Casio keyboard

Sunday Synth Jam: Amza Tairov plays a Korg Triton, using what appears to be a Casio CZ-101 to modulate it. Tairov makes extensive use of the pitch-bend wheel, giving his playing a string-like quality.

It’s not clear from this video if Tairov is synth-syncing (miming to a prerecorded track) or if the video editing is just a little iffy on this.

If you know more about Amzo Tairov, leave a comment below! Read more…

The Casio CZ-1 was the top of the Casio’s CZ synthesizer line. The CZ series were a family of low-cost phase distortion synthesizers produced by Casio mid-1980s.

The CZ-1 synthesizer offered the classic CZ sound, but also featured stored splits and layers , velocity and aftertouch sensitivity. The CZ-1 also featured a backlit display – an improvement over the rest of the series.

There were eight models of CZ synthesizers released:

• CZ-101
• CZ-230S
• CZ-1000
• CZ-2000S
• CZ-2600S
• CZ-3000
• CZ-5000
• CZ-1

Additionally the home-keyboard model CT-6500 used 48 phase-distortion presets from the CZ line.

The CZ series were flexible synthesizers, and their price made programmable synthesizers affordable.

If you’ve used the Casio CZ-1, leave a comment with your thoughts! Read more…

If there’s anybody that you don’t want driving up and down your street at night, it’s probably EXOcontralto.

This video documents how he hooked up a cheap Casio synth to his 2000 watt automotive sound system so he could rock his ‘92 Dodge Caravan like no other, with massive “Loud Ass Bass.”

Details on this hack below. Read more…

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced a voluntary recall of the CTK-710 Casio Keyboard, because it poses a fire hazard.

Here are the details:

Name of product: Electronic Musical Keyboards
Units: About 12,000

Importer: Casio Inc., of Dover, N.J.

Manufacturer: Casio Computer Co. Ltd., of Tokyo, Japan

Hazard: The recalled keyboards can overheat when in use, posing a fire hazard to consumers.

Incidents/Injuries: Casio has received five reports of keyboards overheating, including two incidents that resulted in fire. There have been two reports of property damage, in addition to the unit itself. No injuries have been reported.

Description: This recall involves model CTK-710 of the Casio® 61-key full-size electronic musical keyboards. The size of the keyboard is 37-11/16-inches by 14-1/16-inches by 5-1/4 inches. Products with serial numbers ranging from 7030001 through 7040400 and 7041901 through 7043500 are included in this recall. The brand and model information are found on the front of the unit above the keyboard and the serial number is found inside the battery compartment located on the underside of the unit.

Sold at: Wal-Mart, Best Buy and music instrument stores nationwide, in catalogs, on Casio’s Web site, and on other Web sites between May 2006 and February 2007 for between $70 and $150.

Manufactured in: China

Remedy: Consumers should stop using the keyboard immediately, unplug it and remove the batteries. Consumers should contact Casio for a free repair..