Kurzweil K2661!!!

[elwoodblues1969]

Found a Kurzweil K2661 for $2,195.00-which is only $200 more than the Roland Fantom X6!!

Thanks to SamAsh,I've found my next set of keys and hope to own one by early next year.

[Oren]

Found a Kurzweil K2661 for $2,195.00-which is only $200 more than the Roland Fantom X6!!

Thom,

Have you ever tried a Kurzweil to get a personal sense of the sounds and feel of the keyboard? I have to admit being excited about the prospect of you owning a pro-quality instrument, but spending some quality time with one before buying would be an invaluable experience.

That big Korg you're using now is such a capable unit that most other synthesizers (even more modern models) are going to sound a little lame by comparison.

Anyway, by doing your research the way you are, the best choice of make and model for a replacement keyboard will be very clear.

Here's to home-grown technology  ,

Oren.

[elwoodblues1969]

Oren,

In the case of the Roland,testing it out for myself was a very critical necessity,as from one Roland to another,you don't know what you're going to get.

I was looking towards the Roland,because of it's integrated audio recorder-which is few & far between with workstation keyboards.
Another reason why I tested out the Roland in person,is due to the fact that Roland's are readily available in most major music stores.

In the case of Kurzweil,well,for one thing,nearly all music stores are not willing to put it on display,as I'm speculating that it's not cost effective for a retailer to subject such a high end keyboard,to the physical abuses of being on display,as even if it survives,they of course,would have to discount that particular board-which I doubt they are willing to do-especially since it is a brand that practically sells itself.

That being said,there is only one store-which is an hour & a 1/2 away in N.Y.C.-which might actually have it on display,but I am not willing to contend with the hassle of all that traffic,just to tinker with the one & only brand on earth that I absolutely know I will be happy with-without ever seeing the board in person.

That's how world renoun and notorious it is,for top,pro-quality-it's that good and I've always known that for several years.

At the time I bought my 88 key Korg Triton Extreme,I fell in love with it right away & the price was right-as supposed to an extra $2,000 for the full size Kurzweil-so there was no reason to hesitate buying the Korg.

I am not actually looking for a "replacement" board,but rather I wish to venture beyond the brand of Korg(which I've always had)and step up to the only brand that exists where you can have unsurpassed authenticity & sonic quality & more importantly,flexible,customizable synthesis capabilities-coupled with a vast library of sounds-thus rendering the keyboard impervious to becoming obsolete.

With the release of the Korg Oasys,Korg is just now catching up to the Kurzweil level of quality(in my opinion) & taking it a step further by creating a completely self contained studio-all in one board,but this hardly matters to me,as I personally feel that it's a bit overpriced,as you are paying for the convenience of having everything thrown in-in one single package.
None of the Kurzweils have a built in audio recorder that I had hoped for,but in consideration of me getting my hands on the best possible sounds & creativity-all within a reasonable price range-that is ultimately all that matters,as seperate audio recorders are so inexpensive now and there is so much selection out there.

The K2661 is the most significant purchase I could ever make,especially since I will never let go of my Korg.

Thom

[Oren]

Oh yeah!

[kara]

Oh yeah ? I'm not sure....

Let me add my 2 cents.

I have no doubt that kurzweil is top quality material, I once listened to a kurzweil expander (don't remember which one, i think it was the K2000) and it sounded pretty good.
Now having said that there are a couple of arguments that you have to take in account.
Buying a soundmodule for your studio or live setup is before all things function of what you allready have and what you are looking for. It has to be complementary or replace equipment.

An example:
I'm a lot like Oren and buy most of my music equipment for my local music store. I have a couple of reasons for this
- I'm old fashion and believe that you have to support local stores 
- I want to make sure that, when I spend money it's for somethign that will realy fit my setup
- If I have a problem, I want to explain my problem to a person and not send 50 mails to somebody I don't know.
- I don't want to go trough the hassle of sending back something and waiting for a repair or exchange.

Well, since I'm pretty well known in my local music store, I was invited to play with the OASYS. I knew that I never would buy it because it's way over my budget. The oasys is certainly a great machine, but what shocked me the most, was the piano sound! My first opinion was, well KORG still doesn't know how to make piano sounds.
Is this the truth ? There is a big change that i'm wrong, alltough that the manager of the shop who is a professional piano player agreed with me. But I should rephraze that in 'they make a piano sound that I don't like'.
As a piano player I'm pretty picky on synth piano sounds. I personally think that in the domain of non-dedicated piano modules ROLAND make the best. I have a XV5050 with the grand piano SRX expansion board, which I've tweaked for weeks to get the piano sound that I want. Now, the funny thing is, that alltough I use that sound a lot in my studio, when I play live I prefer the piano of my old GEM SK760, why ? because it sounds warmer trough my PA.

My point is that IMHO you can't buy a certain module just because it has a reputation of a quality product without actually hearing it... When I bought, years agoo, my XV5050 his main competitor was the KORG TR expander and the shop had both in stock. The KORG had more possibilities then the ROLAND and I just couldn't decide. So the store proposed me to lend both of them for a couple of days and see which one fitted my needs.
That's a service you'll never get over the internet   

I would advice to go to a shop and try the gear before buying....

 

Oh yeah!

[elwoodblues1969]

Kara,

For the most part,I agree & appreciate what you are saying but there are few things I like to point out.

First of all,the Kurzweil K2661 is not a sound module,but a keyboard workstation like that of my Korg.

Second,as I outlined in my earlier post,there is not a decent local music store,as I am located on the Jersey shore and one location is in New York State & the other is bordering on Pennsylvania State.

The SamAsh in Cherry Hill,N.J. is an hour away & they don't stock Kurzweil & even if they did,I would have to take the keyboard out of the box,just to fit it in my car & I would not want to transport the keyboard unprotected.I have no choice but to purchase it online.

However,I will buy it from the New York store online if they price match with SamAsh,as bhphotovideo.com(N.Y.) sells the same Kurzweil for $800 more than SamAsh.

I'm sorry,but I'm not supporting my "local" music store if they're going to charge an extra $800 because they insist on maintaining the list price from 3 years ago,as ultimately,my budget dictates where I buy a keyboard.

Bhphotovideo.com is a major retailer like SamAsh,so I know they can afford to compete with SamAsh.
Since they are both big corporations,neither of them need my support anyway.

The one music store that is down the street from me,sells mostly guitars,drums & the like & I know far more about studio equipment and keyboards than anyone in that store and I have seen items in that store with price mark ups as high as 200 %-(which is unscrupulous
in my book) and I will never buy from there for that reason.

Also,I am physically disabled,so I am living on federal disablity pay(which basically is just enough to get by on) & even though I am afforded the right to work part time,no one will higher me because of my disablity,as I have been looking for work for a year now.

I will agree though,that Korg's piano sounds could be better,and that is one of the reasons why I chose Kurzweil,because for myself,I cannot tell the difference in sound between a real piano & the sound of a Kurzweil.

I'll have to make another post with a link to thier website that has audio demos,so you can hear it for yourself.

Elwood

[kara]

I was not trying to attack your point of view, just trying to give you some advice.
It is weard trough that stores have such a policy where you live.
When I buy from my local store, I allways know the current internet prices of the gear that I want and I allways can negotiate the price of something I want.
Perhaps because I'm a faithfull customer ?

I do respect your opinion

k

[elwoodblues1969]

Understood Kara,

But things are usually not that simple in a music store,especially with certain products-where you can just walk into any store with the knowledge or document of a competitor's price & negotiate like that.(at least,not around here)

For example,Sweetwater.com(which also has a store,but is in Fort Wayne,Indiana),is a place where they have otherwise excellent customer service & product support,but in the case with the Kurzweil K2661,they would not budge an inch on the price difference of $800.
In fact,I was told by a sales rep,that they could not price match,but instead he threw that company slogan at me; "well we have the best cutomer service & product support in the industry" and that's all well & good,but I am not paying an extra $800 for customer service,especially so,since the company of Kurzweil is only 5 hours away from me-in the event I should need product support-which is a damn sight better level of product support than Alesis can give you and that's a fact.

Here's the audio demo link:

http://www.kurzweilsystems.com/products.html?Id=1703

[Moon]

I just had a listen to the demo song "Darkside" on the website of Kurzweil and found some similiarities with a demosong of the Nordlead3.
You can found the songs here:
Kurzweil: http://ftp://ftp.kurzweilmusicsystems.com/pub/Kurzweil/Audio_Demos/MP3/K2600/DARKSIDE.mp3
Nordlead3: http://www.clavia.se/MP3s/MP3%20files/Analogue%20part%20one.mp3

...and judge for yourself.

By the way: both are great instruments.

[elwoodblues1969]

Moon,

The sounds & the ability to create unique expressions is truly amazing from what I've looked into so far and the sound quality is every bit as nice as the Kurzweil.

I agree whole-heartedly,the Nord is a great instrument with alot of raw,analogue power for a grand(USD) and it is a nice way to go if I decide to pursue that avenue.

For me personally,I think really need to wait as long as it takes for me to save more money,because the Kurzweil K2661 is the only keyboard workstation that I know of,that has analogue quality expression,an exceptional sequencer and a vast library of sounds.

I think I really need to start doing everything I can to set aside enough money for this board as soon as possible,while it is still available to buy new-(I really don't like taking a chance with used gear).

I'm about ready to sell my car for this keyboard...aaAAHH!

[Moon]

Ooh man, selling you car

I was still wondering: if you're keeping the Korg, why do you need a second workstation ? I had the feeling you were looking for fresh and more versatile sounds?

[elwoodblues1969]

The idea behind a second workstation,namely the Kurzweil,is to have the ability to do pattern sequencing without a computer and to have that along with the Kurzweil sound library and custom sound expression features.

As much as I love my Korg Triton,I think perhaps I should have spent the extra money on the full size Kurzweil K2600 instead,when I had the money to do so.

Being that I already have a full size board now,the Kurzweil K2661 61 key note version is the most inexpensive workstation synth they make and I would get all the features I want for a reasonable price.

[Moon]

OK, now I understand.

P.S.: I will ask my wife if I can sell her car to get a G2X 

[elwoodblues1969]

I think I have no choice but to sell my car,as I would need both the Nord & the Kurzweil to make my studio 100 % complete.

Besides,that pumice modulation wheel on the Nord would come in handy for sharpening my kitchen knives!

[Moon]

Yes, I know what you mean. I considered selling my wife instead, but realize I wouldn't get money for her 

O boy, I sure hope she doesn't read this forum