AlenK

Sorry to see you go (at least from the XW forums but maybe you still have another Casio). The Behringer stuff will certainly give you all the knob action you could ever hope for.

I am an old-school analog synth fan myself, although I don't presently own any. (But a good friend has a Jupiter 6 and used to have a Pro One.) The XW-P1's interface, while certainly usable, is an impediment to creating analog-synth-like tones. The interface of the PC/MAC editor is actually a little easier in that regard, although of course both are miles away from good-old knob twisting. The XW-P1's filter emulation in solo-synth mode is also a bit of a let down, as is the solo-synth's implementation of pulse-width modulation (almost unusable, that). The solo-synth is also unnecessarily complicated, IMO. Nevertheless, with some effort you can coax smooth analog-synth-like tones out of it, such as I managed to do here. PS. I forgot to mention the iPad interface that Mike Martin created. It's actually the easiest way to edit solo synth tones. While there are still no real knobs, of course, you do at least get a lot of virtual ones.

As page E-64 of the User's Guide shows, you can set the range in semitones (up to 24) separately for each direction of the bend wheel, with unique settings for each of the four zones in a given Performance. If you can accept playing only one tone at a time you can go into Tone mode instead, which always plays the selected tone on Part 1. I am fairly certain that the bend-wheel settings will be carried over from whatever they were for Zone 1 in the last Performance you played before entering Tone mode. Speed of changing tones may be an issue in either mode. But again, if you only need to play one Tone at a time you can use the technique I describe on page 115 of The XW-P1 Companion - Volume 1, Rev 5, which allows switching between sixteen tones that you have preselected and stored, using a single button push. The bend range for each Part in the XW-P1, and thus each of the sixteen tones, can be programmed from the Mixer menu as described on page E-68 of the User's Guide. You can easily make the bend range the same one octave up or down for every Part from this menu. Note however, that any settings you make to Part 7 won't be stored in a Performance or survive a power down. Does that help?

It's in the General XW Series Discussion forum. Easier to find now (for some reason...)

Mike's live clinic videos are still valuable reference material; I reference them even today. I don't know if other manufacturers have done live clinics like this, but Mike went above and beyond with these.

I used to take an extended warranty every year for my XW-P1 but recently stopped. Casio makes and has always made very reliable products. But I don't gig with it, so I understand your caution. And for the price, cheap insurance. Now, having said that, the next time I try to turn it on, it won't. ;( Sadly, I haven't turned it on for a while. I have been too busy lately on an important home-improvement project. Once that is (mostly) done, I will return to my synths and complete that Volume 2, assuming there is still any interest.

I'm glad to see this document is still being read. It means new people are discovering the XW-P1 even seven years after its release. There aren't many synths special enough to motivate me to write books about them. This one is. BTW, if you haven't found it already also check out the companion document, Volume 2.

Strange that a bundle for the XW-P1 would include a tone that would work only on a G1. In any case, you could try another Let's Go patch, such as the one I created on the P1 here: I created it from scratch but it is likely to be very similar to Brad's and any others because there is really only one way to create that sound.

You'll have to be more specific about how you are trying to load the tone. Are you using the XW-P1 data editor on a PC or Mac? Or are you trying to load from an SD card? The latter is almost foolproof. Put the tone file into a directory called MUSICDAT on the SD card, insert the card in the XW-P1, go to the tone mode for the kind of tone you are trying to load (in this case probably solo synth) and follow the instructions on page E-77 of the user's guide.

I am of course aware of that. Note that I said "new." I see no signs that Casio feels motivated to do it again. PS. And just to be clear I am on record here on the Casio Music Forums as wanting a 76-key Casio keyboard, specifically a synth not an arranger (but if it does both like the MZ-X500 I wouldn't be adverse to it). I even once posted a mock-up of one.

A new 76-key keyboard from Casio? When pigs fly, most likely.

I should also mention that if the step sequences seem too short (each track can have a maximum of 16 steps, but those steps can have different note durations in each track) then longer sequences can be created using the Chain feature. See pages E-60 and E-61 in the User's Guide. You can combine patterns from any sequence and specify how many bars of each to play and their transposition. I don't know if chains themselves can be transposed in the same way that the patterns of the sequences can be transposed live on the keyboard using the lowest 12 keys. Frankly, I have never tried. (OMG!) Note that chains can be exported as SMF files, so this is a handy way to get sequences and chains out of the machine and usable with other instruments (assuming you remap the tones of the original) or just included in your own compositions. Another interesting thing. Each pattern of a step sequence can trigger its own phrase. There are 100 preset phrases in the machine and you can record 100 of your own. I'm pretty sure that these phrases too can be converted to SMF from a chain but it's something I have not confirmed (double OMG!). Phrase playback from a pattern is independant of phrase playback from the front panel. In other words, they can both happen simultaneously and they use different parts (tones). The XW-P1 is a surprisingly deep synthesizer. Sure, it is lacking a few of the things we expect today, such as polyphonic resonant filters, but it more than makes up for it with the way the features it does offer can be combined.

Jokeyman123 has given good advice. A few further words of advice. First, if by chance you didn't get paper copies of the XW-P1 manuals with the keyboard, you can download them here. Navigating the instrument can be difficult if you don't consult at least the User's Guide. (In truth navigating the menus can sometimes be difficult even with the manual, such as the latter is!) Second, you should audition all of the 100 preset step sequences in the XW-P1 to see if there is anything there you can use. I say 100 sequences but each in fact has eight variations (called Patterns) so there are actually 800 step sequences as other synthesizers would identify them. All of these step sequences were intended as backgrounds for your own live playing from the keyboard using up to four tones. It is for this reason that all of those sequences are called up by the preset Performances, of which there are also one hundred. The step sequences not only include drum and other percussion instruments but often also melody and harmony lines. They are offered in many different musical styles from pop to trance to rock to jazz to Latin rhythms. You will see them listed on page 23 of the XW-P1 Appendix Document. If you find one that is close to what you need but not exactly right you can edit it and save it as a custom sequence following the relevant video tutorials linked above. The XW-P1 is definitely not an arranger keyboard but those preset step sequences, which can be transposed live on-the-fly, bring it closer to one than most other synthesizers aside from something like a Motif, which of course is in another league entirely.

I am not normally histrionic. You can check my posting record. Regarding my later point about that, there are guys at that forum who go completely over the top more times than I think is healthy. It's almost always the regular posters who do it and Dave generally allows it. It's just not an atmosphere I enjoy. I read it from time to time only to see what is being said about certain keyboards. Other people obviously enjoy it. To each his own.

Not being signed up there is no great loss. I read it from time to time but don't post there anymore. Too many histrionic posters. Very ingrained group think.

I meant user PCMs. sslyutov said "any" and that is clearly not the case. Plus, as Shad0wfax notes above, there are other restrictions. According to one thread I read in a forum (here), Roland has coded in the firmware the names of the current EXP packs, the patch data for the tones in those EXP packs (surprisingly, they are evidently not loaded with each pack) and the names of the waveforms they use (which ARE loaded with the packs). As far as instrument tones go, EXP is all that Roland provides (see here). The other Axial packs are bank packs for the pads.

And any user PCMs you load into an FA can only be played by the pads. You can't use them to build a new instrument that you can play across the keyboard. That's based on everything I have read online. I don't own an FA or an Integra but I intend some day to buy the latter; the last and perhaps greatest of sound modules. Hence, I have done a fair bit of research on them. (Since I am a bit of a synth geek , I would have done the research on them anyway!) I don't know where sslyotov is getting his information. PS. Added "user" in front of PCMs to clarify.

When that video was posted at the the Keyboard Corner (one of the MusicPlayer.com forums) one sarcastic response was "Is the goal here to get to the point where we see only PX S3000 threads on the first page? We may all have to buy it just to reclaim some space." There have been a grand total of three threads on that forum concerning Casio's new Privia models; hardly enough to fill the first page. They are certainly justified for what is an exciting new line of products. But three threads concerning Casio products is apparently too many. Just another sign of Casio's uphill battle to get respect from professional keyboard players, who it must be said are not as important in the keyboard world as they seem to think they are. (Unless they are someone who is actually famous and can help sell keyboards by name recognition. No one who posts there appears to be that famous, or famous at all.)

Oh yeah, that would please a lot of people, myself included. I would think CZ (PD) compatibility would be more popular than VZ (iPD) but if they can do both, why not? However, I didn't include any of that in my list because, frankly, I don't expect it to happen. Casio has had plenty of time to release a hardware synth that includes PD and/or iPD synthesis but so far all we have seen is a CZ iPad app. But we can hope, right?

I will have to disagree with that. If the Yamaha MODX can street for considerably less than $2,000 ($1,299 US for 61-key version and $1,499 US for 76-key version) then Casio can make an XW2 that would street for even less. For sure, it would likely cost more than the XW-P1 does (or the XW-G1 did) but there's plenty of demand for synths in the price range between the XW's low-end and the MODX's mid-range. BTW, the MODX is SERIOUSLY hot in Pro land. It would seem to offer almost everything a lot of players need for gigs.

They are the same? You base that on playing them side-by-side? I ask because even that video review I posted claims they feel different. Referring to the GO:KEYS, at around 4m12s he claims that it feels slightly less weighted than the other. Did he merely smoke something for medicinal purposes before recording that?

Fans of the XW synths (need I say that includes myself?) have been waiting ages to see a successor model or two: an XW2 if you will. I think Mike Martin would like to see a successor too. The MZ-X500 is as close as we have seen but it's really a synth in arranger clothing. I am thinking of a synth in synth clothing. But it is up to Casio Japan to make it happen. Still, we can list what we would like to see in an XW successor, just in case Casio Japan is actually planning one and haven't yet nailed down the feature list. Here's my desired feature list and predictions for it: - Mainly metallic blue in color like the PX-560 and the MZ-X500 (I personally like that color) with black and silver accents. But whatever the color scheme it should be very professional looking. - At least one of the models (if there IS more than one) should come with a 76-key keyboard. Aftertouch would be nice but we probably won't get it. (😢) - At least as many knobs and sliders as the current XW models, although I hope for more knobs (six would be nice). - A 5.3-inch color touchscreen - No speakers but it may/should have the "iPad" shelf. That was a seriously good idea. - It will accept a foot-switch and an expression pedal. - It should have touch pads like the ones on the MZ-X models, at least eight but preferably 16. - Sound-wise, it will have the newest Hex Layer engine that is in the MZ-X500. Maybe even an improvement on that, such as allowing PWM or allowing sync between oscillators under certain conditions, but that's just wishful thinking. - It will have the improved drawbar organ of the MZ-X models. Hopefully, It will be even better, with no need to add a Ventilator to get an authentic B3+Leslie sound. (The rotary speaker effect in the MZ-X models is better than the one in the XW-P1 but from the few reports I have read it could be better still.) - All the AIX-based PCM tones from the CT-X models will be included, complete with articulations, and many more. - The XW solo synth will be beefed up to rival the better virtual-analog synths in sound quality, largely free from aliasing and the zipper artifacts caused by insufficient calculation precision. The Total multimode resonant filter should have selectable 2-pole and 4-pole responses. - It will have the XW's step sequencer, but that should allow up to 64 steps in each pattern, as well as a MIDI recorder (16+1 track linear sequencer), the latter the same as found in the MZ-X models. These should be able to work together somehow, e.g., allowing the linear sequencer to start, stop and select step sequencer patterns. - It will have an audio recorder feature. - It will have a programmable arpeggiator and it should allow up to four of them simultaneously like the PX-5S. - It will have a phrase recorder. Again, it should allow up to four simultaneous like the PX-5S. - It should include sampling capability, even better than what is in the MZ-X500. You shouldn't have to decide between having Hex Layer and drawbar organ (P1) versus sampling (G1). - It should allow up to four parts to use the solo synth, Hex Layer or Drawbar Organ engines. - Like the PX-5S it should allow at least four parts to have dedicated insert effects. Eight parts would be preferred. These insert effects and the global effects should use the latest algorithms Casio has developed. Note that none of the above features require truly new development (aside from aftertouch and maybe an improved Leslie effect). They have all appeared in recent Casio models. Of course, integrating them would require a lot of design work. But that's what they pay engineers to do. So, what would YOU like to see or think will appear in an XW successor, assuming Casio has any intention of doing one?

At 4m50s....scat voices. Oh the horror. 😨

Thanks for the comparative observations. How does the GO:PIANO's action compare to, say, your CTK-6200, which has completely un-weighted keys (but if like the XW synths, is a little bit different than the typical synth-action keyboard)? Is Roland shading the truth?

Re 1 and 2, how do we know Casio's new action in the S1000 (and S3000) isn't just as quiet (unlike previous models!) and/or doesn't implement/simulate escapement? Re 4, both the Casio and Roland have built-in speakers. The ones in the FP-10 are driven by 6W per side while those in the S1000 are 8W per side. Of course, that says nothing about how they actually sound. Re 6, yes. MIDI over Bluetooth is something the FP-10 has that the S1000 does not. Score one for the FP-10.