Casio Continues to Release Flawed Products: PX-S3100 & PX-S1100 

Thanks again for this 2nd out ethics review. Bought the first one for my nephew after seeing their ad of it. You're much appreciated. Excited about the Kawai 110, and thanks for that review as well. Cheers.

Casio and Steinway want to know your location.

Just did the gram test on my Yamaha P515. Neighboring white and black keys have nearly the same weight, though the weights are somewhat different between the low end and the high end of the keyboard, which is how it is supposed to be.

Hey James, really appreciate this info. Out of curiosity, did you test the gram weight at both ends of the black keys (i.e. front and back)? I ask because these piano models both have very short keystick lengths (which is necessitated by the very compact design), meaning there will be a much greater variation in the amount of force needed to depress the key at the front of the key versus at the back of the key than with a larger/deeper digital piano with longer keysticks. I could imagine Casio weighting the keys so that they're playable at the back of the keys, which might make the keys extra light at the front. This variation would also be more dramatic on the shorter black keys than on the longer white keys, which would also explain why the black keys are lighter at the tip than the white keys. If this is the case, it seems the issue likely can't be solved by revamping the action; it could be an issue fundamental to the compact size of the keyboard which limits the length of the keysticks. The keyboard itself might just need to be deeper to accommodate longer keys. Would be very interested to hear your thoughts on this, thanks!

I'm curious about the new Casio Privia PX-S7000. Would love to see you break that one down and see what actual improvements they've made, if any, and if they fixed the weighted hammer action issues.

Thanks for letting us know about this!

Would cost too much to re-engineer this compromised action now, they'll want to get a few refreshes out of it before redesigning the chassis. It's a shame cause their older action in the PX-150/160 etc was pretty good for the price.

Their point could have been debated in a totally different approach. I don't see any issues in your testing method which is most suited for full fledge pianos. What I see flawed on Casio's part are: 1. Unfettered market communication content that, as usual, beefs up with brilliant words like "uncompromising" in an otherwise a product that HAS to make a compromise to yield to a better portability/form factor. And 2. The lack of properly designed social media counter-campaigns guidelines, which results in the poor way of managing to reply to your feedback on the proposed key weight "flaw". Keep up the good work, James!

I wonder if this same flaw exists in the CDP-S100 and its big brother, the CDP-S350. While it doesn’t have Casio’s Smart Scaled Hammer Action, it does have what they call a scaled hammer action.

What about the PX S5000/6000/7000? They fixed that issue?

Those were marketing guys put on the spot in a live broadcast. Doesn't surprise me at all as they were scrambling. What they should have just said was that some people like the feel or something like that and not disparage the weight test. Thanks, as always, for the great content.

I was going to buy the Px-S1100 cause I really like how it sounds and how it looks, but now I'm having second thoughts. I am an absolute beginner and I'm not willing to become a professional classical piano player. Do you think I should then go on and buy the PX-S1100, or should I go for the Roland FP-10, although it has a heavy action, quite not suitable for an absolute beginner like myself? Note that unfortunately, I can't try any of those two pianos where I live, so I have to rely solely on reviews and comments. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Wow seeing GN on here was almost the last thing I expected, but its kinda awesome! I liked the comparison of these two cases though, strange to see these similarities

An interesting comparison indeed. From experience, I know of a lot of manufacturers and retailers who respond in a similar disappointing manner to flawed, sometimes dangerous products. One is a UK electric bike retailer who not only denied the existence of a problem affecting virtually every eBike they sold, but actually threatened lawsuits against customers who complained about them breaking. Another in the audiophile headphone amp business flat-out denied a basic oversight in their circuitry capable of causing a surge and breaking expensive headphones. It's such a shame, as surely such errors can be turned into positive PR if companies actually embrace the problem and help customers. My 9 year old son is learning to play on the Yamaha P515, purchased on the back of one of your reviews. He would be thrilled for a shout-out and a word of encouragement! Keep up the great work.

Can you compare the PXS action with the older PX? I have the old PX160, and the weight of the black keys seems to be ok.

It’s quite disappointing to see other reviewers give this digital piano a full thumbs up despite its glaring flaws. I was about to purchase this product. Thanks for your honest reviews!

Hey! Which high end Digital Keyboard workstation would you recommend for studio that would also make a a great midi keyboard controller....The Viscount Legend seems amazing but not sure if it has Pitch Wheel, Modulation Wheel and maybe too much for a midi controller!

I'm not a musician, but, just from the considerations of leverage, it seems to me that if anything, the black keys should feel a little HEAVIER than the white keys because they're shorter!

Thanks! Ever made a test/review of a Fatar action, like TP 100 or TP 40? Would be interesting...

thank for your video, I was hoped that Casio will fix their problem, and I'm preparing to buy their new product if it was fixed, but after your video, I think I will buy the Yamaha P-515.

Hi James. Your channel seems to have gone a bit quiet lately, but do you have any plans to review the new Casio PX-S7000/PX-S6000? There are a couple out already, but despite being from people I usually respect, they seem rather more gushing than I would expect from an objective review..

Hi James, Thank you for your review. I am a beginner and I'm learning on Casio's CDP-S150. Is this true for the CDP series as well? I would think so as the CDP is a more basic line of pianos. I was thinking about later purchasing one of their Celviano pianos, but I don't know now if I will run into this same issue.

Gday from Melbourne just wanted to know if you did the ounce test to other digital pianos etc…? Like did you get similar bad results in other brands?

Unrelated to the content of the video, I like the way you are styling your hair in this one, rock on dude!

Some days I ponder which of your personal qualities that I admire most.. Often it's musical talent, often intelligence, sometimes sense of humor. Today it is definitely autthenticity. Thanks so much for your always honest and interesting reviews.

So Kawai digital Piano is worth getting? Has excellent MIDI out for Music Programs to make music like Ableton Live? Which model is worth getting?

I had been seriously thinking of buying the 1000 or 3000 but may look elsewhere now...can you tell me though James have you tried this same test on Casio's main competition at a similar price range..and if so who comes out on top?

Please review the newest Casio Privia PX S7000, 6000 and 5000 series. They have redone the keys/action. We’d like your opinion on whether they fixed the action on these brand new higher end versions.

Do you have a suggestion for a piano in a similar price range but with a better keybed?

Hello, glad to see that you are not influenced by sponsorships! Since Casio is on the spot, i am looking for months for a lightweight small piano to carry around when i travel to exercise and sing for fun. Nothing caught my eye until Casio released Casio CT-S1 little piano. This seems that it is the product which i am looking for, lightweight, simple and sounding beautiful (even if the action is not weighted). BUT, it seems that Casio payed/sponsored every person on youtube who reviewed this little piano. This seems too aggressive for me even for marketing purposes. I was wandering if you would do a review on Casio CT-S1 (and maybe comparison with Roland Go Piano). Thank You! I appreciate your Chanel.

James, you took apart one of these keyboards last year to see exactly what was in it. I have a PX-S3000, and it's not a great piano, but it is acceptable as a MIDI controller. Is it possible for a home user to fix the weighting of the black keys, to match the weighting of the white keys?

Very interesting to see Casio, a prominent company for digital pianos, take this route.

Great to know!

Can you give opinion on cdp s series? it's been out for a while

I’m try to find if this issue is affecting old PX-160 also 🤔

I can hardly wait for their rebuttal.

Já passou da hora de a Casio substituir com um novo arranjador para o mzx500! Tem alguma informação sobre isso?

Not good Casio, not good😬

What are your thoughts on privia px 870?

If Casio and Roland were my only options in this price range i'd rather choose Roland🎹🎶

I can see both sides. Mentioning names can be or get messy. I kinda see them catering to a certain type of gigging musician or student. But I get your point about it not being good for the student or serious musician.

When it comes to watches Casio is my go-to. If it’s about pianos I stay away lol

Your review of the previous model is absolute on point, I don’t think weighting is needed. You felt the difference in volume on a simple A chord and my friend, nothing beats playing. Casio is just whittles and bells and a money grab company, once their products are out they simply refuse to listen or even provide basic firmware updates.

Do you think PX870 is a good model? If is not, Can you recommend a piano for 1200 dollar?

can you do a gram weight test comparing different pianos in the same price range to show if the casio action is indeed an outlier?

Indeed I never played a piano, acoustic or digital, in which the black keys were lighter. If anything, in a baby grand piano, the black keys will be slightly heavier, because the balancing point on the key bed is shorter.

Hi, I need your impartial help, dry! Unfortunately I don't have much money to spend: it took me 2 years to put together 700 euros for the purchase of a digital piano ... I was almost decided on a Casio px s1000: many give excellent reviews, even comparing it to other digital pianos, but it is also true that they are paid to speak well! ;-) This article of yours struck me and made me doubt about the purchase ... So my PRINCE QUESTION for you is this: With my available amount, which digital piano would you recommend? I recommend .... IMPARTIAL, DRY ANSWER. Thanks, Roberto.

Get the guns James. They're coming.

Who will be surprised if Casio calls upon Robert Estrin again to do a positive review that will counter this one?! ;)

Looking forward to your review of Casio CT-X700 or CT-X3000

What about studio logic numa 2 or 2x

Thank you for your thorough review!

ThePianoforever: I could go into the encounter I had with Mike Martin and Casio, but I will just say, You don't have to convince me what Mike is doing here. He blames everyone but Casio....He doesn't want to hear about problems. If you say anything negative about Casio, He will blame YOU. My encounter was long before your test and before the S3000. The good news about it, because of Mike Martin I left Casio for good.

i wonder if privia px-770 had the same issue?

What do you think about the PX 870? I am thinking About buying one, I like the small size and the price.

I totally agree with you. I did not understand why the PX-1000 and PX-3000 had received good press during their presentation at NAMM3, indeed when I was able to try them, I said to myself, but what is this crap? The piano sound very blah, the same for the touch, we do not know where we are in the interface and this very bad headphone output. Berk ... Frankly, Casio should have stayed on the PX-5S model by improving certain points such as keyboard noise which deserved to be reduced, more quality acoustic sounds and better overall ergonomics. When I see a Roland Juno DS-88 which is fantastic in its possibilities, I think to myself why buy a Casio?

Thanks for the video, very interesting. In your opinion, what is the best stage piano with the best Hammer Action Keyboard under 1,000 euros?

Ahahah gotta love that honesty man, really do appreciated that, thank you

After watching this video I’m definitely not going to buy a Casio keyboard 🎹 as my first !!

Thank you for pointing me to gamers nexus. Because I am into old computers I follow a lot info but missed this one. So thank you. About Casio. I don’t understand there method. When you shared the first video about this issue they had the change to do the right thing. Say you made a mistake and corrected it. They didn’t. They decided to make fun out of you. Stupid. Then you posted a video as a reaction. Second time around. Again missed a opportunity. And now this. Sorry but they’re not smart. They could have used this in there own benefit. By the way I know that the action isn’t playable and not only because of what you said. I tried it in the shop and it doesn’t work…. At all… so, let’s see what they say this time. Thank you for sharing.

Have you tested other digital pianos from Yamaha,Roland,ect with weights and what results did you get.

I just tried a Casio PX-S1000 in Guitar Center out of curiosity. And I can confirm that the black keys are lighter. :( Sad that Casio has not addressed this flaw properly with their new upcoming models (1100, 3100). This shows the company has no integrity at all and is just all about the bottom line. Great review, James. Keep doing what you’re doing.

IIRC, a Casio exec sent you some nasty mail about a prior review?

OMG! I didn't know you were a Tech Nerd (when you went into details on the whole Gigabyte power supply issue)! I had to Subscribe to you because of that. Lol.

Your integrity is refreshing in a world of shills.

Haven't changed a piano keyboard since buying my Yamaha P515. It is so satisfying I just haven't needed to upgrade. Originally tried out Casio and decided Yamaha is much more superior in quality. This just confirms my judgement. Love your reviews. Learn so much.

What a great review and comparison, Gigabyte makes great motherboards the rest is questionable or even possibly explosive. Nope, no thanks... I use other brands in my PC builds currently and I like my Macs as well, sturdy lightweight and fast. I still enjoy my Yamaha P-515 digital piano as you gave a fantastic review on some time back. Thank you :-)

I’d love to see you comparing headphones for digital pianos. Anybody else wondering what headphones James loves for his digital piano?

James, what you are really saying is that they are misadvertising their product. It is not a flaw, it is by design!

James, I just want to thank you for showing me to stay away from Casio. I’ve been looking for a new keyboard and I might have looked at Casio if not for you!

Great video James. I just finished building a PC and needing to avoid this issue I went with a thermaltake PSU and ASUS mobo. Couldn’t bear to support Gigabyte after using them for my last build. Good callout of Casio!

does anyone ever remark on how much you look like Hugo Weaving hahaha i love your reviews by the way

I actually owned a PXS 3000,and had it for about a week. (Bought it online without trying it) The clean glossy look is surely beautiful and the action and sounds are not too bad for this price range (on a PA systen) but the pedal noise often gave double and triple noises. ANNOYING!!! Not sure it was only this very instrument,but it was a dealbreaker to me to get rid of it ASAP. There are MANY other options in this price range that brings this piano to shame. Great video James! Love your detailed honesty vids.

I appreciate your honest reviews.. thank you!

I can see how some company would try to pull punches and throw shade when the methods of testing were awkwardly thrown together or scientifically inaccurate... but saying gram weights aren't an accurate method? Really, Casio? A method for testing and tuning the performance of a piano's key bed that has been around for hundreds of years longer than your company has existed? Absolutely asinine. Of all of the places I expected to see GN and Steve pop up, watching your content was... not one of those places. Great to see him referenced, though, as he does run an excellent channel. Which, by the way, so do you! Keep up the excellent content. As a comment on these pianos, from another (amateur) pianst... I agree the Casio action used in the PX-S1000/3000 does not feel that great to me. I'm even talking about putting the whole black/white key weighting thing to the side. The keys of that action just seem awkwardly bouncy to me. I prefer Roland/Yamaha/Kawai's actions over these Casios.

Casio marketing appears to be simply hoping that most of their audience don't understand elemental physics.

Casio furthers on prioritising marketing gimmicks over functionality and musical seriousness and integrity with this keyboard line. Hopefully this dubious approach won't become a spreading trend in the digital piano industry. It's also brazenly absurd, how they became aware of this obvious issue and continuously - basically - lie about it. Reminds me a bit of how they falsely labled their "celviano GP"-series as "hybrid pianos" to mislead people into thinking that it contains a real grand action in it like avantgrand or novus, while it's significantly cheaper. The instruments are still good in relation to px-series, but it is still not a legitimate strategy and consumers should keep criticising and boycotting this bs. Thank you, James, for making it effectively puplic

You're the only reviewer I trust

Please, review Kawai KDP 120!!!

Sin ver el vídeo puedo asegurar que se trata del peso de la teclas blancas y negras. Bueno, que se puede hacer. Casio nunca va aceptar su error, por el contrario, lo seguirá negando. Sin embargo pienso que un pianista experimentado es de las pocas personas que notarán está falla en el piano.

Thanks so much for the honest review! Too many fake reviews on youtube.

Casio make calculators. Their customer never complain about key weight inconsistency.

Amazing. You'd think Casio would've done the right thing with this issue by now. Instead they doubled down on these poorly made products. Very disappointing on Casio’s part. Thank you for all of the reviews you do. The level of detail is you go to is excellent.

Why not refer to the action as uneven?

The black keys being lighter than white keys is by design. I call it the 'You **** design' Hope people aren't paying much for that Casio keyboard.

James how dare you attack Casio products! Casio makes rugged electronics for the common man. Why, some people just leave Casio products in the shower because the water resistance is good and if it breaks who cares? They're so cheap it doesn't matter. Heck, some people buy F-91Ws just to blow them up. wait, what? this is about their pianos? Why the hell would you spend nine hundred bucks on something from the crappy watch company?! But seriously, thanks for being so thorough with your reviews. shocking they'd just rebadge and hope no one notices. I don't know why Casio doesn't just lean into their reputation and make a digital piano in the spirit of the G-Shock watch. A cheap piano with good action is what a ton of people want. A piano being water resistant or particularly rugged might be enough of a gimmick to convince people to buy it even if it's lacking in features. Casio has talented engineers, they should stop wasting them.

Casio is just a meme at this point

People are expecting this instrument to be perfect. Asking something which is beyond its price. If you want realistic, then buy a real one. There's nothing like the real one. You can buy other known brands which is most of the time you're just paying the brand name itself no innovation whatsoever

Casio has never been a musical instrument company, at least not for serious musicians. I appreciate your thoughts here, but this information doesn't surprise me. If you want a cheap watch, get a Casio: if you want a musical instrument, look elsewhere. Good job by you as always. Keep it up!

I was a complete novice about a year ago when I began my search for a keyboard. I knew I wanted 88 keys and was told to make sure they were weighted. Fine. I also live in a very small place so when the 1000 and 3000 showed up in the “Ten best keyboard” lists, I went with the 1000 because it was the smallest and lightest. Because the pieces a beginner works on are so simple it took me awhile to notice this keyboard has no dynamic range. It became frustrating trying to accent a phrase or just a note. But where this has really negatively affected my playing is the heavy handed hand technique I’ve developed to counteract the Casio Flaw. Wanting to correct this post haste I feasted on your board reviews which couldn’t have been more helpful. I decided on the 515. Guess what! You can’t get a mid- range keyboard to save your life because of the Covid related backups. It was very sad but I had little choice but to order the MP11SE!!! Heck, I’m old and I get my first social security check next month, so I’m living it up! Thank you for your highly informative reviews. You’re enthusiastic, articulate and delightful.

I have had gigabyte products before. They're of very low quality in my experience. It doesn't surprise me at all.

I am so glad that I bought a Yamaha p-121. It is perfect for me.

Wow, that's a very weird calculator right there, and expensive. :p

good information. Ive used a few casio products, most of them bad. Best one was a little take along battery powered keyboard with drums, some effects, lots of voices, great tool for jamming on the beach or where ever, plug it into an effects pedal and it was fun to play I forget the model but it was old For any student or anyone really on a budget a good used yamaha p45 or 115 is more than adequate, keys and weight feel good and consistent, I dont mind the roland go keys either, sound decent and its very portable and cost is fair

Please do not waste money on another casio.... bring something new maybe Kurzweil?

Casio will lose millions of dollars due to this guy. Hahhah

It's just Casio is a shitty company. Some credible guy already revealed their "factual" flaw, then they just went off launched an updated version ignoring their unadmitted mistake before. Shame.

James, there is a professional pianist with a family history of excellence in piano playing. He also sells pianos He has a RU-vid channel called Living Pianos. I rather enjoy the channel as his piano playing as he demonstrates the items he has for sale is outstanding -- there's no doubt about that! Shortly after your review came out last year, he also had a review of the px 1000 and had no problems with it. I was very disappointed in him for this. He had to know...

I won't buy another Casio after this.

I cant believe people try to defend this as well, I've heard people saying stuff like "The action is better than any other digital piano action I've ever felt", like okay Karen, you might think that, but that doesnt change the fact that the action is a complete detriment to muscle memory in practice and is overall just bad for learning and practice.