I guess I missed all the action--whew!

I too want Casio to succeed, with GEM and Technics gone, the more alternatives the better! Maybe I could draw my own conclusions about the sound, interface, keybed quality--IF I could actually find and play one of these boards in a store.

The Casio MZ-X500 has been out for at least a year. I've never seen one in a store.
Nor have I seen the Roland E-A7, or any Ketron product. Internet sales are undercutting the costs of brick & mortar, I get it. So IMO if the manufacturers want to break in with increased sales, it's incumbent upon them to host pop-up events, demo stands in malls, etc.

I'm ok with Yamaha. But I often wonder if it sells because it's what's there. Thanks for letting me vent!

Edit: One more thing, this is one of the lightest, most compact arrangers out there. But the lack of a DIN MIDI jack makes me lean toward the MZ-X500. Bad move on Casio's part IMO.