Korg Forums

vladimotor · Joined: 01 Apr 2010 Posts: 24

Hi everyone, i have a weird dilemma here, for whatever reasons my choices are down to Korg M3 73 and Kurzweil PC3. I know one is a workstation, the other is 'performance controller'. Things like sequencers are less important to me, i am after a SYNTH to complement my Roland V-Synth. The Kronos is out of my price range. I know Kurzweil is known to be a powerful synth but, all i hear in the demos are mostly keyboard instrument sounds and orchestral stuff. I used to own Korg Z1 and i see how that is a powerful synth, but with Kurzweil it's more theoretical. I want a quality keyboard and a synth that can handle ambient, atmospheric and aggressive electronic sounds(think modern Depeche Mode) I know PC3 has some sort of VA integrated, but not in the usual way, it is just analog modeled oscillators that can be used within VAST structure. With M3 on the other hand i can add EXB-Radias...
Can anybody compare the two? What are some pros and cons of PC3 and M3? Help me out!
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Roland V-Synth, VC-1(D50), Kurzweil PC3Le6, Korg MicroX, Samplitude Pro 11, Live8, U-he Zebra, z3ta+, Absynth4, FM8, Pro53, Imposcar, UltraAnalog, Proteus X2...

X-Trade · Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2011 9:40 pm Post subject:

Based on what you're after, I tihnk the M3 or the RADIAS itself are a good option.

Korg's keyboards are well known for being excellent for electronic sounds and their workstations are particularly well known for great and expressive pads.

But particularly if you want to program and create complex sounds, RADIAS is more than just a VA, doesn't really sound very 'analog', more like a precision tool.

I've been looking into Kurzweils and VAST, and I get the impression its quite powerful, although not really what I'm looking for personally.
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Current Gear: Kronos 61, Karma, RADIAS-R, ESX-1, microKorg, MS2000B, MiniKP, AX3000B, nanoKontrol, nanoPad MK II, Novation ReMote37SL, Akai APC20, MOTU MIDI TimePiece 2.
Past Gear: Korg TR61, Poly800, EA-1, Kawai K1
Software: Cubase Studio 4, NI Reaktor 5, FM8, Ableton Live 9. Apple OSX(10.8.3 Mountain Lion) on 15" MacBook Pro

Vlad_77 · Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2011 2:45 pm Post subject:

Hi Vladimotor,

I am not certain if you are still in your dilemma or not - if G.A.S. hit you then I would guess not, but, on the off chance that you are ...............

Kurzweil's are extremely deep and powerful synthesizers. Don't let the term "performance controller" fool you. The PC3 series is an extremely powerful synth. And if you are really into creating very complex patches and can allow yourself to be creative, AND you have a lot of patience, the PC3 as a SYNTH is the better choice.

Each program can have up 32 layers - EACH with its own DSP algorithm

Cascade Mode allows you to route the DSP of any patch into the DSP of any other patch - this is an extremely powerful feature

128 DSP algorithms are available PLUS you can create your own

With the PC3 you can do edits at the keymap level (Kurzeweil speak for PCM)

The VA-1 is quite a bit more powerful than merely a bolt on.

However ......

The learning curve of a Kurzweil instrument is extremely steep; V.A.S.T. IS truly vast. The trick also with Kurzweils is the ability to do a lot with a relatively small sample set, but, I created a very FAT and lush lead/pad split using just a CP-70 keymap.

The free editor from Sound Tower makes programming the PC3 MUCH easier but you would still need to make the adjustment to Kurzweil language - but then that is the case with all manufacturers Smile

http://www.cunka.com is a GREAT site with TONS of info, tutorials and a massive repository of great patches. If you have not made your decision yet, have a look around there. Brian Cowzar, the site admin - has been programming Kurzweils since the release of the K2000. The community there is quite friendly.

SonikMatter is another excellent site run by Clif Marsiglio. Dave Weiser from Kurzweil is a frequent poster there and like Dan Phillips here is excellent at quickly responding to user questions.

I did just add Kronos to my rig and the combination of Kronos with the PC3 is simply astounding sonically. Kurzweil is about synthesis and always has been. But many people are intimidated by V.A.S.T. and also listen to the patches and believe that is the sum of what a Kurzweil can do. Actually, the patches are a poor representation of the power of these instruments.

In terms of comparison to Korg (I do not own M3) V.A.S.T. is somewhat similar to MOD-7 on Kronos/OASYS.

If you want more detailed information, just shoot me a PM.

Ahimsa,
Vlad
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Current gear: Kronos, Jupiter 80, PC3, Fantom X8, XV-88, Radias-R, Motif ES (yeah it's older but I love the guitars Wink

)

Synthoid · Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2011 3:00 pm Post subject:

Synthoid · Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2011 3:03 pm Post subject:

I seem to recall having this discussion before in another thread...

http://www.korgforums.com/forum/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=63201
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M3, Triton Classic, Radias, Motif XS, Alesis Ion (For Sale)

vladimotor · Joined: 01 Apr 2010 Posts: 24