Nord User Forum

[sanderr2]

Hi,
I'm trying to restore some of the factory sound banks (1 program bank and 1 performance bank) to my Nord Lead 3.
I'm using the Snoize SysEx Librarian and the files from the Clavia website and following the procedure in the Nord Lead manual.
All looks good when I'm transferring the data from SysEx Librarian on my Mac i.e. I can see each individual patch name in the Nord's display as it is being transferred but when it finishes and I exit out by pressing the Synth button all of the patches in the bank are empty.
I've logged a support ticket but just wondered whether anyone here had experienced the same problem and solved it somehow.
Thanks in anticipation,
Rob

[sanderr2]

Just receive this from Clavia support. It looks like the midi channel might be set to 3 in the raw sysex but setting the NL global midi to 3 doesn't solve the problem...


Hi Rob,

This could be because of a strange 'quirk' with the way the original programmers set up this instrument to work with midi dumps:

The global midi channel on the receiving device needs to match the channel that was used when the sysex file was created.

You should be able to see this info by looking at the raw sysex data in your sysex software. Then just check your Lead is set to the same channel (see top of page 116 and then 120 in the manual).

If you are unable to view the channel info in your software, then maybe start with midi ch 16 for the Lead's global midi channel and try the sysex dump again. If this does not work, then try ch 15 etc until you find the correct midi channel. Try ch 16 first as I am pretty sure that that was the channel used for the sysex dumps.

Please get back to me if you are still having problems.

[maxpiano]

That's a strange answer, by definition the MIDI SysEx messages don't have a "Channel" at all, see MIDI specs; maybe they mean the DeviceID?

Apart from that, have you checked that the Memory Protect is deactivated on your NL3?

[MichaelHeinen]

Hi Rob,

I've got the same problem and tried to change Global MIDI Channel to 1 - 16, but it did not work.
When I'm transferring the data to the NL3, I can see each individual patch name in the Nord's
display as it is being transferred, but all patches are empty.

Setup:
Nord Lead 3 with OS 1.20
SyEx Files from Clavia download page
Tested with MIDI-OX and Nord Sound Manager V1.02
Memory Protect is off (if it's on, NL3 does not accept the Perf. / Bank receive at all)
Instr. SysEx ID is set to All

Did anyone solve the problem?

Thanks for any help
Michael

[MichaelHeinen]

Hi Folks,

I finally solved the Problem using MIDI-OX to send the SysEx data, setting 'Delay after F7' to 200 Milliseconds.
In this case the transfer is slowed down and the NL3 is able to read and store all patches!

Best regards
Michael

[Rossler]

I just thought I'd chime in here in case someone has a problem with this in the future. I was using a Mac and could not for the life of me get ANY sound banks into my NL3. Sysex Librarian didn't work nor did the Nord Lead 3 Librarian/Patch Editor for Mac OS. I could see the files going into the synth but then when it finished the bank was empty.

I had to switch to a PC and then it worked perfectly. I used the Nord Lead 3 sound manager. I also updated to version 1.20 because this cannot be done on a Mac as iOS no longer supports the update. Hope this helps somebody!

[23skidoo]

What interface are you using for MIDI? I have zero issues on any of my several macs working with the NL3... if sysex librarian didn't work, nor did the NL3 librarian, it means you have a fundamental low level MIDI problem, likely either your drivers or something else. Are you using an iConnectivity midi router, by the way? Those have several issues with sysex that I've run into.

iOS no longer supports the update. Hope this helps somebody!

iOS has never supported the NL3.

[Rossler]

The midi device is a DOREMIDI usb to midi interface. It's not a cheapie. It's really a mystery as to why it wouldn't work. I tried adjusting transfer speeds, USB ports, everything you can think of. In the end using a PC is the only thing that worked.

It could have been that I was trying to load the banks with software version 1.08. I didn't try it on the Mac after I updated to 1.20 because by then it was working on the PC.

[23skidoo]

I expect that your problems were either the DOREMIDI box's firmware or drivers, or possibly the NL3 version, yes. I use standard class compliant MIDI hardware (RME, iConnectivity, MOTU, etc) and have no issues with Macs of any kind or version, but all my NL3s are 1.20.

[23skidoo]

To clarify the issues with the iConnectivity interfaces, for those wondering: the NL3 sysex is up to 1024 bytes long. Under some circumstances (RTP-MIDI being one) the iConnectivity devices run out of sysex buffer when translating to the much slower DIN. While RTP-MIDI has a mechanism for throttling the speed, the iCM devices don't appear to take advantage of this, and just choke on the data. As a result, they are not reliable over network MIDI. The NL3 works fine on my setup under USB->DIN MIDI with them, but does not on some other synths I have which use much larger 2Kb sysex blobs. If you have any issues talking sysex over DIN MIDI with one, you may want to try another device or the USB host port as part of your troubleshooting steps.