AlenK Posted April 14, 2016 Share Posted April 14, 2016 Over the last year or so Casio has revamped their entire digital piano line apart from the PX-5S (which is now looking a bit old fashioned beside all of its touchscreen-endowed brethren) and most recently its arranger line (the MZ-X models). Besides a true successor to the PX-5S (the PX-560 isn't quite that) that leaves the XW line, which is now more than four years old. That's a pretty long shelf life for any product. I happen to think a successor (or two) is overdue. So what will it be like when it does finally arrive? I don't have any inside track to what is going on at Casio. But I do have a sphere made of glass bequeathed to me by a long dead great grandfather rumored to have lived with the gypsies. (Cue sound of crystal ball activating. You say you've never heard such a sound before? Use your imagination.) It'll be mainly blue - that nice (IMO) metallic blue of the PX-560 and the MZ-X500 - with black and silver accents; very professional looking. At least one of the models (if there IS more than one) will come with a 76-key keyboard. The keyboard will STILL not have aftertouch. (😢) It will have at least as many knobs and sliders as the current XW models, although I hope for more knobs. It will have a 5.3-inch color touchscreen (easy guess there!). It won't have speakers but it may/should have the "iPad" shelf. (That was a seriously good idea, however unbalanced it made the instrument look.) It will accept a foot-switch and an expression pedal (another easy prediction). It will also have touch pads like the ones on the MZ-X models, although how many is anyone's guess. Let's say at least eight. 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 sync between oscillators under certain conditions, but that's just wishful thinking). It will also have the improved drawbar organ of the MZ-X models. Actually, the drawbar organ will be even better - there will be no need to buy a Ventilator or a Burn to get an authentic B3+Leslie sound. (That might be true already of the MZ-X models. Dunno.) All the PCM tones from the MZ-X500 will be included, complete with articulations, and many more. The XW solo synth will be beefed up to rival the best virtual analog synths in sound quality, largely free from aliasing and the zipper artifacts caused by insufficient calculation precision. Casio has evidently learned a lot in four years about virtual filter and oscillator design. It will have the XW's step sequencer as well as the MIDI recorder (16-track linear sequencer) found in MZ-X models and the PX-560 and they will be able to work together or otherwise be integrated (somehow!). It will have an audio recorder feature. It will of course have the programmable arpeggiator. It will still have a phrase recorder - that's mucho useful, even given the sequencers. Here's the risky guess: One or both models will include sampling capability, even better than what is in the MZ-X500 (which, AFAIK, is the same as the sampler in the XW-PD1). You won't have to decide between having Hex Layer and drawbar organ (P1) versus sampling (G1) - you'll get it all. Oh, and it will have a street price of not more than $799. Oops, maybe I went too far! 😱 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XW-Addict Posted April 14, 2016 Share Posted April 14, 2016 For once I will settle for 1300 if it would be a dream synth keyboard workstation Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chas Posted April 28, 2016 Share Posted April 28, 2016 I concur with all that AlenK suggested. I would also like to add: Hearing how awesome an analogue filter can be in a digital synth (Korg DW8000, Casio FZ-1, Casio HT/ HZ series, Ensoniq ESQ-1/ Mirage, and even the new Roland JDX-A), I really hope that Casio can incorporate a genuine analogue (and non stepping) filter into a new XW synth in addition to the digital filters. Make it wild and screaming (Korg DW, Korg MS20, ARP Odyssey etc.), and make it so that external sound sources can be input to also use it. A filter as so described can add so much character to a synth, and as good as some digital filters are, they still don't touch a wild analogue filter going into self oscillation. Add a couple of LFO's (greater speed range than the current XW's please) and filter envelopes, and you'll have a brilliant digital/ analogue hybrid. Make it similar to the XW P1/ G1's solo synth global filter in that you can select to route any section through it (solo synth, hex layers, drawbar, samples, PCM tones, step sequencer etc.) Note that the current XW-P1 cannot route the Drawbar or Hex Layers through the global solo synth filter At present is seems that only Roland currently has chosen that digital synth/ analogue filter route for their JDX-A. Though it does have a genuinely analogue synth section, the digital synth can also be routed through the analogue filter. With the sounds the XW's are capable of, adding a characterful filter will really take them to another level. Oh, and please add after touch too! Can use that to add extra modulation to a held note, including through activating the filter. Time will tell! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Display Name Posted April 29, 2016 Share Posted April 29, 2016 Watching and waiting! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dabatch Posted April 29, 2016 Share Posted April 29, 2016 sorry for offtopic, but let's go into dreaming: my casio synth wish for 2016/2017 would be: casio cz-x (because you'll never have enough x's) analog/digital hybrid (that processing thing): 4 oscillators, 512 pcm presets 37 or 49 keys w/aftertouch, semi-weighted, 8 pads sequencer, hexlayer, phrase recorder, sampler 100 onboards effects/effect combinations colours: black, orange price: 429 euro Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Display Name Posted April 30, 2016 Share Posted April 30, 2016 I think a CZ re-issue would be great. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XW-Addict Posted April 30, 2016 Share Posted April 30, 2016 I rather would like previous synth compatibility or a hexlayer where I can go polyphonic or monophonic on the synth or mixed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Saucier Posted April 30, 2016 Share Posted April 30, 2016 I would like to see Casio do something cool with mini keys again. A mini something that sounds like a big something. Lol 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XW-Addict Posted May 1, 2016 Share Posted May 1, 2016 On 30-4-2016 at 6:13 PM, BradMZ said: I would like to see Casio do something cool with mini keys again. A mini something that sounds like a big something. Lol Yes in compatible format if there going to be a synth in that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chas Posted May 7, 2016 Share Posted May 7, 2016 On 4/30/2016 at 0:13 PM, BradMZ said: I would like to see Casio do something cool with mini keys again. A mini something that sounds like a big something. Lol I'd like to see Casio release rack mounted versions of their latest synths. The VZ and FZ range had rack versions, which now fetch higher prices than the full keyboard versions. And with many people having small home studios, racks are a lot easier for some to squeeze in and just use one master MIDI keyboard rather than having multiple full sized synths lying all over the place. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlenK Posted May 7, 2016 Author Share Posted May 7, 2016 Would love to see more sound modules, rack-mountable or not. There was a time you could almost count on a module version of a keyboard synth. Those days are gone. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.