Casio Privia PX-160 Digital Piano – 2022 Review

The Casio Privia PX-160 is an easy digital piano for both beginners and teachers. We are excited about the 2-track MIDI recorder. This allows users to record the left-handed piano parts separately from the right-handed parts and then combine them later into one song. One of the challenges of learning to play the piano is learning to play with each hand, and this feature will allow students to learn each hand and how the sound of the left and right parts work together to create a full song.

The Casio Privia PX-160 includes 60 songs that are built-in for practicing the left-handed and right-handed parts. The user can add an additional 10 songs for practicing the same way. The piano also features a metronome for learning to keep time and has a headphone jack to allow for quiet practice sessions as well as transpose and tuning functions and duet mode. We find all the controls easy to use and understand.

There are 5 different piano sounds available on the Casio Privia PX-160, plus the ability to play 13 additional instrument sounds. The piano sounds were sampled from a 9-foot grand piano, and the AiR Sound Source allows for more natural piano tones. We enjoyed the jazz organ, concert grand, and harpsichord as well as the strings. This digital piano also feels more to the touch like an actual piano rather than a plastic keyboard. It features weighted keys with a simulated “ebony & ivory” feel, which makes playing a delight.

Our main issue with the Casio Privia PX-160 was the connectivity, but even here the concerns are minor. The Casio Privia PX-160 has no modulation or bend wheels, which limits its functionality. The rear panel connectors are not hard-wired to the external case, but rather they are directly mounted to the inner circuit board. They wobble somewhat, but research suggests that this has not been a problem or concern for most users.

Despite our minor concerns about the instability of the connectors, we are very much impressed overall with the design of the Casio Privia PX-160. We’ve already praised the weighted keys and their ability to make the user feel like they are playing a real ivory keyboard. Casio’s Tri-sensor Hammer Action Keyboard II uses a 3-sensor detection system which allows for faster note repetition. We are impressed with the array of features, particularly the 2-track MIDI recorder but also the number of pre-recorded songs and the quality of the speakers.

Casio offers a 3-year warranty on the Casio Privia PX-160.

The Alesis Recital Pro has a simple-to-understand interface and performs similarly to the other digital pianos in this review. It has a battery compartment, which allows it greater portability for musicians on the go. However, it doesn’t have all the beginner-friendly features of the Casio Privia PX-160.

The sound is pretty average. It doesn’t sound better or worse than most of the other digital keyboards on this list with the exception of the Casio Privia PX-160, which we believe has superior sound quality to the other options. The Recital Pro’s keys are made of glossy plastic, and while they are fully weighted, it still feels like a plastic keyboard instead of a real piano.

Where the Alesis shines above the other pianos on this list is connectivity. The piano has a USB type B port, which will allows users to connect to a computer for use with software like GarageBand and Flowkey. There is a pedal input, a headphone output, and there are 2 line outputs which can be used to connect the keyboard to external speakers, a mixer, or a PA system.

We find the design quality to be average among other digital pianos on the market.

It was difficult to find warranty information, but it appears that most sellers offer a limited 1-year warranty, and in some cases an additional warranty can be purchased.

The Yamaha P-45’s basic functionality and beautiful tone make it easy and fun to play.

While the P-45 achieves beautiful sound quality, we still feel like it is not quite on par with the rich, authentic tone of the Casio Privia PX-160. Still, it features 64-note polyphony and AMW stereo sampling technology, and the weighted Graded Hammer Standard keys are a pleasure to play.

We are disappointed that there are no output jacks, and the only means of any sort of connection is via the USB type B port. While a beginner might not need output jacks or split mode, they would be nice features to have considering that the other options in the same price range do.

When it comes to quality, Yamaha digital pianos are hard to beat, which is why they are such a popular brand among beginning and more accomplished musicians. The P-45 is no exception.

Yamaha offers a limited 3-year warranty on all P series digital pianos.

One reason this digital piano is so easy to use is because it is so basic. Without a lot of extra features, it is relatively uncomplicated to play.

As mentioned previously, we enjoy the sound on this model second only to the Casio Privia PX-160. However, the keys do not feel as realistic.

The Korg B1 has the least connectivity out of all the pianos featured in this article. While it does come with a realistic sustain pedal, it has no USB port and no MIDI compatibility whatsoever. This gives it a big disadvantage considering that all of the other options do offer at least one or more types of external connectivity.

The design quality is solid. Even though this keyboard has minimal functionality, it does perform solidly.

Korg offers a 1-year warranty on parts and labor.