Korg Forums

http://kurzweil.com/product/pc3k8/audio/

Pretty amazing sounds and multi layers some 10 to 20 thick.
If Kurzweil comes out with a another all new unit, Look out.
This is killer right now.

More Guitar sounds are killer to here on new demo and the new sounds
are only $129 list or free with a keyboard.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FnEmqpp ... re=related
Here is a list of the tons of guitars
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/PC3KLibrary

Something to listen to and not just read what people say.
The ear can tell you alot.

Just went through the EPs and some other sounds.

Aren't that the same old tiny sample sounds we know since long?
The only sounds that always impressed me on the Kurz are some well programmed orchstral sounds. And the sweetwater sounds are on good old soundfont level in my ears.

Sorry, but I prefer my Kronos sounds BY FAR, with the only exception of guitar sounds.

Since they're sample cds, can't we load them into the K?

No, Sweetwater has a series of sample CDs in Kurzweil format.

As I said, they have 89s/90s soundfont quality: some useable stuff, but all in all nothing special.

I have listened to it and i must say that having my ears on "kronos standard" this does not even come close. It sounded muffled and the demos was like a deflated baloon.. sorry, but thats my opinion.

The keyboard looks great, but thats all

videorov wrote:http://kurzweil.com/product/pc3k8/audio/

Pretty amazing sounds and multi layers some 10 to 20 thick.
If Kurzweil comes out with a another all new unit, Look out.
This is killer right now.

More Guitar sounds are killer to here on new demo and the new sounds
are only $129 list or free with a keyboard.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FnEmqpp ... re=related

Something to listen to and not just read what people say.
The ear can tell you alot.

I own a K2500XS, fully expanded with the various ROMS, KVFX, Hard Disk and so on. I find it an exquisite instrument in many ways:

- VAST sounds excellent and even offers virtual analogue in essence in that it models its subtractive synth waveforms (i.e. they are not sampled)
- It offers a virtual drawbar organ that's as good as the best of them
- The keyboard action is excellent and better than the OASYS RH2 in my opinion (though it’s not graded hammer action)
- It has an excellent main ribbon controller with three zones
- It has excellent connectivity, competing with many top-end workstations in that regard still.

However, its main disadvantage – and a major one at that - is that VAST is absolute brutal to program. On the K2500 it's just 6 (8 ?) layers deep - but that means that to modify just one sound parameter for any given program - say Cutoff Frequency - that you have to modify the Cutoff frequency for each filter in each of the 8 layers – that’s 8 filters to change just for one overall sound modification. It’s the same for every parameter – 8 sets of each parameter to modify!

Furthermore - the value range of each parameter is complete unintuitive - so it's near on impossible to even know what value to set the parameter to. I have many years experience in programming and I have never successfully edited even one Kurzweil sound.

Now - the Kurzweil range today:

- Essentially the same user interface as the K2500 of 18 years ago
- The keyboard action is a pale shadow of the K2500 - it's among the worst keyboard actions I have ever come across.
- The same synth architecture and synth engine as 18 years ago with quite minor or utterly “yesterdays era” updates to the samples.
- VAST -now 32 layers deep - great if you have years to build a single program but for any mortal an utterly impenetrable architecture - to affect the Cutoff frequency of a 32 layer program you have to modify the value of 32 filters
- The main ribbon controller is gone
- It is NOT build like a tank. I have looked very closely at their latest range in retail outlets and the current Kurzweils are chunky, tacky and cheap - I am convinced they would not survive any sort of gigging routine.


Overall, Kurzweil made a generation-defining workstation in the K2500 that is still quite respectable even today - but every bit of its class and physical chassis capabilities have been abandoned and squandered by Kurzweil - while the remaining bits are 20 years out of date.


I cannot comprehend how anyone in their right mind would even contemplate purchasing a Kurzweil today. I feel the company even verging on being a scam organisations in the electronic musical instrument industry, and really needs to look at itself long and hard.

There is absolutely no competition between any Kurzweil and the likes of the Korg Kronos, in my opinion.

Kevin.

There´s some brass sounds in there, which I like in orchestra context, but organ, epiano, etc. cannot convince me... All sounds so far away and not to forget about the ugly bad quality fx, like reverbs and leslies...

Hi

Owning a Kurzweil K2500R since 15 years, and owning a Kronos88 now, there's only a few sounds I wish I could convert to Kronos, such as the Sweetwater Ultimate Guitars sample CDROM, and a few other favorites, but as mentioned by others already, pianos, epianos, organs, synths are all way better in the Kronos.

And also I do believe Korg does a fine job with organising the software and the manuals in such a case that a user has a chance to understand the vast capabilities. I found the Kurz always pretty complex to use..

For the moment I still use the K2500R and Kronos in parallel, but I would be happy to convert the few Kurzweil sounds that I am still using and stick to the Kronos..

I agree that to my ears the only big gap are the guitar sounds.
The Kronos Factory samples are not so good.
When a good Kronos sample library with excellent guitars in it ?

if Korg/Karo could produce a guitar sample library of the quality of the good old Sweetwater Ultimate Guitars for the Kurzweil, or even better, I'd be a happy customer and buy them!

From the add somehwere end of the 1990's:
This is it - the CD-ROM that Keyboard Magazine awarded an unprecedented 20 out of 20 stars! And we KNOW you'll agree! Created right here by our very own soundware development team, the Ultimate Guitars CD-ROM for Kurzweil K2000 Series features over 350 megabytes of new and vintage electric and acoustic guitars. You'll find Les Pauls, Strats, Paul Reed Smiths, Gretsches, Martins, Taylors, and more! Plus basses! Your ultimate guitar sound is here!

And I must say, I still agree with that text, they sound amazing.

Built like a tank...thought they were referring to my Oasys. No doubt Kurzweils' were cutting edge at one time. I do like their sounds, except most of them are not up to the Kronos level. I was enjoying both the O and the K last night.

Hey i think kronos kicks with its orchestral sounds (with expansion though )
https://korg.com/kronos
Click "sound libraries & shop", EXs11 legendary strings.... Listen to a demo called EXcalevation (for dynamics)... It's like the whole orchestra plays in front of you
For guitar sounds, it's covered on my yamaha PSR s910... Besides, i don't really use them that much..

Kevin Nolan wrote:

videorov wrote:http://kurzweil.com/product/pc3k8/audio/

Pretty amazing sounds and multi layers some 10 to 20 thick.
If Kurzweil comes out with a another all new unit, Look out.
This is killer right now.

More Guitar sounds are killer to here on new demo and the new sounds
are only $129 list or free with a keyboard.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FnEmqpp ... re=related

Something to listen to and not just read what people say.
The ear can tell you alot.

I own a K2500XS, fully expanded with the various ROMS, KVFX, Hard Disk and so on. I find it an exquisite instrument in many ways:

- VAST sounds excellent and even offers virtual analogue in essence in that it models its subtractive synth waveforms (i.e. they are not sampled)
- It offers a virtual drawbar organ that's as good as the best of them
- The keyboard action is excellent and better than the OASYS RH2 in my opinion (though it’s not graded hammer action)
- It has an excellent main ribbon controller with three zones
- It has excellent connectivity, competing with many top-end workstations in that regard still.

However, its main disadvantage – and a major one at that - is that VAST is absolute brutal to program. On the K2500 it's just 6 (8 ?) layers deep - but that means that to modify just one sound parameter for any given program - say Cutoff Frequency - that you have to modify the Cutoff frequency for each filter in each of the 8 layers – that’s 8 filters to change just for one overall sound modification. It’s the same for every parameter – 8 sets of each parameter to modify!

Furthermore - the value range of each parameter is complete unintuitive - so it's near on impossible to even know what value to set the parameter to. I have many years experience in programming and I have never successfully edited even one Kurzweil sound.

Now - the Kurzweil range today:

- Essentially the same user interface as the K2500 of 18 years ago
- The keyboard action is a pale shadow of the K2500 - it's among the worst keyboard actions I have ever come across.
- The same synth architecture and synth engine as 18 years ago with quite minor or utterly “yesterdays era” updates to the samples.
- VAST -now 32 layers deep - great if you have years to build a single program but for any mortal an utterly impenetrable architecture - to affect the Cutoff frequency of a 32 layer program you have to modify the value of 32 filters
- The main ribbon controller is gone
- It is NOT build like a tank. I have looked very closely at their latest range in retail outlets and the current Kurzweils are chunky, tacky and cheap - I am convinced they would not survive any sort of gigging routine.


Overall, Kurzweil made a generation-defining workstation in the K2500 that is still quite respectable even today - but every bit of its class and physical chassis capabilities have been abandoned and squandered by Kurzweil - while the remaining bits are 20 years out of date.


I cannot comprehend how anyone in their right mind would even contemplate purchasing a Kurzweil today. I feel the company even verging on being a scam organisations in the electronic musical instrument industry, and really needs to look at itself long and hard.

There is absolutely no competition between any Kurzweil and the likes of the Korg Kronos, in my opinion.

Kevin.

This editor makes it easy to work in the VAST and more.
http://soundtower.com/pc3/

The Kronos is good for Synth sounds and Piano sounds and thats about it
for now. Orchestra sounds don't even come close.
Harmonica sounds are not close. Just think if these are old why are
the better and Korg had all this time to make theirs better but they didn't.
Hmmmmm Is it possible is the question.

1jordyzzz wrote:Hey i think kronos kicks with its orchestral sounds (with expansion though )
https://korg.com/kronos
Click "sound libraries & shop", EXs11 legendary strings.... Listen to a demo called EXcalevation (for dynamics)... It's like the whole orchestra plays in front of you
For guitar sounds, it's covered on my yamaha PSR s910... Besides, i don't really use them that much..

I hear no horns in that demo. What no horns in a Orchestra.
The Film Score bottom of the page is a little better to show some horns.

Look at the price of Legendary Strings

For a machine that has so much memory and solid state drive you would think they could do better.

I feel safe to say this especially on a Korg forum. I went workstation shopping years ago and the Kurz was on my list. Compared to what else was available THEN (2008) it was a joke and a bad one at that. Further, why anyone would subject themselves to that 1990's interface is beyond me!

The K series was cool in the 1990's. The problem is most of it is STILL from the 1990's. Here's to hoping they turn it around with the K3K! If they ever actually release it....