Hi Hag01,
I'd like to input firstly that I'm extremely happy to have chosen the MP11 over the VPC1.
You will have to try not to fool yourself either way but honestly blind test the 2 without sound maybe.
[edited] to agree with what Marc Verhoeven eloquently said above - and to say that I did feel enough difference to strongly choose MP11.[/edit]
That's really not to say I think there's anything wrong or deficient at all with the VPC1.
To me the MP11 seems to scale deeper into a better facsimile of real-life grand keyboards, to me. I have loved playing a Shigeru Kawai in real life and it's quite a benchmark which MP11 substantially meets.
The MP11 seems to solve the situation I am assuming you to find yourself in. With all this in mind:
In my case, I can plainly 'sense' (placebo or otherwise - in other words, the experience of the keys just rings more true to me) in so many ways that the Kawai MP11 is a keyboard fitting my senses and needs for the full range in velocity/feedback etc. whereas the VPC1 fell just shorter of this for me.
And indeed, much of this is because of the key length.
After many months trying to find my best fit, I feel that the MP11 keys are better for full range playability - I love the quaint as much as the crescendo.
The MP11 seems to me to display less early spring back when softly playing allowing me to find a comfortable range or predictable sounds from softer playing at very lower velocities.
Hard to put plainly but I felt the keys reached my desired velocity more exactingly and a quick release was more natural to me rather than everything feeling slightly more linear on VPC1. With VPC1, I personally felt like it was a little too easy to play at fff with less force but also too easy to be at f when I'd rather be p. I don't want to fudge too much of that with pushing a weird velocity curve at the perceived problem.
Some of my conclusions after demoing can be due to default velocity curve params in the shop but I played for more than a little time and after purchase - in the end it came more to sensory - I felt blind testing that I could easily tell the MP11 plugged in or not, was just hugely more rounded out, for me. Now that my velocity curve in Pianoteq is just as I love it the MP11 is for me even more ludicrously good.
If you buy the MP11, check the digital keyboard curves available on the Pianoteq website - I recommend the one posted by the user Hausler. (just posted a thanks there - meant to do that for some time).
If I preferred the feel of baby grands I'd love VPC1 more but I prefer, for any Pianoteq piano model, the same grand keyboard feel of MP11. Staccato feels more precise with MP11 also - maybe because of my perception of a deeper floor and substantial reality to the type of bounce with velocity - creates a nicer rhythmic flow for my fingers. Again my perception over months of time spent bothering music shop owners during my prolonged decision.
Summing that up, the feel of being very precise at low velocity (tiny movement deeper into the keys hmm) coupled with closely resembling a highly realistic force required for fff is reason #2 in a short list for my choice of MP11. With the right sounds, it is almost terrifying how realistic the experience/recording can be, of playing in a great sounding hall etc. Genuine hair raising joy.
Also my fingers are doing fine (compared to decades of lighter keyboards) - no feeling of it being too heavy. If you're out of condition it might take some time to work up to longer sessions - but same IRL on a grand keybed.
Love for both of these Kawai DPs but back to my MP11 reason #1:
The key length turned out to be quite the largest factor in my decision. No regrets per se other than preferring VPC1's simplicity of form (no outboard controls on the top surface) and for some $s less etc.. but in the big scheme, I'm stupidly happy.
Last edited by Qexl (04-05-2018 08:13)
Pianoteq Studio Bundle (Pro plus all instruments) - Kawai MP11 digital piano - Yamaha HS8 monitors