Casio
Articles about Casio:
Tom at Waveformless put together a fun post taking a look at going vintage on the cheap.
There are a number of really underrated synths that seem to go for consistently low prices. They’re awesome synths, but nobody seems to know about them, which means you can get a great deal.
Here’s the list of synths that he highlights:
- Casio CZ-101 (typically less than $100)
- Ensoniq ESQ-1 (typically $150-$300)
- Moog (Realistic) Concertmate MG-1 (typically $100-$500)
- Oberheim Matrix-6R (typically $150-$350+)
- Roland HS-10/80 (typically $25-$100)
- Roland HS-60 (typically $200+)
- Roland MKS-7 (typically $200+)
- Yamaha CS-01 (typically $150-$250)
- Yamaha TX81Z (typically $50-$85)
See Tom’s post for his take on each of these synths.
Are these great synths? No – but you can get great deals on them and make some great sounds.
As an alternative to the Casio CZ-101, I’d recommend the CZ-1, which has twice the polyphony plus a velocity + aftertouch sensitive full-size keyboard. And is still dirt cheap.
Got other ideas for cheap vintage synths that don’t suck? Leave a comment!
The Casio CZ-1000 Synthesizer
The Casio CZ-1000 is a vintage (80s) Phase Distortion Synthesis synthesizer, that’s basically a CZ-101 with full-size keys.
It offers 8-voice polyphony and a 49-key full-size keyboard. A two oscillator per voice option lets you get thicker sounds, but reduces the polyphony to 4 voices.
The CZ’s aren’t true classic synths, but they are reliable and offer a great vintage synth value.
If you’ve used the Casio CZ-1000 synthesizer, leave a comment with your thoughts! Read more…
Sunday Synth Jam: this video captures a “midnight ambient performance”, featuring the sounds of the JX-305, two 03R/W, Prophecy and a Casio VZ-1.
via L00m33r
Casio CZ-101 Tutorial Videos
This set of videos, via SynthManiaDotCom, offers a video review and tutorial for the classic Casio CZ-101.
While the CZ-101 is a minisynth, it can create some massive sounds, as these videos demonstrate.
Little Boot’s Earthquake YT
This is the latest video from Little Boots (Victoria Hesketh), Earthquake.
Hesketh showed a great deal of promise with her bedroom synth jams – but the production of her EP and her videos seem to have largely homogenized her sound & look, Casio SK5 notwithstanding.
Let me know what you think of Little Boots’ latest in the comments! Read more…




