Casio Privia PX-S5 or Kurzweil PC3-LE8?

[anotherscott]

The keybed of the PX-5S is superior to the MOXF6, but if the MOXF6 does have a half-way decent feel to them I might well go with that model.

It's not a matter of better or worse, the actions are completely different, by design. It's kind of like comparing a motorcycle to an SUV. They'll both get you from point A to point B, but neither is better or worse than the other, it's a matter of what you need. The PX5S has a hammer-style weighted action, designed to feel like a piano. The MOXF6 is a light synth/organ style action, which most people find superior for those uses, but it's pretty bad for playing piano (as the PX5S action is pretty bad for playing organ). If your focus is on piano, you would compare the PX5S action to the MOXF8, not the MOXF6, because at least they are designed for the same purpose (and in that case, I'd say that the Casio has the better action). Personally, I think MOXF6 sounds much better than the PX5S overall, but if I were buying one of the two primarily for piano playing, I'd buy the PX5S.

And yes, the PX5S makes a great controller for additional, external sounds (from a rack unit, laptop, iPad/iPhone, or additional keyboard). So sure, you can improve the sounds you can get from the Casio, but there's nothing you can do about the action of the MOXF6. So if piano is a focus, as much as I like the MOXF, I think the Casio would be your better choice.

As for PC3LE vs. MOXF, the Kurz is still stronger in some areas, like clonewheel organ and VA synth, MIDI controller functionality, aftertouch. I also prefer the EPs on the Kurz, and maybe the strings. OTOH, for most sounds, I prefer the MOXF to the Kurz, and you can load more sounds into the MOXF via a flash card. It's also a lot easier to carry around.

 

[Rockinroller]

I shared a similar consideration recently although mine was between the Kurzweil Artis 7 and the Casio PX5s. I actually leaned toward the Casio and in fact ordered one on Overstock.com over the weekend after they featured a sale at 15% off the commonly advertised price with free shipping. I ended up getting buyer's remorse, and cancelled a day later. I just can't wrap myself around buying a "Casio", regardless of its advantages price-wise, plus in delivering a very powerful keyboard at a reasonably competitive price (at least for what you get). I already own Kurz's PC3 and Hammond's SK1-73. Those have been my two gigging boards. I play in a classic rock tribute band. Size and weight are considerations for me, however, which partially drove my decision to consider the Casio. Plus both my gigging boards have less than 88 notes, and I thought the "full" keybed would be an advantage, albeit increase the form factor in terms of having to buy a case or gig bag and having it take up more valuable space in transit to gigs. I researched, viewed and reviewed everything online I could get my hands on in terms of the Casio (my local market does not have any stores that stock the PX5s, but frankly I've purchased ALL my keyboards without personally test-driving and have been satisfied about 95% of the time--after fully researching them online).

What I concluded--in the course of canceling my Casio order--is that while the PX5s does a lot of great things--especially for its cost--its appeal is to a narrow clientele--and I am simply not in that group. I believe it would be arguably the best board as a "stage piano" for the money, given the authenticity of the piano sound and the touch and feel of the keys--plus it has 88 of them. I believe that beyond that the majority of other factory sounds are "cheesy" and not as legitimate sounding as many of those from Kurzweil, Yamaha's higher end CP series boards, Nord, Roland, Korg, etc. The build quality of my Kurz and the absence of any issues whatsoever from ANY of the (5?) Kurzweil boards I've owned in the past 7 years gives evidence of their position as a quality builder. Their support is unparalleled in the industry and their response to tech issues and questions never takes more than a day to receive--even after warranty expires.

If you haven't already made your decision and purchased, you may consider Kurzweil's new "Artis" board--a nice blend of the PC3's power and sounds with more emphasis on a quality "real piano" sound. Either that or pick up a nearly new PC3 which can be had for around the same price as that Casio. IMO they are in two different leagues.

 

[anotherscott]

There are plenty of demos at soundcloud. Will post some links later when I have access to a PC. It's too difficult on my smartphone.

If you guys are looking for quality demos of the PX-5S and PC3LE then Youtube is a lousy place to do it.

Here's their official soundcloud channels.

These are going to be the best demos you can find bar none

I still didn't hear any strings sound on the PX5S that I thought compared to the Kurz, and didn't see brass samples there. AnotherKeys, did you have other/better examples to suggest?

you may consider Kurzweil's new "Artis" board--a nice blend of the PC3's power and sounds with more emphasis on a quality "real piano" sound. Either that or pick up a nearly new PC3 which can be had for around the same price as that Casio. IMO they are in two different leagues.

Yes, the Artis7 is a new contender since this thread started, and gives you what I consider to be better sounds in a comparably lightweight package compared to the PX5S, also with better display/interface/ergonomics. But it's more expensive, and you give up a very nice 88-key weighted action for a 76-key lackluster semi-weighted.

 

[Rockinroller]

I still didn't hear any strings sound on the PX5S that I thought compared to the Kurz, and didn't see brass samples there. AnotherKeys, did you have other/better examples to suggest?


Yes, the Artis7 is a new contender since this thread started, and gives you what I consider to be better sounds in a comparably lightweight package compared to the PX5S, also with better display/interface/ergonomics. But it's more expensive, and you give up a very nice 88-key weighted action for a 76-key lackluster semi-weighted.

I LOVE the key bed on the PC3 which coincidentally is shared by the new Artis (Fatar TP8). It's a rare blend of a decent piano key with the lightness and cut of an organ key, and for me--someone who uses the Kurz for much more than just the "real piano" sound, it provides a widespread application--not too large and stiff feeling like a "real piano" key, yet not so light and cut like a synth key so that it feels odd playing an acoustic piano sound on them. Plus for many folks--especially those who gig--the extra keys on an 88 note board isn't worth the trade off in the size needed to accommodate those extra keys, nor the utility of needing 12 more. And as far as a price differential, you can get a B stock Artis 7 with a full warranty for around $300 more than the Casio--probably an amount that's not going to drive even an economical-based decision to go one way or the other.

 

[delaware dave]

I agree w/ r&r'r on the keybed. It works for piano, synth and organ. I do, however, wish the key shape were waterfall style but the keybed action itself works nicely for me.

 

[Anon_TJ]

I shared a similar consideration recently although mine was between the Kurzweil Artis 7 and the Casio PX5s. I actually leaned toward the Casio and in fact ordered one on Overstock.com over the weekend after they featured a sale at 15% off the commonly advertised price with free shipping. I ended up getting buyer's remorse, and cancelled a day later. I just can't wrap myself around buying a "Casio", regardless of its advantages price-wise, plus in delivering a very powerful keyboard at a reasonably competitive price (at least for what you get). I already own Kurz's PC3 and Hammond's SK1-73. Those have been my two gigging boards. I play in a classic rock tribute band. Size and weight are considerations for me, however, which partially drove my decision to consider the Casio. Plus both my gigging boards have less than 88 notes, and I thought the "full" keybed would be an advantage, albeit increase the form factor in terms of having to buy a case or gig bag and having it take up more valuable space in transit to gigs. I researched, viewed and reviewed everything online I could get my hands on in terms of the Casio (my local market does not have any stores that stock the PX5s, but frankly I've purchased ALL my keyboards without personally test-driving and have been satisfied about 95% of the time--after fully researching them online).

What I concluded--in the course of canceling my Casio order--is that while the PX5s does a lot of great things--especially for its cost--its appeal is to a narrow clientele--and I am simply not in that group. I believe it would be arguably the best board as a "stage piano" for the money, given the authenticity of the piano sound and the touch and feel of the keys--plus it has 88 of them. I believe that beyond that the majority of other factory sounds are "cheesy" and not as legitimate sounding as many of those from Kurzweil, Yamaha's higher end CP series boards, Nord, Roland, Korg, etc. The build quality of my Kurz and the absence of any issues whatsoever from ANY of the (5?) Kurzweil boards I've owned in the past 7 years gives evidence of their position as a quality builder. Their support is unparalleled in the industry and their response to tech issues and questions never takes more than a day to receive--even after warranty expires.

If you haven't already made your decision and purchased, you may consider Kurzweil's new "Artis" board--a nice blend of the PC3's power and sounds with more emphasis on a quality "real piano" sound. Either that or pick up a nearly new PC3 which can be had for around the same price as that Casio. IMO they are in two different leagues.

Thanks Rockinroller for your in-depth observations. I did go ahead and buy the Casio PX5S and don't regret it. Of course you always wonder how the other keyboard would have been... Anyway, it was a case of being the best in my price range, the most pros and fewest cons. I don't play gigs, and my main thing is software packages like Native Instruments and Arturia. But I did want to start learning some classical piano, and I kept running out of keys on my old 61 key MIDI keyboards!

I also wanted a stand-alone machine that didn't need an umbilical tied to the computer. The PX5S does have a lot of scope for original sound creation and manipulation, which is important to me. Finally, the keyboard bed is excellent, if a little noisy. I'm sure the keybed, sounds, and quality of sliders, knobs, etc would be better on a keyboard costing twice as much, but for 900 Euros, you still get a lot, and the keyboard mag critics rate it very highly. Maybe in the future I'll splurge on a high-end Yamaha or Kurzweil. But for now I'm happy with my purchase, both as a practice keyboard and a MIDI keyboard with an excellent touch. The Pianos sounds are really quite convincing as well, and the strings, using the hex layers, have a wonderful thickness and depth. Great for pads.

I envy the range of keyboards you own. I might start buying some used keyboards to start a collection. This is my first real stand-alone keyboard, so I don't have much to compare it to, but I'm sure it will become a mainstay in whatever keyboard array I end up with.