Kurzweil PC3LE - Keeping Current; Overview of the PC3 LE; How the PC3 LE Works; V.A.S.T. Synthesis

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Introduction
Keeping Current
ThePC3LEcontainsmanyofthesamesoundsasthePC3.Thisincludesdetailedacousticand
electricpianos,richorchestralsounds,andmanyotherinstrumentsfromKurzweil’sextensive
samplecollections.ThePC3LEcomeswithover1000ins trumentprograms,allofwhichcanbe
editedorcopiedtoauserprogramto
customizeyoursound.Inadditiontosamplebased
programs,thePC3LEincludesKurzweil’sKB3organsimulatorforrealistictonewheelorgan
soundsaswellasKVAoscillatorsforvirtualanalogsynthesis.
ThePC3LEincludesmanyhardwarefeaturesdesignedforliveperformance.Therearefive
knobs,eachofwhichcanbeassignedto
3separateparameters(eachparameteraccessed
throughuseofashiftbutton,)allowingfor thecontrolofatotalof15parameters.Thereareeight
drumpadswhichareassignabletonotesorcontrolfunctions.ThePC3LEalsoincludes12
assignableswitches,modandpitchwheels,aswellasinputs
forfootswitchesandanexpression
pedal.
Keeping Current
Checkfornewdocumentationandoperatingsystemupgradesbeforeyoustartusingyour
instrument.WhennewsoftwareisavailableforthePC3LE,itwillbepostedat
www.kurzweil
.com.YoucanusethePC3LE’sBootLoader(describedinthismanual)toeasily
upgradeyourinstrumentwithnewsoftwareandsounds,whichwillbereleasedperiodicallyby
Kurzweil.
Overview of the PC3LE
ThePC3LE’s1000+programsincludesamplesfromourPC2’sBaseROM,OrchestralROM,
ClassicKeysROM,andanewStringSectionsROM,aswellassupportforGeneralMIDI.Multi‐
zoneperformancesetupsarealsoprovided;manyofthesesetupsuse notetriggerstoplay
factory‐recordedriffsandarpeggiationsthat
provideinstantgroovesandbackingparts.Anon‐
boardsequencer(Songmode)withfrontpaneltransportbuttonsletsyourecordyourmusical
ideasanytimeinspirationstrikes.
ThePC3LEhas64‐voicepolyphonywith16multi‐timbralchannels,sothatdifferentprograms
canbeplayedoneachMIDIchannel.ThePC3LE
featuresaworld‐classeffectsprocessorwhich
providesmultiplesimultaneouseffects,alongwithreal‐timeeffectscontrolviathefrontpanel
controlsorMIDI.
Forbackup,storage,andmovingfiles,thePC3LEfeaturestwoUSBportsontherearpanel.A
USBstorageportallowsyoutoconnectaUSBdevice
suchasathumbdrive,andasecondUSB
ComputerportletsyouconnectthePC3LEtoacomputerforfiletransferandMIDIconnectivity.
How the PC3LE Works
ThePC3LEintegratesakeyboard,highqualitysamples,apowerfulsynthesisengineandahigh‐
endeffectsprocessor.MIDIeventsgeneratedbyplayingthekeyboardcausethesoundengineto
triggersamplesoroscillatorswhicharethenprocessedbyKurzweil’spowerfulV.A. S. T.digital
signalprocessing.Theresultingsoundisthenrouted
throughthePC3LE’seffectsandtothe
audiooutputs.
V.A.S.T. Synthesis
ThePC3LE’susesKurzweil’sVariableArchitectureSynthesisTechnology(V.A.S.T.)toprocess
samplesandoscillatorswithavarietyofpowerfuldigitalsignal‐processing(DSP)toolsand
functions.Allofthishappens“underthehood,”soyoudon’t havetoworryabouthowthe
soundyouareusingisconstructedinorderto
modifyit.ThePC3LEgivesyoueasyaccesstoa
Program’s relevantparametersviathefrontpanelknobsandbuttons,allowingyoutoeasily
modifyaprogramwithouthavingtonavigatethroughaseriesofmenus.ForfurtherProgram
modification,thePC3LEfeaturesasimplifiedProgramEditor.Forthosewho
needmoreediting
options,usethesimplifiedProgramEditortoentertheV.A .S .T. ProgramEditor,whichallows
youtoaccessmostofthesameV.A.S.T.parametersthatareavailableinthePC3.