Nord User Forum

[aliaksei]

Hi, Nordians!

I own Korg Kronos X 88 with hammer action keys. Suffering from heavy keyboard when playing fast hammond organ stuff. Slides and triall are especially delicious.

I have a proposal to swap my Yamaha MOXF6 synth with Nord Electro 3 61.

Nord has waterfall keys and good hammond engine, but non-hammond drawbars.

Some questions about Nord Electro 3
1. Why doesn't it have volume normal/soft switch as original B3? Is this switch needed at all or players feel good w/o it?
2. Is there any drastic difference between Nord waterfall keys and synth action midi keyboard from hammond playing perspective?
3. What's the startup time of Nord Electro 3? Kronos starts up for 2m15s.
4. What to choose: Kronos + synth action midi keyboard on top VS Nord electro 3 on top and/or standalone?

[deenigewouter]

I haven't been playing the B3 for very long so I'm not an authority, but there definitely is a difference in action. Waterfall keys are much more rounded off compared to regular piano keys (that have a portruding lip) and synth action. The rounded nature of waterfall keys just makes them want to go down without much lateral resistance. This plays into the strengths of the B3 and organs in general. On an organ, playing more dirty and less precise will make it scream, whail and roar. Achieving this on Piano or synth action is possible, but less intuitive. I own a Korg G1 Air which has the same action as the Kronos, and I wouldn't dare sliding my hand across the keybed 4 times a second due to physical discomfort. As sleek as the RH3 action is, when I want to make an organ roar I hurt my hands and fear I'm damaging the action.

An organ needs to be 'abused' in a way that isn't possible on piano and synth action. Due to the sharp edges you're putting much more strain on your hands, the keys and the mechanism. This will make your playing less daring and 'free'. After getting a waterfall keyboard my skill on the B3 improved drastically, as did the fun.

Bootup time of the Electro 3 is probably under 15 seconds. I own an Electro 6 with a faster chip and it boots in around 8 seconds. That the Kronos needs 2m to boot is unreal, but I've read somewhere it's running an entire Linux operating system.

I'm not sure though if swapping the MOXF6 for an Electro 3 is worth it, but that's your call. Selling the MOXF6 (if you really need to) and getting a modern Crumar, Hammond or a more recent Electro might get you further in the long run. The E3 lacks physical drawbars, which may not bother you at first but once you're getting more serious you want something physical to pull instead of holding buttons.

[aliaksei]

Looks like with Electro 3 I can have waterfall keys and solid organ sound. Then I can connect it to Kronos and use Kronos organ with physical drawbars and on-screen drawbars. Kronos keyboard for usually slow pace bass lines and Nord for crazy right-hand solos/repetitions/slides.

Dreaming about 2-manual Mojo Classic or Nord C2D but in reality it's an overkill.

[deenigewouter]

Dreaming about 2-manual Mojo Classic or Nord C2D but in reality it's an overkill.

Oh yeah, definitely! I wasn't hinting at a 2-manual keyboard, but at one with 73 keys. This gives you some headroom for playing two handed organ on the Electro itself without the need of the Kronos. It can also hold its own when bringing it to a small gig or a jam session with friends so you don't have to carry the mighty Kronos.

In my area the price of a second-hand MOFX6 can easily buy a 73 key Electro with waterfall keys, but this might be just random chance. But hey it's up to you, good luck!

[cjfox]

I have an Electro 3 73 and a Kronos 61. The Hammond sound on the Electro 3 is way better than the CX3 engine. The keyboard on the Electro is setup for organ playing, waterfall, high trigger, etc. I don't have a MOFX6, so I can't comment on that keyboard. The Electro 3 is my go to keyboard for jamming, light and good all purpose sounds. Acoustic piano is not as good as the Kronos. The Kronos synth section has no equal however. When I am doing synth oriented stuff, I can't live without the Kronos. If you are only doing Hammond organ stuff once and a while, the Kronos CX3 is fine, but the Electro has a better organ sound.

[dwagar]

Since you have an 88 key Kronos, I'd say do the trade. Unless you can sell the MOXF6 and get into a 4D or newer with drawbars.

1. Normal/soft switch, heck I don't use it on my A100 either.
2. IMO the waterfall keys are needed.

I have the 4D-61 and an MOXF8. I run the 4D through an original Ventilator. When I want a dual hammond manual, I have an old Electro 2-73 I can use as a lower with the 4D.