I want a truly portable keyboard with very good piano and synths sounds... for less than $500

[El Lobo]

1 hour ago, AnotherScott said:

Like I said, it's dual use. He wants it for gigging AND couch duties. (The batteries and speakers preference is for the latter.)

So for gigging, he will connect to external speaker. 

[GovernorSilver]

As a satisfied Casio CT-S1 user, I too feel it has pretty good piano and synth sounds for the money.

 

CT-S500 has the same sounds except with pitch bend wheel, arranger features, etc.   It has speakers to meet the "can play anywhere, just like (acoustic) guitar" requirement.  

 

The Yamaha keyboards that were mentioned earlier which compete in the same price bracket as the Casios, are also worth a look.  I believe they run on the same AWM2 rompler engine found on costlier Yamaha romplers.

[funkyhammond]

12 hours ago, drawback said:

The new Casios look like exactly what you’re asking for. There’s also another model CTS1000 that is still within your budget. Not sure what the difference is, but there’s a feature video on both here. 

 

I was watching a couple videos on the CT-S1000V a few days ago. I think the main difference over the CT-S500 is that it has this novel feature of a vocal synthesizer. Kind of like a musical text-to-speech going through a vocoder. Probably not useful to most people for the extra $100. BTW, I think both boards have sampling, although a bit convoluted because the samples need to be sent through a mobile device. It looks like they have a lot of decent built in sounds. Seem definitely worth looking into at this price point. And the CT-S500 is available now, the CT-S1000V maybe not.

[Mike Martin]

9 hours ago, funkyhammond said:

I think both boards have sampling, although a bit convoluted because the samples need to be sent through a mobile device.

 

You can load samples directly in from a USB drive, or sample through the audio input.

[Reezekeys]

And it has an expression pedal jack, something I didn't expect to see in any keyboard at this price point.

[synthizen2]

A used MOX6 or MOXF6 should do the job. Likely the MOX6 should be right in your price range. Again, Yamaha... you'll be familiar with the architecture.

[Gus Lozada]

22 hours ago, Xfeten said:

I think a good midi keyboard connected to your mx88 would do the Job. Otherwise a second hand Roland juno ds or a Roland vr09 would be fine. The vr09 has a very decent clone organ if you need it.

Hola!

 

i had the VR09 and the piano sounds were really mediocre. I even feel the Go Keys has better sounds. 
 

The organs and synths were truly good, though.

[Dave Bryce]

23 hours ago, El Lobo said:

Has anyone else found the internal speakers on any keyboard to be adequate for live gigging? 

 

Apart from solo piano gigs in small rooms...no.

 

dB

[El Lobo]

3 hours ago, Dave Bryce said:

 

Apart from solo piano gigs in small rooms...no.

 

dB

Thank you for answering my question. It is as I suspected ... 

[AnotherScott]

1 hour ago, El Lobo said:

Thank you for answering my question. It is as I suspected ... 

Though I posted some thoughts to the contrary at https://forums.musicplayer.com/topic/181944-i-want-a-truly-portable-keyboard-with-very-good-piano-and-synths-sounds-for-less-than-500/?do=findComment&comment=2892612

 

[Gus Lozada]

On 4/10/2022 at 1:14 PM, ImproKeys said:

Your MX88 should do the job; why not take it? I mean it is not a Montage….

It is very light regarding weight
but it is too large!!

[Gus Lozada]

On 4/10/2022 at 8:43 AM, Sam Mullins said:

As an old fart (first rig was Hammond C3/Wurly/Micromoog in the late 70’s), can I just say it is amazing that we can have a legitimate discussion of covering all this ground on one keyboard < $500.  I’m grateful both for the high end stuff that I am completely satisfied with and the low end stuff that opens up more possibilities for people with bad backs or limited finances.

I am also an old fart and have tons of good and awesome keyboards. 
 

i am just trying to find the holly grial of under $500 usd keyboard, good enough for GIGGING. Good piano and general synth sounds with not so crappy keys.

 

Apparently, it does not exist. YET.

[Gus Lozada]

On 4/10/2022 at 9:08 AM, Lou_NC said:

  For the gigs you are describing, do you think anyone in the audience would notice or even care? 

 

Lou

 

Lou, I am looking for a truly good piano sound. I WILL NOTICE IT AND CARE ABOUT IT. NEW, because perhaps a new generation keyboard may contain better samples / fx.
 

I just don’t want to haul my MX88 or any other  hardware synth with me. 

[Mighty Motif Max]

If pianos are important then the only options IMO that are nice, lightweight, and in that price range used are really just the MX61, DS61, and Kross 2, with my preference going to the MX first, DS second, and Kross 2 third with regards to piano sounds. IMO of course.

[Gus Lozada]

On 4/10/2022 at 12:48 PM, El Lobo said:

I have a Casio S1 that I take to rehearsals. I also have a Casio PX-S3000 which is a much better keyboard. BUT - and it's a big BUT (pardon the phrase) - the internal speakers on both keyboards, and on the Roland Go, will not be adequate for live gigging, unless you're doing solo work. Even at max volume on these boards, once you add drums or bass or even just an electric guitar, you're going to need an external speaker with a lot more oomph just to be heard. I tried to use internal speakers on both my keyboards for low-to-medium volume blues and jazz band rehearsals and it just wasn't enough. 

Hola!

 

i just wanted -or still want- built in speakers to use it as I said, as an acoustic guitar which you can take out of its bag and make some music for you at the couch or a couple of friends, not for a real gig.

 

 

[RABid]

I wish Casio would release an updated version of the CT-X7000, without the speakers. It has the sound, features, price, and even a bank of sliders to use a organ drawbars.

[AnotherScott]

30 minutes ago, Gus Lozada said:

i am just trying to find the holly grial of under $500 usd keyboard, good enough for GIGGING. Good piano and general synth sounds with not so crappy keys.

 

Apparently, it does not exist. YET.

 

A number of people have suggested Casio CT-S1 and CT-S500. In what way do these not meet your criteria? (You can also use them to get sounds from iPad if/when needed). I suppose Yamaha PSR-E473 could be another possibility, but maybe a little unwieldy for couch use.

 

 

[DeltaJockey]

I'm just going to throw the Studiologic Numa Compact 2X in the mix. It's 88  keys, but it is light weight and does have very modest built in speakers. Semi weighted/aftertouch etc. The piano's are pretty good, and you can load extra patches on board.

It probably would run on a battery pack I suppose.

Maybe it's too long, but just thought I'd mention it 🙂

[Gus Lozada]

1 hour ago, AnotherScott said:

 

A number of people have suggested Casio CT-S1 and CT-S500. In what way do these not meet your criteria? (You can also use them to get sounds from iPad if/when needed). I suppose Yamaha PSR-E473 could be another possibility, but maybe a little unwieldy for couch use.

 

 

I swear to God I posted something saying the CASIO S500 could be the champ I am needing! 
 

Let me do some research and ask our friend @Mike Martin

[allan_evett]

13 hours ago, Gus Lozada said:

I swear to God I posted something saying the CASIO S500 could be the champ I am needing! 
 

Let me do some research and ask our friend @Mike Martin

 

 on the CT-S500.  I picked up a CT-S400 in early Dec, '21; either one would be a great tool for what you're seeking, Gus. Lots of sounds and flexibility, so I think a CT-S400/500 would easily cover the type of gigs you mentioned.

 

I like the improvements in the CT-S500, but will likely wait for a 73/76-key version of all this compact goodness to come out. The AIX pianos are strong enough that I've been able to cover rehearsal duties for piano-driven duo/trio accompanying; the other players are also impressed with the quality and variety of sounds in the CT-S400. But I'm also covering bass lines for the project, so having a 76-key range would be very helpful. At that point, I could see a CT-S... easily covering local open mics and smaller-stage gigs.

[pjd]

I've played the Casio CT-S1000V at 5 or 6 church gigs and I'm satisfied. The CT-S500 has the same basic sounds ("tones") as the S1000V, can be battery powered, in-built speakers, etc. I would recommend the S500 over the S1 simply to have the ability to edit sounds and store them.

 

I put together about 20 or so patches suitable for the contemporary church music that we play. Available for download: http://sandsoftwaresound.net/casio-ct-s1000v-free-registration-banks/

 

The speakers are good enough for a small room. They are handy -- the floor monitors at our church are temporarily kaput and the built-in speakers are just enough to hear myself. The acoustic piano still wins the volume game on stage, but the speakers are better than  no feedback at all. (If I hear myself in the main PA, I'm probably too loud in the main mix.)

 

One gotcha about batteries. I played a service without realizing that the power strip was off. Got a low battery indicator near the end of the job. Almost a disaster. 🙂

 

Hope this helps -- pj

 

[AnotherScott]

The nice thing about the CT-S1 over the CT-S500 is that it has all those buttons direct instant sound access. Maybe attaching a smartphone with an app that sends out Program Changes would do the trick, though, Especially if it could send those patches via bluetooth so you don't have to bother wiring it up.

[ImproKeys]

On 4/12/2022 at 1:16 AM, Gus Lozada said:

It is very light regarding weight
but it is too large!!

Then a MX 61 should do the job. Here in Germany you get it used under 500 €.

[RandyFF]

Casio CT-S500 vs CT-X5000 ($479)

 

Wanted to mention the Casio CT-X5000.  It doesn’t run off of batteries, but big deal, any of the ones that will will NOT have powerful speakers, and typically have very short run times on batteries.  The 30 watts really kick ass sound wise, even has a decent amount of bass.  The solution is getting one of the ever more affordable lithium ion batteries, even smaller ones around $100 putting out 150-200wh of battery power can easily handle this, and of course this opens up all kinds of battery operated capabilities: run your boards with the battery, run your sound thru the excellent battery powered amp like the JBL Eon One Compact.

 

I have been really surprised and pleased with how much I like the sounds on the CT-X5000, definitely giggable for a B rig.  It does weigh 15 pounds though, and it’s a deep board, 15” compared to 10” for the CT-S500.

 

I was equally surprised when I briefly had another board in their CT-X range, the CT-X700, their least expensive, under $200 board.  Same quality of sounds, which finally made cheapie boards a viable option as a backup board for gigging (I’ve had quite a few under $500 boards over the years, none of them came close to having sounds this good).  Equally surprising, the mere 5 watts total of speaker power sounded really good- which is what gives me confidence that these other, newer low-powered (5 watts) Casio boards will also sound really good considering the price/weight/battery power/etc.  Just don’t buy the CT-S200/300, their 5 watts of power sound atrocious.

 

If I was making this purchase again I’d be really torn between the CT-X5000, and the CT-S500.  The smaller form factor of the CT-S500 both for the weight and depth of the board is sweet, and it looks like they’ve simplified operations so you have far far fewer buttons but added 2 real time knobs.  The plus of the X5000 is having registration bank buttons, direct style/sound buttons, a key pad, and many etceteras, but it comes at the expense of having a convoluted editing system and the extra size and weight.  The speakers however are a real knockout, they do a terrific job.

 

Can’t speak to keybed quality though.  I have a terrific time with the X5000, it’s a really fun board, but also playing my ES920 weighted action makes this action feel unsubstantial (of course, but…).   Casio has really upped their game in the last few years for their sound quality, desirable features (expression pedal jack, BT, USB MIDI, etc), and speaker quality, but unless they’ve improved their action in the S500, it’s still a C list action.

 

As to any board having the speaker quality and volume to carry off quieter gigs, I’d say the gold standard is the Korg Pa1000- what a board, what a sound!