Inevitably, styles changed, and the mini-keyboard was relegated to Best Buys, Radio Shacks, and the bedrooms of nine-year-olds. However, five years ago, Casio introduced a line of portable, weighted-action keyboards that set a new standard for affordable digital pianos. These were real musical instruments, they had built-in speakers so you could enjoy them anywhere, and they cost quite a bit less than you thought possible. So when Casio shipped me their brand new PX-320, the current flagship of the Privia line, my expectations were high.
OVERVIEW
I can humbly assert that if you enjoy playing the piano, you will get a tremendous blast out of the PX-320. The bottom line here is that Casio has managed to capture that elusive combination of touch and sampling that says, “Play me!” to your fingers. There are keyboards out there for twice the price that don’t get the ergonomics of keyboard delight down as well as this axe does. In fact, if that’s all you need to make you happy, you can pick up the PX-320’s little brother — the PX-120 — for a mere five hundred bucks. I’d strongly urge you to pop for the PX-320, though. You get a lot of musicmaking here for the extra two bills.
For starters: The PX-320 packs 202 sounds with a sufficiently giggable array of acoustic and electric pianos, rock and jazz organs, mallets, drums, and the complete General MIDI palette of orchestral, band, and world instruments and cartoon-like special effects. There’s also the de riguer little drum machine, featuring 70 preset patterns, each with its own assortment of fills, the two-track sequencer, the USB MIDI implementation, and a couple of things that Casio didn’t have to include — such as line inputs for a mic or guitar — that make you wonder, “Why doesn’t everybody do this?”
SOUNDS
I monitored the PX-320 in the studio through Tannoy Reveal and TOA 280ME monitors as well as the internal speakers. Later, I played jazz gigs on it through Barbetta 41C and an older Gallien-Krueger keyboard amp. In all cases, the primary piano sound was musical and pleasing across the entire 88-key range. When I A/B’ed it with Synthogy’s Ivory (yes, this is grossly unfair, but wait and see what I discovered) it sounded slightly compressed and bottom-heavy, but I found this artificial boost made the piano sound robust and authentic coming through the onboard speakers and my combo amps. I heard someone else playing the PX-320 from another room, and it sounded like an excellent recording of a live performance.
There’s a Rhodes-like stage piano, a Dyno-My-Piano bell-like patch, and a Wurly that sits up and spits when you spank it. The Rotary Rock organs would cover nicely for an eight-bar solo or work all night in a honky-tonk, while the Jazz Organ will cover you when you feel like Jimmy Smith-ing. Okay, it doesn’t make you sound like Jimmy Smith, but it’s a successful attempt at imitating a jazz organ, and will cover you when you feel like blowing on “Oleo.” In addition, the whole General MIDI offering is way better in execution than you’d normally expect from a digital piano at this price. The vibes, basses, distortion guitar — pretty much everything is a reliable but not stellar sound for the standard cover band gig. Does the soprano sax sound real? Not quite. Do the castanets sound like castanets? No. Do you care? Hell, no. You’ve got more here than you paid for. Keep moving.
IN USE
Even after just a week, I’d feel comfortable taking the PX-320 on just about any gig where I need a keyboard that sounds and acts like a piano or EP; those sounds came through loud and clear when amped, and I think I may even have played better after hauling a 26-pound stage piano instead of one in the more common weight range of 45 pounds or more.
Yes, I was aware of the aforementioned scrapey keys on the gig (see “Gimme Some Action” above), and I’m hoping that Casio will smooth those out in future iterations. The only other area that was a little cumbersome was splitting the keyboard to kick bass. It’s fine if you’re just using one bass sound, such as an acoustic for jazz. But should you need to alternate with an electric, you’re facing a multi-step procedure, which means you can’t swap bass sounds mid-song. On the positive side, something I noticed on the gig is that the piano sound, unlike that on many performance keyboards, sustains for a good long time.
CONCLUSIONS
In the two weeks I’ve had the Casio Privia PX-320, I’ve recommended it to two pro colleagues, two friends who aren’t pros, and a family member. The PX-320’s plethora of features, portability, price point, and sheer musicality make it an absolute must-see if you’re shopping for an instrument that’s equally suited to home use and gigging. Heck, even if you’re not.
GIMME SOME ACTION
The 88 scaled, hammer-action keys feel a tad sluggish until you actually turn the instrument on. Then they become . . . delightful. There’s more springy resistance than you’d get from an acoustic piano’s keyboard, but the marriage between the keys and the piano multisamples is elegant and irresistible. No, it won’t turn you into Glenn Gould overnight (and if the touch were a bit lighter it would repeat faster), but the net effect encourages precise and energetic playing. One unusual feature of the piano velocity maps is that when you depress a key very slowly it triggers no sound at all — that’s refreshingly like a real piano. One gripe: The side edges of the white keys are a bit sharp and scrape your fingers when you really dig in. Bach’s Two-Part Inventions? You’re fine. Block chords with lots of tenths in the left hand? You’re going to notice it.
CLAIM CHECK
Casio marketing manager Michael Pepe says, “Casio’s flagship digital piano line, Privia, is celebrating its fifth anniversary. The newest addition, the PX-320, was designed with the feel and sound of an acoustic piano, but is lightweight and portable, weighing in at under 30 pounds. The PX-320 fits any lifestyle group — urban, suburban, garage band, stage, or studio — and is both flexible enough for the beginner and dynamic enough for the aspiring musician.
“The PX-320 has excellent features including the new technology of an AIF sound chip with 128-note polyphony, 88 graded, weighted, hammer-action keys to give you the feel of an acoustic piano, line inputs and outputs for connections to amps and studio equipment, and a USB port for easy connection to a PC. The main competition for the PX-320 is the Yamaha P Series.
“Beginners or aspiring musicians will find the PX-320 offers flexibility, portability and sounds you’ll love!”
FOUR COOL THINGS WE NEVER EXPECTED FROM AN UNDER-$1K KEYBOARD
- Audio inputs that let you run a mic or guitar through the piano’s internal amp and speakers — great for spontaneous jams.
- Acoustic Resonance on the acoustic piano presets. This makes the damper pedal sound real; you can even stomp the pedal right after you release the keys and “catch” the decay, just like on a real piano.
- Casio put in two headphone jacks, which is ideal for late-night writing sessions in apartments, or for student and teacher to use headphones at the same time.
- Casio included the sheet music (60 classical and ragtime hits) for the internal demo songs.