[austinprete]

Did the same search about a year ago, ended up ordering the CLP-775 after testing Kawai and Yamaha in stores. It _finally_ arrived last month, completely love it so far. On the somewhat cheaper side the 745 also felt great in store.

I don’t think you can go wrong with the equivalent Kawai models either. They somehow didn’t quite do it for me when I played them in store (compared to the CLPs), but couldn’t quite pin down what it was, and it was probably just a personal thing.

Anyway, definitely second FlyingRobot’s recommendation about Piano World (though seems like you’re set on that) and trying before settling on anything.

Good luck, sure you’ll end up with something you love!

[bzzzt]

The CLP line is from Yamaha ;) Just to give a +1 to the CLP-775, I also chose that one and it's a joy to play. While the CLP display looks a bit more 'dated' than the Kawai models it starts up a lot faster and response is instantly. The Kawai models I tried have some low-end mobile chip which needed some time to boot and touch screen response was slow.

[kzrdude]

The display difference you highlight is actually one of the reasons I preferred CLP 745 over Kawai options. So I went with the Yamaha.

[hibbelig]

It's really interesting. I tried Kawai and Yamaha digital pianos in the store and I didn't like the key action of the Kawai at all, nor the sound. Now my piano teacher has an “actual” (non-digital) Kawai grand and it feels just like the digital one -- not my favorite.