D. Gauss Posted June 28 Share Posted June 28 Casio, always a bridesmaid... again with the micro usb jack instead of usb-c? Oy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnotherScott Posted June 28 Author Share Posted June 28 58 minutes ago, D. Gauss said: Casio, always a bridesmaid... again with the micro usb jack instead of usb-c? Oy. It's presumably the same exact electronics in a bigger chassis with more keys. Quote Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stoken6 Posted June 28 Share Posted June 28 3 hours ago, AnotherScott said: If only it had 1/4" outs and 5-pin MIDI... I'm not expecting it, but a 76 version of the CT-S500 would be pretty nice. +1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Martin Posted July 12 Share Posted July 12 On 6/28/2024 at 3:43 PM, AnotherScott said: It's presumably the same exact electronics in a bigger chassis with more keys. It does have more powerful speakers, app support. Still runs on batteries - in this case 8 AA. Does not have the guitar strap pins. Quote -Mike Martin Casio Mike Martin Photography Instagram Facebook The Big Picture Photography Forum on Music Player Network The opinions I post here are my own and do not represent the company I work for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunspot Posted July 12 Share Posted July 12 On 6/28/2024 at 12:51 PM, AnotherScott said: If only it had 1/4" outs and 5-pin MIDI... I would NEVER even consider a keyboard that didn't have these. For a large manufacturer, we are talking about $5 tops of components here. So charge $5 more then. Casio obviously doesn't get it, and dropped the ball on these designs, and that's too bad. Are you looking for legitimate keyboard players to buy your products? Yeah it's A.D. 2024, but guess what, we're still plugging into old vintage stuff that only has 5-pin MIDI. I'm not interested in using a laptop to connect A to B. And 1/8"/3.5mm jacks are dog sh*t, basically. Signed, OG Casio CZ-1 owner Quote The Players: OB-X8, Numa Compact 2X, Kawai K5000S, cheap Korean guitars/basses, Roland TD-1KV e-drums. Eurorack/Banana modular, Synth/FX DIY. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reezekeys Posted July 12 Share Posted July 12 17 minutes ago, sunspot said: On 6/28/2024 at 1:51 PM, AnotherScott said: If only it had 1/4" outs and 5-pin MIDI... I would NEVER even consider a keyboard that didn't have these. Seems to me the target market for these lower-priced boards are not old folks wanting to play or control 5-pin gear. Most of these keyboards wouldn't do that great a job with that anyway, as they lack the physical controls common on more expensive boards and full-fledged controllers. I just bought a Liano and knew exactly what I was getting into - no 5-pin, 1/8" output and not exactly top-shelf sounds either. Also no mod wheel, pitch bend, expression pedal jack, or even a single midi-assignable control. I would have traded the onboard sounds for some controls, but Korg is not in business to make what an old guy like me wants. I know I have to roll with it and it's OK. BTW I've been using 1/8" dog shit plugs since I started with laptops (now laptops and i-devices) 18 years ago. I don't get the hate - they're exactly the same as 1/4" plugs, just smaller! So I need adapter cables to hook up, not any kind of deal-breaker for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunspot Posted July 12 Share Posted July 12 42 minutes ago, Reezekeys said: Seems to me the target market for these lower-priced boards are not old folks wanting to play or control 5-pin gear. Most of these keyboards wouldn't do that great a job with that anyway, as they lack the physical controls common on more expensive boards and full-fledged controllers. I just bought a Liano and knew exactly what I was getting into - no 5-pin, 1/8" output and not exactly top-shelf sounds either. Also no mod wheel, pitch bend, expression pedal jack, or even a single midi-assignable control. I would have traded the onboard sounds for some controls, but Korg is not in business to make what an old guy like me wants. I know I have to roll with it and it's OK. BTW I've been using 1/8" dog shit plugs since I started with laptops (now laptops and i-devices) 18 years ago. I don't get the hate - they're exactly the same as 1/4" plugs, just smaller! So I need adapter cables to hook up, not any kind of deal-breaker for me. If Casio's target market is not for legit keyboard players, then I'm out. Once upon a time, in the not too distant past, Casio catered SOME of its wares toward real keyboard players, as well as the non-musician consumer market. I guess those days are gone forever, over a long time ago...(Steely Dan reference +50 bonus points!!) Korg SHOULD be in the business to give you what you want, as you are a REAL keyboard player!! Korg is NOT Casio and is not trying to sell sh*t to curious non-musicians. I am glad you have had good luck with the 1/8" jack/plug system over the years, as I have had a hate/hate relationship with them. Their mechanical and electrical conductivity properties and robustness are piss poor compared to 1/4". I've had so many 1/8" jacks and plugs die on me that I've lost count. I had a conversation with Paul Schreiber of modular MOTM fame many years ago and he advised me to stay away from them when I can... That being said, I'm fully immersed in the Eurorack universe at this point so I'm SOL lol. I'm just trying to minimize my heartburn best I can. Quote The Players: OB-X8, Numa Compact 2X, Kawai K5000S, cheap Korean guitars/basses, Roland TD-1KV e-drums. Eurorack/Banana modular, Synth/FX DIY. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reezekeys Posted July 12 Share Posted July 12 3 hours ago, sunspot said: If Casio's target market is not for legit keyboard players, then I'm out. Once upon a time, in the not too distant past, Casio catered SOME of its wares toward real keyboard players, as well as the non-musician consumer market. I guess those days are gone forever, Yes, maybe those days are gone. Bean counters exist at every company and I can't say I'm surprised that 5-pin midi is disappearing from some boards. I have no idea which Casios still have it, or which ones use 1/4" jacks but I'm guessing this is a trend that's not unique to Casio. Since I've been using a laptop and an iPad & iPhone for many years, this doesn't bother me, but I understand your frustration if you have older gear you want to hook up. You're talking to someone that used to have a Yamaha MJC-8 (8x8 midi patch bay) connecting a slew of keyboards, modules, and efx units. I can do most of what I did with all that stuff on my iPhone now, and imo it sounds better too! Anyway - is this really a problem for you? Aren't there plenty of other keyboards with 5-pin midi and 1/4" outputs? Or is it a problem because you prefer the sound or features of the Casios and wish for one, only to have those negatives be a deal-breaker? 3 hours ago, sunspot said: I am glad you have had good luck with the 1/8" jack/plug system over the years, as I have had a hate/hate relationship with them. Their mechanical and electrical conductivity properties and robustness are piss poor compared to 1/4". I've had so many 1/8" jacks and plugs die on me that I've lost count. In the last 18 years of using laptops & i-devices, I honestly cannot remember one issue that was specific to the 1/8" jack or plug other than an occasional cable going bad - usually because it got stepped on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunspot Posted July 12 Share Posted July 12 1 hour ago, Reezekeys said: You're talking to someone that used to have a Yamaha MJC-8 (8x8 midi patch bay) connecting a slew of keyboards, modules, and efx units. Anyway - is this really a problem for you? Aren't there plenty of other keyboards with 5-pin midi and 1/4" outputs? Or is it a problem because you prefer the sound or features of the Casios and wish for one, only to have those negatives be a deal-breaker? In the last 18 years of using laptops & i-devices, I honestly cannot remember one issue that was specific to the 1/8" jack or plug other than an occasional cable going bad - usually because it got stepped on! Yessir, the OG MIDI patchbays are a necessity in my studio rig for an old codger like me with old gear. We seem to be on a disconnect here - that doesn't mean I would ever try to perform a gig with such a setup. My last gig was with a Numa Compact 2x and a Novation Remote 61SL/iPad and it worked out great. It isn't a problem for me personally as Casio clearly does not want my business/$$$. So good luck to them. Quote The Players: OB-X8, Numa Compact 2X, Kawai K5000S, cheap Korean guitars/basses, Roland TD-1KV e-drums. Eurorack/Banana modular, Synth/FX DIY. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunspot Posted July 13 Share Posted July 13 And again I will reiterate....you lost a customer over $5 of parts/components. You do you. Quote The Players: OB-X8, Numa Compact 2X, Kawai K5000S, cheap Korean guitars/basses, Roland TD-1KV e-drums. Eurorack/Banana modular, Synth/FX DIY. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Piano Man Posted July 13 Share Posted July 13 On 6/25/2024 at 6:05 PM, Paul Woodward said: Thanks for the detailed info. It was just curiosity really as @The Piano Man has both the GS and Liano, so could tell how similar the Italian pianos are. Liano was never on my radar, but I bought the Keystage mainly for its Poly AT and iPad integration (bit of an impulse buy). The Midi 2.0 has hardly been explored, nor does much in my arsenal respond to Poly AT, so this has the full range of keys, is lightweight, and has the iPad integration for what is peanuts (on my local marketplace). Sorry for the delay! Ultimately, you get what you pay for but the Liano sample is good. It sounds very similar to the “Italy Piano” on the XE20. Could well be the same sample, presumably a smaller file version of the Grandstage Italian. I certainly prefer it to the Yamaha NP32 which I will now sell. I can live with the Liano’s limitations. I pack a couple of 3.5mm to 6.3 cables including a Y cable and I have a small usb box that allows me to connect 5 pin midi gear. The Y cable allows me to connect it to a stereo DI or even directly to a pair of EV ZXa1. Amazing how good that sounds. To get a lightweight 88 key piano with that quality of piano sample for that price is brilliant. 1 Quote Kurzweil PC3x Technics SX-P50 Korg X3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reezekeys Posted July 13 Share Posted July 13 I like my Liano a lot and will probably be doing a video review all about its "quirks and features." Piano sounds are of course very subjective, but when I got the Liano it was for the purpose of having a super-lightweight 88-key board I could attach to my iPad and use my current piano of choice, an older Native Instruments model ("New York"). I used Logic's autosampler plugin to turn that into a Logic sampler instrument and imported it into the AudioLayer app on my iPad. I've done a lot of a/b-ing . To me it's no contest. To be clear, I'm not here to slag the stock piano, but one needs to be realistic; this is a $350 keyboard. You're probably not using its onboard sounds to lay tracks down for your studio-produced masterpiece; you're using it to go out and do gigs - at least that's my use case. Korg aims this board at the beginner market which I can understand - it's not a big financial commitment. For me it was about the weight and size. This keyboard fits in the back seat of my Toyota Corolla, it's effortless to carry, and attached to my iPad has a piano sound that has me smiling when I play a gig. This is already too long, but I can go into more detail for anyone interested in my subjective opinions of what makes for a good piano sound on a gig vs a recording - that's the crux, to me. The Liano piano sounds pretty good on the u-tubes, and would definitely get you through a gig without fuss. You might even love it if you're not used to playing deep-sampled pianos on laptops or >$2000 stage pianos. What made it worthwhile to me (other than the size and weight) was its iPad integration via its full USB midi and audio implementation. That means you have a choice of pianos if the onboard one doesn't ring your bell: Ravenscroft, Pianoteq, Ivory, Colossus, etc. Without that USB jack, this wouldn't have been on my radar at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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