Korg C-520 User Manual

ua

C-520

User’s Manual

EFGI 1

English

User’s Manual

Français

Mode d’emploi

Deutsch

Bedienungseinleitung

Italiano

Manuale di istruzioni

DIGITAL PIANO

User’s Manual

PRECAUTIONS

CE MARK FOR EUROPEAN HARMONIZED STANDARDS

Location

Using the unit in the following locations can result in a malfunction.

• In direct sunlight

• Locations of extreme temperature or humidity

• Excessively dusty or dirty locations

• Locations of excessive vibration

Power supply

Please connect the designated AC adapter to an AC outlet of the correct volt­age. Do not connect it to an AC outlet of voltage other than that for which
your unit is intended.

Interference with other electrical devices

This product contains a microcomputer. Radios and televisions placed
nearby may experience reception interference. Operate this unit at a suitable
distance from radios and televisions.

Handling

To avoid breakage, do not apply excessive force to the switches or controls.

Care

If the exterior becomes dirty, wipe it with a clean, dry cloth. Do not use liq­uid cleaners such as benzene or thinner, or cleaning compounds or flamma­ble polishes.

Keep this manual

After reading this manual, please keep it for later reference.

Keeping foreign matter out of your equipment

• Never set any container with liquid in it near this equipment. if liquid gets
into the equipment, it could cause a breakdown, fire, or electrical shock.

The CE mark that is attached to our company’s products of AC mains oper­ated apparatus until December 31, 1996 means it conforms to the EMC
Directive (89/336/EEC) and to the CE mark Directive (93/68/EEC).

The CE mark that is attached after January 1, 1997 means it conforms to the
EMC Directive (89/336/EEC), to the CE mark Directive (93/68/EEC) and to
the Low Voltage Directive (73/23/EEC).

In addition, the CE mark that is attached to our company’s products of Bat­tery operated apparatus means it conforms to the EMC Directive (89/336/
EEC) and to the CE mark Directive (93/68/EEC).

THE FCC REGULATION WARNING (FOR THE U.S.A.
ONLY)

This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a
Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are
designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a
residential installation. This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate
radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the
instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications.
However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particu­lar installation. If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or
television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off
and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or
more of the following measures:

• Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.

• Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.

• Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from
that to which the receiver is connected.

• Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.

Unauthorized changes or modification to this system can void the user’s
authority to operate this equipment.

• Be careful not to let metal objects get into the equipment. If something
does slip into the equipment, unplug the AC adapter from the wall outlet.
Then contact your nearest Korg dealer or the store where the equipment was
purchased.

DISCLAIMER

The information contained in this manual has been carefully revised and
checked through. Due to our constant efforts to improve our products, the
specifications might differ to those in the manual. Korg is not responsible for
any eventual differences found between the specifications and the contents
of the instruction manual - the specifications being subject to change with­out prior notice

WARRANTY

KORG products are manufactured according to the strictest electrical and
mechanical regulations that exist in various countries of the world. These
products are warranted by the KORG distributor only in each country. Any
KORG product that is not sold with the manufacturer’s or distributor’s war­ranty, or without a serial number, cannot benefit from servicing under the
warranty. This regulation is for the consumer’s own protection.

DATA RESET

When the instrument is turned off, any unsaved parameters or songs are
reset.

UPDATING THE SOFTWARE

The system software of your C-520 can be updated. From time to time, Korg
might release new versions including bug fixes and new features. Please
check our website for more information.

ASSISTANCE AND SERVICE FOR MUSICIANS

For repairs, contact your nearest Authorized KORG Service Center. For more
information on KORG products, and to find software and accessories for
your piano, please contact your local Authorized KORG distributor.

KORG ON THE INTERNET

Korg Inc.: www.korg.co.jp

Korg USA: www.korg.com

Korg UK: www.korg.co.uk

Korg Canada: www.korgcanada.com

Korg Italy: www.korgpa.com

© 2006 Korg Inc. Printed in Japan.

Contents

>

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Main features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Control panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Connecting to external audio devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Before you begin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Open the key cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Turning the instrument on . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Using the music stand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Adjusting the volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Using the headphones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Listening to the Demo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Basic functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Playing a single sound (Single mode) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Playing two sounds at the same time (Layer mode) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Playing different sounds with the left and right hand (Split mode) .17

Using the pedals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Transposing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Changing the brilliance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

Turning the effects on/off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

Using performances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Choosing performances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

Changing the sounds assigned to a performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

Editing a performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

The metronome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Starting and stopping the metronome, adjusting the tempo . . . . . . . 22

Tempo and time signature display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Adjusting the tempo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

Choosing a time signature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Drum patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Adjusting the metronome level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24

Adjusting the drum pattern’s reverb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Selecting the accent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Saving the metronome settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

Playing back a song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Accessing the Song Play mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

How to select a song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26

How to start playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Starting from a different measure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

Muting/unmuting a recorder’s part . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Changing the song’s tempo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

Play along with the song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

Cycle Play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29

Recording a song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Quick recording procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Step 1: Entering the Record mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30

Step 2: Selecting sounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31

Step 3: Setting the record options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32

Step 4: Setting the time signature and tempo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33

Step 5: Recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33

Step 6: Second-pass recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34

Changing sounds to a recorded song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Changing tempo to a recorded song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35

Pedal Punch recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35

Auto Punch recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Saving the song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36

Editing a song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Setting Cycle Play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Erasing a track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Cutting measures at the end of the song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

Quantizing the song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

Transposing the song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39

Deleting the song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39

Saving the song after editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Editing sounds and performances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Accessing the Sound edit mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Exit from the Sound edit mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Saving a sound . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Saving a performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Setting the volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Adjusting the panning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Adjusting the effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Setting the reverb effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Setting the chorus or modulation effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Setting the insert effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Setting the octave transposition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Adjusting the fine tune . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Programming the pedals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Selecting a scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Resetting the current sound and performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Global settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Touch settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Turning the internal speakers on or off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Master tuning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Brilliance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Default split point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Assigning functions to the pedals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Quarter Tone (SubScale realtime programming) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Fast Play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Mute Level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Turning the keyboard on or off (Local Control) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

MIDI Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

MIDI IN Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

MIDI OUT Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

MIDI Filters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Data transfer via the USB port . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Erasing songs from the User Song album . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

General Reset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

System version number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

MIDI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

What is MIDI? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

What is MIDI Over USB? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

What can you do with MIDI? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

MIDI connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Standard MIDI settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Using the C-520 as a multitimbral tone generator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Program Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Control Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Installing the Korg USB MIDI Driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Connecting the C-520 to a personal computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

KORG USB-MIDI Driver system requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Please note before use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Windows: Installing the KORG USB-MIDI Driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Mac OS X: Installing KORG USB-MIDI Driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Assembling the stand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Cautions for assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Assembling procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Check after assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Caution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Error messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Polyphony . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Technical specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Appendix / Appendice / Anhang / Appendice . . . . . . . . . . . 277

Sounds / Timbres / Klänge / Suoni . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277

Performances / ‘Performance’-Speicher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283

Effects / Effets / Effekte / Effetti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285

Songs / Morceaux / Songs / Brani musicali . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286

MIDI Implementation Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288

English

5

Introduction

> Main features

Introduction

Main features

Wide range of sounds

Forty different and expressive high-quality sounds, including
a Stereo Concert Grand Piano. You can use the Layer and Split
functions to simultaneously play a combination of two
sounds. Sounds and sound combinations can be freely modi­fied.

Performances

Sound combination can also be saved into performances, giv­ing you an additional set of 30 timbres (3 banks of 10 perfor­mances). Performances also store a custom split point, for
custom combinations of sounds over the keyboard.

Four zones keyboard

The new high-quality, realistic Korg RH3 keyboard features
four zones with different weights. This gives you the same re­alism and feeling as a grand piano keyboard.

Touch control

You can choose from nine different settings to adjust how the
sound will respond to your keyboard playing dynamics.

Pedal effects

The C-520 provides the same three pedals as a grand piano,
controlling the soft, sostenuto, and damper functions respec­tively. The damper pedal simulates the natural string reso­nances and noises of an acoustic piano, by means of the
innovative Korg EPx (Piano eXperience) technology. Both the
damper and soft pedals let you vary the amount of the effect by
how far you press down on them (“half-pedal” function). In
addition, pedals can be freely assigned to other functions, like
starting the recorder or changing the speed of the rotary speak­er.

Piano eXperience (or EPx) effects are particularly evident in
sounds like GrandPiano, BriteGrand and MelloPiano.

One-hundred eighty-five songs

The C-520 includes a huge library of songs, based on famous
pieces and lesson books. These songs are perfectly suitable for
piano lessons, being recorded into two separate parts (left
hand on Part 1, right hand on Part 2) that you can easily turn
off and play on the keyboard. In addition, you can change the
metronome’s tempo and let a defined passage play in cycle.

SongBook included

The SongBook album is also included as a printed music book
– a great resource for practicing and playing along with your
preferred tunes.

Onboard recorder

A multi-track, easy-to-use onboard recorder, lets you record
your own songs, or read Standard MIDI Files that you can
transfer via the integrated USB port from an external comput­er.

Metronome

The built-in metronome allows you to select the time signa­ture, tempo, and volume, and use a bell sound as the accent. It
can even give you a drum accompaniment in a musical style of
your choice (drum patterns).

Data transfer via USB

When connected to a personal computer via the USB port, the
C-520’s internal memory can be seen as a USB disk. This way,
you can backup your data, or transfer files between the C-520
and the personal computer.

Piano eXperience

While existing piano sampling techniques have resembled an
audio snapshot, our new “Piano eXperience” technology is
more of a hologram, accurately reproducing every dimension­al detail of the sound. All piano sampling for the C-520 is done
in stereo to preserve the natural imaging of the sound. Differ­ent dynamic levels are captured to extend the instrument's ex­pressive vocabulary.

Going even further, the C-520 uses the sound of the key being
released and the hammer returning, as well as the sympathetic
damper resonance of the strings to create all of the subtle shad­ings that create a superior instrument sound. This attention to
detail defines the sound of the new C-520, providing an instru­ment that can interpret every nuance of touch into a meaning­ful musical gesture.

6

MIDI capabilities

The C-520 supports the MIDI protocol, the standard that al­lows music data to be transferred between musical instru­ments and computers. MIDI allows two or more devices to
control or be controlled by each other, and also allows you to
use the C-520 as a 16-part multitimbral tone generator.

MIDI over USB

The USB port also carries MIDI data, so that you can connect
the C-520 directly to your personal computer with a single ca­ble and without the need of a dedicated MIDI interface. A ded­icated KORG USB MIDI Driver is freely available for full use
of the C-520’s MIDI features.

Introduction

> Main features

Temperaments

In addition to the Equal temperament, the C-520 allows you to
select nine alternative temperaments, for historically accurate
performance of classical music, or experimenting. When se­lecting an acoustic piano sound, the typical Stretched Tuning
is automatically selected.

Adjustable pitch

The Transpose function lets you change the pitch of the piano,
and the Master Tuning function allows you to make fine tune
adjustments.

Effects

The C-520 provides built-in digital effects that can simulate
the natural ambience of a concert hall (reverb) and add rich-

ness to the sound (chorus). In addition, each sound includes
an insert effect (delay, phaser, equalizer, rotary speaker,
etc…), that is specially suited to each particular sound.

Powerful integrated amplification

The C-520 includes a powerful, 2 × 35 Watt amplifier, with
four speakers in bass reflex box. This gives the most authentic
sound reproduction, together with enough volume deliver the
full power of an acoustic piano.

Two sets of headphones

You can connect two stereo headphones, to play with your
teacher or another musician. Connecting a headphone set au­tomatically disconnects the speakers, so there is no risk to dis­turb others when practicing by night.

English

7

Control panel

>

Control panel

PERFORMANCE button:

Enters/exits Performance
mode. While in this mode,
the sound selection buttons
are used to choose perfor­mances instead of single
sounds. See page 20.

MASTER VOLUME
knob:

Adjusts the vol­ume for the speakers,
the Output and the
Phones connectors

VARIATION button:

Selects one of the avail­able variations of the cur­rently selected sound, or
one of the three perfor­mance banks.





/



tons: Move the cursor
in the display, from
one parameter to the
following or the previ­ous one. The cursor is
indicated by a point-

ing arrow (
a parameter’s name.

(Scroll) but-







) next to

Display:

Shows the vari­ous sound names and
parameters.

SPLIT button:

Split mode, a sound is assigned to your right hand,
and a different one to the left hand. Keep it pressed
and play a note on the keyboard to choose a differ­ent split point. See page 17.

POWER switch:

switch. When in the
Standbay position, the
piano is turned off.

Turns Split mode on or off. When in

On/Off

Power LED

8

SOUND SELECTION buttons:

gle mode). You can press two buttons at the same time, to play
two sounds at the same time on the keyboard (Layer mode). Press
SPLIT to play a sound with your right hand, and a different one
with your left hand (Split mode). See page 15.
When the PERFORMANCE indicator is turned on (Performance
mode), these buttons allow for selection of performances. See
page 20.

Press a button to select a sound (Sin-

+/YES / -/NO (Value) but­tons:

Change the value of
the parameters appearing
in the display. The editable
parameter is shown by the

cursor (
left, or (when editing text)
with the character/cipher in
edit flashing. By keeping
them pressed, the values
start changing automati­cally, first slowly, then
slightly faster. By pressing
them together, the param­eter is reset to its default
value.
While in the Main page,
these buttons can be used
to select a different varia­tion of the current sound.



) placed on its



EDIT button:

to access the Edit
mode relevant to the
current type of data
selected in the dis­play. Four Edit modes
are available: Sound
(see page 41), Perfor­mance (see page 41),
Song (see page 37)
and Global (see
page 50). Global edit
mode can be
accessed by keeping
the EDIT button
pressed for more
than one second).

Press it

REVERB button:

Turns the reverb
on/off. This adds
ambience to the
sound. Keep it
pressed for more
than one second
to access the
Reverb edit page
(see page 19).

CHORUS button:

Turns the chorus
on/off. This makes
the sound richer.
Keep it pressed
for more than
one second to
access the Chorus
edit page (see
page 19).

Control panel

METRONOME button:

Turns the metronome click
on/off. The tempo and
time signature depend on
the chosen values, or the
selected song (see
page 22).

TEMPO/MET.SET but­tons:

Adjust the met­ronome tempo. The +
button makes it
faster, while the –
button makes it
slower. Pressed
together, they give
access to metronome
editing. See page 22.

>

English

EXIT button:

exit Edit mode, or to
return to the Main page
from other pages. When
exiting from the Edit
mode, the Save proce­dure will be recalled.
When a drum pattern is
assigned to the Metro­nome, and it is running,
this button doubles as a
Fill In control (see
page 23, page 33).

Press it to

TRANSPOSE button:

Press this button to
open the Transpose
page and change the
master transpose value.
When the indicator is
turned on, transposi­tion is active. Changes
made after pressing this
button are not saved to
memory, and are reset
when turning the
instrument off. See
page 18.

BRILLIANCE button:

Press this button to
open the Brilliance
page and change the
brilliance value. When
the indicator is turned
on, a brilliance varia­tion is active. Changes
made after pressing this
button are not saved to
memory, and are reset
when turning the
instrument off. See
page 19.

RECORDER but­tons:

Control the
playback or record­ing of the songs.
See page 26,
page 30.

DEMO button:

the Demo mode on/off,
to listen to the demo
songs. Select the songs
with the sound selec­tion buttons (see
page 13). You can play
together with the demo
songs.

Turns

9

Control panel

>

OUTPUT (L/MONO, R) connec­tors:

Audio outputs. Connect
these connectors to an external
amplifying system. (With a hi-fi
system use the LINE, AUX, CD or
TAPE connectors, not the
PHONO connector). To amplify
the C-520 in mono, connect the
single L/MONO connector. Use
the MASTER VOLUME knob to
set the output volume.

Pedals connec­tor:

Connect the
supplied pedals
to this connector.

PHONES connector:

nect one or two pairs of
headphones to these jacks.
The integrated speakers
will turn off.

MIDI (IN, OUT) connectors:

Connectors that are used to
connect other MIDI devices
(sequencer, keyboards, etc.).
OUT: Data output (to be
connected to the MIDI IN
connector of another MIDI
device). IN: Data input (to be
connected to the MIDI OUT
connector of another MIDI
device).

Con-

AC ADAPTER
connector:

Connect the
supplied AC/
DC adapter to
this connec­tor.

10

INPUT (L/MONO, R) connectors:

Line audio inputs. Connect to
these connectors an external
audio source, such as a CD, MP3
or tape player, or another key­board. To connect a microphone,
you need an external microphone
preamplifier or a mixer.

Warning:

output of a power amplifier to
these inputs!

Avoid connecting the

USB connector:

USB 1.1-compliant, standard
connector. Connects to a per­sonal computer (PC or Mac).
Can be used for data transfer
(see page 56), or USB Over
MIDI use (see page 59).

Type B (slave),

Connections

Connections

> Connecting to external audio devices

Connecting to external audio devices

Connecting to an external amplification system

Use the OUTPUT connectors, if you like to connect your C­520 to a high-quality mixer, stereo hi-fi, or a couple of active
monitors. When using a stereo hi-fi, connect the OUTPUTs to
the LINE, AUX, CD or TAPE inputs (never use the PHONO
inputs). For mono amplification, connect only the L/MONO
output.

Connecting other audio devices to the C-520

Use the INPUT connectors, to connect a computer, mixer,
drum machine, synthesizer, MP3 or tape player, to your C­520, and hear their sound run through its speakers. For mono

amplification, connect only the L/MONO output.

nect the output of a power amplifier!

English

Do not con-

L/MONO

R

AUX IN

OUTPUT

INPUT

11

Before you begin

> Open the key cover

Before you begin

Open the key cover

Gently lift the center of the sliding key cover by the indented
portion, and support it while you slide it carefully and fully
into the C-520. Before you open the key cover, make sure that
no foreign objects such as papers or coins are on the top of the
key cover itself, otherwise, these objects may fall into the in­strument.

Turning the instrument on

Insert the DC plug of the supplied AC adapter into the DC in­let of the C-520, then connect the AC plug to a wall socket.

After having connected the power cable, press the POWER
switch. When the instrument is turned on, the buttons on the
control panel and the display will light up. Also, an LED on the
front of the instrument, also visible when the key cover is
closed, will light up.

To close the key cover, gently lift the center by the indented
portion, and slide it forward.

Note:

Be careful not to pinch your fingers or hand while open-

ing or closing the key cover.

Note:

The key cover may be damaged if you use excessive force

when opening or closing it.

To turn the instru­ment off, press the
POWER switch
again.

Power LED

Using the music stand

Opening and closing the music stand

Tilt the music stand up­right, and use the two
stoppers located on the
rear to hold the music
stand in place.

To lower the music stand,
release the stoppers and rest the music stand on the flat top.

12

Using the score holders

To keep a music book open, use the two score holders in front
of the music stand. Push on the shorter side to make them slide
up. Push on the longer side to make them slide down.

apply excessive strength or weight to the holders, or you will
risk to break them.

Do not

Adjusting the volume

DEMO:GrandPiano1





Bk1 Press Sound

DEMO:-----------





Bk1 Press Sound

Before you begin

> Adjusting the volume

Rotate the MASTER VOLUME knob towards the right to in­crease the volume; towards the left to decrease the volume. The
maximum value is “10”; the minimum (silence) is “0”. This
control adjusts the output level of the headphones, the internal
speakers and of the OUTPUTs.

Using the headphones

For playing or practicing during night hours, or when you
don’t want to be heard by others in the same room, connect
one or two pairs of high-quality headphones (32
suggested) to the appropriate PHONES connectors. These
connectors are standard 1/4” phone jacks. If your headphones

Ω

impedance

Listening to the Demo

The C-520 contains 20 pre-recorded demo songs. Listen to
them to experience the rich sound and expressive potential of
this instrument. Here is a list of the available demo songs:

It does not control the volume of an audio device connected to
the INPUT connectors. Use the audio device’s own controls to
set its volume.

It is always better to start with a low volume and then increase
gradually.

have a mini-jack adapter, grasp the adapter when plugging in
or out the headphones.

Warning:

avoiding extended listening at high volumes.

When using headphones, protect your hearing by

to the demo song currently in play will turn on. The name
of the song will be shown in the display:

English

Button Bank 1 (1-10) Bank 2 (11-20)

PIANO 1 GrandPiano1 GrandPiano2

PIANO 2 Honky-Tonk Piano Pad

E.PIANO 1 El. Piano 1 El. Piano 2

E.PIANO 2 Digi Piano Vintage EP

HARPSI/CLAV Harpsichord Clav.

VIBES/GUITAR Vibes Ac. Guitar

ORGAN 1 Jazz Organ1 Jazz Organ2

ORGAN 2 Full Pipe Pipe Flute

STRING/CHOIR Strings Choir

BASS Ac. Bass El. Bass

During the demo playback you can’t use any other buttons.
However, you can still play the keyboard to play along with the
demo songs.

Listen to all songs at once

You can listen to all demo songs with a single command.

1. Press the DEMO button. The sound selection indicators

will blink sequentially from left to right. The Demo page
will appear in the display:

DEMO:-----------





Bk1 Press Sound

2. Wait some seconds, without pressing any button. The first

demo song will begin to play. The indicator corresponding

All demo songs will be played back one after the other.
After the last song, the playback will begin again from the
first song.

3. To pause the current song, press the PLAY/PAUSE button.

Press it again to restart playback from the same position.

4. To stop the playback and exit the demo mode, press the

DEMO or the EXIT button.

Listen to a specified song

You can select just one demo song to be played back.

1. First of all, you must select one of the demo song banks.

• To select the first bank (Bk1, songs 1-10), press the DEMO
button once. The indicators will blink sequentially, from
left to right. The Demo page will appear in the display:

• To select the second bank (Bk2, songs 11-20), press the +/
YES button.

• To return to the first bank, press the -/NO button.

2. Press one of the sound selection buttons to select the cor-

responding demo song in the selected bank. The demo is
based on the sound associated with the button. The indi­cator on the selected demo button will stay on, while the
other indicators will turn off.

13

Before you begin > Listening to the Demo

3. After the end of the selected song, all the songs will be

played back in cycle.

4. If you want to select a different song, press one of the

sound selection buttons.

5. To pause the current song, press the PLAY/PAUSE button.

Press it again to restart playback from the same position.

6. To stop the current song without exiting from the Demo

mode, press STOP. Choose a different song and wait for it
to start playing back.

7. To stop the playback and exit the demo mode, press the

DEMO or EXIT button.

14

Basic functions





GrandPiano 4/4

120

Main sound





GrandPiano 4/4

120

Sound name

Basic functions > Playing a single sound (Single mode)

Playing a single sound (Single mode)

When you turn the instrument on, it is in Single mode.

Main

The single Grand Piano sound is selected, and plays over the
full keyboard. Its name is shown in the display:

You can replace it with any of the 40 sounds supplied with the
instrument. See the list of sounds in the following table (more
details on each sound are on page 277):

Sound

Button

Var. 1 Var. 2 Var. 3 Var. 4 Var. 5 Var. 6

PIANO 1 GrandPiano* BriteGrand* Rock Piano Piano&Str.

PIANO 2 Honky-Tonk MelloGrand* Piano&Pad Elec.Grand M1 Piano

E.PIANO 1 Tine EP 1 SuitTineEP DynoTineEP Tine EP 2

E.PIANO 2 Dig. EP 1 Dig. EP 2 Reed EP TremReedEP

HARPSI/CLAV Harpsi 8' Harpsi 16' Clav Synth Clav

VIBES/GUITAR Vibes 1 Vibes 2 Nylon Gtr.

ORGAN1 Jazz Organ Perc.Org.1 Perc.Org.2

ORGAN2 Church Org Pipe Flute Pipe Tutti

STRINGS/CHOIR Strings Slow Str. String Pad Choir ScatVoices Vocal Pad

BASS Ac. Bass El. Bass Fretless B Bass&Ride

* Note: The EPx effects are not available when you are in Layer mode.

English

Selecting a sound

You can use the sound selection buttons to select a different
sound.

1. Press one of the sound selection buttons in order to select

a sound type.

12345

678910

The indicator on the button you pressed will light. The
name of the selected sound will appear in the display:

2. Use the VARIATION button to select one of the available

variations of the base sound (see table above). When the
last variation has been selected, press it again to select the
base sound again.

As an alternative, use the +/YES button to scroll the sound
variation list forward; the -/NO button to scroll it back­wards.

15

Basic functions > Playing two sounds at the same time (Layer mode)

M:90

    



L:127

     



Main sound’s volume

Layer sound’s volume

Playing two sounds at the same time (Layer mode)

You can play two sounds at the same time on the keyboard. It
is like having two “overlapping” sounds. This is called the Lay­er mode.

Main

Layer

Keep in mind that, when in Layer mode, the total number of
voices that you can play at the same time is reduced, depend­ing on the total number of oscillators used by the selected
sounds.

Entering the Layer mode

To access Layer mode from any other mode, press together
two sound selection buttons. The lowest-numbered sound in
the following diagram will be the Main sound, while the high­est-numbered sound will be the Layer sound:

12345

678910

The name of the two sounds will appear in the display:

Main sound





GrandPiano 4/4

Strings 120

Layer sound

Exit from the Layer mode

To exit Layer mode, press a single sound selection button, or
the SPLIT button. You will return to the Single mode, with a
single sound playing on the keyboard, or to the Split mode,
with a sound on the left and one on the right of the split point.

Selecting a different pair of sounds

To select different sounds, press a different pair of sound selec­tion buttons. The last selected variation of the sounds corre­sponding to the new buttons will be selected.

Selecting a variation of the Main sound

You can select a variation of the current Main sound.

1. Be sure the cursor is in the first line of the display. If it isn’t,

use the SCROLL

Cursor





button to move it there:





GrandPiano 4/4

Strings 120

2. Use the VARIATION button to select a different sound

variation. As an alternative, use the +/YES and -/NO but­tons to choose a different sound variation.

Selecting a variation of the Layer sound

You can select a variation of the current Layer sound.

1. Use the SCROLL 

er sound.



button to move the cursor to the Lay-





GrandPiano 4/4

Strings 120



Scroll 

GrandPiano 4/4





Strings 120

2. Use the VARIATION button to select a different sound

variation. As an alternative, use the +/YES and -/NO but­tons to choose a different sound variation.

3. If you desire so, use the SCROLL 

cursor back to the Main sound.

Balancing layered sounds

You can adjust the sound’s volume balance.

• Keep the Main sound button pressed, to increase its vol­ume and (after the maximum value has been reached)
decrease the volume of the Layer sound. Release the but­ton when done.

• Keep the Layer sound button pressed, to increase its vol­ume and (after the maximum value has been reached)
decrease the volume of the Main sound. Release the but­ton when done.

While the volume is changing, a meter is shown in the display:



buttons to move the

16

Basic functions > Playing different sounds with your left and right hand (Split mode)

Playing different sounds with your left and right hand (Split mode)

You can play a sound with your right hand (the Main sound),
and a different one with the left hand (the Left sound). This is
called the Split mode.

Split Point

Selecting a variation of the Main sound

You can select a variation of the Main sound after accessing the
Split mode.

1. Be sure the cursor is in the first line of the display. If it isn’t,

use the SCROLL





button to move it there:

English

Left

Main

Entering the Split mode

To access Split mode from any other mode, press the SPLIT
button. The Main sound of the Single or Layer mode will be as­signed to the right half of the keyboard (Main area, shown in
the first line of the display), and a Bass sound will be assigned
to the left half of the keyboard (Left area, shown in the second
line of the display).

Main sound





GrandPiano 4/4

Ac.Bass 120

Left sound

While the Ac.Bass sound will be chosen as the Left sound the
first time you enter Split mode, the last selected sound will be
assigned if you return to Split mode later.

Exit from the Split mode

To exit Split mode, press the SPLIT button again to return to
the Single mode, or press two sound selection buttons together
to enter Layer mode.

Choosing a different split point

If the selected split point is too high or too low, you can choose
a different one. Please note that you can set a default split
point, to have it ready each time you turn the instrument on
(see “Default split point” on page 51).

1. Keep the SPLIT button pressed. The current split point is

shown in the display while you keep the button pressed.





SplitPoint: F#3

2. Play a note to set a different split point.

3. Release the SPLIT button.

Selecting a different Main sound

You can select a different Main sound after accessing the Split
mode. Use the sound selection buttons as you would do to se­lect a sound in Single mode.

Cursor





GrandPiano 4/4

Ac.Bass 120

2. Use the VARIATION button to select a different sound

variation. As an alternative, use the +/YES and -/NO but­tons to choose a different sound variation.

Selecting a different Left sound

You can select a different Left sound after accessing the Split
mode.

1. Keep the SPLIT button pressed. The indicator of the Left

sound lights up.

2. Use the sound selection buttons to select a different sound.

3. Release the SPLIT button.

As an alternative, use the display controls:

1. Use the SCROLL 

sound.



buttons to move the cursor to the Left





GrandPiano 4/4

Ac.Bass 120



Scroll 

GrandPiano 4/4





Ac.Bass 12

2. Use the sound selection buttons as you would do to select

a sound in Single mode.

3. Use the 

sound.



buttons to move the cursor back to the Main

Selecting a variation of the Left sound

You can select a variation of the Left sound after accessing the
Split mode.

1. Keep the SPLIT button pressed. The indicator of the Left

sound lights up.

2. Use the VARIATION button to select a different sound

variation.

3. Release the SPLIT button.

17

Basic functions > Using the pedals

M:108

    



L:127

     



Main sound’s volume

Left sound’s volume

As an alternative, use the display controls:

1. Use the SCROLL 

sound.



buttons to move the cursor to the Left





GrandPiano 4/4

Ac.Bass 120



Scroll 

GrandPiano 4/4





Ac.Bass 12

2. Use the VARIATION button to select a different sound

variation. As an alternative, use the +/YES and -/NO but­tons to choose a different sound variation.

3. If you want, use the SCROLL 

sor back to the Main sound.



buttons to move the cur-

Using the pedals

Balancing sounds in Split mode

You can adjust the sound’s volume balance.

• Keep the Main sound button (the one whose indicator is
turned on) pressed, to increase its volume and (after the
maximum value has been reached) decrease the volume of
the Left sound. Release the button when done.

• Keep the SPLIT button pressed, or press the SCROLL
button to move the cursor to the second line of the dis­play. The indicator of the Left sound lights up. Then, keep
the Left sound button pressed, to increase its volume and
(after the maximum value has been reached) decrease the
volume of the Main sound. Release the button when done.

While the volume is changing, a meter is shown in the display:





The C-520 has three assignable pedals, usually acting as damp­er, sostenuto, and soft. However, you can assign the pedals dif­ferent functions (see page 47 for sound-level assignment, or
page 52 for global programming).

With the default settings, you can use these pedals to add ex­pression to your playing, as on a traditional piano.

3

2

1

Soft

Sostenuto

Damper

(1) Damper pedal

The damper pedal simulates the natural string resonances of
an acoustic piano. Pressing this pedal will sustain the sound,

Transposing

producing a richly resonant decay. You can control the damp­er’s depth by how far down you press on the pedal (“half-ped­aling”).

Sounds like GrandPiano, BriteGrand and MelloGrand also
trigger EPx effects while in Single and Split mode. However,
these effects are not available when you are in Layer mode.

(2) Sostenuto pedal

Pressing this pedal will apply the damper effect only to the
notes that are already being held down on the keyboard, and
will sustain only those notes. The damper effect will not be ap­plied to any additional notes that you play while holding down
the Sostenuto pedal (apart for the notes already held).

(3) Soft pedal

Pressing this pedal will make the tone softer. You can control
the soft effect depth by how far down you press on the pedal
(“half-pedaling”)

In some cases, a song may be written in a difficult key (e.g.,
many black keys), or you may wish to shift the pitch to match
another instrument or vocalist. In such cases, you can trans­pose (shift the pitch) so that you can use an easier fingering, or
use the same familiar fingering to play at a different pitch. This
is called the Transpose function.

18

For example if you transpose upward by one semitone, playing
the notes shown at the lower left will produce the pitches
shown at the right.

Basic functions > Changing the brilliance

Note: When the instrument is turned on, transposing is reset.

1. Press the TRANSPOSE button to show the Transpose dis-

play:

Transpose





+02 semitones

Transpose value

If you do no changes, just wait some seconds for the page
to automatically disappear. Otherwise, you can exit from
this page by pressing the EXIT button.

Changing the brilliance

Brilliance is the sound’s brightness, that may be affected by the
sound of the room the piano is placed into. For example, a
heavy carpeted room sounds duller than a room containing
less carpeting or furniture. You can set an overall increase or
decrease of brilliance for all sounds.

This is the same parameter you can change in the Brilliance
page of the Global mode (see page 51). However, contrary to
the changes you can make in the Global mode, the changes
made with this button cannot be memorized, and are reset
when turning the instrument off.

Note: When the instrument is turned on, brilliance set in this
page is reset. (Brilliance may have permanently been set in Glo­bal mode, see page 51).

1. Press the BRILLIANCE button to show the Brilliance dis-

play:

2. Use the +/YES and -/NO buttons to change the transpose

value in steps of one semitone, within a range of ±11 semi­tones. When a transposition is active, the indicator turns
on.

3. Press the EXIT button to exit from this page.

4. Press the TRANSPOSE button again to turn transposition

off. The indicator will turn off.

5. Press the TRANSPOSE button if you want to turn transpo-

sition on again, with the last value selected. The indicator
will turn on again. Wait some seconds for the page to dis­appear, or press the EXIT button to exit immediately.

If you do no changes, just wait some seconds for the page
to automatically disappear. Otherwise, you can exit from
this page by pressing the EXIT button.

2. Use the +/YES and -/NO buttons to change the brilliance

value. When a brilliance change is active, the indicator
turns on.

3. Press the EXIT button to exit from this page.

4. Press the BRILLIANCE button again to turn brilliance

changes off. The indicator will turn off.

5. Press the BRILLIANCE button if you want to turn bril-

liance on again, with the last value selected. The indicator
will turn on again. Wait some seconds for the page to dis­appear, or press the EXIT button to exit immediately.

English

Brilliance





Bright

Brilliance setting

Turning the effects on/off

The C-520 has two global effects (reverb and chorus), in addi­tion to an insert effect for each sound (see diagram on
page 44). The reverb simulates the sound reverberation in a
room, while the chorus simulates a modulating effect that
makes the sounds richer.

The insert effect is part of the sound itself, and should remain
on to avoid a dramatic change in timbre. On the contrary, you

can turn the reverb and chorus on/off as you like, by using the
REVERB and CHORUS buttons on the control panel.

However, selecting a different sound will reset the status of the
buttons, since it is saved with the sound itself. To permanently
change the effect’s status, edit the sound by keeping one of
these buttons pressed for a couple seconds. See page 44 for
more details.

19

Using performances > Choosing performances

Using performances

Performances are registrations of sound combinations. In­stead of selecting single sounds, or a combination of sounds,
you simply select a performance. A performance then recalls
one or two sounds, each one with their own settings, plus the
memorized split point (if the sounds are in Split mode).

There are 30 performances (10 groups

× 3 banks each). Each

group corresponds to one of the numbered sound select but­tons (1 ~ 10). You can then choose one of the three banks in­side the selected group by using the VARIATION button
(more details are on page 283).

Button

Bank 1 Bank 2 Bank 3

1 (PIANO 1) Split&Layr Digital EP* Baroque*

2 (PIANO 2) Grand&Ride PaddedTine* Harpsi-Ch*

3 (E.PIANO 1) Grand&Ebas R&B EPno* Harpsi-Org*

4 (E.PIANO 2) PnoStrings* EP Choir* Church Mix*

Performance

Choosing performances

Button

Performance

Bank 1 Bank 2 Bank 3

5 (HARPSI/CLAV) EGrand Pad* EP&NoFret Guitar Pad*

6 (VIBES/GUITAR) Piano Pad* Scat&Bass GrandPiano

7 (ORGAN1) Pno Choirs* Vibes&Bass BriteGrand

8 (ORGAN2) Pno Guitar* Bass&Guitr MelloGrand

9 (STRINGS/CHOIR) Piano BX3* Org&Bass 1 2 Pianists

10 (BASS) DualManual Org&Bass 2 PnoEXp-

DEMO**

* Note: These performances, with sounds set in Layer mode, do
not use EPx effects.
** Note: Performance 30 (PnoExpDEMO) is designed to demon­strate our “Piano eXperience” technology, by exaggerating the
amount of key-off/hammer return portion of the Grand Piano
sound; it is not intended to be a play-able timbre. Normally,
these additional Piano eXperience sounds are not perceived as
separate elements, but together with the other sample layers,
they are a vital part of the realism and the authentic piano tone.

Here is how to choose a performance.

Note: While in Performance mode, you cannot switch between
Single, Layer and Split modes. However, if you select a perfor­mance with two sounds in Split, the SPLIT indicator will turn on.

1. Press the PERFORMANCE button to enter Performance

mode. The indicator turns on, and the latest selected per­formance is recalled.

Perf.01 4/4
Split&Layr 120

2. Use the sound selection buttons to select a different group

of performance.

12345

678910

3. If needed, use the VARIATION button to select a different

performance inside the same group. There are three per­formances for each group of performances.

As an alternative, use the +/YES and -/NO buttons to
choose a different performance inside the selected group.

4. Press the PERFORMANCE button again to exit Perfor-

mance mode. The previous sound or combination of
sounds will be recalled. The indicator will turn off.

20

Using performances > Changing the sounds assigned to a performance

Changing the sounds assigned to a performance

You can change the sound or sounds assigned to the current
performance, without the need of accessing the Edit mode.

Note: You cannot change performance sounds while in Perfor­mance Edit mode.

Note: The EPx effects are not available when you are in Layer
mode.

1. While you are in the Main page of the Performance mode,

press both SCROLL
(or sounds) assigned to the performance are shown in the
display:





/  buttons together. The sound

Main sound





Piano&Str.

Ac. Bass

Layer/Left sound

2. If there are two sounds, use the SCROLL 

to move the cursor to the sound you want to change.

3. Use the +/YES and -/NO button to choose a different

sound.

4. Press the EXIT button to exit from the above page. If you

chose a different performance, changes are lost.

5. To save the changes use one of the save procedures ex-

plained in “Saving a performance” on page 42.



/  buttons

Editing a performance

You can edit any performance according to your taste. You can also save any combination of sounds over an existing performance.
See “Editing sounds and performances” on page 41.

English

21

The metronome > Starting and stopping the metronome, adjusting the tempo





GrandPiano 4-4

Strings 120

4/4 drum pattern selected

01-Prelude 1
M: 1 4/4 120

Song’s tempo

Song’s time signature

The metronome

The C-520 incorporates a metronome, with which you can beat the tempo during practice or song recording. The metronome can
beat ordinary times, or drum patterns.

Starting and stopping the metronome, adjusting the tempo

Use the METRONOME button to start and stop the metro­nome.

1. Press the METRONOME button to make the metronome

start (the indicator on the button turns on).

Tempo and time signature display

The metronome’s tempo and time signature are always shown
in the Main page:

Metronome’s time signature





GrandPiano 4/4

Strings 120

Metronome’s tempo

The metronome’s tempo and time signature also appear in
Performance mode:

Metronome’s time signature

Perf 01 4/4
Split&Layr 120

2. Press the METRONOME button again to stop it (the indi-

cator turns off).

hyphen (–) (see page 23 for information o how to select drum
patterns):

When listening to a song, the tempo and time signature are
those of the current song. You can use the TEMPO buttons to
adjust the tempo while the song plays. On the contrary, the
time signature cannot be modified after recording:

When a drum pattern is selected as the time signature, the sep­arator between the fraction’s numerator and denominator is a

Adjusting the tempo

When turning the metronome on for the first time, while in
the Main page, the default tempo of 120 BPM (beats per
minute) is chosen. You can adjust it by using the TEMPO but­tons.

22

Metronome’s tempo

(Please remember you can exit from the Song Play page and
return to the Main page by pressing the EXIT button.)

When turning it on from the Song Play (page 26) or Record
page (see page 30), the tempo is that of the current song. You
can adjust it by using the TEMPO buttons.

The last change is preserved, until you don’t choose a different
song and start playing it back.

Choosing a time signature

The metronome > Choosing a time signature

When turning the metronome on from the Main page, the de­fault time signature of 4/4 is chosen, but you can adjust it by
accessing the Metronome page (as shown below).

Note: If the PLAY/PAUSE button is flashing, you cannot change
the time signature.

Note: If you enter editing later, you might see a different edit
page instead of the first one. Use the SCROLL  button to
reach it.

1. Press the TEMPO + and TEMPO – (or MET.SET) buttons

together. The first Metronome page, Metro TS/Tempo,
will appear, with the Time Signature parameter selected:

Metro TS/Tempo 1





4/4 120

Drum patterns

Instead of an ordinary time signature (4/4, 3/4, etc…), a drum
pattern can be assigned to the metronome. This will give you
the sense you are playing together with a real drum player. You
can also record a drum pattern into a song.

Note: Contrary to ordinary metronome “clicks”, drum pattern
notes can also be recorded by the internal recorder. They can
also be transmitted via MIDI, so you can record them on an ex­ternal sequencer, or make them play with an external instru­ment (see “MIDI” on page 59).

Drum patterns are in the second half of the time signature list.
While the list is selected, either scroll to it, or press both the +/
YES and -/NO buttons together, to quick jump to the drum
patterns. Press these buttons together again to quick jump to
the ordinary time signatures (4/4 selected).

Drum patterns

8 Beat 1 Ballroom 2 Bossa 1 Swing 2

8 Beat 2 Ballroom 3 Bossa 2 Swing 3

8 Beat 3 Slow 6/8 Samba Slow Waltz 1

16 Beat 1 Funk 1 Cha Cha Slow Waltz 2

16 Beat 2 Funk 2 Salsa Waltz

2. Use the +/YES and -/NO buttons to select a time signature.

Ordinary times are at the beginning, while drum patterns
are at the end. You can quick jump from the one to the
other by pressing the +/YES and -/NO button together.

Ordinary times

1/2 ~ 16/2 1/4 ~ 16/4 1/8 ~ 16/8

3. Press the EXIT button to return to the Main page.

Drum patterns

16 Beat 3 Rock Mambo Foxtrot

Ballad 1 Rock 6/8 Tango March

Ballad 2 Dance Rhumba

Ballad 3 Beguine Gospel

Ballroom 1 Unplugged

Latin

Swing 1

Here is how to use the drum patterns:

1. While in the Main page, press the METRONOME button

to start the metronome. A Count In is heard, then the
drum pattern begins.

2. While in the Main page (either with a sound or a perfor-

mance selected), or in the Record page, press EXIT (or a
pedal with the Fill In function assigned, see page 52). A Fill
In is played, then a variation of the base drum pattern start
playing.

3. Press EXIT (or the pedal) again. A second Fill In is played,

then the base drum pattern returns playing.

4. Press the METRONOME button to stop the metronome.

English

23

The metronome > Adjusting the metronome level

Metro Lev/Rev 2





Lv:100 Rv:64

Metro Lev/Rev 2
Lv:100





Rv:64

Adjusting the metronome level

You can adjust the metronome’s level, in relation to the overall
instrument’s volume.

2. Press the SCROLL 

1. Press the TEMPO/MET.SET buttons together. The first

Metronome page should appear.

3. Use the +/YES and -/NO buttons to change the metro-

4. Press the EXIT button to return to the Main page.

Adjusting the drum pattern’s reverb

You can add a reverb effect to the drum patterns.

Note: Reverb does not apply to the metronome click (i.e., when
an ordinary time signatures is chosen).

1. Press the TEMPO/MET.SET buttons together.

2. If you are not there, use the SCROLL 

3. Use the +/YES and -/NO buttons to change the metro-

4. Press the EXIT button to return to the Main page.



button to go to the second Metro­nome page, Metro Lev/Rev. The Lv (Level) parameter will
be selected:

nome’s volume.



/  buttons to se-

lect the Rv (Reverb) parameter:

nome’s reverb.

24

Selecting the accent

Metro Settings 4





Save? (Yes/No)

The metronome > Selecting the accent

The accented beat of the ordinary times signatures can be
changed to a marcato or bell sound.

Note: The accent does not apply to drum patterns.

1. Press the TEMPO/MET.SET buttons together.

2. If you are not there, use the SCROLL 

to the Metro Accent page:

Metro Accent 3





Bell



/  buttons to go

Saving the metronome settings

Metronome settings can be saved, so that they are not reset to
the default values when turning the instrument off. This pro­cedure saves time signature, volume setting, reverb setting, ac­cent. On the contrary, tempo settings are always reset.

1. Press the TEMPO/MET.SET buttons together. The first

Metronome page appears.

3. Use the +/YES and -/NO buttons to turn the bell on or off,

and choose one of the available accent options.

Option Meaning

Off No accent

Marcato The first beat is played louder

Bell The first beat is played by a bell sound

4. Press the EXIT button to return to the Main page.

2. Press the SCROLL 

fourth Metronome page. The Metro Settings Save param­eter will be selected:



button four times, to go to the

3. Press +/YES to confirm saving, or -/NO to cancel saving.

You are automatically kept back to the Main page.

English

25

Playing back a song > Accessing the Song Play mode

Playing back a song

The C-520 incorporates a multitrack recorder, with which you
can record and play back songs. Since you can turn off a single
part (say, the left hand), and leave another part playing (say,
the right hand), this can be very useful for practicing.

Together with the C-520 come a huge number of classical
songs (185), with which you can play along for practicing or
for enjoying your preferred tunes. Songs are organized in “al­bums”, that include famous lesson books (Beyer, Burgmüller),

a collection of famous songs, and all the pieces included in the
supplied SongBook.

The recorder can also read 16-track songs in the Standard
MIDI Files (SMF) format, that can be created on a computer
or easily found on the market or in the public domain. Please
note that, while the C-520 complies with General MIDI (GM)
sound mapping, it does not include all GM sounds. For a de­tailed list of sounds, see page 277.

Accessing the Song Play mode

After you press the SONG button, the Song Play page appears: To return to the Main page, just press one of the sound selec-

Song name

01-Prelude 1





M:--- 4/4 120

Current measure

Tempo

Time signature

tion buttons to select a sound, or press the EXIT button. The
selected song will still be active, but you will no longer see its
name in the display, until you press the SONG button again.

How to select a song

To play a song, you must first select it from an album. Songs
are contained into a permanent memory, and are preserved
when turning the instrument off.

1. If you are in the Main page, press the SONG button twice.

If you are already in Song Play mode, press the SONG but­ton once to access the Song Selection page:

Album:SongBook





01-Prelude 1

2. Use the +/YES and -/NO buttons to select one of the avail-

able songs inside the selected album. If the name is longer
than the display, it will scroll up to the end, then returns to
the beginning.

3. To select a different album, use the SCROLL 

move the cursor to the first line of the display:

Album:SongBook





01-Prelude 1



Scroll 



Album:SongBook



01-Prelude 1

Album
Song



button to

As an alternative, you can use the first six sound select
buttons to choose an album. See table on the next page.

4. Use the +/YES and -/NO buttons to select one of the avail-

able albums. Various song albums are available (see
page 286 for a detailed list of the included songs):

Album Content

UserSong Songs created using the internal

SongBook All the songs of the supplied

Classics A collection of famous classical

Beyer A The “Preparatory School, Op. 101”

Beyer B (5) HARPSI/

Burgmlr Burgmüller’s “25 Easy and Pro-

recorder, or created with an exter­nal sequencer and then trans­ferred to the C-520 via a USB
connection (see page 56)

SongBook

pieces

lesson book by Ferdinand Beyer,
splitted in two separate parts (A
and B)

gressive Studies, Op. 100” lesson
book

Correspondin
g sound
button

(1) PIANO 1

(2) PIANO 2

(3) E.PIANO 1

(4) E.PIANO 2

CLAV

(6) VIBES/
GUITAR

26

Playing back a song > How to start playback

01-Prelude 1





M:--- 4/4 120

01-Prelude 1





M:--- 4/4 120

5. After having selected an album, use the SCROLL 

ton to move the cursor to the song name again, then
choose a different song:





Album:SongBook



but-

01-Prelude 1



Scroll 

Album:SongBook





01-Prelude 1

How to start playback

After having selected a
song, you can play it
back.

Note: During playback,
song parts can be sent out
via MIDI. Song parts are
the following: Part 1, Part 2, and Drum (this latter is active only
if a drum patterns is playing).

6. Press the PLAY/PAUSE button to start playback and re-

turn to the Song Play page, or the EXIT button to just re­turn to the Song Play page, without starting the song.

English

1. Press PLAY/PAUSE to start playing the song. The indica-

tor on the button turns on.

2. Press PLAY/PAUSE again to stop the song at the current

position. The indicator on the button starts flashing.

3. Press PLAY/PAUSE again to resume playback. The indica-

tor on the button stays on steadily.

4. Press STOP to stop the song. The indicator on the PLAY/

PAUSE button turns off. The song returns to the begin­ning (measure “---”).

Starting from a different measure

You can start playback from a measure different than the first
one.

Note: When releasing the +YES or -/NO button, you may hear
the EPx effects, due to Damper data recorded in the song.

1. While in the Song Play page, the M (Measure) parameter

is selected. Use the +/YES and -/NO buttons to choose a

different measure (+/YES is sometimes called Fast For­ward, while -/NO is called Rewind):

2. Press the PLAY/PAUSE button to start playback from the

selected measure.

27

Playing back a song > Muting/unmuting a recorder’s part

Muting/unmuting a recorder’s part

During playback, you can mute or unmute a recorder’s part.
Muting is useful to play a part on the keyboard, while letting
the recorder to continue playing the other.

Depending on the settings made in Global mode (see “Mute
Level” on page 53), muting may completely silence the part, or
just attenuate it. Attenuation is very useful for practicing, since
it lets you play over a part that you can still hear at a very soft
level.

Note: The part’s status is automatically restored when you
choose a different song (it is turned on if there are notes, or
turned off if the part is empty).

Changing the song’s tempo

Each song contains its own tempo. You can, however, change
it during playback, for example to make it easier playing along
with the song.

1. Use the TEMPO + button to increase the tempo and make

the song play faster.

1. Press the PART 1 or

PART 2 button, de­pending on the part
you want to mute
(usually, Part 1 = left
hand, Part 2 = right
hand. This may be different with songs imported via USB).
The muted part’s indicator turns off.

At this point, you can play the muted part on the keyboard.

2. Press the same button again, to unmute the part and let its

indicator turn on again.

2. Use the TEMPO - button to decrease the tempo and make

the song play slower.

3. Press both the +/YES and -/NO buttons at the same time

to recall the original tempo of the song.

Play along with the song

During playback, you can play along with the song. The latest
selected sounds are still active on the keyboard. You can select
different sounds, as seen before. When you press a sound se­lection button, the Main page appears. Press the SONG button
to return to the Song Play page.

When selecting different sounds, their effects are also recalled.
Be careful, since this can dramatically affect the song’s overall
sound. When selecting a different song, the song’s effects are
selected again.

28