Kurzweil PC2R

I've got the latest software version 4.00. Presets are very warm and solid. A lot of piano sounds, but they sound mostly similar. Most of the first 10 patches seem to sound too similar but I'm not complaining. Never do editing patches. I just editing the midi setups to make my sounds (piano string, piano pads, etc) and it's easy. Display is only a small back-lit 2 line window. The manual not so clear I have to read also from the cd-rom supplies, which is contains a lot of easy to understand information on how to do editing. This module is moderately difficult to undertand at first. You need some know-how and some long dedicated spent hours to get the setup you need.

The polyphony is 64, expandable to 128, but I don't intend to expand it. I have reached the limit when I have about 1-2 layers. Effects are excellent, as I only need reverb and it's very nice for the piano sounds.
Expansion capabilities are available. I have the Orchestral ROM installed in my box, and the sounds are very good compare to Korg or Roland. Especially strings are very warm and rich, the attack on those strings are right on the playing. The midi capabilities are ok, when you need to use it with your sequencer. No sequencer on board.

This thing has a nasty wall wart. The worst un-professional feature on this instrument. Why does Kurzweil have a wall wart for their PC2's and PC2X's?? plenty of room in there I'd think.

Pianos are uncomparable. Just pristine, excellent and juicy. Sounds "boxy" (as Kurzweil pianos always are) but not fatiging for your ears. Compared to other manufacturers like Roland and Korg the Kurzweil pianos are fuller and cuts through the mix very well. Suitable for solo piano work, classical, and also perfect for band situations. This is excellent to use live and in studio situations.
Anyway, that's my personal thoughts on the piano sound. I'd give it a 9 for pianos.
For EP: 8 (I believe to be perfect you need the electric pianos expansion)
For strings: 9
For guitar: 6
For Organ: 9 (The KB3 blows me up)
For Electronic sounds: 6 (not very strong or programmable here)
Others: 7

My other gear is a Yamaha PSR 640 and I play Roland RD 300 in my church. They have different piano sounds. The PSR obviously can't be compare to the Kurzweil. Also PC2r is better sounding compared to the RD 300 (in my opinion).

Vey reliabel, drop it once without any hiccup. Biggest weakness is in the fragile 'wall wart adaptor'. It heats up very quickly. I wonder why Kurzweil did not put the transformer inside so we only to plug the cable. My complain is we need to bring those bulky adaptor. But, my friends who work in electronic field say, that is to avoid any frequency interupts with the circuits inside. He said it's very professional.

Well, their web-site seems to be helpful. Online tutorials are there to understand your gear. Send one email with next days answer about some tutorial. Very helpful and profesional.

To be honest I'm in love with the PC2R. It's a wonderful grand piano you can carry around in a briefcase. If I lost it I will try to get it again. I have it since 2006 and it's irreplacable, and it will surely stay in my posession for many years to come. Piano sounds are utterly beautiful. My other board is a Yamaha PSR 640, which i have since 2001 and m-audio keystation 88es to controls the PC2R without any problems.

To summerise, this is a digital piano in a 1U rack and no comparison. This is definitly a gear worth buying.

I bought this module because I needed a set of good "bread & butter" sounds for doing arrangements, and as such I don't tend to get buried deep in the menus or anything. Hence I don't find this difficult to use at all, however it does all seem pretty intuitive.

This unit is basically a sound module (and a very good one) so don't expect hundreds of features. Sound editing is basic.

Well this is where the fun really starts. The sounds on this module are mostly excellent with only a few dissapointments.

Pianos - Believe what everyone says about Kurzweil pianos, they are fantastic. As other posters have said, there are more presets than there are sounds but that shouldn't put you off. Either solo or in a mix, these pianos sound excellent.

EPs - Again, the EPs are excellent, more variety than the acoustic pianos too. I had to do arrangements of a couple of early 90s ballads the other day and they sounded just fantastic!

Synths - I don't really have a big requirement for synthey sounds but for the odd pad here and there the sounds are ok. That's not what this unit is about though, if you need really good synth sounds you'll need something else.

Organs - The KB3 mode is good but not too practical to use in MIDI mode. Firstly because it requires both of the FX channels to make it sound decent, and the special organ FX presets aren't much use on other channels. Secondly it eats up quite a lot of polyphony. Unfortunately the "normal" organ sounds aren't great. Having said that, on its own the KB3 mode is very good, very editabale.

Basses - No problem, but again my requirements aren't all that stringent.

Guitars - Come on, keyboard guitars are always a bit rubbish and these aren't an exception. For a bit of background strumming or plucking they're OK but if you're trying to re-create a heavy metal solo you're going to be cringing!

Orchestral sounds - I've got the ROM expansion board and it's definitely worth having if you need these sorts of sounds. The strings are good, very rich. The solo string instruments are one of the biggest dissapointments of this module. Brass sounds are good, a paticular highlight being the solo french horn. It's used in the onboard demo and it really is marvellous. Woodwinds are good too.

Percussion - The GM kits are dissapointing; the toms especially are very unconvincing. Some of the other banks are better but unfortunately aren't too suitable if you want to use a GM percussion layout as there are sounds missing. The orchestral percussion all sounds good to me.

Seems soildly constructed (nice purple!) although as mentioned before the external power supply is a bit of a pain.

Had no dealings with Kurzweil so couldn't comment.

For what I bought it for, this unit is superb. I'm not all that much into programming synths and stuff and am usually happy to use the sounds as they come.

However this unit does have one problem which I think I should mention here. I've done some big arrangements (10 channels maybe) and although I'm nowhere near the polyphony limit, there is latency on big chords. It's worse with certain sounds (strings especially) but at its worst you end up with gaps in the finished product which is just not good enough. I end up having to farm out cerain channels to my old Korg X5D which I bought the PC2R to replace.

It's not a MIDI issue as I have tried the same arrangements on the Korg. It's a real shame, the problem can be worked around but I was dissapointed when I found this out! For this reason I am marking down the PC2R on the overall rating.

Got the latest software version. 3.10 Updating is difficult, but do I need to? Presets are very solid. An abundant array of piano sounds are there, but they sound too similar. Most of the first 10 patches seem to sound too similar but I'm not complaining. Editing patches seem to be limited, but I havn't tried because I only use this board for bread & butter, (piano/pad/strings) sounds. Display is only a small back-lit 2 line window. The manual seems boring and not worth reading altough this module is moderately difficult to use. Need some MIDI know-how and some long dedicated spent hours to get the setup you need.

Features! I'd like to proudly mention that this instrument is in a class of its own. It's monopoly! Nobody has a 1U rack module of a digital piano. Go ask Roland, Korg, Yamaha, etc. Nobody competes with this module.

The polyphony is 64, expandable to 128, but I don't intend to expand it. I have reached the limit when I have about 3-4 layers. But other than that, this is perfectly suitable for piano'ing all day long. Effects are excellent, as I only need reverb (nice!) and chorus for the piano sounds. Performance patches: why can't I layer more than 4 sounds? a mystery. Compared to Roland, they can layer upto 16 sounds.

Expansion capabilities are available. 2 slots, but don't trust Kurzweil. I would estimate it would take another 2 years for Kurzweil to release another expansion for the PC2. I have the Orchestral ROM installed in my box, but the sounds are so-so. Strings seem to be very nice,etc blah blah.... but not overwhelming for me. Attack on those strings are right on the money! (unlike Roland or Yamaha)

This thing has a nasty wall wart. The worst un-professional feature on this instrument. Why does Kurzweil have a wall wart for their PC2's and PC2X's?? plenty of room in there I'd think.

Sounds in general is Ok. This module was intended for basic sounds, so I'd give it a 9/10 rating. High quality stuff.

Pianos are uncomparable. Just pristine, excellent and juicy. It's 'boxy' (as Kurzweil pianos always are) but not fatiging for your ears. Compared to other manufacturers(critically speaking):

Roland pianos seem have their piano sounds resembling a 'hammer and nail' sound.
Korg have their 'tin can' piano sounds.
Yamaha sounds have been somewhere 'in between' these 2 extremes with their pianos.

For the PC2R, it's not 100% perfect, but it's 'boxy'. Has got very good tone in the mid ranges. Cuts through the mix pretty well, and most importantly, is not fatiguing on your ears. Suitable for solo piano work, classical, and also for band situations. This is excellent to use live, but not in studio situations. I can hear soooo many Kurz pianos used in their tracks, it's obvious and sounds 'sterlized' and not 100% real. I wouldn't use it in a studio, but it's got very good versatility in the stage.

One flaw, the piano tone seem to thin out dramatically from D5 onwards. Press D5 and D#5. Big differences in that range. But otherwise it's got a good sweet spot over the mid ranges. Sounds a bit 'muted' over the extremely high ranges when played lightly.

Anyway, that's my personal thoughts on the piano sound. I'd give it a 9 for pianos.

For EP: 7 (Ok Rhodes, but no modern EP's)
For strings: 9
For guitar: 6
For Organ: 8 (don't use it much but KB3 sounds pretty beefy)
For Electronic sounds: 4 (not very strong or programmable here)
Others: 7

My other gear is a Yamaha Motif 7. They have different piano sounds I'd like to use tweaked up in the studio. The Motif's Jazz Grand is better sounding compared to the PC2(in my opinion) in a studio mix.

Reliability is doubtful. Biggest weakness is in the fragile 'wall wart adaptor'. It heats up very quickly in my 240V outlet, but it does say 220V on the adaptor guess that's why. It will break (melt?) down before the module will. And I guess it will cost over $50 US to replace. Very un-professional.

Well, their web-site seems to be helpful. Online tutorials are there to understand your gear, but where's the tutorial for the PC2R? They said it will be up soon, but when?

After all this bragging and complaining, I'm in love with the PC2R. It's a wonderful grand piano you can carry around in a briefcase.
It's irreplacable, and it will surely stay in my poession for many years to come. Piano sounds are utterly beautiful when used live in my setup. My other board is a Motif 7, and controls the PC2R without any major problems.

To summerise, this is a digital piano in a 1U rack. Don't compare it to a XV-2020 with SRX piano expansion board, or the Triton Rack with piano expansion. It doesn't compare. This is definitly a gear worth buying.

Software v3.10
Presets are like Kurzweil. Most of them are beautiful and big sounding. I bought it because of the Orchestral Expansion Board which is really good. Add some of the internal reverbs and it sounds near the real orchestra. Only thing that is so-so are brass and saxs.
Manual is total chaos. I read in the reviews below that it's 4 part multi-timbral. Wrong! It's 16 part, but it takes some 100 pages of manual to find that out.
Editing patches are like on any other sound-modul, tough.

Polyphony=64 expandable to 128. Check this line from the beginning of the Orchestral Expansion Board Manual: "If you have installed the PCX-1 polyphony expansion option in your instrument, you'll need two PCR-1 expansion boards." Is this a joke?
2 built in effect buses. One have all the effects (some 150), the other only has reverbs.
It accepts 2 expansion boards.
I use it with Cubase without any problem.

50% of sounds are top quality. If you ever heard Kurzweil you'll now. Other 50% are excessive.
Onboard effects are beautiful. Reverbs are brainmelting.
9 for first 50%
5 for others

I wouldn't throw it from the Twins.

No idea.

I always wanted Kurzweil. I think this is the cheapest one you can get. Is it still worth of 1100 EUROS. My ass it is. I mean, it sounds great but that's a lot of money. If you like me have a tiny budget but really need some quality orchestral sounds maybe you should try some of the Spectrasonics or GS sample libraries. In that case you don't pay for some ugly case, few buttons, midget display, you pay for pure sounds. Hura!

I'm not really sure of what software I'm using!

Preset organs sound great. The other sounds are a bit tinny. Pianos are substandard, and rhodes etc don't do it for me.

Editing organ sounds is a breeze. Pushing and pulling stops is emulated by twiddling knobs. Editing other sounds is cumbersome and not recommended!

Manual is not really helpful.

The effects are quite extensive. Biggest feature is B3 emulation. (Kurzweil refers to it as the "KB3")

That's about it for this module. That's really the only distinguishing thing that i found about it!

Organs are fantastic and easy to adjust. Very full sounding. Not much in the way of anything else. I own a Roland XP30 and RD150 and pianos/electric pianos are a world ahead. If you want primarily organ sounds you would be hard pressed going past this model, but versatility is limited.

I use this at gigs and it has crashed on me once. This is once too many!

If you want a good organ sound, splash out on a pc2r. I'm not really an organ player though, and i'm sure you could get a better organ sound out of a cheaper module. Pianos/ Eps aren't very impressive. But like i said, it's a great B3 modulator.

I found the manual to be a bit tedious, and not that well laid out. It seems to omit some things or bury them in non-intuitive locations that are not necessarily identified from the table of contents. But all in all it's easy to use once you understand the basics. To my knowledge it's only 4 part multi-timbral, but that's enough for me. If you already understand how zones and multi setups work, and midi implementation, I think you'll find the PC2R to be easy enough to adapt to.

It could have more multi-timbral capability, and I wish you could have more than two effects at once, particularly since one block is only reverbs, but I really like what is there. Extensive effects in block A, including tons of reverbs (booths, chambers, rooms, halls, plates) that are tweakable, many chorus, delay, stereo/multi taps, flange, pan, filters, resonators/shapers, stereo effects (I find the stereo expanders to be very useful).

The soundset is broad and has excellent examples in each category: piano (stereo grand, dynamic stage), e. piano, electric bass ("round and wound" through my Bass Pod sounds like a real bass on my recordings--amazing!), strings ("Fast Vtrig Rosin" is super realistic and can be used for anything with some manipulation of the envelope), voice (the "Take 6" set has three great ocatves that sound beautiful for backup harmony parts), even synth ("Elan Lead", "Vox Lead", "Sunspot Lead" all have a nice old school feel. I assume these are models made with V.A.S.T.).

The KB3 organ modeler is interesting and versatile. I find it musical and warm, but not super realistic, although you can manipulate it every which way, including variations in wheel performance over the key range, lots of percussion parameters, and on the fly drawbar adjustments. One thing that is a draw back is that the tube emulation/leslie effect that is essential to the sound uses both effects blocks so there is no reverb. I personally like to combine the KB3 with the high quality organ samples for what I consider a more realistic sound.

Editing in general is limited, but you have an effective 3 band e.q., envelope, some timberal tweaking. You can tailor the sound pretty effectively. There is a basic arpeggiator but it only has quarter/eighth/32nd and associated triplets, but latching can be adjusted and there is a nice "played" feature on the note sequence that makes it follow what you're doing on the keyboard better than just up/down/up etc.

I continue to be amazed at the depth and bredth of this unit in terms of sound quality and versatility. They've covered so many bases, and in setups mode you can create so many textures by combining and tweaking sounds. I could use this thing for years. Just last night I marveled at how real the jazz bass/stereo piano setup sounded on a recording I made. I couldn't tell it was samples.

One note, though, right out of the box, I found it seriously needed some e.q. ing and reverb tweaking. It sounded kind of dull, particularly in the piano, at first, but that was superficial. The sounds are in there! I like to use stereo expansion ("wide space" mostly) from effect block A on many of my acoustic samples. It really gives a sense of realism and spacial texture that takes some off that sample sterility. If you work with it and find the right arrangements for your sound, and are careful with the e.q. and reverb, I think you will find this thing sounding close to real in many of your mixes.

Some high points: "Fast Vtrig Rosin" (brown, bold, dynamic full string section that can be enlarged or shrunken with spacial effects and reverb, and tamed by shaving off the envelope)

"Stereo Grand" (drop some of the mids, boost bass and highs, add ambient reverb, this thing is pro quality)

"Williams Brass" (a totally excellent dynamic brass ensemble that suits classical/film score type stuff but can be tweaked for a pop/rock ensemble feel if necessary)

"That '70's E. Piano" (spongy, warm, nice)

"Round and Wound" (needs bass amp model added, but very strong)

"Base in Face" (awesome, driving, layered synth bass texture)

"Baa/Bop" (pristinely captured male vocal ensemble, can be tweaked for a variety of backing applications)

KB3 + B3 samples (a great setup, mostly for chord arrangements, not so much for leads. Warm, blalnced, rich, though not super realistic)

Acoustic Guitars (as in all keyboard systems, you can never achieve that strumming sound, but these are clean detailed smaples of 6 string, 12 string, and classical guitar that I think work great with the arpeggiator)

It hasn't glitched yet. It seems sturdy. Other people have had some problems with this Korean made Kurzweil line (mostly the keyboards), but mine has worked well for over six months.

Not sure on this one.

This is about as close to the ethereal realm of expensive CD-ROM/Sampler/PC setups you will likely get for the time being in a module. If you want a very good comprehensive general sample set, a worthwhile B3 modeler, accompanying pro quality effects, and expansion ROM cards to come, snatch this up. Way less expensive than the alternative of sample CD's. Not as evolved as those, but very useful once you play around and find how it suits your specific goals.

Using version 2.10. A little different than most interfaces to get used to but once you've got the hang opf it, it's easy to navigate. The Group/Menu button allows one to quickly access sounds in both bank 1 and bank 6 (other banks in between are reserved for expansion boards). Presets are uniformly excellent. No duds on this module. Editing isn't to difficult although the programmability is not on the same level as the k2000 series.

My module came with 64 voice polyphony and I've yet to hear vioces drop off. The dual effects are excellent sounding and put the onboard Roland reverbs to shame. Kurzweil has yet to release sound expansion boards although I heard a demo of the new Orchestral expansion chip and it sounds GREAT! Some of the samples seem to be taken from the orchestral sound block for the K-series which is fine since it had the best French horn I've ever heard.

MIDI capabilities are excellent on this mod and it can transmit up to 4 zones simultaneously. Haven't taken advantage of that feature yet since I mostly do studio work but I'll be digging it when I play live.

No onboard sequencer present (a wise move since it keeps the price tag down) but it does have an arpeggiator.

The sounds on this beast are unbelievable! The day I dropped into my local music store, all of the keyboards guys were raving about this mod so naturally I gave it a listen. And boy were they right! The pianos are wonderfully rich and dynamic (I have a Yamaha P80 which still slightly edges this out but really only up in the upper register). The electric pianos are as good as anything I've heard on the Yamaha Motif, especially the Rhodes patches, some of which growl when you apply a lot of velocity. Great electric and upright basses and some good dirty drum kits, something I wish the ROland guys would consider when they put out their mods. String patches initially didn't blow me away but the patch "FaST Vtrig Rosin" really approximates the bowing of violins in the upper registers. I also like the bite the string patches have to them. Kurzweil seems to be the only company that can give you biting strings but warm sustain. Korg has the attack partials nailed, but their sustain sounds artificial. Roland has the warmth of the string sustain down but most of their attack transients are non-existent. The PC2r has got 'em both!

Brass and saxes are also quite impressive on this mod and react well to pressure. Dig deep into your board and the brass patches get quiet. Let up on the keys and get a a nice sforzando effect. Same applies to the saxes which also benefit from a varied attack (you can actually hear the reed on some patches!). I wish some of the string sounds also reacted to pressure but sadly they don't.

Oh, and you can use 16 channels at one time on this mod. Simply choose the MIDI Receive mode, and then scroll through channels in the upper left corner of the display. The only thing is you can't save 16 channel set-ups like you can on the Roland and Korg gear. This is exactly like the K2000 interface where you have one multi set-up. Mind you, you can use sys-ex to download your sets or use a MIDI sequencer with a librarian to save set-ups. It's a little bit of a hassle but totally worth it for the sounds on this board.

Sounds on this mod are mostly good for jazz, a bit of classical/film scoring, and '70's rock. There are a couple sounds which you could use for hip-hop and R&B but it's best suited to the aforementioned styles.

Haven't had it long but so far so good.

n/a

This is a fantastic module. I would replace it in a heartbeat if it were lost or stolen. I used to have tons of different modules but nowadays I just use the PC2r, Roland XP30, and the P80 for most work. I can't wait to pick up the orchestral board and maybe the polyphony expansion chip which ups it to 128 voices.

Everything on this module sounds great and for the work I do, it fits perfectly in my set-up. I used to have a Triton and an XV-3080 but neither of those mods had the same organic natural sound to a lot of their sounds. The PC2r has 'em in spades. I've done complete jazz arrangements just using this alone and the sound is fat and dynamic.

Other than the inability to save more than one multi set-up at a time, this module is a real winner. Kurzweil has always been associated with excellence and the PC2r upholds the company's notable reputation.

I'm using the latest version of the software, from the Kurzweil site. When I plugged it in, I was blown away by the presets. I do a lot of solo pianos, and the pianos are best I've found. Someone mentioned about them not cutting through in a mix, a while I tend to agree, I think this is a good thing in that they blend, and add to a mix without being overly obvious.

The midi setup mode is impressive, allowing four voices, along with related information like midi channel, pitch bend info, effects routing, to be stored in one convenient setup.


Editing patches is a little difficult for me. I've never been good at editing anything on a a little two line display, and a patch editor would be nice. I haven't seen one available for Windows. I'm still using the presets, and find them satisfactory for the most part.


The manual is good. Needs more pictures, but laid out very well and easy to read and understand, unlike some of the incomprehensible Roland and Yamaha manuals, which seem to need an English translation.

For the money, this has plenty of features. The polyphony is 64, built in drum tables, arpeggiator, built in effects, and a range of editing capabilities. The weakness seems to be the number of sounds played at once, which, unless I'm missing something, is only 4. This is not a problem for me as I have other equipment, but if this is your one and only sound module, you may find yourself out of parts before your composition is finished. This is a little surprising given most of the other units in this price range are limited only by the number of midi channnels available...usually 16 or 32.

Having said that, I must say the midi-setup function is extremely nice. You can probram your four voices into a setup, set a number of parameters for each voice, including midi channel, effects, midi controllers, etc, and save the setup. This works great with a sequencer, as you can call up "piano/bass/strings" (or whatever), and have the sequencer play each voice independently.

Another nice thing about the setup mode is that you have four buttons which will get you into the one of the four "zones" as Kurzweil calls them. You can go right to the patch and make on the fly adjustments to various parameters.

One other thing about the setup mode. It's very useful with midi sequencing if you can live with the four voices and two outputs on the back, but it's also great for live, real time playing. Splits and layers can be set up in a matter of seconds, and changed as quickly.

I like practically all the sounds. The pianos are second to none, and the basses, strings, organs, all sound good. If you're looking for noises, and freaky type stuff, then maybe something else would be best for you, but if you need accurate, "bread and butter" type sounds at a great price, then this box is for you.

It would probably be best suited for older rock, when they used real pianos. Perfect for Country and Gospel. A good classical musician with patience could probably make this box literally get up and perform. New wave, alternative, rap???? I don't think so.

Although there is no keyboard on this rackmount version, there are different velocity maps which can be assigned to suit your midi controller and playing style. Nice.

I've had it about a week, and haven't tore it up yet...:). It looks reasonably rugged, about the same as most of the other stuff out there. Don't drop it, don't spill stuff in it, don't use it as a tray, and it should be fine. I would use it on a gig without a backup, unless I was auditioning for doing the soundtrack for "Titanic II" or something like that. I've owned other Kurzweil instruments, and have faith in the overall quality.

Yes, I would definitely buy it again. To me, it is well worth $1000.00, and I'm considering getting a second one.

I compared it to Yamaha, Roland, and Korgs offerings. The others didn't come close as far as sound quality. Most of the competitors seem to concentrate on bells and whistles, whereas Kurzwiel goes after sound quality.

I wish it had a "multi" mode, which would allow setting up a patch for each midi channel. Multiple outs would be nice.

I like turning it on, and playing the first preset, which is a nice grand piano. You can forget all the midi stuff, and just get lost in the sound. Close your eyes, and you're sitting at a 9' grand...

Or, turn the computer on, and crank up the band. It definitly helps me make music. To me, this box is very versatle, and downright inspirational.

I've used and loved Kurzweil instruments before, and this allows access to many of the exceptional sounds of the higher end stuff, without having to pay mega bucks.

I upgraded mine to 2.10. The presets are really good if you like Kurzweil sounds. Patch editing seems easy enough and the manual is well written.

Mine has the stock 64-note polyphony. The built in effects are good adn clean. It has numerous expansion options; sounds and polyphony to 128-notes. Has more than enough MIDI capabilities even allowing full MIDI control from the module. No onboard sequencer. Does have a builtin arpeggiator.

The sounds I guess are a matter of opinion. I loved them in my music room at home and found I didn't care for them LIVE with my classic rock band. They just didn't cut through the mix as well as my Roland P-55. And yes I tried modifying the built in EQ and parameters in each preset and still was not happy. Don't get me wrong the sounds are as good or better as they say but I think it depends o the application. In a solo(jazz or classical) setting I think it would be fine, but weak in a pop or rock setting. Maybe I'm just stuck on Roland piano sounds? Who knows...I've played several models of other digital pianos the Yamaha P-200 sounds GREAT and would be ideal if it was in a 64-note module, I also played a GEM Pro series and really liked it as well but I can't find the module version or I would have bought it instead of the Kurzweil. Playing in regards to velocity, aftertouch and the like is fully adjustable.

It is definately built well and could be used without a backup unless you drop your rack from 100 floor buildings ona regular basis.

If it were lost or stolen I would opt for finding a GEM Real Piano Expander if I could locate one. Again, this is only my opinion the sounds are killer in this module just not what I need to play live in a guitarish classic rock band.

The rack mount version of the PC2 is easy enough to use. I have version 2.00 of the software. The patches are easy enough to edit, but creating the setups take a bit longer than it should. The KB3 mode editing is great, and each patch shows the drawbar assignments. The midi mode that adjusts to the midi channel you are sending on is a nice feature.

The PC2 rack has 64 voices -- although a good number get eaten when a patch is in KB3 mode. I'm not sure exactly how many are available in KB3 mode. It comes with some good stock sounds and effects. The midi setups are nice, but it might be nice to be able to drive more than 4 midi channels at a time (for sequencing). It has an arpeggiator that is interesting, but not terribly useful on a rack. The thing is expandable to 128 voices, and sound expansion cards are in the works.

Overall it sounds very nice. The first thing you notice about the box is that it sounds very -- midrange. It doesn't have the dynamic range of a Korg box, or the warmth of a Roland. But you wouldn't expect it to sound like the others. The global EQ seems to benefit the sound.

The sounds themselves are great. The piano sound in particular is very nice. A woody sound -- more organic than other piano sounds you may have heard. But in a loud band, the subtle attack transients may get lost in the mix. The Yamaha P200 piano sounds seem a bit better to my ears, and mixes more effectively with other instruments. But it's a damn good.

I really like the KB3 "B3" organ simulation mode. I love to play with the drawbar and percussion settings to get the sound that I want. It sounds pretty authentic to boot. The organs are some of the "fatter" sounds on the box. However, the presets seem a bit "serile" -- overly clean, and I can't pinpoint why. The overdrive (tube amp simulation) in the KB3 effects section does not produce a pleasing distortion sound. The leslie simulation is good, but not the best I've heard. It can sound very good, but gets a bit "home organy" sometimes. If Kurzweil works on getting a better tube amp simulation, and cleans up the leslie sound, KB3 mode will equal many dedicated organ simulators, and surpass some. Its a fun feature and one of the reasons I bought the thing.

I like the electric pianos and the clav sound (Wurly is nice). Nice ooh and aah vocal sample too. The strings are fine -- a bit "fruity" sounding though. Basses are solid and useable, but not for dance or R&B. Brass is -- like all the other brass samples out there. The other synth stuff really is not usable. Oh, and, awful electric grand and accordion :).

It's been fine so far, but it looks somewhat less sturdy than comparible Roland boxes.

Overall, I'm happy with the box. It's great for what I do, because of the quality of the piano, organ, and electric piano sounds. I like the KB3 mode alot, and I hope Kurzweil continues to improve it. For about a grand, this is a hell of a deal. And its expandable too.