive synthesis using the internal PCM sound bank. Each source that used additive synthesis could use up to 64 harmonics per source (tuned in a harmonic series, each with their own amplitude envelope) and had its own formant filter that could be modulated by an LFO or its own envelope. The standard digital filter, available with both additive and subtractive synthesis, is known for its rather extreme self-oscillation at higher resonance settings. Another useful feature is that most functions of the synthesizer can be tied to velocity, location of a note on the keyboard, and MIDI controllers, allowing for timbral variation in response to player dynamics.
Models
The K5000W and the K5000S both have the same semi-weighted 61-key keyboard. There are pitch and assignable modulation wheels. The keys are velocity sensitive with aftertouch that can be programmed to control various parameters.
Kawai K5000W
The K5000W was intended as a songwriting workstation. Its Compose Mode includes a 40-track MIDI sequencer, Automatic Phrase Generator (APG, an auto-arranger type function) and has two supplemental sound banks not available to the K5000S/K5000R: BBank and GM (
General MIDI
General MIDI (also known as GM or GM 1) is a standardized specification for electronic musical instruments that respond to MIDI messages. GM was developed by the American MIDI Manufacturers Association (MMA) and the Japan MIDI Standards Committ ...
), which both feature Sample-based sounds and 12dB/Oct High- and Low-Pass Resonant filters as compared to the Additive (ADD) bank's 24dB/Oct High- and Low-Pass resonant filters.
Kawai K5000S
The K5000S was intended for live performance and it includes sixteen realtime control knobs (four of them assignable), a programmable arpeggiator,
two assignable front panel buttons, a damper and (assignable) expression pedal, and two assignable foot switches.
Kawai K5000R
The K5000R has the same functionality as the K5000S, but is controlled via MIDI.
References
Further reading
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External links
Audio Demos
{{Kawai
Kawai synthesizers
Digital synthesizers
Music workstations
Polyphonic synthesizers