Nord User Forum

I see that you can use selections from different sections simultaneously, but rhodes and clav are both in the piano section, but on the sample library, there are 4 clavs listed. Hopefully this means one can play one of those at the same time as the rhodes? Follow up question, does this mean the EPs and clavs already onboard arent sampled, but are modeled? Obviously, Nord has been accumulating samples for so long, that I dont know how much it matters, they have a sample for every type of attack/sustain/retrigger, I know enough from youtube that they sound spectacular, not a deal breaker by any means, just curious. I dont really see much deep editing for clav and EP so Im guessing samples as well? Much appreciated for any insights!

-Jon Osborn

EDIT: Simultaneously I should specify SPLIT not layer.

Hi, welcome to the forum (I see this is your first post, maybe a little introduction of yourself or just a "hello" before jumping to questions would not have been so bad.)

Anyway, to your questions, you cannot use 2 piano sections on the NE5, but you can use piano+sample synth

There are two distinct Nord libraries: Piano Library (dedicated to pianos and related, details not discolsed but they are supposedly multilayer samples and with other sampled artifacts; cannot be edited) and Sample Library (monolayer samples, single waveform per key; you cannot edit them but you can create your own using Nord Sample Editor); each can only be played by the respective section (you cannot load a piano library samp,e on the synth and viceversa)

Having said that, besides the clavs A-D in the Piano Library, there are some clavinet "synth samples" in the Sample Library too (actually 5, see http://www.nordkeyboards.com/sound-libr ... 2-0/pianos ), but of course since they are monolayer they are pretty less "articulated" than the Piano Library ones.

marvinkmooneyoz wrote:I see that you can use selections from different sections simultaneously, but rhodes and clav are both in the piano section, but on the sample library, there are 4 clavs listed. Hopefully this means one can play one of those at the same time as the rhodes? EDIT: Simultaneously I should specify SPLIT not layer.

Yes, assuming you have an Electro 5 (nothing earlier), you can split a Rhodes from the piano library section with a Clav in the synth library section. As Maxpiano alluded to, though, the clav sounds in the synth library section use the same sample no matter how hard you hit the keys, whereas the clav sounds in the piano library section play different samples at different velocities for better authenticity. Also, the clav sounds in the piano library use the lower release point which gives them a snappier playability.

marvinkmooneyoz wrote:Follow up question, does this mean the EPs and clavs already onboard arent sampled, but are modeled?

No, they are all sampled. On the Electro series, only the organs are modeled. All the other instruments use samples, which take up some amount of the memory allocated to sampled instruments. None of them are "onboard" per se (as in permanently built in), they are all replaceable with different sample sets.

marvinkmooneyoz wrote:Nord has been accumulating samples for so long, that I dont know how much it matters, they have a sample for every type of attack/sustain/retrigger.

I"m not sure exactly what you're referring to, but for the most part, that's not true... i.e. the attack/sustain knobs in the sample/synth section manipulate the existing samples, they do not employ alternate/additional samples.

With the "many samples" statement, I just meant that, where as sampled electromechanical keyboard sounds in the early days lacked subtle variations, especially between different attacks, or rapidly playing a note successively. Now, Nord has sampled not just a note, but how a note sounds if its following imediately after a previous playing of the same note, for example, which should sound different because of the properties of a vibrating tine and what not. SO now that the have a decade plus of sampling every little situation, its not like its lacking compared to a modeled EP.