Nord User Forum

[peteques]

Hi all
Has anyone purchased Keyscape by Spectrasonics and used it with NS3. Some of the vids Ive seen about it on Youtube are great. My question is - is it worth it? I'm not a newbie to my NS3 but prob only use 10% of its potential so far. The LA Custom C7 Grand Cinematic on Keyscape sounds cool - can I replicate this on NS3 alone by tweaking settings? Also some of the Keyscape Rhodes sound better then my NS3 - can I just change the Rhodes I have to sound better?
Thanks all, Pete

[orcoaffamato]

I never bought Keyscape 'cause there's no sympathetic string resonance for pianos...

[tolgaege]

I have been longtime deciding to buy it, however it is cpu hungry and 70 gig of space on your computer. On YouTube andertons music co. Compares different companies pianos. Blindfold challenge choose the nord pianos best. Here is the link https://youtu.be/SluEfMe-qYs. ( keyscape 85 points , nord grand stage 95 points) Additionally you pay $400 which is huge. There is only one grand piano (Yamaha c7). I use Kontakt grandeur and addictive keys which are much more cheaper. For Rhodes sound im using with DAW Logic Pro effects which feels great.

[Hobster]

I use my NS3 pianos when playing live but am a HUGE fan of Modartt's Pianoteq (recently upgraded to version 7) for studio use; I use it on all my YouTube Genesis transcription videos. The last dozen or so were v6 and the next one will be v7 (coming soon).
The Standard version is considerably cheaper than Keyscape and IMHO much more realistic (I've demo'ed Keyscape so can compare).

[peteques]

Thanks for replies so far everyone. For those who have heard LA Custom C7 Grand Cinematic on Keyscape, can it be replicated somehow on NS3.
Thanks Pete

[peteques]

I have been longtime deciding to buy it, however it is cpu hungry and 70 gig of space on your computer. On YouTube andertons music co. Compares different companies pianos. Blindfold challenge choose the nord pianos best. Here is the link https://youtu.be/SluEfMe-qYs. ( keyscape 85 points , nord grand stage 95 points) Additionally you pay $400 which is huge. There is only one grand piano (Yamaha c7). I use Kontakt grandeur and addictive keys which are much more cheaper. For Rhodes sound im using with DAW Logic Pro effects which feels great.

Yes - good points - well made

[anotherscott]

On YouTube andertons music co. Compares different companies pianos. Blindfold challenge choose the nord pianos best. Here is the link https://youtu.be/SluEfMe-qYs. ( keyscape 85 points , nord grand stage 95 points)

More precisely... he feels they sound about equally good. The Nord doesn't get more points for better sound, but because the Nord Grand action was better than the action he played Keyscape from (Casio CDP-S100).

It would have been interesting if he hadn't limited himself to just one piano sound from each, since there are numerous very different piano sounds in some if not all of what he compared.

[maxpiano]

Thanks for replies so far everyone. For those who have heard LA Custom C7 Grand Cinematic on Keyscape, can it be replicated somehow on NS3.
Thanks Pete

No, it cannot be "replicated", meaning that you cannot make a .npno for the NS3 out of it (both for technical and legal reasons), but there are Some Yamaha grand pianos in the Nord Piano Library which may sound similar but not equal) if properly setbeq-ed

[FZiegler]

Thanks for replies so far everyone. For those who have heard LA Custom C7 Grand Cinematic on Keyscape, can it be replicated somehow on NS3.

Tweaking sounds is easily done on a Stage, as you may know. It may be an approach to getting deeper into your Stage if you try to replicate the sound you are after. For that you would have to listen carefully what it consists of, first (EQ, reverb, attack). But you will certainly have much more fun if you just play around with
a) tweaking the different settings of your piano sound (timbre, layer detune, string resonance, kb touch);
b) tweaking the FX section (maybe get some dirt into it);
c) layering a second (piano or synth sample) sound for mixing.

Enjoy!

[Eumel]

I have messed around with tons of VST's, and to my ears none of them have sounded comparable to the NS3. The list I've exhausted:

1. Radical Piano
2. Reason Processed Pianos
3. Kontact Alicia's Keys
4. Kontact Giant
5. Synthogy Ivory

I've had the best results with Radical. All of them allow for a suitable piano with mixed pads patches for live performance decently enough, but when they are exposed, they all feel thin to me.

On the NS3, I layer Royal grand and Upright Grand. On the RG layer, I run a supersaw, filtered down to about 350-390 hz. I run compression on both piano layers at #4, a very short (30ms) delay on the pianos, which has a way of "fattening" them up, and then a little reverb and soft release. On both piano layers, use the sympathetic resonance.

I find this combination creates a very rich piano sound that works in a wide variety of amplification systems