Portable Keyboard Review | 76-Key Casio WK-200

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Review of Casio Model WK-200 | 76-Key Portable Keyboard

View Keyboard at Casio's Site

Review Summary:

Overall, this is an excellent keyboard for the price. Beginner pianists can take advantage of its built-in exercises, which can help build a relationship the piano keyboard layout; while more experienced players will find the 76 touch-sensitive keys useful when playing a piece of music with a broad range.

Features:

Keys: 76
Polyphony: 48-note; 24 for some voices
Touch Sensitivity: 2 velocity settings, or off
Reverb/Chorus: 10 reverb settings; 5 chorus
Metronome: Yes; 30-255 BPM
Available Colors: Silver

Price: $180-$230

Pros:

Includes 570 voices!
Has 180 built-in rhythms
Can be connected to external pedals
Can record up to 6 songs (12,000 notes) and 10 rhythms
Lightweight at 15.9 lbs.

Cons:

AC power supply not included (see Accessories, below)
No sustain pedal included
LCD screen is difficult to read on an angle, and the orange backlight provides little contrast.

Keys & “Action”:

My only real qualm with the feel of the keyboard on this model is that the keys are extremely sensitive compared to other musical keyboards – even after adjusting the touch response*. For someone used to playing on a real piano, this will certainly be an annoyance. But, I can say that the keys are not too slippery, which is something I consider to be a bothersome flaw.

* The touch-sensitivity on th WK-200 is dependent on how quickly a note is pressed, and not only how hard you touch the key – a method I find to be confusing for ear-hand coordination, and one that may hinder the development of more refined dynamic techniques on the piano.

Dual-layering (configuring the keyboard so that one key can sound two tones simultaneously) is supported, as is splitting (having two different tones on either end of the keyboard); the exact split point may be customized.

Transposition from -12 to +12.

Voices:

Included are 570 voices! What's more, this model allows you to record custom sounds onto the keyboard with a mic, and modify them with a variety of effects such as looping and pitch alterations.

Available tones include:

20 Acoustic pianos
25 Electric pianos
40 Organs, pipe, jazz & more
60 Guitars, 30 treble and 30 bass
Strings & orchestra
Synthesizers

… and a lot more.

Pedal Functions:

A single-pedal unit (not included; see Accessories, below) can be programmed to produce the effects of the damper, sostenuto, or soft pedals; or it may be used to activate a background rhythm.

Preset Songs:

The WK-200 comes with 102 preset songs (including mostly traditional and folk tunes, some Christmas songs, and a fair amount of classical piano movements) along with 180 rhythms for accompaniment. There are an additional 50 exercises divided into three playing-levels which are used to test your progress as a pianist.

Up to 10 of your own personalized rhythms, or 6 melodic songs may also be recorded and stored; Casio defines this recording space as equal to a total 12,000 notes.

Keyboard Speakers & Quality:

The two integrated 2.5W “stereo” speakers produced a pretty impressive sound for their size and wattage, even holding up quite nicely in the bass notes at higher volumes. Should you require more decibels, an external amplifier may be connected.

Included Accessories:

Package includes:

Free song book
Music rest

AC adapter not usually included; ask your retailer. Casio recommends 9V power adapter model # AD-5. Keyboard may also be powered up to five hours with 6 D batteries.

Inputs:

? 1/4" headphone/audio OUT jack
? 1/8" audio IN
? 1/4" mic IN
? USB (cable not included)
? Sustain pedal input, 1/4"