need help. going to buy kurzweil rack

[Jaymaro]

Hello everyone. This is my first post

I´m from Portugal and I play the keyboards in an amateur band, style rock alternative.

So far, for about 2 years I've been playing with nord lead 2x as synth and YAMAHA P-120 for the piano sounds.

I'm happy with the nord for the synth part, but I need a base keyboard that gives me realistic piano sounds plus good classic organ sounds and also strings.

I´m seriously considering buying the M-Audio Prokeys 88sx as a controller for a Kurzweil PC-2 Rack.

Are these compatible? (I've never used MIDI in my life)
Is this a good option considering price/quality?

Could you help me out?

 

[Jaymaro]

more info

by the way, I'm really used to weighted action on the keyboard, played classical for very long time.

Will I have trouble with M-Audio and with using the rack with it?

Is there a cheaper way to get good piano and Hammond/Rhodes (I loved the kurzweil samples)

Thanks for your help I'm a newbie in these things

 

[keyplayer]

I dont really have any knowledge of the m-audio board but I own a pc2r rack....mine has the orchestral rom block...(i think they still sell them without the orchestral set) but anyway, the pc2r is a great rack that will give you very good piano sounds as well as other accoustic simulations....as far as midi goes, there wont be any problem there with compatibility...as far as hook ups, midi is all the same...just make sure the m audio board has midi in and out ports as now days all pro boards have at least midi in and out.... the kurzweil rack has midi in, out, and thru

Keyplayer

 

[Skot]

They would definately be compatible, thats the beauty of midi, but I'm not sure if you would want to use an m-audio 88 for your controller. They feel pretty cheep and not too good for a weighted board, especially for a nice sound module such as that. IMO you should get a stage piano or a weighted synth/workstation. Check out the yamaha s90 or something similar. Actually, buying the PC2x non rack might be worth it. Thats just what i would do. Or go all out and buy a K2600x

 

[Skot]

By the way, while we are on the subject, what does midi thru do?

 

[keyplayer]

midi thru is a mirror image of midi in....you use the thru port to drive more than one external device....for instance, in my studio, i come midi out of my controller to midi in of my es rack...then midi thru from the es rack to midi in of the kurzweil...then midi thru the kurzweil to midi in of the juno g. which lets me play them all from my controller ..theoretically, you could do that forever

 

[Jaymaro]

I dont really have any knowledge of the m-audio board but I own a pc2r rack....mine has the orchestral rom block...(i think they still sell them without the orchestral set) but anyway, the pc2r is a great rack that will give you very good piano sounds as well as other accoustic simulations....as far as midi goes, there wont be any problem there with compatibility...as far as hook ups, midi is all the same...just make sure the m audio board has midi in and out ports as now days all pro boards have at least midi in and out.... the kurzweil rack has midi in, out, and thru

Keyplayer

so what do u use as a controller for your pc-2 rack?

 

[keyplayer]

I'm in a studio environment and i use an 88 key roland rs9....its actually a synth with semi-weighted keys because i have joint problems in my hands and fingers so i cant take the reagular hammer action feel in a keyboard anymore.....so the moral of the story is what i need for my purpose and what you need is probably alot different

This is just my opnion but i dont like midi controllers anyway because to get a good one, you have to pay almost as much money as you could pay for a decent 88 key synth with a whole new sound set you could have at your disposal....so to tell you the truth, after 30 some years of buying equipment, I've never bought one!!...go figure!...sorry i couldnt help any better.......good luck!

Keyplayer