I also had one SA-46. The lack of octave shift was a bummer, but I sampled it all tones and turned it into a sound library for Sampler in LogicPro. It is one of the best Lo-Fi PCM sound sources.
if you want something with more range, there are many keyboards from random Chinese manufacturers that use similar chips. You could even look for a yamaha psr-310, which actually happens to use a sound set that sounds very similar. This is because the Holtek midi synths actually have a form of yamaha xg inside. Everything from the sounds to the drum mapping is based on that, just with a few lower rate samples here and there to fit everything into the rom chip.
My intuition tells me that if Casio or Yamaha made an 8-bit synth in this style but gave it advanced capabilities there would be a huge demand for it. I'm thinking less of the PCM keyboards, though that would be a cool too, and more of the Portasound series by Yamaha that actually use some sort of chunky primitive FM or Additive synthesis. 8-bit PCM wavetable would also be amazing. The nostalgia for these sounds is huge, but being able to do some sound design, manipulation, modulation and layering would blow people's minds.
A empolgação de ver um vídeo sobre o SA-46 é tamanha que eu tenho que fazer esse comentário na minha língua nativa. Querido, você fez eu ganhar meu dia com esse vídeo! Fiquei tão feliz, mas tão feliz porque me senti totalmente representado! Há algum tempo eu havia sugerido que você fizesse um vídeo sobre esse teclado e hoje, ao assisti-lo, a sensação que experimentei foi como de um desejo que foi realizado. Muito obrigado, Keen on Keys! 🙏🏻 Você encheu meu coração de alegria com esse vídeo.
14:30 This Demo is actually Casio's style demo on the "Keharva" style featured on CTK keyboards. Originally it's from CT-799 demo DVD (Chinese Ver. of WK-110 with pitch bend and SD card support).
It's interesting that a lot of the presets sound like low-fi versions of ones from old Yamaha Keyboards. My psr-510 had the choir and raindrop patches. Good video as always.
The SA-46 is a great keyboard. I got one of the later-model ones and still have it. Have used it through a Zoom G1on multi-FX on occasion which really fleshes out the timbres. You can modulate the volume slider to get distortion effects too.
I bought one of these recently, unfortunately just before your Yamaha PSS-F30 review dropped. This one has its charm and thankfully it's mainly for the kids, but if I had it to do over again, I'd go with the Yamaha. I did enjoy the easter egg of the MT-40 Riddim, though. As always, thanks for your excellent videos.
Great video as always Mr. Keen! Also, your presentation, editing and camerawork are top notch - you were one of the inspirations for me to set up my own channel though clearly I've got some way to go to match your high standards. Regarding the 2010 to present SA series (46, 47, 76, 77, 78), I was surprised at how good they sound, and still do. Some very useable Tones and good sounding rhythms onboard. I did a multi-part review of the SA76 on my channel and kept surprising myself with how much it has to offer. Thanks also for the heads up about the SA50 about to be released. Looks to be a slight update on the SA46 and addresses some of the criticisms that I have for both the SA46 and SA76. Now comes with Octave shift, Reverb (I would have preferred sustain), Transpose, and also they got rid of the silly Piano/ Organ changeover switch though they now have the Piano/ Trumpet/ Drums individual switches. Still, it's an improvement, even though the basic 100 Tones, 50 Rhythms, 10 Free sessions and 10 Songs are likely to be mostly the same/ identical as with the older SA46. As for the Canto, it sounds like it came from the same factory as my MQ4915, another dirt cheap and truly awful keyboard, despite what it promises on the box. It has that horrible tinny and discordant tone that the Canto does, and can't play multiple notes on its keyboard simultaneously without going out of tune with itself. I did manage to record an entire song with it, but it was so much work to get it to sound remotely acceptable as it's nowhere near the same league as the Casio. Anyway, thanks again for the great video - I'm looking forward to the next one 🙂
Thank you for the compliment. The SA-50 has finally arrived. And yes, it looks the same, but it sounds different. I started working on the review yesterday and I hope it will be finished a bit faster than the last one.
Wow. I thought I was listening to my Yamaha keyboard for a second. Some of those sounds are pretty good. That multi track with that jungle beat and those laser and synth tones was pretty sweet! I actually thought I was listening to a game sound track. Another Great and honest review!
Who on earth can one person have so many musical ideas and such playing skills on those little keys. I bought an SA76 last year for fun and not able to play anything useful on it.
A blob chip. The scourge of circuit benders everywhere. Good review. These little things are so common and cheap, I've always been curious about them. Surprised to see the Sleng Teng in there.
Great review as always. And what a wonderful update. I thought Casio was done with the SA series but I'm pleasantly surprised. And they sound pretty good too for mini keyboards. Who knows how far they'll push that range. What are the possibilities that the SK line of sampling keyboards comes back.
Personally, I like the earlier Casio SA sound hardware better. I find it more interesting and inspiring for experimental electronic music production compared to that of the SA-46.
Awesome! Very cool looking keyboard. Hey, I got a request. Can you do some videos on a Yamaha PSR keyboards, like the Pixar DGX 76, the PSR 125, the PSR to 16, all of the PSR DJ keyboards. I’d really like to know what town generators are in those and what chips are in those, I remember going to my moms friends house back in the day, she had one of the PSR TJ keyboards, and they were so much fun to play with. I just wonder what tone generator Yamaha used for those. keep up the good work and God bless you.
Those different sounds on the newer unit actually are the same samples that were used for other sounds on the older sa keyboards before the HOLTEK chips were being used.
I have one of these boxed from a charity shop UK, (Thrift store) Think I paid less than £6.00 ish. A lovely little keyboard, plastic yet feels solid and tactile shape, some lovely sounds too, great go to grab board for musical ideas, like a kind of musical note pad. Great playing btw 👌. Also the accompaniment track, I think it was the one before your favourite Blancmange track, the bassline sounded a lot like Queen - the Invisible man style. 🙂
@@Blueskies2513 Charity shops or thrift stores. they come up occasionaly if you keep an eye out, I've seen a couple since and I don't think they were priced any more than £10
Great review of this little gem. Yes, the sa47 the sound 16 they call harmonium because then it sells millions in India.. That same sound though can sound far more excellent if you run it through some good quality multi FX unit such as Zoom MS70-CDR, or Korg PX5D. The biggest problem with all of these SA series is the fragile black keys which break off very easily. So it is doomed if it is a childs keyboard.
Nice video! You've managed to squezze something good out of this! After watching MT-40 video I wish every casio had that good bass and reggae rhytms. Bass is very well made. last two weeks I've been watching manudigital sesions. There is also casio sa overview in polish. Autor uses after effects on sounds and some sound were kind of "moogish" with reverb and phaser. All best!
I've been waiting for this review and I'm glad I watched it. As for the keyboard, seems like a decent keyboard for what it is. I think it'd be fun to see Casio revive the ROM pack keyboards, my best friend and I have been creating lists of songs we think should be on a ROM pack, this started not long after my best friend gave me his old PT-82. That Canto HL-70 is just hilarious, especially the labelling on the digital readout. I wonder if all their HL series keyboards are as low quality as that.
@@ra226gaming Oh man, my friend and I came up with a list of about 150 songs, I don't have access to the list right now, but some of the songs on it were things like King Of Wishful Thinking, the Japanese national anthem, songs from various cartoons and TV shows like Spongebob Squarepants, songs by artists like Amy Grant and Elton John, and also some modern rock and independent rock and alternative rock songs.
@@ra226gaming Despite the PT-50 being monophonic when playing it, it is a very well built instrument, it's plastic casing is very strong and it sounds pretty good for something from the early 80s, it's better quality than the PT-82. I bought a PT-50 on eBay a few years back after a good friend of mine showed me hers.
I know it's way more advanced than what you usually cover, but I'd love for you to take a look at the Casio CZ-101 someday (or perhaps it's brother, the CZ-230s, which removed its ability to edit patches)
NIce Video Again. I think Yamaha PSS-F30 should be compared with with the newest Casio SA-50/51 which has 32 Polyphony, octave switch button, and reverb. The sound has totally changed from SA-46/47. i also like that Casio printed the new SA model with "Caisotone". and the Box looks kinda vintage-ish. i would like to request MT-60 and MT-85/86 (MT-800) video in the Fututre. Thank you :)
An interesting thing with the Holtek processor chips is that they actually use a yamaha xg bank with similar sounds to the ones on the psr-310. They used the best versions of the yamaha sounds from the 2nd generation xg sound bank, lowering the sample rate of some of them to fit them all in the sample rom. This is mostly just a plane Holtek xg keyboard, just with oddly high pitched snare drums. Everything else though is pretty similar to the other Holtek chip keyboards I've come across, though some variations of the chips have a weird looping point for the open high hats like this one does, but others have a single not looped sample that actually sounds proper. I don't get why they put the pitch of those snare drums so high for this one though, because slowing them down in an audio editor actually reveals that the samples themselves are actually higher quality on there than on most other Holtek midi synths. In fact, the xg doesn't stop at the sounds. Even the drum kits on the more fully featured midi chips actually use the xg layout rather than the roland gs one. This means that everything below the kick drums is using the yamaha only layout.
Great demo as usual. This keyboard doesn't sound as good as its SA-50 re[lacement but my goodness what a beatiful cheese monster it is. Noise, lofi, aliasing artifacts and the fact that it doesn't often sound close to the sound it imitates (to my ears) are a strength and not a weakness and after all this time, it's been hiding in plain sight. Many thanks for putting me right. Sold.
Do you plan to make videos about the Yamaha reface series? I'd love to see your take on those. They look very good but unfortunately they are very expensive...
bought this years ago at my music store. they were having a christmas sale. not sure why they sold this, but I thought what the heck, it's a good keyboard for its size.
rewquest. can you do a review of the roland e-28? it might be a bit advanced, but I've never really heard a good review. I own one, and they don't seem very popular.
10 euros? LOL. I bought mine for 30 and thought I was getting incredible deal :) I still think so though. It's fascinating how much juice you can squeeze out of this little gem. And your playing is incredible, a real pleasure for ears especially with these old school sounds :) May I ask which software are you using? I see they plan to change the function of that big green button in next models. What I'd like it to do: every press gets you random combination of sound and rhythm. Imagine the fun :) I wonder if that could be done with rerouting electronics or something.
This guy is more musically gifted. To get all of that out of them 'toy' keyboards. Espen Kraft is showing off his synths but has no 'song' compositions. Or maybe I missed them.
@@svenjansen2134 Well being objective for a moment, Espen does seem to only have one song in him that he repeats endlessly. His style is not representative of the 80s at all, e.g. there were a wide variety of styles and songs in the 80s not just Pet Shop Boys.
Great review (and music) as usual :) Pretty interesting to see that they changed a few of the sounds at some point. Do you know if the older one has different markings on the little MCU module (i.e. MX817-MA4M A instead of B)?
@@KeenOnKeys I took a look at mine (made in 2020) and the little MCU board looks the same as the one in the video. The back of the main board is marked "MA1M B3" instead of B1 though, maybe that's the difference. It's weird that they'd change something like that without changing the model number, though. (edit: actually, I just looked at mine again - there's a black "SA-46" sticker on the bottom, but the actual plastic underneath it has "SA-46A", so maybe that's the updated model?)
Hello sir, my fav musical instrument was keyboard n tried to learn it many times but lack of coaching n interest fades it away, but still like synthesizer very much n ur video popped while watching TH-cam n my interest in keyboard again grew up by ur melodious music play. So i hv ordered yamaha pss f30 keyboard to try start learning again. Hope its a gud keyboard. Bdw, do u do online keyboard class? Eager to try out dat mini keyboard to learn play like u. I hv suscribed ur channel also. Tq🙏😊
I actually wonder if the old/new variants of this keyboard have the same microcontroller because it seems very bizzare that they would switch the sounds without some sort of indicator...
i don't know what tone generator the SA-40 used, but it sounded nothing like the twangy sound of the early SA series keyboards, mind you it was also not like the other SA models in a few other respects, namely it had a magic sound dial and didn't have any drum patterns or beats you couple play a long with your song on the keyboard.
@@KeenOnKeys I see. Have you used an SA-40? I'm not sure if the SA-40 would meet your needs, even for a toy keyboard, mainly because it doesn't have any rhythms, but you'd know your own needs better than I do.
@@KeenOnKeys The magic sound dial is a pretty unique feature, I'd say it's the selling point of that keyboard. I must get mine out and see if it works, I've a sinking feeling that it had old batteries left in it and they may have leaked, but I can't remember exactly. If it still works, good.
Hey! I got an sa-46 in Tokyo today for very cheap I love the sounds on it but it seems to make a buzzing noise… the shop I got it from had the sa-51 would it have the same sounds I found on the 46, in addition to new ones? Or did they take out many of the tones from the 46?
@@KeenOnKeys yeah I watched, I just wasn’t sure if they only added additional tones or took some out as well- sorry for the confusion! Maybe I missed it
Hey so i never bought a piano and planning on buying this one as my first, do you have tutorials on pianos in general because after seeing the review i felt it was a bit complicated with all the buttons and all
Hi! I think this model is perfect for starters/beginners. It's pretty basic. After time and if you get serious about it, you can move on to a more advanced keyboard or digital piano. Cheers!
Can the Casio sa 46 use rechargeable batteries? I heard that this keyboard only uses specific batteries. That's why I bought the alesis harmony 32 instead.
lets be honest, any track with "Laser Gun" is gonna be fire
I also had one SA-46. The lack of octave shift was a bummer, but I sampled it all tones and turned it into a sound library for Sampler in LogicPro. It is one of the best Lo-Fi PCM sound sources.
if you want something with more range, there are many keyboards from random Chinese manufacturers that use similar chips. You could even look for a yamaha psr-310, which actually happens to use a sound set that sounds very similar. This is because the Holtek midi synths actually have a form of yamaha xg inside. Everything from the sounds to the drum mapping is based on that, just with a few lower rate samples here and there to fit everything into the rom chip.
You wouldn't happen to have uploaded your sample pack anywhere, by any chance?
@TheNewFlesh Buy the keyboard and pay lol
@@svenjansen2134 lol, no
My intuition tells me that if Casio or Yamaha made an 8-bit synth in this style but gave it advanced capabilities there would be a huge demand for it. I'm thinking less of the PCM keyboards, though that would be a cool too, and more of the Portasound series by Yamaha that actually use some sort of chunky primitive FM or Additive synthesis. 8-bit PCM wavetable would also be amazing.
The nostalgia for these sounds is huge, but being able to do some sound design, manipulation, modulation and layering would blow people's minds.
I have a nord stage 3 and here I am buying a $50 children's keyboard for the tones 🤣
You make everything sound so good. You bring out each keyboard's full potential.
He's REALLY good. Also his rhythmic timing is super tight. My guess is he's classically trained and very intelligent.
A empolgação de ver um vídeo sobre o SA-46 é tamanha que eu tenho que fazer esse comentário na minha língua nativa.
Querido, você fez eu ganhar meu dia com esse vídeo! Fiquei tão feliz, mas tão feliz porque me senti totalmente representado! Há algum tempo eu havia sugerido que você fizesse um vídeo sobre esse teclado e hoje, ao assisti-lo, a sensação que experimentei foi como de um desejo que foi realizado. Muito obrigado, Keen on Keys! 🙏🏻 Você encheu meu coração de alegria com esse vídeo.
the music you played throughout took me directly back to playing on my Gameboy, excellent video
Watching you clean and reassemble is so relaxing lol.
What a surprise, a relaxing 20 minutes keen on keys video .... I like it so much!
Awesome! It's really amazing what people like you can do with a toy keyboard!
I love this keyboard. I've started my collection with this one
Once again, a most impressive multi-track Liquid Erystal Sound Shower!
Always a delight to get this notification.
Always 🔔❤
14:30 This Demo is actually Casio's style demo on the "Keharva" style featured on CTK keyboards. Originally it's from CT-799 demo DVD (Chinese Ver. of WK-110 with pitch bend and SD card support).
Fantastic, I love your review and your music made by this keyboard.
It's interesting that a lot of the presets sound like low-fi versions of ones from old Yamaha Keyboards. My psr-510 had the choir and raindrop patches. Good video as always.
And also the synth bass sound
The SA-46 is a great keyboard. I got one of the later-model ones and still have it. Have used it through a Zoom G1on multi-FX on occasion which really fleshes out the timbres. You can modulate the volume slider to get distortion effects too.
I bought one of these recently, unfortunately just before your Yamaha PSS-F30 review dropped. This one has its charm and thankfully it's mainly for the kids, but if I had it to do over again, I'd go with the Yamaha. I did enjoy the easter egg of the MT-40 Riddim, though. As always, thanks for your excellent videos.
My much awaited episode!
Great video as always Mr. Keen! Also, your presentation, editing and camerawork are top notch - you were one of the inspirations for me to set up my own channel though clearly I've got some way to go to match your high standards. Regarding the 2010 to present SA series (46, 47, 76, 77, 78), I was surprised at how good they sound, and still do. Some very useable Tones and good sounding rhythms onboard. I did a multi-part review of the SA76 on my channel and kept surprising myself with how much it has to offer.
Thanks also for the heads up about the SA50 about to be released. Looks to be a slight update on the SA46 and addresses some of the criticisms that I have for both the SA46 and SA76. Now comes with Octave shift, Reverb (I would have preferred sustain), Transpose, and also they got rid of the silly Piano/ Organ changeover switch though they now have the Piano/ Trumpet/ Drums individual switches. Still, it's an improvement, even though the basic 100 Tones, 50 Rhythms, 10 Free sessions and 10 Songs are likely to be mostly the same/ identical as with the older SA46.
As for the Canto, it sounds like it came from the same factory as my MQ4915, another dirt cheap and truly awful keyboard, despite what it promises on the box. It has that horrible tinny and discordant tone that the Canto does, and can't play multiple notes on its keyboard simultaneously without going out of tune with itself. I did manage to record an entire song with it, but it was so much work to get it to sound remotely acceptable as it's nowhere near the same league as the Casio.
Anyway, thanks again for the great video - I'm looking forward to the next one 🙂
Thank you for the compliment. The SA-50 has finally arrived. And yes, it looks the same, but it sounds different. I started working on the review yesterday and I hope it will be finished a bit faster than the last one.
Wow. I thought I was listening to my Yamaha keyboard for a second. Some of those sounds are pretty good.
That multi track with that jungle beat and those laser and synth tones was pretty sweet! I actually thought I was listening to a game sound track. Another Great and honest review!
You finally used the merengue rhythm in this video. I've watched almost all of them waiting for this moment!
Who on earth can one person have so many musical ideas and such playing skills on those little keys. I bought an SA76 last year for fun and not able to play anything useful on it.
It's always the player. When you're THIS good you can make anything sound great.
I bought one of these on sale a few years ago and it's really fun to mess around with. As always, it's amazing to hear what you can do with it.
i had this one for like a couple years so nostalgic im happy to know its like famous and stuff
its a very good piano
They sound great.
A blob chip. The scourge of circuit benders everywhere.
Good review. These little things are so common and cheap, I've always been curious about them. Surprised to see the Sleng Teng in there.
Yes, it's listed as MT-40 Riddim in the manual.
amazing video, thank you for making it!!
Cheap keyboard sold under many brand names? It looks like Medeli is still in business.
You squeezed some really nice and cheerful music out of this little cheap keyboard! I'm impressed.
Limitations feed creativity.
I am not planning to buy this, I just love your videos. I like the musical context you provide.
Great review as always. And what a wonderful update. I thought Casio was done with the SA series but I'm pleasantly surprised. And they sound pretty good too for mini keyboards. Who knows how far they'll push that range. What are the possibilities that the SK line of sampling keyboards comes back.
I bought my daughter the SA-81. I feel it's the best thing I bought her in a while. She's learning to play Clair De lune by ear.
Nice!!
Personally, I like the earlier Casio SA sound hardware better. I find it more interesting and inspiring for experimental electronic music production compared to that of the SA-46.
He said that in the video. 'Too bad Casio didn't take this further'.
Awesome! Very cool looking keyboard. Hey, I got a request. Can you do some videos on a Yamaha PSR keyboards, like the Pixar DGX 76, the PSR 125, the PSR to 16, all of the PSR DJ keyboards. I’d really like to know what town generators are in those and what chips are in those, I remember going to my moms friends house back in the day, she had one of the PSR TJ keyboards, and they were so much fun to play with. I just wonder what tone generator Yamaha used for those. keep up the good work and God bless you.
Amazing review 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Good for Christmas Carol🎄🎼
Those different sounds on the newer unit actually are the same samples that were used for other sounds on the older sa keyboards before the HOLTEK chips were being used.
the sounds are much better than the older SA keyboards.
how? theyre made a million times worse, and they sound like every other shit toy keyboard. at least the old ones were tanks and sounded unique
@LHOOQ 😭😭
Shout out for the "Living on the Ceiling" inspired riff at 13:35. Love it.
😊😊😊
😮8
I've seen the SA-50 curious as to what the difference if any.
i have this keyboard it's awesome. I love the synth sounds on it.
Liquid Erystal Shower 🤣
On the Casio side, funnily some of the tone remind me of some of the sample used in good old SNES games
I think the Same way!
I have one of these boxed from a charity shop UK, (Thrift store)
Think I paid less than £6.00 ish.
A lovely little keyboard, plastic yet feels solid and tactile shape, some lovely sounds too, great go to grab board for musical ideas, like a kind of musical note pad.
Great playing btw 👌.
Also the accompaniment track, I think it was the one before your favourite Blancmange track, the bassline sounded a lot like Queen - the Invisible man style. 🙂
6 POUNDS
WHERE CAN I GET A BARGAIN LIKE THAT
@@Blueskies2513 Charity shops or thrift stores. they come up occasionaly if you keep an eye out, I've seen a couple since and I don't think they were priced any more than £10
@@deydododontdedoh.5672 if you know anywhere in norwich that might have one let me know!
Great review of this little gem. Yes, the sa47 the sound 16 they call harmonium because then it sells millions in India.. That same sound though can sound far more excellent if you run it through some good quality multi FX unit such as Zoom MS70-CDR, or Korg PX5D. The biggest problem with all of these SA series is the fragile black keys which break off very easily. So it is doomed if it is a childs keyboard.
Most cheap 'toy' keyboards sound better with guitar effects. Something in that lo fi range...
Nice video!
You've managed to squezze something good out of this!
After watching MT-40 video I wish every casio had that good bass and reggae rhytms. Bass is very well made. last two weeks I've been watching manudigital sesions.
There is also casio sa overview in polish. Autor uses after effects on sounds and some sound were kind of "moogish" with reverb and phaser.
All best!
Song at 6:26 was awesome with the voice samples!
That demo with the "orchestra hit" sound was so 1997ish
Good review as always. I didn't know that that may casio-sa 46 clones existed: Another clone is Soundstation Jukey 32.
Thanks! I missed that one. Looks a little different than the others.
I've been waiting for this review and I'm glad I watched it. As for the keyboard, seems like a decent keyboard for what it is. I think it'd be fun to see Casio revive the ROM pack keyboards, my best friend and I have been creating lists of songs we think should be on a ROM pack, this started not long after my best friend gave me his old PT-82. That Canto HL-70 is just hilarious, especially the labelling on the digital readout. I wonder if all their HL series keyboards are as low quality as that.
I'm curious, what would your list of ROM pack songs include? I still have and love my old PT-80 and I just got a PT-50 to play around with.
@@ra226gaming Oh man, my friend and I came up with a list of about 150 songs, I don't have access to the list right now, but some of the songs on it were things like King Of Wishful Thinking, the Japanese national anthem, songs from various cartoons and TV shows like Spongebob Squarepants, songs by artists like Amy Grant and Elton John, and also some modern rock and independent rock and alternative rock songs.
@@ra226gaming Despite the PT-50 being monophonic when playing it, it is a very well built instrument, it's plastic casing is very strong and it sounds pretty good for something from the early 80s, it's better quality than the PT-82. I bought a PT-50 on eBay a few years back after a good friend of mine showed me hers.
Just discovered your channel, really like the songs you make with these casios. I wish someone sampled these keyboards 🤔
I know it's way more advanced than what you usually cover, but I'd love for you to take a look at the Casio CZ-101 someday (or perhaps it's brother, the CZ-230s, which removed its ability to edit patches)
The CZ-101 was already on the schedule for this year. I don't know if that will work out yet, but definitely next year.
@@KeenOnKeys Looking forward to it! Take your time though!
Awesome! I have a UK-01, it's beautiful, like your video🌈
Great video, as always! Casio should make a new MT model, a slightly more professional portable keyboard, fun but less toyish
thank you so much!
Another perfect review...👏
Hi! Just to add to the clone list:
- Lexington EK-3282
- Sanrai YK-6682
Greetings from Argentina!
Perfect for videogame scores
The Poor man's portable studio investment :-) Love mine, the strings are top :-)
Love your video’s 🎊 I’m thinking to let you borrow my DSR-2000 for a video 😁
Wow, this is surprisingly capable! Shame about no octave select though.
NIce Video Again.
I think Yamaha PSS-F30 should be compared with with the newest Casio SA-50/51 which has 32 Polyphony, octave switch button, and reverb. The sound has totally changed from SA-46/47.
i also like that Casio printed the new SA model with "Caisotone". and the Box looks kinda vintage-ish.
i would like to request MT-60 and MT-85/86 (MT-800) video in the Fututre. Thank you :)
Chances are good.
An interesting thing with the Holtek processor chips is that they actually use a yamaha xg bank with similar sounds to the ones on the psr-310. They used the best versions of the yamaha sounds from the 2nd generation xg sound bank, lowering the sample rate of some of them to fit them all in the sample rom. This is mostly just a plane Holtek xg keyboard, just with oddly high pitched snare drums. Everything else though is pretty similar to the other Holtek chip keyboards I've come across, though some variations of the chips have a weird looping point for the open high hats like this one does, but others have a single not looped sample that actually sounds proper. I don't get why they put the pitch of those snare drums so high for this one though, because slowing them down in an audio editor actually reveals that the samples themselves are actually higher quality on there than on most other Holtek midi synths. In fact, the xg doesn't stop at the sounds. Even the drum kits on the more fully featured midi chips actually use the xg layout rather than the roland gs one. This means that everything below the kick drums is using the yamaha only layout.
Great demo as usual. This keyboard doesn't sound as good as its SA-50 re[lacement but my goodness what a beatiful cheese monster it is. Noise, lofi, aliasing artifacts and the fact that it doesn't often sound close to the sound it imitates (to my ears) are a strength and not a weakness and after all this time, it's been hiding in plain sight. Many thanks for putting me right. Sold.
Wie immer sehr Professionell, Profi bist Du ja und machst das bestimmt auch Beruflich, danke für den Einblick am Ende vom Video , 👌
Voll hammer!
awesome! id love to get one someday.
10 euro online.
Amazing 👏👏👏
I might use these samples for my General MIDI tracks.
Do you plan to make videos about the Yamaha reface series? I'd love to see your take on those. They look very good but unfortunately they are very expensive...
I always keep an eye on the used market to see if I can find one a little cheaper. So far I haven't had any luck.
i dont really care about fancy buttons like vibrato or whatever it is, i just want a keyboard with nice soft buttons and a decent size
The way you play is mind blowing, in fact your videos look much more that a review
Can you also plz post some teaching videos
I love these sounds. I own the mighty 403 and the newer red Casiotone. But there will be more.
bought this years ago at my music store. they were having a christmas sale. not sure why they sold this, but I thought what the heck, it's a good keyboard for its size.
You're genius!
Thanks, but I am definitely not.
rewquest. can you do a review of the roland e-28? it might be a bit advanced, but I've never really heard a good review. I own one, and they don't seem very popular.
I have the Casio Sa-77. Surprisingly great for the price. Keys feel much better than the CTK-2500 I have
10 euros? LOL. I bought mine for 30 and thought I was getting incredible deal :) I still think so though. It's fascinating how much juice you can squeeze out of this little gem. And your playing is incredible, a real pleasure for ears especially with these old school sounds :) May I ask which software are you using? I see they plan to change the function of that big green button in next models. What I'd like it to do: every press gets you random combination of sound and rhythm. Imagine the fun :) I wonder if that could be done with rerouting electronics or something.
I use Samplitude Pro-X5
This YT channel is kinda like the perfect partner to Espen Kraft's. Both of you are the 80s! 🤩
This guy is more musically gifted. To get all of that out of them 'toy' keyboards. Espen Kraft is showing off his synths but has no 'song' compositions. Or maybe I missed them.
@@svenjansen2134 Well being objective for a moment, Espen does seem to only have one song in him that he repeats endlessly. His style is not representative of the 80s at all, e.g. there were a wide variety of styles and songs in the 80s not just Pet Shop Boys.
The Pattern 70 Reminds me of Ecco the Dolphin from Sega Genesis.
Great review (and music) as usual :)
Pretty interesting to see that they changed a few of the sounds at some point. Do you know if the older one has different markings on the little MCU module (i.e. MX817-MA4M A instead of B)?
I just opened it quickly to check the date stamp. I didn't take a closer look at the MCU.
@@KeenOnKeys I took a look at mine (made in 2020) and the little MCU board looks the same as the one in the video. The back of the main board is marked "MA1M B3" instead of B1 though, maybe that's the difference. It's weird that they'd change something like that without changing the model number, though.
(edit: actually, I just looked at mine again - there's a black "SA-46" sticker on the bottom, but the actual plastic underneath it has "SA-46A", so maybe that's the updated model?)
Liquid Erystal Shower would be an amazing synthwave band name.
Hello sir, my fav musical instrument was keyboard n tried to learn it many times but lack of coaching n interest fades it away, but still like synthesizer very much n ur video popped while watching TH-cam n my interest in keyboard again grew up by ur melodious music play. So i hv ordered yamaha pss f30 keyboard to try start learning again. Hope its a gud keyboard. Bdw, do u do online keyboard class? Eager to try out dat mini keyboard to learn play like u. I hv suscribed ur channel also. Tq🙏😊
Thank you! No, I don't do online lessons. But you will find plenty of helpful videos here on TH-cam. The PSS-F30 is a good choice.
@KeenOnKeys thank u sir for da reply 🙏. I ll try learning it again ftom da beginning as far as my interest goes😊
I actually wonder if the old/new variants of this keyboard have the same microcontroller because it seems very bizzare that they would switch the sounds without some sort of indicator...
I was gifted this for free by re use and recycle community scheme. I love this keyboard too.
🔥
Fantastic video man! Could you do a repair video on the MT-65 casio? I got one that doesn’t power on when plugged in
I will do if mine needs a repair. Fortunately it's still working fine.
@@KeenOnKeys many thanks for the reply dude! You’re channel is awesome!
Just discovered you and I'm hooked. Quick question - What audio interface do you plug the keyboards into in your videos?
RME 9632
If you never played piano and want to play a bunch of songs with four chords is this a good choice?
Hi! Maybe you could try the SA-76 model.
That first part you played on the "Bass & Lead" sound, was it from Anne Clark's "Sleeper In Metropolis"?
That's right!
Mr. Orange Hands. But wow your hands are GOOD. Thank you Sir.
im all about the 80s and the experimental synth soudns from it, they arent the best in quality but they are the best for me
i don't know what tone generator the SA-40 used, but it sounded nothing like the twangy sound of the early SA series keyboards, mind you it was also not like the other SA models in a few other respects, namely it had a magic sound dial and didn't have any drum patterns or beats you couple play a long with your song on the keyboard.
Yes, the SA-40 is a bit different, but it also uses the M6387 soundchip. This chip was produced in many variations.
@@KeenOnKeys I see. Have you used an SA-40? I'm not sure if the SA-40 would meet your needs, even for a toy keyboard, mainly because it doesn't have any rhythms, but you'd know your own needs better than I do.
@@Lachlant1984 I bought one. Just because of the magic dial.but I haven't used it for the last few years.
@@KeenOnKeys The magic sound dial is a pretty unique feature, I'd say it's the selling point of that keyboard. I must get mine out and see if it works, I've a sinking feeling that it had old batteries left in it and they may have leaked, but I can't remember exactly. If it still works, good.
I want to make 8-bit music with this but I don't know where to start. I've also have not played the piano in about a decade so I'm kind of frustrated.
I've seen a few of the cheapo Canto, Liquid Erystal Shower, knock-offs at local night markets. Truly awful things.
Is there any keyboard same like this size with ACMP inbuilt
the song starting at 10:30 is amazing! love it! so good...reminds me of Animal Crossing. :D
Hey! I got an sa-46 in Tokyo today for very cheap I love the sounds on it but it seems to make a buzzing noise… the shop I got it from had the sa-51 would it have the same sounds I found on the 46, in addition to new ones? Or did they take out many of the tones from the 46?
My SA-50 video shows all the differences.
@@KeenOnKeys yeah I watched, I just wasn’t sure if they only added additional tones or took some out as well- sorry for the confusion! Maybe I missed it
11:55 as if you made a banging techno rave track out of this. Good effort. Great video as always.
How many hours want to charge it if we power adapter
Can you make a video when you compare the sound of this keyboard and the harmony 32?
I no longer have the Harmony 32, but I can tell you that it sounds nothing like the SA-46.
Hey so i never bought a piano and planning on buying this one as my first, do you have tutorials on pianos in general because after seeing the review i felt it was a bit complicated with all the buttons and all
Hi! I think this model is perfect for starters/beginners. It's pretty basic. After time and if you get serious about it, you can move on to a more advanced keyboard or digital piano. Cheers!
Can the Casio sa 46 use rechargeable batteries? I heard that this keyboard only uses specific batteries. That's why I bought the alesis harmony 32 instead.
The manual suggests to use alkaline or zinc-carbon batteries. Never use oxyride or any other nickel based batteries.