Jazzman

Fix the bugs and publish tutorials that not only show how to take advantage of all the features but also explain why you would use them. As much as I like the MZ-X500 I am frustrated that the support is so lacking. My expectation for support is one of the reasons I purchased this arranger but it seems like we have been abandoned. Perhaps Casio is working on a great new arranger but no matter how good the next generation may seem on paper, our experience with the MZ-X500 will be hard to overcome. I have set my Casio aside and returned to my Roland BK-9.

Probably did 10 or so before the first lock up during this session. After that it would lock up each time a power reset with just one recording.

I have two Silicon Power 16gig flash drives, they both have this problem. I recently purchased a third with 32gig and I am starting to use it. I didn't format the 16gig drives on the MZ-X500 but I did for the 32gig drive. Could this be the issue? I'll let you know how it goes.

Here is a video showing the keyboard locking up when trying to play an audio recording after it has been successfully created. Most of the time it is necessary to physically unplug the keyboard to clear the fault. Rarely, on occasion, if the power button is depressed for an extended period that will clear the fault. I should also say that I have installed the latest OS Update. Here is a link to Youtube video:

Agree, a fade for pads would be very useful. Sometimes I will have 3 pads looping and at the end of the performance I have to remember the best sequence for turning them off as the volume fades. Usually this is acceptable if I start turning them off sequentially just before the downbeat when the volume reaches about 50%. Another option is to just manually fade using the volume control if you don't have to play a repeating outro. Look forward to your results from experimenting with an external controller

If you are comparing arrangers then the Roland EA-07 is what you should compare to the MZ-X500. The FA-07 is not an arranger. Both Casio and Roland have their advantages.

The songbook feature is really nice, I wish Casio would implement this. Keeping track of song locations by registration numbers is a real pain. Besides having to keep a cross-reference chart handy, one mistake in saving to a used registration and you wipe out another song. Can't tell you how many times this has happened to me when I'm in a rush. I know it isn't fair to compare the PA-1000 but with the built in TC Helicon vocal processor AND a guitar input with FX it could eliminate two pieces of gear that I now hook up when I have a guitar accompany me (the vocal processor and a mixer). Worth thinking about.

I found a couple other quirks. I haven't spent time trying to figure out what causes them. Occasionally the accompaniment rhythm locks up with just the drum set and no keys will play. There is no recovery other than a power cycle. This hasn't happened to me during a performance yet but when it does I'll be retiring the MZ-X500. When using the midi recorder and trying to save the performance to a USB memory stick I sometimes get a "no attached media" message which cannot be fixed by simply removing and replugging the usb stick. This is after successfully saving a few prior midi recordings to the same memory stick! Power cycle is required to recognize the memory stick.

Hi Rick, Of course you realize that the MZ-X500 doesn't work directly with a TRS mic plug such as the output of the Berlinger mixer?? I presently have a Yamaha mixer that I use when I play with another person but I'm trying to find a way to have an acceptable minimum setup for solo performances. If I connect the Shure SM-58 via the preamp of the mixer it works great. It also works OK when connected via a vocal processor. I'm now awaiting specs on the Berlinger XM8500 mic used by Ralph Marten which advertises "high output". For $20 USD I may just get one to try it out but I'm skeptical that it will work without a preamp. There must be something in the path of Ralph's setup that changes the color of the mic cable :-) if I want to try Ralph's settings via his ".zal" file, how can I clone his mic settings and use them with the "zal" backup of my own performances? I very much appreciate your help.

I had that same impression of the Roland EA-7 in this comparison. I found it curious that the recording of the Roland sounds was, for the most part, at a lower volume than the Casio and Korg boards. If you increase the volume of the Roland board during playback it sounds much better. For some reason Roland did not include their "SuperNatural" sounds in the EA-7. It was a big mistake because us BK-9 players love those sounds. As much as we would like to have a board with internal speakers that would use them, the EA-7 will not. Practically speaking it means that the work we put into our performances on the BK-9 will not "port" directly to the EA-7 and we would have to recreate the performances with the sounds provided. My apologies to Roland, but they have lost sensitivity to their user base. This is at least part of the reason I ended up with the Casio MZ-X500. I really hope that Casio is listening and will bring out a 76 key version of the MZ-X500 with internal speakers that is fully compatible with our performances, with a real xlr mic input having front panel volume and reverb and an improved keybed. I would buy it in a heartbeat.

Congrats, and happy birthday. I especially like that lightbulb, lol. You are going to have a great time with the MZ-X500.

Interesting comparison between similar cost arrangers. I like them all. Clearly the MZ-X500 holds its own.

I really don't see an advantage to a condenser microphone, to each his own. I'm personally not interested in having gear with batteries that I have to worry about during a performance. I only express disappointment with the MZ-X500 mic input because, in my opinion, it is pretty useless without ancillary equipment. They could have had a great feature if it had a preamp with enough gain for the most popular professional dynamic mics in use today. Unfortunately Casio chose to save cost and provided a very anemic feature. Using the same mic with my Roland equipment is an entirely different experience. Plenty of gain to cut through the keys. This is a feature that I would suggest that Casio enhance for their target market. My ideal would be a combo XLR/TRS jack, balanced input, high enough gain for a 1.5mV dynamic mic output, volume control moved to the front panel AND a companion reverb control. Now that would be exciting!! Good luck with the microphone, keep us posted on how it works out for you.

Ha, great point Leonh. It really is the musician. A more fair comparison would be to the Roland EA-7 or the Yamaha PSR-S770. They each have there advantages.

Hi Leonh, A condenser mic requires "phantom power", something the MZ-X500 does not provide, so you would need an additional piece of gear to use one. A condenser mic would not necessarily have a higher output than a dynamic mic. From what I can tell, you will need a mic output signal with about 6mV to 10mV to play well with the keyboard. To me that means that a mic preamp is going to be required with most professional mics of either type. Let us know how you find the vocal levels.