Casio PX-S1000 Digital Piano

Casio PX-S1000

While perhaps not known as a big player in the high-end market, Casio has been a dominant force in the entry-level digital piano market for quite some time, known for offering consumers a lot of bang for their buck, and arguably better value than similarly priced Yamaha options. The Casio Privia PX-S1000 digital piano is their latest entry to this part of the market.

The Privia digital pianos are known for offering a surprisingly realistic grand piano sound for the price point, and the PX-S1000 takes this a step further with a further refined, highly satisfying sound engine. Combined with a newly upgraded Smart Scaled Hammer Action Keyboard, equipped with ebony and ivory key textures, you can feel confident playing on an instrument with uncompromising piano touch regardless of what weather or climate conditions may dictate.

Casio really addressed modern design concerns here too – the PX-S1000’s control interface only lights up when the power button is pressed, leaving a sleek aesthetically pleasing appearance, another difference from the previous generation Privias.

Piano Action

The PX-S1000 features a brand new key action by Casio called the Smart Scaled Hammer Action Keyboard. Interestingly, this action features a double sensor action as opposed to the triple sensor found in other, older Privia pianos. With this in mind, Casio has likely intended this piano to be used by folks that might not have a ton of acoustic playing experience, or as a lightweight, highly portable, and versatile gigging or rehearsal instrument for those on the go.

The texture on the white keys is a definite improvement over previous entries in the Privia series and feels much closer to ivory. The weighting feels very good, and despite the downgrade to a double sensor, this is still a solid action with good playability.

Piano Sound/Connectivity

The Casio PX-S1000 uses Casio’s AiR tone generator, which is essentially a 4-velocity layer sample-based synthesis engine. It comes with 192 note polyphony, 16 watts of power running through a fairly powerful stereo speaker system, and the acoustic piano tone, in particular, is quite rich and complex. Casio has developed some really interesting technology with regards to reverbs and chorus effects which can be accessed via the on-board ‘Sound Mode’. This feature creates a surround sound-like experience, with both the onboard speakers and when playing with headphones. There are also four types of hall simulator options that created the perception of playing in different concert hall settings.

A potential drawback with the PX-S1000 is that in their attempt to streamline the control surface and create a highly aesthetic appearance, Casio has wound up with a system that relies on a bunch of different shortcut commands to access various sounds. This is a minor complaint, but it’s important to keep in mind that you’ll need to have the owner’s manual close by when you’re getting familiar with this instrument. This being said, Casio has developed the Chordana Play app which allows you to control the instrument remotely, and this is easily accessible via the instrument’s built-in Bluetooth capabilities.

There are 18 on-board sounds, such as electric piano, harpsichord, and vibraphone, which are all quite nice, but another notable observation, the various sound patches are not normalized to one another with regards to volume, so you may have to do some adjusting when switching between tones.

A really nice feature on the Casio PX-S1000 is the two ¼” stereo outputs, a huge plus for anyone looking to connect to an amplifier. A quirky decision Casio made here is that while the PX-S1000 features Bluetooth Audio lets you play along with your favorite songs, but it does not have Bluetooth MIDI. Usually, at this price point, the reserve is true, with Bluetooth Audio typically reserved for much more expensive instruments.

There is also a class-compliant USB port if you would like to transmit MIDI information.

Notable Features

There are of course quite a few notable features found within the PX-S1000, but something that really stands out is the option to avoid plugging the piano into a power source with the AC adapter and to instead run it on battery power. The PX-S1000 can run for approximately 4 hours on AA batteries, which is a potentially critical feature for some gigging musicians. It’s also worth mentioning that the slim design Casio has come up with here is definitely one of the most compact 88-note digital piano designs on the market along with the Roland FP10. Other notable features include;

• AiR Tone Generator with damper resonance and string resonance
• 18 onboard sounds
• 192 note polyphony
• Super modern top panel design with illuminated touch sensor controls
• Onboard 16W stereo amplifier with two stereo speakers
• Smart Scaled Hammer Action Keyboard
• Bluetooth Audio
• Compatibility with the free Chordana Play for Piano app for iOS/Android
• Weighs less than 25 lbs
• Two headphone jacks
• 2 ¼” audio outputs (R/L Mono)
• Metronome
• MIDI recorder
• Music rest
• Standard basic sustain pedal
• Optional SP-34 3-pedal unit add-on accessory

Conclusions

With a slick, modern appearance, the PX-S1000 is a worthwhile entry to Casio’s famed Privia line. While there are some other models at this price point that might have a better tone, or another that may feel a little bit better, the total package Casio is offering here may be just the ticket for you.