Nord User Forum

[rtuckr]

I have both a Stage 3C and an Electro 5D. Clearly I'm a drawbar fan. However, one of the biggest complaints re: the physical drawbars is that they don't "snap" to the saved program setting. The same is true for most of the knobs on the Stage 3 (i.e., they are in fixed positions regardless of the saved setting).

Nord has two solid responses to the physical and saved states not matching, which are:
- Monitor button (or Shift on Electro 5D) while turning a knob in order to see its position
- Live Mode (for drawbars) which allows a program to use whatever state the physical drawbars are in INSTEAD of the saved positions

These are both great, but I would prefer a NEW option that allows the physical knob/drawbar to NOT change immediately upon adjusting, but rather to SNAP once the position matches the saved value. This is how Beatmaker 3 and other software has been configured to work with hardware controllers, by default. The advantage is that the sound wouldn't "jerk" the minute you start tweaking the knob, the way it does now.

Being able to "find" the cutoff position of a synth sound, for example, would allow you to open/close the filter from wherever it currently is (which sounds much less jarring). The same would be true for drawbar and other changes, so the sound remains unchanged until the physical control snaps to the saved setting and then LATCHES from that point on. Absent of motorized faders and LEDs on every knob, this seems like a reasonable workaround. Ideally it would be system setting that could be enabled/disable by the user.

Would anyone else find this useful?

[cgrafx]

+1

[Bjosko]

So, actually, the monitor should always be on when you touch a knob, snap on original position and tweak from there ?
It would be fine as an option, but if you would like to grab a handfull drawbars, or do a fast change of a parameter ( where you know where to go, f.ex full effect of a pot), it will slow you down, as you first need to find the original position before the knob snap.

[rtuckr]

My issue with Monitor is it requires a button press which isn't convenient in a live situation where you are playing the keys with your one hand and tweaking with the other. I hear you about grabbing multiple drawbars that are in varying locations, which is why it should be optional to the other modes (and probably a separate setting for knobs and drawbars, depending on the situation and user's preference).

[Mr_-G-]

Sure it would be very useful; it has been suggested several times before... Unfortunately the Clavia guys do not seem keen (or able) to introduce this as an update. I guess it might require some re-designing of the OS and who knows how easy is for them to do this.
I would, however welcome other things before this one: e.g. more control on the velocity data, more control on the aftertouch sensitivity, velocity morphing.
I also think that they should re-introduce the NL3-style encoders with LEDs which would get round this issue of saved values and potentiometer position and become a much more usable user interface.

[rtuckr]

I also think that they should re-introduce the NL3-style encoders with LEDs which would get round this issue of saved values and potentiometer position and become a much more usable user interface.

I agree with you on the LED encoders being the ultimate solution (although perhaps not for folks who like drawbars) and I was disappointed to see that the Stage 3 had *less* LED encoders than the Stage 2/2EX (instead of more). This is why a software tweak to allow snap+latch makes sense and could be a reasonable compromise. Thank you for pointing out that this has been brought up previously (I searched for it, but couldn't find).

[cki69]

This ist in my opinion a very good suggestion. Thanks for it - Have you postet this to NORD directly? I think it's better to contact them instead of waiting for them to find this in this 'independent' forum
However, it's good to post this here to see if other users are the same opinion and then, I think, the next step must be to contact the company.

[anotherscott]

LED rings around encoders would be ideal (albeit pricey)... and specifically, they should be used in conjunction with endless encoders. Rings around standard encoders, while useful, still require a choice between "jump" or "catch" modes when moved, and are not as good as when used with endless rotaries. Having the knobs always in the "right" place is better than merely having an indication of how far they're off when they're in the wrong place.

Drawbars are a whole other issue. Endless is not an option. Kurzweil has the equivalent of informative rings, though, with its LED strip next to the faders on the Fortes, which I think is a great idea.

Anyway, yes, the "catch" (or "snap" as the OP put it) would be a nice option to have, and would ideally be something you could specify for knobs+drawbars, or just for knobs, as I could see where someone might like it on the knobs but not on the drawbars. That said, I think the current standard Nord approach is probably best if you had to pick just one. I think many users (particularly less experienced ones) would find it confusing/disconcerting if most controls often appeared not to do anything when you moved them.

My issue with Monitor is it requires a button press which isn't convenient in a live situation where you are playing the keys with your one hand and tweaking with the other.

That's a good point. It could be useful to be able to implement the Monitor function with a foot pedal.

[RichardG]

<snip>
These are both great, but I would prefer a NEW option that allows the physical knob/drawbar to NOT change immediately upon adjusting, but rather to SNAP once the position matches the saved value.
<snip>
Would anyone else find this useful?

<snip>
It could be useful to be able to implement the Monitor function with a foot pedal.

I like these ideas very much and if configurable wouldn't change the standard behaviour like it is now.

Pls. send a request to Clavia and add it to the Request Tab.

[Quai34]

So, your "snap" mode is the same "Thru mode" of the DSI synth right?