Gearank

Casio's design principle is simple yet effective, pack as many features as possible while keeping the price affordable.

The CTX700 follows this to the letter, with 600 voicings and 195 auto-accompaniment rhythms at a very reasonable price.

To trigger the many voicings it carries, the CTX700 has a keybed with 61 piano-style keys, and each one are touch responsive and velocity sensitive.

If you want to go outside traditional keyboard playing, it also comes with 100 arpeggiators.

Learning features include 161 built-in songs and Step-Up lesson system.

Finally, it comes with a 6-track recorder and USB/MIDI compatibility.

Features:

• USB MIDI
• 61 Piano Style Keys
• Action: Touch Response
• Velocity Sensitive
• 48-note Polyphony
• 600 Tones
• 195 Rhythms
• 6-track Recorder
• 2-way 4.7" Stereo Speakers, 2.5W Amp per side
• Optional Sustain Pedal
• Included 9.5V DC power supply / 6 x AA batteries
• Weight: 9.5 lbs.

Pros

Value for money is the obvious strength of this keyboard, especially for students who want to learn on a piano style keybed with velocity sensitivity. A good number of positive reviews are from beginners, there are also teachers who are happy to recommend this to their students. Sound quality is also often mentioned positively, especially its piano sounds.

Cons

There are a few complaints about the quality of the included power supply. Others are not too impressed with the overall build quality, but still feel that it's solid enough for the money. There are also some who wish for pitchbend and modulation controls but you can only expect so much at this price level.

Overall

This budget friendly piano-style keyboard is a great way to start learning the ropes of making music on electronic keyboards.

Although this was previously on our recommended list, there are now more highly rated options available which you can see in our guide to The Best Portable Keyboards.