Casio CT-S200 Keyboard (61-Key)

While Casio has done an admirable job of breaking into the higher end digital market over the last several years, they’ve been more widely recognized as one of the big players in the entry-level and intermediate keyboard/digital piano market for quite some time.

There are many entry-level keyboards available for under $200 CAD, but the CT-S200 shows why Casio is the biggest player in this class – this thing is absolutely loaded for the price! Whether it’s the surprisingly good sound of the double speaker system, intuitive interface, or 400 onboard tones, the CT-S200 has a lot to offer.

The keys making up the 61-note keyboard are the same size as a normal digital piano, and with up to 16 hours of battery life, the CT-S200 is ready to make music… wherever you are.

The Casio Casiotone CT-S200 is available in Black, White, and Red. Also, check out the Casio CT-S300.

Piano Action

The Casio CT-S200 has a 61-note, non-weighted keyboard. While this action is not velocity sensitive under normal operation, you can specify a static velocity value between 0 and 127 to be transmitted from the keyboard to an external sound source. This means the CT-S200 is a perfectly viable option as a lightweight, affordable MIDI controller.

If you’re looking for a full-sized, 88-note, weighted, touch-sensitive instrument, then the CT-S200 wouldn’t be the right option. That said, the keys themselves are exactly the same size as an 88-note digital piano, and they feel really good, so for someone just getting their feet with piano for the first time, this might not matter, nor would it to someone after a good value controller.

Piano Sound

The sound will probably surprise you the first time you hear the CT-S200. Most keyboards in this price range sound like toys, but that really isn’t the case here. There’s a 4-watt amplifier driving two speakers, and there’s a secondary function that optimizes the equalizer to provide balanced sound throughout the whole range of the instrument at all volume levels.

There are 400 onboard tones, which is a really large selection all things considered, as well as 10 different reverb effects for customizing the tone to your liking. Add in 77 unique rhythms, an auto-accompaniment feature as well as a Dance Mode- the CT-S200 clearly has all kinds of sonic possibilities.

Connectivity

The CT-S200 definitely checks off quite a few boxes with regards to connectivity. There’s a ⅛” audio line-in, as well as a ⅛” headphone output that also doubles as audio out.

There’s also a USB micro B port that facilitates MIDI, as well as connectivity to Casio’s compatible Chordana Play App. There’s also a ¼” sustain pedal instrument if you’d like to add that to your setup.

Notable Features

Given that the CT-S200 is so feature-loaded, there’s a lot of things worth highlighting here, such as its lightweight of 7.3 lbs (without batteries,) built-in handle for easy portability as well as a song-bank of 60 songs.

With that in mind, the biggest highlight of the Casiotone CT-S200 is just how many features they’ve managed to load into such a small package.

• 61 standard size keys
• 48 Maximum Polyphony
• Tones
• Built-in tones: 400
• Dance Music Mode
• LCD display (adjustable contrast)
• MIDI
• Chordana Play
• 9.5V DC Power Supply

Conclusions

Built for all kinds of different buyers, if you’re already looking in the sub $200 CAD price category and haven’t yet checked out the Casio Casiotone CT-S200, you owe it to yourself to do so as this feature-heavy keyboard is tough to beat.

Casio CT-S200 Owner’s Manual

• [English] CT-S200 Owner’s Manual