Customer Reviews

Casio PX-330 88 Key Digital Stage Piano with Tri-Sensor Scaled Hammer Action

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I am a professional jazz pianist of some 30+ years. I recently bought this keyboard as a much needed gigging and practicing piano that was light weight, had built in speakers, 88 note key weighted action and a good piano sound. You will find all of this and more in the PX-330. I don't think there is any other keyboard currently being manufactured that provides all these features at this low a price point.

Pros:

- great weighted action... a bit mushy but one can certainly adapt to it easily.
- good piano sound, but not without its faults (see below) It reminds me of the sound of the Kurzweil pianos.
- auto arranger with tons of grooves for practicing and jamming.
- good selection of song style presets... it even has "Giant Steps" for all you jazz pianists to practice on. Any tempo, Any key.
- some interesting world beat grooves are included along with standard pop, rock, latin, etc. grooves
- weighs only 25 lbs... this is one of the best features of all!
- skinny... easy to carry
- built in speakers lead to instant gratification when turning on the keyboard and playing. You just sit down and play. No muss, no fuss.
- good contruction. Uses alot of plastic. Not as good as Roland or Yamaha but good enough
- pitch bend wheel is a surprise bonus
- nice LCD display is a big improvement over previous models
- line inputs let you bring in a submix from an mp3 player, iPod, or mixer
- two separate 1/8" mini stereo headphone outs
- good for education and dual playing... the keyboard can be split into duet mode each playing the same sound
- the auto harmony feature is very good and alot of fun to play around with. (dual voice, three voice, etc.)
- memory card slot for saving your patches and performances
- excellent price and value for the money

Cons:

- piano sound is good but suffers from too fast a decay in the middle register. It's difficult to make a melody "sing" or play in a smooth legato style. This decay problem would be fine in pop or rock music, but for solo jazz and classical it is a definite flaw. It is not so noticeable when playing with a rhythm section.
- there is no way to adjust the volume of the primary piano sound when using splits or accompaniments. You can decrease/increase the accompaniment, but cannot increase the main voice independently.
- there is no way to adjust the reverb wet/dry depth. I find this particularly irritating, since certain styles of music require more reverb. Access to a heavier reverb would also help cover over some of the flaws in the piano sound. However, you can adjust the reverb wet/dry depth on the individual accompaniment parts. Why they didn't include this feature on the main sound is a mystery to me.
- labeling of buttons is too dark and hard to see, especially in dim lighting
- buttons lack tactile "feel", are shallow, and can easily be missed in the heat of a performance. Combine this with hard to see labels and you have a recipe for disaster. However, most of the buttons do have LED lights which helps in seeing what is engaged.
- unit comes with a cheap sustain pad/switch which easily flips over when playing. For serious playing you will need to buy a separate sustain pedal. Or use gaffe tape.
- the polarity of the pedal is reversed and cannot be changed internally like many other keyboards. This forces you to buy Casio's pedal unit. A work around is to buy a sustain pedal with a polarity switch, or a regular sustain pedal which you can adapt reversing the polarity of the wires.
- the unit supports half-pedaling which is great, but only if you buy the Casio pedal board.
- the much ballyhooed "acoustic resonance" feature is barely discernible and for all intents and purposes contributes nothing to the piano sound.
- multiple button and combination button pushes can easily make for confusion. You will need to sit down and really learn this keyboard to effectively use its features esp. during performance.
- some of the auto accompaniment parts are pretty cheesy, and with a few exceptions the non-piano sounds are just so-so.
- at maximum volume there is some distortion in the piano sound coming out of the built in speakers.
- when using split keyboard mode, the sustain pedal sustains both zones... If you are playing bass with your left hand, it will sustain when you pedal for the piano sound. Not good.
- Flimsy 1/4" jacks will not last in the long run.

I do not mean do denigrate this product by listing all the cons... overall, it's an excellent low priced piano packed with features not found in other brands that cost more. I just wish I could get comfortable with the fast decay in the middle register, and have more control over the effects. The sustain on the lower split is an oversight that should be corrected.

I have Synthogy Ivory on my laptop, and on more important gigs I use the PX-330 as a controller for the Ivory piano. I bring the output of the Ivory back into the line inputs. Now that's a righteous piano sound! Nevertheless, I am happy I bought this keyboard and am sure it will serve me well as I continue to make music.

This review is for the Casio Privia PX330:

Overall I really like this keyboard for practicing quietly at night and for connecting to a computer. I've been playing it for about a month. Here are my thoughts so far:

Key Touch Sensitivity:
The Casio web site advertisement states: "authentic piano touch that captures every detail and nuance of your performance". If that is your expectation, you will probably be disappointed with this keyboard. I have compared the Casio with two pianos that I play regularly (a Yamaha Baby Grand and a Spinet) and the Casio falls short of both pianos in this area. The Casio keys feel harder to press and do not have the volume/pressure sensitivity or dynamic range of the real pianos.

On the up side I will say that the Casio keyboard touch feels much better than other electronic keyboards I have tried in this price range and it also does a decent job of changing the volume depending upon how hard you press the keys.

Sound:
The keyboard sound using my own headphones (Sony MDR-V6) is great. The on-board speakers are ok, but sound a bit muffled on some of the piano styles. (Fortunately you can buy external speakers and connect them to this keyboard.)

Construction.
The keyboard is fairly light weight and not too hard to move around (although I'd wish it had carrying handles). The plastic music stand (included) and parts of the keyboard appear a bit on the thin side.

The keys visually look large, but I can't really explain why. I measured the entire width of all the keys and it is a match to my real piano.

Connectivity:
I've used the USB connection to my computer with no problems (Windows XP).

Functions:
Tons of functionality. The ones I've tried work well. Selecting some of functions can be a bit confusing though (pressing combinations of buttons, etc.), so I find myself going back to the manual to look up how to select them.

Misc:
- It comes with a nice printed manual.
- The sustain function using the included pedal does not seem to carry out the piano tone long enough, although it does vary depending upon what type of sound you have selected. (I don't know if the sustain length is a function of the pedal or the keyboard.)

Also note that there is a very nice Casio video showing this keyboard on YouTube. Search for "Casio Privia PX130 Preview". The video review is done with the Casio PX-130 which I think is the same keyboard as the 330 one with a few less functions.

Conclusion:
If you are looking to duplicate the sound/feel of a real piano, this is probably not the right keyboard for you. If you're looking for a really nice digital piano with touch sensitivity and lots fun features, then this is a nice choice.

I bought this piano to replace my Yamaha P-70. I gave my Yamaha P-70 to my granddaughter. The main reasons for doing this were as follows:

The Yamaha P-70 has no 1/4 inch outs, the Casio does (I like these for gigs)
The Yamaha P-70 has no sequencer, the Casio does (multiple songs - Very handy for practicing)
The Yamaha P-70 does not have and SD flash card slot, the Casio does (2GB - Handy for storing recorded MIDI)
The Yamaha does not have the pedal connections of the Casio (Casio has 3 pedal support)
The Yamaha keys are very noisy (especially with no sound) compared to the Casio
The Yamaha has no USB2 connector (Casio has both MIDI and USB2)
The Yamaha has no metronome, Casio does
I prefer the weight of the keys on the Casio
The weight of the Yamaha and Casio is about the same (LIGHT)

Also the Casio PX-330 has rhythm sections and multiple voices although these features were not as important for me. I have to say that I like the sound coming out of the Yamaha speakers more than the Casio speakers although this is not a major issue because I bought the Casio as a MIDI input device for Synthogy Ivory Pianos, including the fantastic Italian Grand II. Also I own a Kawai 7ft-6 inch concert grand which is superb. I like the digital piano to have as close a feel to it as the Kawai so that my expression doesn't have to change to much and the Casio is good in this regard. I use Cubase for arrangements and recording Synthogy pianos. Overall I am pleased with the purchase. Given the features I'd say it's very good value.

After playing the Casio for about a week I found the weight of the keys to be a problem, especially when trilling in classical music. Also, the mid-section sound was definitely lacking so I reluctantly sent it back. I have since turned to the Yamaha P155 even though it is on the heavy side for carrying purposes.

I was looking for a digital keyboard to complement my Roland Juno Stage. The Stage is a great live performance keyboard, but lacks a full keyboard, and doesn't replicate very well the action and weight of an acoustic piano keyboard. I researched a number of digital pianos before coming across several very positive reviews of the Px-130 and -330 pianos. In fact, everything I read was so positive that I decided to take a chance and purchase the px-330 sight unseen. I have had the 330 several days and I love it. The 330 is lightweight, but very solidly constructed. The keyboard itself, in my humble opinion, replicates the touch and sensitivity of an acoustic piano quite well. There are a variety of acoustic piano patches, which sound very, very good, even with the built in speakers, and even better using a pair of headphones (I haven't tried the keyboard with my Behringer keyboard amp yet, but I'm expecting very good results when I do.

bottom line: I highly recommend this keyboard, especially if you are looking for an economical and quality substitute for an acoustic piano. If you are looking for a basic version of this instrument, without the additional patches, but still with the same quality construction and excellent piano sounds, consider the PX-130 as well.

This digital piano offers a tremendous amount for the price, but it's not perfect.

Overall:
- Best bang for the buck, if you want a piano first, and general keyboard second.
- Enough features to make it a great practice instrument
- Keyboard sounds genuine enough to be useful in any band setting
- Most realistic dynamics and bass/treble balance of any digital piano I have ever used
- Includes a genuine Sostenuto pedal function - I've never seen this in a digital piano at any price
- "issues" include one biggie and a few annoyances more than anything else

"Graded Hammer Action":
The "hammer action" seems to vary from unit to unit. "Hammer action" is supposed to replicate the feel of a real acoustic piano. Acoustic pianos employ an escapement mechanism. You can detect the operation of this by slowly pressing a key. At about 3/4 of the way pressed, the pressure required drops dramatically - this is when the key mechanism has released the hammer. In principle, Casio has created a genuine escapement mechanism in their Privia series. At the store, demoing the instruments, I could detect its presence. However, on the unit I ordered, I do not. The weight of the keys is notably heavier than that of my genuine six-foot grand piano. Perhaps there is a break-in period required for this mechanism, just as it is on an acoustic piano. Time will tell. "Graded" implies that the heft of a key is heavier on the low notes than the high notes. Compared to a grand piano, I think it's somewhat exaggerated on this 'board, but quite passable.

Dyamics:
One of the first things that's done wrong in digital pianos is the dynamics. That is, if you hit a note with more force, does it sound louder AND brighter? That's what an acoustic piano does. Most digital pianos overdo this feature - it's exaggerated. Not this one. It's as close to perfect as I've ever heard, easily surpassing a $2,000 Yamaha that I tried. Congrats to Casio on this.

Bass/treble balance:
Another 10 star win. Most digital pianos seriously exaggerate the bass notes and make for a very muddy mix. Not on this one. Wearing good headphones, or fed into a crisp clear PA, the PX-330's pianos (all of them) have the perfect balance of bass/treble note volume. The sound engineer can tailor as he wishes. I cannot think of ANY other stage piano I have used where I (when I was serving as the sound man) did not have to drastically curtail the bass frequencies. Thank you Casio, for making a piano that sounds like a piano.

Piano realism vs. Yamaha P95:
The realism of the piano sounds is very good. I tried a Yamaha P95, and its actual piano sound was closer to that of an acoustic piano than any of the voices on the PX-330. But the P95 is missing a lot that the PX-330 has, so I stuck with the PX-330.

Voices - piano:
Most of the piano voices are very bright. During the sustain period, you can hear the samples changing, if you listen carefully on headphones. It's about as good as four-voice laying gets, but this is a $700 instrument, not a $2,000 instrument, and you can hear the difference if you're acclimated to a genuine acoustic piano. Again, I decided that for my purposes, this was perfectly adequate. I won't be using the instrument to record solo classical pieces, but rather, it's a practice instrument and a portable instrument for my stage work. The "Grand Piano Modern" voice is the best one, but still a bit bright, compared to my Yamaha six foot grand - which is generally rated as "too bright" by most players. The "Mellow piano" sounds like the "modern" with reduced treble, and is a bit muffled in the low end, and still a bit too bright on the high end. I'll probably switch between the two depending on whether I'm playing a ballad or uptempo.

Voices - other keyboard instruments:
In general, all the voices which are normally associated with keyboard instruments are quite worthy and will sound just fine in a band setting. One of the electric pianos is a credible substitute for a Fender Rhodes, even, and the rock organ is a passable Hammond B3. The vibraphone is surprisingly good and the clavinet, which I didn't expect, will allow me to add some rock/electronic to my repertoire. Again, purists will always be able to tell the difference, using headphones, but your band-mates probably won't.

I'm a jazz player, and when going it alone, I like having a good string bass. For an inexpensive instrument, this is the best string bass voice I have ever heard. And, you can split the keyboard so that the string bass is in the lower octaves and piano in the upper octaves. A great feature in split mode is that you can move where the split occurs. I tend to be all over the place on the piano, so I move the split downward a full octave and play the bass pretty deep.

Voices - non keyboard:
As mentioned above, the string bass is quite usable. Electric bass for rock doesn't have the direct-feed sound that most rock bassists would prefer. I was surprised at how good the acoustic guitar sound is, in the middle notes. Low notes aren't right, a bit too resonant. Clarinet and saxes sound very much synthesized and would be useful only in a pinch. There are a few synth sounds that could be used if you're playing 1970s prog rock.

Voices - summary:
Probably the most complete set of useful sounds on anything under $1,000. You will love the piano, harsichord, vibes, electric piano and organ, and be content with most of the rest.

Rhythms:
The rhythm section has just enough variety to make it a perfect practice tool. There's even an LED blinking to tell you when the downbeat occurs. You can add an accompaniment, and in typical fashion, it'll follow whatever note/chord you play in the lowest octaves of the 'board. If you hit an "E" note, the rhythm accompaniment will continue playing in E major until you hit something else. If you then strike the "E" and "A" at the same time, it will switch to E minor. Add a D and it plays the E minor 7th. It will play sus2 and sus4 as you finger them (it changes the chord only when you tell it via the keyboard), it plays dom7 and maj7. It does not do higher than 7 though...it won't follow a 9/11/13 chord. It does 6 just fine, too. Very nice, very capable, and you can get in a great deal of practice in rhythm this way.

Things that could be better:

1) The biggie. As a stage instrument, the menus are particularly difficult to navigate, and the buttons difficult to use and the printed legends almost unreadable. Even in a brightly lit room, the labels are in a very small font size and not very white, hard to read against the black 'board. I semi-fixed this problem by printing out my own labels: black letters on white paper, and taping them on.

If you have to switch from grand piano to organ during a tune, good luck getting it done on time. The buttons are cheap consumer-grade, and the motion is barely perceptible...you won't know if you really pressed it. Sadly, due to the depth of the menu structure, you cannot "press it just in case the last press didn't take" because often they are list toggles: press a second time and you get a different function. It has a flash card reader for storing settings, perhaps you can store the few voices you want on the card and they're quicker to recall, and you can store reverb/chorus with them. I have not tried this yet...and I almost never use effects, so I'm choosing not to comment on them.

If you will be using the instrument 90% of the time as a piano and have only a few tunes where you need to switch voices, then this will not be a major impediment. As long as you don't have to switch voices mid-song, you'll be OK...but you'll want to either print out your own tape-on labels, or add a small light to illuminate the control panel, or both. For my own usage, this isn't going to be a major issue..I either play piano, organ or Rhodes, and don't change during the song.

2) Does it seem to anybody else that all the equipment manufacturers are in a race to prove how bright they can make their LEDs? In a brightly lit room, the red LEDs on the control panel are hard to look at without hurting your eyes. On a dimly lit stage, they're going to feel like daylight. I plan to open up the box and see if there's space in there for me to add dropping resistors, because this is a pretty serious annoyance.

3) Headphone jacks are 3.5mm. Pro headphones use 1/4". The 3.5mm jacks are on the left side of the instrument and quite frail. I predict this will be a frequent repair bill for this keyboard. If you're handy with cabling, purchase some 3.5mm right-angle stereo plugs and make up a few cables that adapt to 1/4" female. Leave them connected to your headphones: if you plug in a headphone, the speakers mute. I consider this a major oversight on Roland's part. Adapters to adapt a 1/4" headphone to a 3.5mm jack are common, and rugged. Adapters to go the other way are a major mechanical risk. 'phones come both ways, but 'phone jacks should always be 1/4".

4) 1/4" output jacks for the PA. A lot of sound guys will get these wrong. 1/4", to a PA guy, means high-Z, but these are low-Z outputs. For some reason, though, this has become industry standard for keyboards. I'd prefer XLR balanced...but a lot of newbie sound guys will get the levels wrong on those.

5 Maybe a nuisance) Plugging into the PA system does not mute the internal speakers. You'll want to bring a 3.5mm to 1/4" headphone adapter and shove it into one of the 'phones jacks as a dummy plug - that will cause the speakers to mute. I'm not sure I want to call this an issue, though...in smaller settings, where such a budget 'board might mostly be used, your PA system might not have monitors. So, having the internal speakers could be good. However, as a player, you'll be wanting to adjust the audio level (and they can't get loud enough to hear over the drummer next to you anyway) and when you adjust volume, I suspect it adjusts the PA send volume, too, which will irritate the heck out of your PA guy.

Overall - 9 stars out of ten. If you consider the price - 10 of 10.

The remaining question is whether Casio can make an instrument this good, have it rugged enough for stage work and set up their repair centers with enough parts so that a performing musician will only be out of a keyboard for a day or two in the event a repair is needed. Casio is known primarily as a low-end consumer products company, and the world is full of stories about how sluggish Best Buy is at getting Casio equipment repaired. Presumably, as Casio is moving into the stage world, they have taken this into consideration. I have decided to take the risk. It's pretty easy to rent a digital piano at the last minute these days, and often the one you will rent is a Privia, so I consider this a low risk for my purposes.

I love this thing - it's my new favorite toy. It was a little more than I wanted to spend, but it is SO worth the difference. I set out to buy something in the $500 range, and I had my eye on the Casio Privia PX-130, the Yamaha P95, the Williams Overture and the Korg in that bracket. I saw that Casio and Yamaha both had keyboards in the same price range with a lot more bells and whistles, like Yamaha's YPG-535. When I went to stores to check them out, I found that they felt like toy pianos. That's how they can have similar prices. Both the P95 and the PX-130 felt and sounded MUCH more like real pianos. And to my surprise, I thought the Casio sounded a tad better than the Yamaha, especially in the bass. Then I decided to try the PX-330, which was only about $100 more than the PX-130. I WAS BLOWN AWAY. I never imagined that for under $600 you could get something that really feels and sounds like a piano. The action is firm and responsive - no "toy" feeling at all, and noticeably better than the models one step down. The sound is excellent, the dynamic range is excellent, and the power and resonance in the bass range are MUCH greater than the slightly cheaper ones. It has bigger amps and, I suspect, better sampling. Plus it has many, many more bells and whistles. It has something like 200 voices rather than 10, and most of the ones I've tried are quite good (including organs). It has a lot more rhythms, and much more recording and computer hookup capacity. Three very tiny quibbles. 1) Like all of the digital pianos in this range, it comes with a really crummy sustain pedal. I bought a better one for about $30. 2) When I plugged my new sustain pedal into the sustain jack, nothing happened. Turns out for the brand of pedal I got, you have to plug the sustain pedal into the damper pedal jack. 3)I can't tell the difference in sound between the "modern grand piano" voice (the default setting) and the "classic grand piano" voice.

I am a pianist (since age 5), classically trained, been playing all my life. I've owned many digital pianos, synthesizers, workstations, etc. I currently own a Baldwin baby grand piano, the top of the line digital stage piano (Nord Stage 2), the top of the line music workstation (Korg Kronos), and the Casio Privia PX-330, so this review is comparing the Privia to the top of the line keyboards out there. I won't be comparing the built-in sounds other than piano for this specific review.

Piano sounds:
Definitely not the quality you'd get from either the Nord or the Korg, but surprisingly good for this price range! While the built-in speakers are great for taking this unit to a small house party, taking some cables with you and using a more professional keyboard amp definitely sounds much, much better. If you're a gigging musician, just feed the cables to the house system. This system has string resonance built in too... although not noticeable if playing with a band, and barely noticeable when playing solo. For those that don't know what string resonance is, you won't be needing it anyway, but its a nice touch. For practicing/playing at night, use headphones - it sounds better than the built-in speakers, and you won't have to worry about disturbing anyone (sleeping spouse, roommates, parents, kids, siblings, etc). But if you do use headphones, get a decent pair (not the earbuds, but full headphones - Sony makes some awesome sounding headphones, as does Sennheiser and a bunch of others). Try headphones out at Sam Ash or Guitar Center or other retailer local to you.

Piano action:
Very, very impressive! Honestly, the keybed action on this unit is better than some much higher priced name brands. I can actually do classical music with this piano and feel like I'm playing a real piano. While a pedal is part of any piano, the pedal that comes with this unit is junk. Spend $20 and get a more realistic pedal at Sam Ash or Guitar Center or any number of online retailers... just make sure you get one with a polarity switch so that you can be assured that it will work with this piano as well as any future digital piano(s) you may purchase. While I'm only using a sustain (damper) pedal (which is all I need), there's a triple pedal Casio sells that also has half-damping ability. I haven't purchased this as I already have this capability on my other keyboards).

Portability:
While I own some of the finest "portable" pianos around, the Korg Kronos is just way to big and heavy to take with you. The Nord Stage 2 is light, but still about 10 lbs heavier than the Privia PX-330. And if you'll be playing at a small, intimate house party, all you need is the Privia as it has built-in speakers. The other 2 units I have require separate amplification & speakers. As for performing on stage, this is my unit of choice as its light, gets the job done, and I don't have to worry about leaving it alone when taking a break (I have to watch the Nord piano like a hawk). Unlike the Korg Kronos, within a few seconds of turning it on, its ready to play (the Kronos takes almost 3 minutes to load its operating system and all the other things it needs to load... so if someone trips over the power cord on stage, or if there's a brief power interruption, I'm ready to continue in a matter of seconds after turning it on again).

As a controller:
Again, because of the light weight and the unexpectedly great keybed action, this makes an awesome controller! However, if you need a modulation wheel (I don't) then this won't work for you (unless you purchase a MIDI controlled modulation pedal or have some other solution to get around this).

Built-in extras:
As I mentioned, I'm only covering the piano sounds of this unit. However, because you can record your song(s) as you play, you can transfer those recordings to your computer with SD cards. You can also play back what you recorded ON the unit itself and add another instrument (or another piano part) to accompany yourself with. You can do this with up to 16 instruments in a single recording/song. By definition, this makes it a music workstation. This is a freebie that comes with this unit as far as I'm concerned.

Overall:
If I lost all my digital pianos, this is one that would *definitely* be replaced first as its the most versatile, all-around digital piano. As I mentioned, no problems taking this to gigs due to lightweight and not having to worry about it during a break between sets. Built-in amp/speakers make this more than suitable at intimate house get-togethers... just bring a stand and a better pedal than the one that comes with it. Definitely not the sound quality of my other digital pianos (not even close), but decent, and awesome in every other way! I'd have to give this 5 out of 5 stars for what it is at this price range. I would, and have, recommended this to everyone who asks! On my Youtube channel (PianoManChuck), I used this in my older piano videos because I'm using the Nord and Kronos now on my channel... but the Privia is the piano I take with me to small, intimate get-togethers as well as on stage. So there you have it... the perfect all-around piano for just about every scenario!

I'm a classically trained violinist, but piano was my first instrument and I wanted to start playing again. As much as I wanted an acoustic piano, I chose digital because of the size and no need for maintenance. After months of research (and price watching), I chose the Casio PX-330, and here is why I think it is an excellent product:

-The piano tones are very high quality, for this price range or any for that matter. There are hundreds of tone options on this instrument (eg, organs, harpsichords, string ensembles, percussion samples, etc), but the piano tones are by far the most carefully engineered, capable of detecting subtle changes in force applied to the keys. Add in some sustain pedaling and 128-note polyphony, the sound is seamless. ...I just wish my playing was seamless.
-It is easy to use with the computer. You can connect it via MIDI or USB cables. The important thing is that it can be used as a MIDI controller OR for MIDI playback. Also, the USB connection allows you to transfer MIDI files between your computer and the internal memory card on the piano.
-The interface on the piano itself is easy to use. If you want to do more complicated things than simply play the piano (eg, edit songs you have recorded), there is a very easy to read manual that comes with the piano.

Complaint:
-The key corresponding to D6 resonates in the speaker producing a clicking-type noise when played at loud volumes. ...kind of like a defect you would hear in a real acoustic piano.

The piano standCasio CS-67 Keyboard Stand for PX130 and PX330and pedal board Casio SP32 Pedal Board for CS67 Standare "must-have" accessories for the PX-330. The stand provides solid support for the instrument. Though the pedal board is not as impressive as its advertising (eg, half-pedaling effects), it is still very functional and useful. At the very least, the instrument is an attractive piece of furniture.

Bottom line: The tones are great, it looks great, and it is easy to use alone or with the computer.

There simply is no keyboard with the features of quality of this Casio in this price range. The features of this machine makes it a very powerful keyboard. Perhaps the most important aspect to realistic sound is polyphony. 128 voice polyphony usually costs up to three times and more than what this keyboard does. Add to that built in sequencer and percussion and you simply cannot find any other keyboard that comes close to this one. In the past I have purchased keyboards that cost many times what this one does and have not been as happy with the purchase. If you are going to use this keyboard on a stand that cannot support the three pedal optional pedal system then I would suggest a better sustain pedal than the one that is included. M-Audio makes a very nice one. Just about anyone who has spent a great deal of time on the piano and keyboards will tell you is that there is a big difference in the 'feel' of playing a keyboard vs an acoustic piano. It's perhaps the greatest goal of keyboard makers, to emulate the feel of an acoustic piano on their keyboards. Keyboards that have what is called 'weighted key action', typically costs upwards of $2000. This issue was even more important to me than polyphony. Most keyboard makers have this own names for their particular key-feel technology so it is difficult to compare without actually playing the keyboard for yourself. I would have returned this keyboard if it did not have a natural keyboard feel to it when playing. I was happily surprised. Of all the other keyboards I found at my local piano stores (could not find this casio model) this one definitely has the best feel. I am very pleased. Also I would like to comment on something another user said in their review about external speakers. The included built in speakers sound great by the way. They said that their external speakers did not sound all that great and they got better results by plugging them into the headphone jack. Here is what you need to understand when you have a keyboard. When using external speakers on keyboards like this, you must either use an amp to power the speakers or at the very least use self powers speakers. Keyboards are built for quality of sound, not to power your external speakers. Anyone who would use additional speakers for their keyboard most likely would have an amp system. In my studio, this keyboard sounds as good as any I have ever owned. Sound signals are power driven for your headphones but it is expected that if someone is going to use external speakers for a keyboard like this then they would be self powered. In conclusion, there is no keyboard that comes close to the quality of this one at even double the cost. I am very very happy with my purchase.

I've had this digital stage piano for 2 months now and absolutely love it. For the price, it has excellent touch in comparison to other comparably priced keyboards. I got it for the portability and silent practice, and it more than meets my expectations. I read the review in Keyboard Magazine and went to a retailer to try it out. When I saw a sale for $100 off the normal price a few weeks later, I bought it. Things I love: piano sounds, weighs less than 26 lbs, loads of tones, records to a SD card, direct hook up to an amp, and USB hookup to a computer. The only things I think Casio could improve are: the labels for the many function buttons are hard to read in dim light, and key edges are a little rough for sensitive fingers. This Casio DP rocks!