Which MIDI sound module for live use ?

[Aneng]

Hi,

I'm looking to get a small MIDI sound module to use live with my band, but this is a new area for me. I'm used to playing around with soft-synths in a PC environment (N.I. stuff etc) but have decided I can't rely on a laptop based solution as it's likely to either crash, get covered in beer or stolen !

My knowledge of hardware sound modules is limited. I'm assuming they're just rack units of the corresponding synth, and will or won't take expansion cards as per the bigger version ? How expandable are these things generally anyway ? - can you upload patches or samples to any of them or are you usually restricted to the set that comes with it (plus a user-patch section).

The band is primarily funk based, so I'm not looking for an orchestral or ethnic set of sounds !

Could anyone suggest some models that I could scour ebay for please ?

Many thanks !

[Kaine]

I've got a feeling that the Nord Stage, Electro or even C1 series might be the best fit given your description, but they are complete keyboards rather than racks.