Ditto Terry. You said pretty much what I think a lot more efficiently than I did, but yesterday was my day to rant I guess..lol

DJ, I totally understand money issues, so I'd suggest giving the 3k a real hard look, along with some other options. If the guitar sounds are your biggest issue with the 2k, and you are happy with it otherwise, there are other possibilities for the studio ( or even live if you already have a laptop ).

Softsynths / Samplers...
By the time the 3k comes out, Musiclabs should have released it's "Real Guitar". IThe demos make me think it uses it's own pro[pietaty "megavoice" technology. There are other options as well. One of the other demo's I tried did a megavoice type thing. If I can remember which one it is or still have the demo, I'll let you know.

I'm no expert on acoustic sounds for the soft stuff, but in passing I did hear some that rivaled or exceeded anything I have on my hardware keys. I bet Frank Rosenthal knows what sounds good in that area though. My main focus was to improve my analog / synth sounds, and I did that substantially with softsynths. I have virtual modular / analog synths that a few years back I could only dream of ( because of the prohibitive costs ). Next task for me is to focus on upgrading my acoustic instrument soundset. I want to do that without changing hardware, although the Motif ES' OS bothers me just enough that I still might change it anyway. If I discover anything good, I'll let you know DJ. Meanwhile, if you are inclined, you could check out http://www.kvr-vst.com

AJ