Digital piano headphones speakers
June 27, 2010 6:48 PM

using headphones with digital piano allowing piano speakers to function

Have a Casio Privia PX 830 digital piano. Because of hearing disability I only use headphones to hear myself play.

When I play without the headphones, it's hard to hear what I'm doing.

It would be wonderful to play for/with others while still hearing the piano through the headphones.

How to get the piano to transmit sound from its built in speakers while using headphones? perhaps wireless headphones?

The piano has two headphone jacks so two people can listen, but I am looking for a way to have the piano heard openly while I hear through headphones.

Hope it's not too confusing.

Any ideas appreciated. Thanks for reading.
posted by gingercoffee to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (5 answers total)
Plugging in headphones disables the built in speakers? Plug headphones into one jack, plug some powered computer speakers into the other jack.
posted by fixedgear at 6:54 PM on June 27, 2010


My simple solution, since you've got two headphone jacks, is to use one headphone jack for your headphones, and connect the other to an amplifier (ie. a cheap guitar amp), although you will have to watch the gain, as the headphone output signal is much stronger than would be coming from a guitar - in fact, your piano may have other, more useful outputs for this purpose. At a pinch, though, I've never had trouble connecting headphone-level output to an amplifier if I make sure the input gain is turned down low.

The more difficult solution would involve fiddling with your piano's circuitry. Headphone jacks include a connection that turns off your speakers once you physically insert headphones - you could potentially get inside your piano and disconnect this wire so the speakers stay on when headphones are plugged in.

However, presuming you can get your hands on a cheap amp, the first solution is probably much better.
posted by Jimbob at 6:55 PM on June 27, 2010


Thanks ^_^
posted by gingercoffee at 7:00 PM on June 27, 2010


A cheap keyboard amp, since keyboard amps are designed to output what goes in but louder, and guitar amps are designed to modify the sound in pleasing-for-guitar-but-not-electric-piano ways (even on their "clean" channel).
posted by mendel at 7:52 PM on June 27, 2010


This is actually a pretty simple mod. Inside the headphone jack is an extra non-signal connector that is normally touching one of the signal prongs, but gets pushed away when you insert the plug. All you have to do is find out which connector that is and soldier a jumper across it and the thing it normally touches so that that circuit never opens.
posted by Rhomboid at 8:27 PM on June 27, 2010


« Older More Soccer Pls   |   Income requirements on a K1/K3 visa? Workarounds? Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.