Anders Nilsson

Hi! Not sure if they ship to the US, but if you go to TaoBao.com and enter "卡西欧SP33" you will find it quite easily. they sometimes filter your results depending on where your IP address is from so not sure if you see it. By the way, 卡西欧 is Ka Shi Ou in Chinese in case you wonder.

UPDATE: After receiving my AP-700 (and writing a review in the Celviano forum), I felt it would be nice if I could practice a little myself. Now, routinely being away from home Sunday night to Friday afternoon doesn't lend itself well to piano practice. However, I found that there are still a few copies of the PX-350 available on the net here in China, selling for about $400. CS-67 and SP-33 are extra. But for this price and weight it is too good an offer to pass up. Yes, I know that Casio has just released the PX-S3000, but it is double the money and I just spent way more than intended on the AP-700. So, a PX-350 it is. Have had it for a week and played a little each night in the hotel room. 15 minutes a day is better than one hour in the weekend. Key action is ok, though the AP-700 feels more stable. Sound is......hmmmmm.....well, good enough for $400. Honestly, I've tried the Yamaha P-125 and wasn't impressed, very plastic feeling and harsh tone during forte (like, really forte). The 350 piano tones sound like they are just different EQ settings on the same base sampling. I would happily pay extra for an upgraded sound chip though this is of course never going to happen. But for an absolute beginner trying to play "Old McDonald" or similar pieces it's great. Low weight means I can drag it, transport it, and store it. And if someone smashes it up by accident or it gets stolen it's not the end of the world (this is after all China). And I have to mention a funny thing - while searching TaoBao for a seller I found a local store that manufactures its' own version of the SP-33. They have taken a three pedal action, supporting half pedal, and put it in a small floor box just like the new one for the PX-S3000 and wired it like a SP-33 with the right connector. So next purchase will be such a box so I can have three pedals without having to use the console stand. Crafty people.

In general - do not use silicon grease for any application unless it is specifically advised. Silicone creeps into everything and can lead to electronics malfunction.

Ok, just got home after a long trip. AP-700 was delivered and assembled by sales staff. Just plunked a few notes since i can't play piano. In case you wonder this piano is a present to my aspiring son who just started taking lessons. First impression is stellar. Sound quality in my living room (piano standing against a concrete wall) is top notch. Much better than the GP300 i tested in the shop, showing the importance of placement since the GP300 probably has a better sound system. But piano shops tend to just place their pianos in a matrix layout for maximum space efficiency. At roughly 2/3 volume this piano is LOUD. Six speakers and 2x30 Watts is just what is needed. I tried the AP-270 but wasn't too happy about the volume. This piano is CNY10800/USD1580 here in shanghai instead of CNY4895/USD720 for the AP-270. Almost double the money but then I want to state that in my opinion it is double the piano. Seriously. Anyone asking about the sound system - it's all you need and some more. Keys strangely feel much better than on lesser Casios, probably imagination, but there feels to be more of a pivot when you press the keys down. Kawai CA48 has a wooden action but this one feels equally good to my untrained fingers. Key tops feel better than on the AP-270 even though the material is supposed to be the same synthetic ivory. No noise from the action as far as I can tell. Samples are top class. Before my purchase, I listened to A LOT of pianos, also in higher price ranges (Casio GP300, Kawai CA48, Roland HP603, HP605, FP90), and these three grand pianos samples in the AP-700 are great. Strict, taut with a beautiful long decay, just like I like a piano. In case you wonder, i strongly dislike mellow pianos, i prefer a firmer sound. Not necessarily rock piano but i really don't like some low end pianos that sound as if the designers tried to cover up bad quality by applying a low pass filter. Unfortunately there are relatively few videos on YT and some of them are not well recorded. This thing sounds great in real life. Also very clear resonance and reverb effects. Only drawback is that even with original Casio bench adjusted to lowest height, my modest 196 centimeters don't really fit well under the keybed so I have to angle my feet to reach the pedals. Adjustable feet would be welcome. I will probably cure this by building a frame for the piano. People of smaller frame than me will not have any issues. Lastly, the impressiveness of the instrument. This piano will make anyone proud as it stands in your room, unless perhaps if You are of aristocratic descent. The whole thing looks very classy, formal, but not boring as there are still plenty of lines and curves in the styling to enjoy. I understand that this piano costs a lot of money and that the price in the U.S.A. can be even higher according so some reviews, but if you have the money you will not be disappointed.

Mike, Thanks for clarifying this item.

Ok,, thanks for the reply, Brad. Now, this being the top end of Casio piano sound generation (engine is claimed to be the same as in the GP series, or is it only the samples?), maybe someone at Casio should explain if this design is by intent, oversight, or whatever. An acoustic piano is obviously continuous even though it might be difficult to modulate. More irritating is that I recently remember watching Mike Martin demonstrating a rather new piano on YT where he demonstrated by successively pressing the sustain pedal that the engine was indeed continuous. Sorry, can't find the video right now. Ok, I understand that this engine has a few years in the market by now but this is still the non-plus-ultra of Casio piano pride. Hope it gets improved to next top end model, if only for the sake of it. Or even better, someone from Casio can bring more clarity to this issue.

Hi! Th AP-700 manual mentions on page EN-11 that you can adjust the trigger point for half pedal position. Does this mean that the pedal is not continuous but only has OFF-HALF-FULL positions?

I just bought an AP-700 which lacks rhythm or arranger functions and it would be nice to get some rhythm functionality. The only Windows applications that I've seen are ChordPulse, 1 man band, band in a box. Nothing really for iPad. I would prefer to use the iPad for convenience. I want the AP-700 to get the PX-350 rhythm functionality. Nothing fancy, just the usual rhumba, rock, waltz, bossa nova stuff you got in your cheap 80's home arranger. Can someone recommend a "PX-350 rhythm app" or similar for the iPad? My thought is to have the USB midi start the iPad rhythm app and route the sound to the AP-700 line input. Or is it possible to get a PX-350 or similar, connect it by 5 pin midi and gave the AP-700 synchro start the rhythm section? Or may be a CTK which is very cheap here in China. Please advice!

Ok, thanks everyone who has responded. Last month has been hard on my nerves. Anyway, tonight we finally decided to go for the AP-700 and ordered it and paid the deposit. Delivery including setup is scheduled for this weekend. I really thought long and hard of the PX-350 or the PX-560, but I feel that $1600 for the 700 is too good a price to pass up. Moving around the apartment will not happen - the piano will have a reserved space - and if I move to another location the piano will just be another furniture item. If my son needs a gigging piano I will buy another, e. g. the PX-350 or the PX-560. You might wonder about the prices I quote, but it's obvious that Casio and Yamaha has local production and this pushes their prices down. I wanted to try the Kawai ES8 but it's only a grey import item in China. the Korg Grand Stage 88 is fantastic but the only one I saw was in a shop that wanted more than three grand which is a ripoff. The Korg Havian 30 was a hundred bucks cheaper than the AP-700 but i found the sound lacking. Not bad, just inspired. And I've paid maybe a grand up on the PX-350 but that gives me a custom made sound system for the piano plus I get better samples and my personal vanity is gently stroked by that stately looking cabinet. But wifey permitting I still might buy a 350 or 5S to play around with since my job schedule with heavy travelling (by train) rather calls for a slab keyboard.

Hi! PX-S1000 is available for about USD900, the PX870 is USD800, PX-S3000 is about USD1100, same as the PX-560. CDP-350 might be available online but I've never seen it in a store. I can tell You that here in Shanghai, Yamaha has an absolute stranglehold on distribution with Kawai sucking up the rest. Roland does exist in specialty shops. Korg is something you really need to seek out. This weekend, i stumpled upon a rather serious looking shop having the: AP-470 for USD930 AP-700 for USD 1598 in stock, really keen on one of these. The AP-700 has the major advantage of dedicated LINE IN/OUT and 5-pin MIDI. This for me is reason enough to select it over the AP-470. I know that the PX-350 would probably do for a beginner and has similar connectivity but the AP-700 sounds _great_ in the YT videos I've found. Can anyone comment on the AP-700 sound quality and speaker system? I find so many downputting comments on Casio that it is difficult to make an opinion on the rarer models. I've played around with the AP-270 in a store and it sounds great but weak speaker system and no connectivity makes me wary. The same store which has the AP-700 also has the GP300 on display and it sounded awesome. For almost twice the price of the AP-700, it better do that. I'm really into the AP-700 but trouble is I can't test drive it before purchase. It should share innards with the GP300 and the AP-270 sounds great in quality, just lacking volume so I think I'll take a chance but any input is welcome. But 2x30 Watt sound promising. Lastly, I can get the China version (CA28) of the Kawai CA48 for same price as the AP-700 and the Kawai has wooden action but the Casio seems to have great sound and much better hardware in/outputs. Am I an idiot if I go for the plastic action in the Casio?

Hi! Here in China the AP-470 and AP-650 are both available for about USD1100-1200 online. It seems the AP-650 is a much older model. Does it still stand up against the newer AP-470? When looking at the Casio US homepage i get the impression that the pecking order is AP-700 > AP-650 > AP-470 > AP-270. I'm a bit divided between the PX-870 and the AP-470 at the moment, and then suddenly I found the AP-650. Or is the sound engine in the AP-650 just a rehash of the PX-350 with more sample memory? The only thing I can figure out is that they both use the AiR engine.

Hi Brad! Thanks for the suggestion! the PX-S1000 and PX-S3000 are available here in China. However, the cost is almost same as the PX-360 and PX-560, respectively. My understanding is that the newer boards have an improved sound engine or at least improved samples, but they lose the wonderful color touch screen. The reason for looking at the 350 is the low cost for its' performance. If I ante up for the PX-S3000 or the PX-560, which one is better for piano? I heard that the PX-S3000 has a new shortened key action, does it affect playing? Which are the drawbacks of the 560? Another beginner's question - is it feasible to hook the keyboards up to an old analog stereo, like 2x40 watt or so, or do pianos require montiors or stage speakers to sound good? I'm talking home use.

Hi! This is my first post after joining a few days ago, please bear with me! Anyway, my (soon) 6 year old son has taken piano lessons for half a year. Now, our Yamaha PS-55 early 80's arranger with 49 non weighted keys is somewhat a limitation is his learning. So, I need a real piano. Kawai KDP110, CA48, ES8, Roland FP90, HP60x, Korg GS-1 are all very nice, and the KDP110 is actually very cheap for its' great sound. Except for the KDP110, this comes at a price. But, my son likes to play with the cheesy arranger rhythms and a console piano is heavy and bulky. I've spent dozens of commuting hours glued to Youtube and the more I watch, the more indecisive I get. I like Casio as a brand since I bought my FX-502P in 1980, this influences my thinking a bit. For me, they stand for no-nonsense performance and adequate quality for home use. Now, a certain somewhat elderly YT reviewer fancies the Casios and has demonstrated what they can do. Some things that bother me is the key action noise and the somewhat harsh sounding piano. Though I personally MUCH prefer a slightly raw sound to a sickeningly mellow one. Here in China were I live, online prices are roughly (from several vendors): Model USD PX-350 550 PX-5S 520 KDP110 620 PX-360 900 PX-560 1100 CA48 1500 ES8 1800 FP90 2200 I feel that the PX-350 is probably good enough for a child beginner and that if I want to move up I should stretch to the PX-560. The Kawai CA48 (called CA28 in China) has wooden keys and sounds fantastic but maybe not necessary? Also very heavy. The price for the PX-350 is with stand and 3 pedal unit. I don't like the Px-160 sound but the 770 and 870 would do. Please tell me your thoughts on the 350, hit or miss for beginners? Can anyone comment on the KDP110 and CA48? I feel Kawai does very good pianos.