Casio WK Keyboard Workstation for advanced Players, at prices you cannot ignore. These 76-key keyboards feature advanced features, wide range of voices and styles, and are ideal for home/project studio use, or for performing live. The top model in this series feature real drawbar organs, hundreds of tweakable sounds, 17-track sequencing and more. Skip to the best 76-key Casio wk keyboard.
Introduction
Casio is no longer just a manufacturer of cheap keyboards; today they have a wide range of keyboards that appeals to all types of keyboard players (though they have made sure their prices are on the budget side).
While 61 keys keyboard are extremely popular among keyboard players, there are lot of experienced players who prefer to have more keys (because of their better skills, they find 61 keys to be limiting).
Casio WK series includes 76-keys keyboards that are high on features, yet lightweight. Its the right balance between a 61-key keyboard and a heavyweight 88-key keyboard with hammer action keyboard.
The idea is not to match the top workstations (from Yamaha, Korg, Roland) in terms of quality of the offerings, but to offer lots of above average features which will appeal to songwriters and the intermediate level player who wants to try out lot of things (in terms of music creation).
Key Features
- 76-keys (non-weighted keys), responsive Key action
- Value-for-money, lots of features
- Speakers are good, built-in speakers are good, but it will sound much better through headphones or external amps
- Easy compatible with the PC, ability to store data on memory card
Who Is It For?
- For serious beginners who want a mix of arranger features and more than 61 keys
- For songwriters/intermediate level players who want more features to play with
- As a add-on keyboard for experienced players
Casio WK: Comparison Chart
Here are the popular products/models in this series.
- Casio WK-7600: Flagship model in the WK series, comes with several tones, styles and tools to edit them.
- Casio WK-245: Entry level model in the WK series, comes with several tones, styles and tools to edit them.
- Casio WK-6600: sits in between the above two models.
While Casio WK 76-key keyboards do not have full weighted keys, they do have models that come with semi-weighted keys. And these are arranger keyboards with several advanced features and a nice collection of voices and styles (for every genre.) You can use it for performing, composing or for casual playing.
Best Casio WK Keyboard Models
Here’s a more detailed review of these 76-key keyboards.
Casio WK7600 76-Key Workstation Keyboard
The Casio WK-7600 is the flagship model in the WK series. Its powerful, ad better suited for those who want a board for music production but do not have the budget to spend on a high end workstation keyboard (from Yamaha, Roland, Korg). The new Casio WK-7600 offers powerful and extensive features at a price that is unheard of in the portable keyboard market.
While the Casio-WK 7600 and WK-6600 may not be a Korg or Roland, they definitely can be used for gigging, provided you have the right level of skills, and if you have gone through the learning curve to understand and take advantage of all the features which these keyboards have to offer. You can vary several parameters of the tone to make it sound interesting (as per your requirement).
The Casio-WK 7600 offers hundreds of world-class tones & preset rhythms, 17 track sequencer, 32 channel mixer, as well as audio recording capabilities. Any piece of music you create can be recorded as an audio file on an SDHC card. 9 sliders extend your versatility and provide an impressive 50 drawbar organ tones. Whether you are an amateur or professional musician, the WK-7600 will allow you to create, edit and play your compositions at home, in the studio or on the stage. Read more.
Casio WK-6600 76-Key Keyboard
An opportunity to own an advanced keyboard at reasonable price. The WK-6600 comes with a 16-track song sequencer, tone editor, multiple digital effects, mixer, performance registration memory, USB MIDI interface, SD card storage and hundreds of editable tones! The WK6600 also includes a wide range of built-in effects such as reverbs, choruses and various DSP types. You can also create your own DSP effects and store them. Read more.
Note: The on-board speakers don’t turn off when you connect them to the 1/4 Inch outputs (external speakers).
Beginners will be impressed with the kind of features available on this keyboard. Experienced players may have wished for more. The sounds are okay, but can be made a lot better by modifying them or layering a few of them. The keys feel good and it has lots of features that will let you make music without having to turn on your computer.
Casio WK-245 76-Key Electronic Keyboard
The Casio WK-245 is the entry level keyboard in this series. The 76-Key Touch Sensitive Keyboard can be used for learning, for its accompaniments, and is portable enough to be easily carried around. The 76-keys lets you practice many more songs compared to 61-keys. If you’re looking for really weighted keys, you may have to explore other options. A great value keyboard for beginners, and thanks to its USB MIDI port, the keyboard can grow with you. Read more.
Casio WK Keyboards: Buying Guide
Casio WK Keyboards are typical arranger keyboards, priced in the low-to-mid range. These are similar to the CTK series from Casio but come with 76 keys. Beginners who are learning classical pieces will find these keyboards quite useful. Even experienced players can use the top models from this series as backup keyboards.
There are many experienced players who, besides owning a primary keyboard, want to own a second keyboard without spending a lot of money. There could be various reasons – looking for different yet high quality sounds, portability, useful features for recording or performing live. There are also many Intermediate level players who would like to upgrade to a high-end keyboard, after learning for a few years.
If you belong to any of these categories, you can consider these value-for-money 76-Key keyboards!
There was a time when these keyboards were quite popular because this was the only series that had budget, 76-key keyboards. However, over time, other brands also started offering 76-key keyboards. Yamaha PSR-E series, which for a long time, did not have 76-key keyboards now offers 76-key keyboards.
What Can You Use It For?
This series includes a mix of entry-level keyboards as well as a few advanced electronic keyboards that can be used for music creation or for performing live. But again, these are not really high end professional keyboards; they do have impressive features and the more tempting part is the price at which these are available.
The WK series keyboards have 76-keys, which will allow you to play a broader range of songs. These are equipped with superb sounds, and has synthesizing features as well to create your own sounds.
Better Tones & Sounds
For a long time, Yamaha’s sound has been better than Casio’s but now Casio has introduced a new sound source to give that extra boost to its sound. These keyboards use better samples, come with powerful built-in speakers, and deliver the much needed punch and authenticity to the sound of a Casio WK keyboard.
Advanced Features on Casio WK Keyboard Workstation
The higher models in this series are basically ‘budget’ keyboard workstations and aimed at the more advanced players, these come loaded with lots of useful features such as – Bigger and Information-packed Display, Onboard Sequencer and Mixer, Synthesizer mode, Powerful Effects, MIDI and PC connectivity.
These also come with expandable features. External connectivity to the PC and to external storage devices has been simplified so that it is easier to transfer music related files across devices. And the choice of tones, rhythms and the quality of their sound is amazing.
Download Stuff from the Internet
You can keep your Casio 76 Key Keyboard updated with the latest and funkiest rhythms, tones, digital effects, wave files, midi files and song registrations by downloading them from the Internet. Casio has created a site called music.casio.com where you can find software which will let you download all the music related stuff on your PC, from where you can load them onto your keyboard. With this feature, you can let your imagination run wild and do all sorts of creative things with these Casio keyboards.
Recommended WK Models
If you are an absolute beginner looking for a keyboard with 76 keys, you may opt for the Casio WK-245; its an entry level keyboard with 76-keys. If you’re looking for your first keyboard, and this falls in your budget, by all means go and grab it!
Those who’re looking for feature laden keyboards, with nice selection of styles and voices, synth & recording functions, can consider the Casio WK-7600 or the Casio WK-6600. The sound quality on these keyboards is much better than the entry level wk-keyboards since these are meant for the intermediate to experienced players.
Competition Check
At this price point, the keyboards are dominated by the likes of Casio & Yamaha. For the price, this is a great keyboard with tons of features to play with.
Looking for more or better options? Take a look at these series.
- Casio MZ-X Keyboards: Advanced arranger keyboards from Casio, recently launched.
- Casio Privia Pianos: Popular digital pianos
If you’re interested in the Yamaha brand, for a better sound quality (and with somewhat fewer features), you can consider the Yamaha PSR-EW series.
Closing Thoughts
The Casio wk keyboards include 76-key keyboards that offer a lot of value, considering the prices for which they are available. You may also consider buying the package bundle which comes with useful accessories such as headphones, keyboard stand, and power supply. These value-for-money keyboard are suitable for beginners, intermediate level players, songwriters.
KeytarHQ editorial team includes musicians who write and review products for pianists, keyboardists, guitarists & other musicians. KeytarHQ is the best online resource for information on keyboards, pianos, synths, keytars, guitars and music gear for musicians of all abilities, ages and interests.
I just acquired a Casio WK-3500 and would like to learn more about it but, I can’t find a manual for it. Can you help me with that?
You will find it here – Casio keyboard manuals
I have the Casio WK-7600 and it does have a learning curve as there are several things that can be altered. Before this, I had a had a Yamaha PSR arranger. This one offers a lot more. Price was much lesser, keyboard action is a lot better. would have preferred the buttons to be larger in size and perhaps even in different colors. Realistic voices and good “accompaniment”, but I think there are way too many eastern styles, would have preferred more country, gospel, and ballad styles. I don’t plan to use it for gigs, will use it for creating and recording. I think its a great keyboard.
I was planning to buy the Yamaha PSR-E453 but now that I have started taking keyboard lessons, I don’t think I want to go with 61 keys and I also want something that is a bit more heavy. I cannot afford a digital piano right now and I am definitely not getting an Acoustic one can’t afford it either and I travel too much so I need something easier to carry. I came across the Casio WK-6600 and the Casio WK-7600 one it seems to be the right kind of instrument for my needs.
It seems using the WK 7600 you can loop and make your own tracks on it. They say you can’t make your own sound DJ settings (like on Yamaha PSR) but I am not so hooked on electro music anyway so I can deal with that. For me, it is important to be able to make loops and use the keyboard as a midi controller (Yes I just said i’m not so hooked about DJing but that is for electro music).
I want to make beats, old school hip hop, a little bit of funk, jazzy tunes and stuff like that. I went through as many videos and reviews as I could before i decided to ask. But I would like a few opinions before I buy the keyboard. I am not sure about the difference between WK-6600 and WK-7600. I think it is the amount of sounds and slots. Hopefully both can be used to loop so I could save up some money and buy the WK- 6600 one. So tell me…are there many disadvantages? What am I missing if I don’t get the Yamaha PSR-E453 and I get the Casio WK-6600 or WK-7600? I am still a beginner yes but I would like something a bit advanced…not pro of course that is why I don’t go for something like Roland or Korg. And I think the Casio with it’s heavier weighted keys than Yamaha PSR will be best for me.
Give me your opinions!I’d like to have some before I rush and buy something! Also will I be able to use it with Garage Band and other DAWs? I want something that comes close to a real piano like Casio..because of the keys and I want it to work like midi and have pattern-song sequencer on board without the need of pc. Something around 500 euros (550 dollars) max. I don’t want a synth because it needs monitoring, external amplifiers. I want a keyboard that sounds it self thru the speakers. So which from those should I get? Do you have any other suggestions? Maybe other brands? Something that comes close to what I need.
Or should I get the Roland BK-3 BK which is same price as Casio. Only thing is it comes with 61 keys and the keys are not weighted, not Grand piano like keys.
Own a Casio WK-500 76-Key Keyboard and it comes with workstation like features (although not a pro keyboard) and can be used for home studio use, open-mic performance for an audience (connected to a good amp/PA), education/classroom applications, or simply for pure musical enjoyment.
The Casio WK500 recently workstation keyboard comes with a nice palette of sound and rhythms, and has almost all the features that you can think of in a keyboard. You get 670 high-quality voices, 200 styles (comes with a Rhythm Editor), auto-accompaniment, and 48-note polyphony for playing complex arrangements.
Other features on the Casio WK-500 76-Key Keyboard include 15 digital effects, auto harmonizer, 200 presets, arpeggiator (90 types), song expansion, and an SD card slot for song storage. You also get a pitch-bend wheel for added control.
When it comes to recording, the built-in sequencer will let you record up to max 5 songs, each made up of 6 tracks. Other recording related features on this Casio keyboard include a USB MIDI interface, line & mic inputs, and sampling feature that allows for 10 seconds of sampling.
Here are the key technical specs of wk-500: