Using a PC88 Kurzweil as a Midi Controller

[tdjukes]

Hi all,

I have been toting around this heavy thing for the last 10 years of my life. My grandma gave it to me when she was terminally ill with cancer, she used to practice on it and play it for church. I've always wanted to figure out some way to salvage this thing, the sounds on it aren't great, but the weighted key action is awesome and I really just want to be able to keep this piece of her in my music if possible.

I bought a midi to USB cord from Roland and I have a DAW that should work, Reason Limited. But I'm just having the worst time trying to get this thing to work. I'm really discouraged and thinking maybe it's not possible to connect it. The PC88 is supposedly super user friendly for it's time, but I know absolutely nothing about synthesizers or programming them. I followed a few videos on how to connect a keyboard as a midi controller, but there's not a lot as far as documentation for using THIS keyboard as a midi controller.

Anyone with some experience willing to guide me on my quest to keep my grandma's Kurzweil alive and part of my music?

I've attached the PC88 manual for reference in case there's something I've missed because of technical jargon that maybe a pro could help me unpack.

Thanks in advance for your kindness if you are able to take the time to help me with this.

PC88/mx - KURZWEIL It's the Sound®

kurzweil.com

 

[happyrat1]

It will make a fantastic controller and don't sell the sounds short.

For all things Kurzweil visit these two forums.

Log in

Log in

forums.godlike.com.au

Ksetlist – A community of users of Kurzweil keyboards

ksetlist.com

For configuring and setting up a MIDI controller with a DAW and VSTis, your first stop should be Youtube searches, being as specific as you can with brand names and questions for howtos.

Same thing applies to your google searches.

Probably your first dozen questions have been answered already all over the internet and probably even already in these very forums.

Search is a powerful tool if used properly.

Search on "Beginner DAW Tutorial" or whatever fits your situation.

How do you think anyone learns this stuff?

Knowledge always tastes better when it's not spoon fed grasshopper

Gary

 

[tdjukes]

Hi all,

I have been toting around this heavy thing for the last 10 years of my life. My grandma gave it to me when she was terminally ill with cancer, she used to practice on it and play it for church. I've always wanted to figure out some way to salvage this thing, the sounds on it aren't great, but the weighted key action is awesome and I really just want to be able to keep this piece of her in my music if possible.

I bought a midi to USB cord from Roland and I have a DAW that should work, Reason Limited. But I'm just having the worst time trying to get this thing to work. I'm really discouraged and thinking maybe it's not possible to connect it. The PC88 is supposedly super user friendly for it's time, but I know absolutely nothing about synthesizers or programming them. I followed a few videos on how to connect a keyboard as a midi controller, but there's not a lot as far as documentation for using THIS keyboard as a midi controller.

Anyone with some experience willing to guide me on my quest to keep my grandma's Kurzweil alive and part of my music?

I've attached the PC88 manual for reference in case there's something I've missed because of technical jargon that maybe a pro could help me unpack.

Thanks in advance for your kindness if you are able to take the time to help me with this.

PC88/mx - KURZWEIL It's the Sound®

kurzweil.com

I actually ended up following some tutorials that were not using my exact same midi cord, so the directions ended up being rather confusing and I had used the wrong cord configuration. The Roland midi interface actually tells you which keyboard input to use, which I had missed the first couple of tries because it's in black embossed print on the black cord, so difficult to see in a low light setting. Once it's configured properly in the DAW and the cords are placed properly, there's actually no settings required to mess with on the keyboard itself.

 

[mris]

I have read the manual and if you want to use all the possibilities of this beautiful device you will have to study it
thouroughly. Start with the basic concepts and userface issues.
The midi setup mode is used when you want to control any external MIDI modules or keyboards and DAW.
Maybe this will help you on the way