Casio CZ-1

Pretty easy to use.Presets are blaa! Editors with sysex are better.

Couple of hidden features! go to: http://www.cosmosynthesizer.de/
check it out. O.K. so eight isn't alot. But being able to do eight
envelopes in layers is like rare! You can program some awesome sounds with this baby. Skinny Puppy used a CZ-1 alot. Only one effect. get a used card off of ebay expect to pay from 30 to 40 dollars though. Half way decent midi. yes velocity and sfetr touch
was a feature introduced to the CZ-1.

Forget about wood instruments and flutes, get a bend on ambient and dark, with a little punk.

It will never leave my DAW studio. Here's a cute little sad story for ya: I bought one of these (my first synth) in 85 or 86, used it for five months then one day I traded it for a guitar and some foot switches. I have regretted that to this week, ( 20 years now )!
I just bought a CZ-1 on ebay for 200.00 dollars Mint Condition!
I can finally lay to rest that sad memory, it will sit right along side my Roland V-Synth XT, Access Virus KC, Alesis Andromeda A6,
Korg Triton 76,Korg MS2000B,EMU Proteus 2500, M Audio Pro Keys 88,
Korg Kontrol 49, Apple Powerbook,Cubase SX2,Reason 3,Atmosphere,etc!

Twenty years later I refound my lost soul.

I learned the basic concepts of subtractive synthesis on a CZ-1000 back in the late 80's, though I didn't quite get the concepts of filter types/modes/slopes/etc until a bit later (like an FM synth, the CZ doesn't rely on filters to shape the sound). So with that, for me the CZ-1 is pretty much pie to program. It has the same oscillator, filter, amp chain as most modern synths plus a very effective ring modulator. Having learned CZ keyboards first, I assumed ALL synths were supposed to have 8 stage envelopes, and each oscillator was supposed to have it's own filter envelope. Was a little surprised when I discovered too many had just one ADSR filter option for all 2-3 oscillators. But, I digress... yes, despite the little LCD screen, and a fair amount of button pushing involved, it's fairly easy to program. The lack of deep programming options (no modulation matrix or the like) is a drawback, but also what makes it fairly simple to program. The manual is decently helpful, though my version is in German, which I can do, but I'd still prefer English.

Polyphony is only 8, but unless you're using a long release, that's not too much of a problem for incorporating one or two good sounds into a MIDI mix. Only built-in effects is a chorus which I hardly use. Can use a RAM card (if you can find one) to store patches past the 64 program slots the CZ-1 has. Keys are velocity and pressure (channel) sensitive, which is cool, those the action is a little less sesitive than I'd like, and (as stated elsewhere) it can take a heavy velocity hit to get the full programming parameters to open up (full brightness/filter or loudness/amplitude). MIDI is decently implemented with an in, out, and a thru port. As also mentioned previously, there's a nice button for turning off MIDI. No on-board sequencer (CZ-5000 is the model for that). For a CZ synth I'd rate "features" a 10+, but for synths in general, this would be a 6.

This keyboard is NOT for making realistic acoustic sounds (other than some types of bells and some metallic plucked strings). What it is quite nice for is (similar to any FM/DX synths) bells, metallic bangs, sharp attacks, and other quirky digital/electronic blips, bleeps, and weeeoooos. This thing is perfect for complementing electronic/ambiant tunage. The velocity and channel aftertouch are okay, but the real strength lies in the ability to easily create nice digital sounding synth patches. The are no resonant filters on this (as I said, there are no "real" filters at all), but it can simulate resonance with 3 special wave forms, that complement 5 other more traditional waveforms. It is similar to the DX/FM sound (though a bit less smooth in my book), and suprisingly, both my RedSound Dark Star module and my Novation KS4 reminded me of the CZ-1. As I read from some other reviewer, it really does have that sort of "liquid analog" sound (also the words used to describe the Novation synths). The user-controllable expressiveness is okay (I'd rate a 6-7), but the sounds are 9-10 quite easily (IMHO).

My original CZ-1000 slowly started petering out after over 7-10 years of use (it's headed for the trash right about now), my CZ-5000 bought used in 2000 is still going strong, and my CZ-1 purchased a couple months ago (for about 80 euros) is performing nicely. The major CZ lines (3000, 5000 and the 1) are all fairly solidly built. I've felt better keyboard action, but because there aren't THAT many moving parts, they hold up quite nicely. I know I'll be bumming when the last of my CZ's up and dies. Hopefully by then NI will have developed a nice CZ-SW program to help fill the void. By then, let's hope software synth latency is no longer a problem. It's so nice to not worry about an OS upgrade or "phantom parameter changing problems" with this keyboard. It truly is hardware, and dependable hardware at that. I would DEFINITELY use my CZ-5000 in a gig without a backup... the CZ-1 is too precious in the studio to even risk getting a beer spilled on it...

Never had a chance to engage with CASIO customer support, so I can't comment

I got WAY lucky... these things are usually going for $200 min, and I found a German ebay seller who let hers go for ~$100. I'd DEFINITELY buy another if this one went tits up. I simply love the sounds on this thing and the ease of programming. It would be AWESOME if it had better polyphony (16-32 voices), more easily implemented MIDI and multitimbral functions, and lastly some kind of modifiable/controllable filter.

Some synths I own besides the CZ-1:
Ensoniq FIZMO
Alesis QS8
Moog Opus
Roland SH-32
Novation KS4
RedSound Dark Star module
Yamaha FS1R
Yamaha CS-5
Casio CZ-5000

And the one type/piece of gear that makes almost every electronic tune I do is the CZ (1 or 5000). Based on what I paid for it, this thing is definitely a 10.

The presets on this sizer have to be some of the most cheesy I've ever heard. Whoever programmed them wasn't a company man or he'd been out on the piss the previous night! Editing the sounds at first is a hit and miss affair. However, through a bit of time and effort and a lot of patience you do get accustomed. Didn't get a manual with mine so can't comment.

16 parts with line set to 1 or 2 but for the best part it's 8 note polyphonic. These can be assigned in multitimbral mode which does help. The chorus effect can be overpowering but since it's pretty noisy you would'nt use it for studio work. Is quite atmospheric with the right sounds. No expansion features apart for the cartridge which is impossible to find, I use either sysex dumps or my trusty BOSS BL1. Midi is pretty decent for this age of sizer and the keyboard though not weighted is quite comfortable for what's after all just a CASIO. No sequencer...

As mentioned the presets are rubbish but once you get into the guts of the O/S this machine can scream. It can sound as vicious as a analogue mono oh yeh! especially at distorted trapeziod leads. It's excellent for bow bow basses, dance sounds, and modulated special effects. It's got it all really, GLIDE, PORTAMENTO, MODULATION (4 types) OSC DETUNE, SOLO, TONE MIX, KEYSPLIT etc etc but best of all velocity sensitive. That's all Phase Distortion needed to make it analogue! It's such a pity that Casio didn't spend more time at making this thing sound BIG coz I've got a Moog Source, Roland Jupiter 6, Juno 106 Korg Polysix blah blah and it can be just as expressive (well maybe not the Jupe!)

Mines still works and I've gigged with it. My advice, don't bounce it off a punters head!

Sadly there's no such thing! I've tried to get replacement vol/chorus slider tops (mines were nicked) and with no avail. Any company that produces so many products obviously can't keep many spare parts. Ther's no mention of the CZ range in their websites. Profit driven company not interested in the consumer.

If it were stolen then I'd be gutted! I've been playing for 16 years and have the following sizers. Jupiter6 / Juno106 / TX81z / K1r / Poly 800 / Polysix / X5D / Moog Source / S950 / S2000 / CZ1 / VL1 / MX73.
It's a fab synth. Forget the anoraks, half probably haven't even played one or just compare it to its little brothers. I had a CZ3000 and it never sounded as good as this thing. It takes pride of place with my other analogues. The only thing I hate about it is the sticker that the music shop put on it and can't get off!
I got the CZ when the local music shop went bust for #40 with a poly800 chucked in for free (they thought it was kaput but the batteries had gone flat! No wonder they went bust eh!).
If anything I wish it had knobs and sliders instead of the insane menu driven software. Now there's an idea for an editor!
Yes it helps me make music, that's why I bought it. Gets in the way only when I'm hoovering..

This synth is lovelly, but only for experienced users. I got this from a trade my dad did, and since I was a guitar player, what the heck, give it to the kid! So I got it! And it took me quite a while to understand what was all that keys, and envelope stuff. After you get used to it, it's quite easy to use.

It has many features (which caused me trouble in the beginning) pitch and modulation wheel, glide, portamento, tremolo...

Well, after getting used to it, the keyboard rulez! Although it's old, you can do many new stuff with it, including techno music, and other eletronic composition. Maybe if you want to get to new wave music again, you should try it!

I don't think that it's quite reliable. I recommend using it only to studio works, since it's keyboard always have trouble (at least mine...) If you wanna get live, get another keyboard, and use just it's tones...

Huah huah huah! Here, in Brazil??? They just want our money!! They say it's to old to get fixed...

I think it's quite an interesting device. But, with all the new tech thats around, buy something more updated...
Probably I wouldn't buy it, althoug I think it's a good synth. It would help a lot if we had softwares to use with.

It's nice to have a keyboard with a button for every parameter.

Good bass sounds. Good brass sounds. It won't reproduce other acoustic instruments very well, but didn't expect it to. The high end is more brittle or piercing than my DX7. I don't know if that's good or bad.

Only has it 3 days. The mod wheel mount was broken when I purchased it (see below for more details).

I bought it at a local used store for $65.00 (June 2000). It was crying to me to take it home. It looked really sad. It had magic marker all over the keys and 10 years of dust and grime + the mod wheel was broken. The order of the letter keys for selecting patches had even been changed.

I took it home and used windex to clean the body. Q-tips to get in it's important little places and alcohol to get the magic marker off the keys. $2.00 in parts from The Home Depot to fix the mod wheel mount. I popped the letter keys off carefully and replaced them in order.

Lately I've been looking for some of what I would call the unique keyboards of the 80s. I couldn't afford them back then and now I can. I've got a bunch of other technology, and I just thought this would be a little different - it is.

Other stuff: Alesis QS8, Yamaha DX7IIFD, Yamaha TX7,
Roland Juno 106, (2) Roland S550, (2) Roland MT 32
Alesis DM5

I wish I had never sold my: Moog MG1, Roland SH101,
Akai AX80, and TX81Z

It's OK. Thought you have to open many windows to get deeper.
It doesn't have slider or nobs. But it has many buttons so they'll help. Don't get me wrong. It's pretty easy made synth
but since it's so old, it's not easy to use compare to what we ahve now.

It's 8 Poly. Keybords are feeling good, but aftertouch is terrible.(At lease one I have is.)You can't use this as your main keys because of this reason. Usa it as a module. MIDI is OK. But overall sounds are little noisy and far sound. But sometime you want that kind of sound.

Don't expect this synth to create any realistic sound. Thought you can make funny sounds. resonance of this machine is very unique. (they sound almost like bed-spring sometimes.) I think noone is expecting ease of use or feel toit. You buy it ecause you like sound of it. Good for Dance, Trance, Electronica, Trip-Hop, Anything you desire.

It's OK. ut I wouldn't use this on GIG. Just because it doesn't look reliable. I trust Juno106 100 more than this.

I never needed it.

I have pointed few bad thing about this but I like this synth because I can make a sound, what I expect CZ-1 to make. It's not warm sounding ut if you want chasey lead, or Guitar kind, This synth sound is coming out of your speaker very noticeable.

I might ALSO be the president of the CZ-1 fan club!

I have used this as my studio workhorse MIDI input device for 7 years. I bought it used for $400 8 years ago.

It is at LEAST 10 years old and NOTHING has broken!

Mono-aftertouch is usable and not many NEW keyboards even HAVE it!!

What a gem . . . even the action is passable.

B.J.Wallace Toronto

Keyboard action GOOD . . . for a non-weighted action

MIDI capabilities are fantastic (especially for a 10 year old synth!!)

Synth sounds are FM and rather interesting . . .

NICE retro sounds!!!

UTTERLY DEPENDABLE!

Casio has always helped me on the phone, even to the extent of PHOTOCOPYING the whole manual for me!!!
I bought it used without one!

I'll NEVER give this old gal up!

It's the most easy to use synth I know, if you don't learn to programm synths, learn to use substractive syntheses, with this one, you never will, you have a button for each parameter, and nice copy funktions between the two oscilators, ok you don't sea every value at once, but if you have a average short time memory you will have no problem programming it, I even prefer programming it directly then using an editor. The Manual is quite fine !

It has a chorus effekt, but it's a bit too noisy and sounds a bit like PVC, but with each 8! times 8! rates envelope and any of this levels can be chosen as sustain, you can make fine echo an reverb sounds. It's the only CZ synth with aftertouch (monophon) and Velocity The keyboard has 5 octaves, and you have to hit it hard to get full velocity. You can define one split and double souds, but just for the internal sound, no midi channel for each of the sounds (no Masterkeyboard functions). It's 8 Voices with two oscilators with a pitch, volume and wave eg and one LFO that only can influence the pitch. WAVE = the phase disortion equivalent to a filter, the -I think- 27 waveforms (8 with combinations) can be stripped down to a sinus with those filters. The CZ12 has a built in cartidge slot, but I never used it, 64 Voice and 64 Performance (Operation Memory, for Split and Double Sounds) It's midi Mode it Poly and MONO B3 so you can define up to 8 different sounds with different midi channels and different amount of voices for each, each "part" like having seperate synths...

I made some great flutes, some ok Synth Pad sounds, cool Brasses, nice Kotos, good Harps, great effects and good drummsounds, it lacks a bit to synthesize a hard bass drum, the synth bass sounds are realy great and the bells too, it sounds quite analogue, I even produced fine FM like sounds with ring modulation. It realy sound unique, some of the sounds I made sound Mircowave like. Don't try to create a nice Piano or Sitar sound, the Organs are ok, but not as good as the DX7 ones... It can a lot more then it presets shows...

It has a problem with the output, since they used some cheap parts in it, I exchanged the controlable resistor, and the faders started to crackle, after 10 years, maybe to much dust in my rooms ;-) there's a pad behind the LCD that caused some shortcuts with the metal shielding (if the display flickering, then you have the same problem), I isolated it, after that the problem never occured again...

Never dealt with the support, but the guy on the Musikmesse in Frankfurt was not quite friendly when we (me and a friend with a FZ1) asked him some questions...

I'm using it since the end of 1985, I also have a Yamaha FS1R, TX81Z, Kawai K5000R, Roland MT32, and still like those special CZ1, since I programmed some hundred sounds for it, it has it's own special sound... it's worth it's prize...

As seems to be the case in alot of synths, the presets are nearly worthless, but if you take the time to make up your own patches, there's lots of pretty nice sounds that can come out of this board. the synthesis is digital, using Phase Distortion, which is Casio's nifty way of making an FM synth without stepping on Yamaha's patents. patch editing is a breeze if you know anything about subtractive synthesis. VCO,VCF,VCA are all there (kinda) but called something else. I've seen patch editors for this, and i have a couple, but i prefer to program from the board, and it's easy enough that the patch editors i've seen don't make much of a difference. the manual's pretty thick and all the info you'll need to know is in there, along with a synthesis handbook which basically explains how phase distortion works and gives some insight on how to program sounds.

Unlike all of the other CZ synths except maybe the 3000 (i believe), the cz-1 is 8 part multitimbral, although the voice allocation is not dynamic (you have to assign how many notes of polyphony each of the voices can have) and alas, it is only 8 voice polyphonic. Whats unique about the 1 as opposed to the other CZ's is that it responds to velocity and aftertouch. it accepts ROM and RAM cartridges with a bank of 64 sounds, but these sounds have to be loaded into the internal memory to be used in multitimbral mode. if you're not using it multi-timbrally, there's operation memory mode that I guess would be similar to the combi's in korg synths, 64 locations to store key splits, combination sounds, or single sounds, this is pretty helpful in live situations, where you can have the sounds you'll be using in order from a1-h8, along with whatever settings (portamento, solo, etc...) you'll be using. As far as effects go, all it's got is a chorus feature which i almost never use because it seems to take some "bite" out of the sounds.

The most semi-realistic sounds that it produces are electric piano (marvelous), organ sounds and plucked strings (pretty accurate attacks with those) other than that, it's good with analog style leads, fat saw waves, bleepy squares etc... and computerish sound effects. most simple analog synthesis can be recreated, even drums like the 808 bass & snare (took me a while, but i was able to do these) and the simmons synth tom sounds. (how retro!) all the envelopes (oscillator, filter, and amplitude) are 8 step. and velocity can affect all three. because of the velocity responce it's got some of the most playable sounds and some that can be lots of fun. with velocity routed to the oscillator, there's a huge range from subsonic rumbles to aliasing whines (digital grunge, ahhh) routed to the filter (all right, it's not really a filter, more of a waveshaper) one can go from a clean sine wave to a full-out saw in resonance (it's no tb-303, and the resonance is kinda hokey, but its there.) and to amplitude, well, everything does that... but at least you can disable this, unlike most of my sample playback boxes where b3 samples get louder or softer with velocity (i'm trained on organ not piano, so that bugs the hell out of me) vince clarke and graham massey both use cz-101's along with a bunch of other dance/techno artists, i use it for techno, industrial and acid jazz, and it usually seems to have a sound i'm looking for (or can at least make something similar to the sound)

I've never had any problems with it, lugging it around in a great big duffel bag from practice to gig to home all the time, and it's cheap enough to get a replacement that I don't even take care of it that much, it's a little rough around the edges from me beating up on it so much, but it's never failed on me and i don't think there's enough to it to cause it to crash.

A CZ-101 was my first (real) synth, back in about 88 or 89, then i picked up the CZ-1 off a friend in 91, i've bought and used much more expensive synths/samplers since then, but my cz has never lost it's space in my mixer, and whenever possible i buy rackmount gear and use the cz as my controller. I could quite possibly be the president of the cz-1 fan club, so my opinions are probably biased, and i'll admit there's quite a bit else i wish it would do, but it's good for the money, and it beats all those dime-a-dozen general midi sample playback boxes.