Nord User Forum

[boisnois]

Hi all,

I don't own a nord and really only getting all my info of the webs.

I was asked to join a touring rock band. The former keyvboardplayer was using MainStage for playback, heaps of samples, kontakt, etc...Each song has multiple splits: vibes, horns, organs, piano. Next song super compressed reverse piano and harmonium. next song only grand piano, etc....

I want to get rid of the computer on stage and am trying to get my head around the the nord sample editor. I have the option to purchase an electro 3.
Can I import and spread own samples over the entire keyboard?

so, say,
song one: zone 1 vibes, zone 2 horns, zone3 mellotron
song two: zone 1 organ, zone 2 piano, zone3 harmonium
etc
etc

I hope i'm explaining this well enough.

thanks,
boris

[anotherscott]

Can I import and spread own samples over the entire keyboard?

Yes... if you have, for example, a 73-key Electro 3, you can put a different sample under each key (at least up until you run out of memory), so there's a 73-way split! That said, I think it's probably the wrong board for you.

When playing this kind of custom sample, to you, the keyboard is full of different sounds in different zones, but to the Nord, it's one sound being manipulated via one set of controls. So, for example, once the sample set is complete, you will no longer have the ability to raise the volume of one of your split-sampled instruments without raising the volume of all of them. Similarly, the sustain pedal will affect all of your "zone's" sounds or none, you can't be selective. You can't put different effects or different EQ on the different instruments, etc. I think you'd be better off buying a board designed to do what you want to do, rather than seeing if you can shoehorn some semblance of that functionality into a board that's not really designed for it.

[ajstan]

I agree with anotherscott. Combination samples would be OK as rare exceptions, but probably not the standard way you should use an Electro.

The Stage would be closer to what you want, although you are limited to two pianos, two organs, and two synth sounds (with or without samples) per program (patch). I get around it by using multiple programs per song, which can be triggered with a pedal (but I just use the panel buttons to switch). It's perfect for me as a single board rig.

If you think that you will frequently need a 3-way split with three separate synth and/or sample sounds, then you should probably look elsewhere (or get a Stage and a second board for additional synth sounds). I'll leave it to others to make specific recommendations.

So, in your examples:
song one: zone 1 vibes, zone 2 horns, zone3 mellotron - these are three synth/sample sounds, so you would need to use two programs on a Stage and switch between them (or use a second board for the third synth/sample sound).
song two: zone 1 organ, zone 2 piano, zone3 harmonium - this is perfect for a Stage. One Organ, One Piano, One Synth. You could also layer and/or split in an additional Organ, Piano and Synth sound.

[boisnois]

hi ajstan and anotherscott,

thank you very much for your comments. make's a lot of sense and saved me some headache i guess.

do you have any suggestions outside the nord product line?

thanks again, truly appreciate it.

Boris

[maxpiano]

If you are looking for a keyboard to replace a Mainstage setup, I think you need to go for a good workstation such as Yamaha Montage (or Motif), Korg Kronos and the likes.

[anotherscott]

do you have any suggestions outside the nord product line?

If you need a lot of split versatility, good piano and organ, and the ability to load custom samples, and you must do it all in a single board, I'd look at Korg Kronos and Kurzweil Forte. I think those and the Nord Stage 3 are the only boards that include drawbar organs and custom sample loading (but, as mentioned, the Nord is limited in its split functions).

Is it absolutely essential that you do it all in one board? You have more options if you can use a pair of boards. And you might find a pair that will work for you that will be cheaper and/or lighter for the two boards combined than buying any one of the boards mentioned. It also can address the problem of some actions being better for piano and other actions being better for organ.

I know you don't want to use a computer, would you consider an iPad? That could be another way to add some functionality to a single board that doesn't quite have everything.

[boisnois]

Thanks maxpiano and anotherscott for your time.

unfortunately the options you mentioned are way out of budget.
I outsourced the MainStage organ to an OB32 (viscout/oberheim), which I'm really happy with. already I'm playing 2 boards, (1 organ, 1 MainStage)
for the meantime I might just stick with that, slowly incorporate my octatrack for oneshot samples and keep my eyes peeled for an affordable kronos alternative....

thanks again,
boris

[ajstan]

For less expensive options for samples and playback, take a look at the Roland Juno DS 88 or 61. I don’t have one, but I’ve been looking at the DS 61 for some time as an inexpensive second keyboard for performance, sample triggers, having fun with the vocoder, and practice. The battery option is nice so I can sit outside and practice with headphones in warmer weather.

Alternatives in the same price range are the Korg Kross and the Yamaha MX 49/61/88, although I have not done as much research on them.

[anotherscott]

I outsourced the MainStage organ to an OB32 (viscout/oberheim), which I'm really happy with. already I'm playing 2 boards, (1 organ, 1 MainStage)

For less expensive options for samples and playback, take a look at the Roland Juno DS 88 or 61.

Yes... the Juno DS might be a great option here. The reason I didn't mention it originally is that it does not include a drawbar organ, but since that's already addressed via the OB32, the DS might do everything else you need. (And it does have organ sounds, too... but not ones you can manipulate drawbar-style). From what I read, with the new 2.0 OS update, it has 55 mb of space available for user samples. Pianos won't be the quality of Nord or Mainstage, but are likely to be more than serviceable for the vast majority of band gigs. Flexible splits and layers. Weak point might be the action of the 61, particularly for piano playing.

[boisnois]

cool, guys. thanks. will check it out.