oscar1

It is true about behringer. Even people I know that would never touch behringer with a ten foot pole now changed their mind. Behringer totally rode the success from cheap made copies of effects and racks into a serious synth company. Had they do it in reverse and started with serious synth they would not exist today. I was thinking of upgrading from the PX-860 to PX-870, but I changed my mind and I will simply wait what casio has in store in the next year or two. The PX-860 is perfectly fine and casio seems to really be serious about the digital piano market. Funny, like the behringer casio used to be a bad word in the digital pianos but the tides are changing. Still I have yet to see a casio piano in music halls, kawais and yamaha still hold the torch, but it may not be for long. It only needs peoples opinion to change, otherwise the pianos are already there.

So with the marvelous PX-S1000 which replaces the lowest end with a bang, should we expect that also higher privia models like the console will get refresh this year? It would be only logical, but is there some insider info on this or is the PX-870 going to be top of the line for years (while the S1000 probably now sounding better having new samples and features from GP)

There is no surprise why we admire these new privias. There are really three companies that have models in the low end piano market: yamaha with the P series. casio with the px. Roland has FP series. That's it, everyone else is aiming for the $1k and above. I don't count korg and their sp models because those are build by medeli and I have my own opinion about medeli quality. Everyone was recycling the same tech as long as they could for the low end piano market, but now casio radically decided to refresh it in a big style. So in fact unless yamaha come up with a radical new design for P and Roland decides to put new supernatural to their lowest models (not happening), the low end is now captured by casio, because for the money it smokes out other lowest piano model out there with the features. Looking at this I would not be surprised if roland bails out from the bellow $1k market entirely.

The differences in the volume are common problems for many new engines. I guess they will refine it as models progress.

I've been inside few of the modern cheap casios and yamahas and they are made a way that it is incredibly hard to break them by your fault. As seen on the video the X700 brain is really tiny and the big brown PCB is just for amp and places for buttons to have contacts. They can make the ct-x no bigger than the keyboard itself if they want to.

Thanks!. Now that makes it even more confusing as what is then the top sounding product. (if we are not talking about Grand Hybrid), so then the PX-870 won't be the top sound engine anymore and I assume we will see some console PX-S soon? It is awesome that casio is heavily now into the digital pianos but they need to make the whole system now a bit more "readable". Say I really love casio and want to get the top sounding model, I really can't decipher that from the web site which model that could be. It is definitely not by price.

You can always sell your PX, the prices are not that low for a good models. I always trade, buy and sell used keyboards. It is much more fun and I meet interesting people on the way. The new keyboard in Privia PX-S should be much improved according to what they say. May be worth upgrade and you will loose only little on the deal.

Gotcha, maybe a good comparison table is in order on the casio site. Does the PX-S1000 uses the same samples like the new PX-870 or these are entirely new samples differing from PX-160 and PX-870 (which are both different between them)? I own PX-860 and played PX-870 and I was impressed by the new longer samples. Are these s1000 same? Regardless soon or later this will go into a console piano at which time this will be a good time to upgrade for me. Undoubtedly casio will throw wrench in the lower end yamahas and rolands now with the S. privias. I hardly see any reason to buy yamaha P anymore.

But that's exactly what it is - replacement for PX-160, lighter, smaller, same polyphony and sound and just tad more expensive. And actually fully portable this time around unlike the px-160 where the 3 pedal was permanently build into the stand. The s3000 is basically combination of the s1000 and the CDP-S. Which is also great idea for home - because undoubtedly the targeted customer base like styles and tons of sounds . Some people expected PX-5S replacement for some reason...but casio is not going there any time soon. Now one thing may be a bit underwhelming, and it is the casio own tease of "new era" in digital pianos, which turned to be something like apple promoting a revolutionary new iphone while giving you the same iphone in smaller case. We are talking about making the privia just lighter and smaller but in other way it is the PX-160. Not bad, for home piano, will wait till the price will cool down.

The cat is out of the bag with PX-S1000 and PX-S3000! Mostly as I expected, except I though 256 polyphony would be now standard, but they are saving it for more expensive models.

Darn, they are teasing me. Funny how everybody kept their mouth shut about the new privia - not a beep - just wow, till you see!!!! I am disappointed in the internet power to feed rumors.

The PX-5S was the closest to pro keyboard casio ever got, at least how it was generally perceived. Second was only the PX-560. But while other PX got regular updates, these "pro" keyboards never did which only means that it isn't a market that they did cut through, nor worth following. And that's fine with me. They put a lot of effort in pushing the low end with ct-x and it shows. Lot of people call it now a psr killer on youtube. Perception is what counts. Not long time ago was "get casio if you can't afford psr". That mentality changed and arguably the ct-x has actually nicer keybed now than the PSR E and the piano sound is easily on par if not better. I feel that pro stay away from casio because of their constant sideways upgrades and compromise loaded upgrade path. The PX-560 wasn't better PX-5S with better display and much easier setup, it also inexplicably lost some of the 5S functionality so you need to pick. Instead Yamaha with MOX, MOXF and MODX created very clear path, the next model is simply better, has more stuff, all the features are improved, exactly what you expect from an upgrade path. With casio it is more like having sideways models where it is unclear which model is the top model or if it ever continues with followup. You always have to make compromise. Why the pads, full blown sampling and great touch screen went to an inferior home keyboard MZ-X and not to a successor of what casio themselves call flagship, the PX-5S? I look forward the new 2019 PX, already putting money into piggy bank.

The CDP are good in their price point and beat the yamaha YDP by a good margin. I had CDP but I felt for a little bit more you can get much more refined PX-160 as a piano. Whenever I have some sort of hammered action and have hundreds of non-piano sounds I ask the why question. Seriously there is no need, nor desire to have hammered action for organs, synths, strings, guitars or even drums. There is no benefit, quite the opposite as it slows down technique. What we hear on the Privia NAMM teaser are (fingers crossed) the new samples that were introduced last year in PX-870 with longer sustain. PX-160 is a great deal and this new slab would beat everything in its path if it stays within the same price (and the indication is that yes it will) I mean seriously it would be very hard to consider Yamaha P115 if the new privia has better action and better sound and cost less - and probably now also look better.

The NAMM privia will be likely a replacement for PX160 with and this is a speculation on my part: 256 polyphony, the longer samples from px-870, newly developed keybed, touch button interface, bluetooth and it will stay in the same price range (which will be its major selling point) Casio is still not in a pro market in general. The Privia is closest - a big music stores here may actually carry PX-5S or PX350 and you can probably order GP and AP series (but not on display) next to Yamahas P and Roland FP, but that is it. A music store would feel embarrassed to have any other casio next to MOXF, Montage, Rolands ....and in fact there is nothing in casio lineup for that market. The MZ-X was somehow a shot at this mid-range workstation but failed miserably because of the insane price/quality ratio. This should have been either half price keyboard if they insist on having the cheap casio keybed or then bundle semi weighted Fatar and people will feel much differently. We are talking about price range of $1K and that is a very competitive area. This is a world filled with MOXF, Korg Krome, Roland DS, and even the roland FA-06 or new MODX is just few hundred bucks away from MZ-X. There is no way someone who walks into a music store with +$1K budget would end up with MZ-X500. It would be insane and probably the music clerk would beg him to change his mind. I think casio is right to focus on privia and CDP range and then the low end AiX. The privias are good. Easily competitive with anything at the price. The keybed is good, the new one should be even better. The sound, especially the 2018 samples as seen on PX-870 is great and actually beats the Yamahas in that price. And people also talk about it. It is now a common knowledge that the PX are good keybeds and many people prefer them from the yamaha P. The new Privia slab should be even better and could send the yamaha P sales back. Casio tried many times to build a higher keyboard. There was a MZ-2000 if anyone remembers which was aftertouch workstation with everything thrown in it, yet still looked like a darn embarasing home keyboard. There were the XW synths. But they always mess it up at the end by cheapening some crucial part and having the kids-derived plastic keybeds. So maybe they should abandond the mid market altogether and stay in what they do well.

I heard that the new Privia they will announce very soon (the same in teaser) will be at incredible price point.

In general sales of any mid range workstation keyboards are extremely difficult these days. Companies either go cheap way (all the volcas, minilogues, roland boutique, novations) or try to do high end like Montage or Kronos. But middle iz a loss market. What casio was trying to do with MZX is a 15 years too late. Even Roland has incredible hard time to sell their FA and had to cheapen it with nearly the same juno-ds which says a lot as the FA was already a cheap version of Fantom.

I was hoping for MZX with privia keybed..... or privia with MZX features, interface and pads.

Normally me too, but I bought a spiral binding machine while ago and the deal came with boxes of pre-perforated paper....have to use them somehow. But later I realized how printing things that I plan to use often free myself from the limitations imposed on by expensive tech. I can toss the copy around freely, leave it opened on my bed for days, stack it on synth or under mess on my desk and generally don't have to worry where it is, what is on top of it, where it falls etc...

Nevermind, found the log on page 5. Great job!

1000 thanks. I fully printed the rev 3. Is there some log to tell which pages were changed/added so I don't have to reprint the whole thing (and hence save lot of trees). Thanks again, as synth guides go, this is one of the best organized and most readable.

Well we should not forget the 4 layers of HEX on 560 vs only 2 on 5S. At least that was one that struck me most. This is 24 layers of pcm sounds on 560 - if that isn't enough, then I don't know. To be honest I don't understand the full difference between 5s zones and 560 zones but I see the DSP routing is better in 5S. To be hones I would really want MZ-X500 with privia keyboard at this point. They seems to be adding stuff left and right in new models but never to create one workstation that rule them all. I somehow hope they will create 7S with many of the MZ additions. If you think about it the 5S is form 2013. It may be time to refresh the legacy.

I hope they will make a Privia with those capabilities. Would be fantastic. Lot of new sounds over PX560.

Thanks for the info. Also great to know about resonant filter that works. I always wondered about the people who were managing the P1 development. When they heard the DSP filters in P1 and said, "yes, perfect"! Because it takes some engineering to make set of filters that without doubt destroy any sound that goes through them. I am currently bit confused by the mix and match methodology Casio makes with the new keyboards. Like I love the fact that PX560 has 4 hex layers - total Vangelis reincarnation. But why it has to loose the 4 arpeggios from 5S? Seems to be common way of thinking in casio land. Never make one keyboard with all the features. And then there is MZ-X500 that seems to have seriously improved many solo PCM sounds beyond the PX560 / 5S and allows to create new sounds by uploading waveforms.... Darn, I was almost ready for 5S, then found out about PX560 and now I want to see something like that mixed with the stuff from MZ-X500. Well, i will see what they will come up next, but it may not be that soon. I watched the videos from Musikmesse 2017 and there was literally nothing new. Which means at earliest there will be something next year.

I have XW-P1 and I am curious if the waveforms for hex layers from XW-P1 had been improved at all (they are mostly low quality and or PWM in P1). I am not talking about the piano sound, that is obviously in different category. I know the DSP effect had been hugely improved - and that should be obvious as well, the XW-P1 DSP is just plain digitally horrid (and mono) mostly happily destroying any sound it passes through. But I am curious if the actual waveform in 5S had been redone. I like the potential of the hex layers for the lush "vangelis" sound it can produce in theory. When you can layer 2x hex layers + 2x PCM, with multiple arpeggios, with the big polyphony, this allows for unprecedented wall of sound, sort of going into Motif territory. But on the P1 this all never goes beyond being just for fun or basically a toy due to the digital aliasing of waveforms (and the incomprehensibly bad DSP). So for someone having both, how is the improvement? I did try one at store, but they didn't have headphones and it was plugged into sort of mono guitar amp - far from being able to actually judge the quality of sound (it sounded bad in any preset so I just gave up)

I just registered to download and say big thanks for your hard work. As someone who had to write lot of documentation, I know how big task it is. I bought the p1 just yesterday, used, from a nice fellow.