Nord User Forum

Dude, you have an A1 and a 4. What the actual proverbial is wrong with the synths you have? I can't think of a noise that you couldn't already make.

Oh, there is a lot those two can't do.

Haha, I so much agree with Count Fosco. I mean, of course, there are sounds that you cannot produce with the lead A1 or lead 4. Luckily, there are hundreds of other synths. For example, I recently bought a Prophet rev2 next to my A1, because it really brings something different. (by the way, concerning the user interface, I wished this rev2 was made by Nord. You only see how intuitive the Nord interfaces are once you experience other interfaces)

I really wonder what those who always demand new Nords actually want. I am tempted to think that it is just an urge for a new version of the same thing, like the new iPhone is for many people.

What I advice those longing so badly for a new instruments that it becomes stressful: play your current instrument more often, more deeply, try stuff you never tried. There is already a range of new sounds in front of you, you just didn't discover them yet.

skipgilles wrote:Haha, I so much agree with Count Fosco. I mean, of course, there are sounds that you cannot produce with the lead A1 or lead 4. Luckily, there are hundreds of other synths. For example, I recently bought a Prophet rev2 next to my A1, because it really brings something different. (by the way, concerning the user interface, I wished this rev2 was made by Nord. You only see how intuitive the Nord interfaces are once you experience other interfaces)

I really wonder what those who always demand new Nords actually want. I am tempted to think that it is just an urge for a new version of the same thing, like the new iPhone is for many people.

What I advice those longing so badly for a new instruments that it becomes stressful: play your current instrument more often, more deeply, try stuff you never tried. There is already a range of new sounds in front of you, you just didn't discover them yet.

You know what? You can do that and STILL want new and better boards. The one doesn't exclude the other…

There is a need for new synth products all the time, look how many models other companies release each year, this is nothing new, both for hardware, and software. Clavia is no exception, and if they decided to stop developing synths then that's a different story, but if they are still in the game of developing and making synthesizers, they are expected to keep up with the times, and evolve. I'm surely not expecting something out of the norm, but quite the opposite, their stagnation, for such a long time by not releasing a new Nord Synth. after the NL4, and NLA1, is not making them more popular.

Both NL4, and NLA1 are great synths, but why not offer a new and complementing new Synth ? Maybe with a better display, different Synthesis engine, and effects, ...etc.

The simple fact is Clavia seems to be focusing mostly on electric pianos, and moving away from developing new Synths. Which is very sad.

Clavia has indicated the Lead series is both a labour of love (e.g. not their main money maker) and a dedicated passion (e.g. something they will continue to improve and keep current) of theirs, something "close to their heart" if I remember the quote correctly. As a result, even though the updates may be further apart than you like, rest assured they've made it quite clear they will always continue to work on the Lead series. Right now we're no further apart than any of the other Lead releases have been, historically speaking. If Clavia doesn't announce a new Lead at NAMM, they may well announce one later this year or up until next NAMM and not really be out of synch with their past cycles.

I agree it would be very good to see them putting out an update as evidence that they aren't letting the line lag too far behind, and I agree that it would be nice if they kept them current just because we all like new shiny toys, but to say that the world is ending if they don't release a new Lead NOW at THIS NAMM is a little premature.

I'd like to see a unit that was effectively the best of Lead 4 and A1 + Stage synth section. Some features to name a few:
- 4 panels/4-part multitimbral
- std wave forms + wavetables + all the other good stuff in the S3 INCLUDING SAMPLES/SAMPLING!
- real ADSR - and more of them - assignable
- more LFOs and more assignable
- more advanced arpeggiator/ step sequencer
- vocoder --- why not?
- AND LOSE THE FREAKIN' PITCH STICK THING AND GET A REAL PITCH WHEEL!!!!

I for one hope Nord never, ever, in the history of ever, loses the pitch stick. It's the best thing for real pitch bends and is a key reason I love their gear. If you want a pitch wheel I beg you to buy another manufacturer's products instead.

Lol! Horses for courses I guess. I find the pitch stick to be just gosh awful.

It does two things that a standard pitch wheel doesn't and that are more musically useful, in my opinion:
1. It moves in the direction your hand naturally wants to vibrate with the most control, and does so with a reasonable amount of resistance, much like pitchbending on a cello or other very natural stringed instrument. This leads to natural sounding and very controllable vibrato, note slides, and realistic lead bends, without wrist strain. The notch easily fits whatever finger you want to lay in it and the sides make it very easy to control even in a hurry on stage in the heat of the moment. I've never played a pitch wheel that gave me such instinctive and natural control for vibrato or guitar-like bends.

2. It has a non-linear (I guess logarithmic) response to the distance you move it. Move it a short distance the response is much more limited than the ratio of distance to total travel. This, as much as point #1, contributes to a very realistic, natural, and controllable vibrato and is instinctively correspondent to the response you get with wiggling versus bending a guitar string - more force and more distance are required to get a non-linearly increasing response in bend.

You can't do #1 on a wheel at all and I'm not aware of any wheels that implement #2, not that it would be very helpful since you have far less muscle precision trying to move your whole arm forward and backward as you do using the smaller and more precise muscles of your wrist or finger to go sideways.

=== Anyways, that's not on topic. What is on topic is that I predict the next Lead, whenever it does come out (and I'm sure it will) will have an OLED screen like the Stage 3, give or take. I hope it will also have:

1. The effects from the A1 (ok, you can toss the flanger or phaser, keep whichever is the strongest/least subtle, and replace it with a vocoder for you vocoder freaks out there!)
2. Three envelopes with versatile routing and LOOPING plus advanced sync and retrigger options
3. Two or more LFOs, in addition to an arp with patterns, gates, and chord mode from the NL4
4. Multiple modulation destinations per envelope and LFO, not just one (perhaps the OLED can be put to service to allow additional modulation destinations beyond the instantly selectable ones on the panel)
5. 2 fully independent oscillators of the NL4 but the waveshaping parameters of the A1
6. The Superwaves and custom waveforms if not actual 3d wavetables as options instead of the standard waveforms
7. All the usual features of an NL: 4 part multitimbral with at least 30 true voices of polyphony, unison steals no voices, etc. etc.
8. Instant morph, control pedal morph separate from modwheel morph, velocity, and aftertouch

I think we overlap in many ways...