Meh

[e8ndave]

Good morning all,

I have had my Wave 2 since they were released in the US a few months back. I got one of the original units from Kraft with OS .8 on it. Initially I was fairly excited by it after watching the couple of demos that were out there, but I feel like I get a lot more out of my A1 and Stage 3's than I do out of my Wave2. I really love my Nords and want to love the Wave 2 and put it in my setup (usually run a NS3/NS3 or A1/NS3) but I feel like I have to put some work in to get better at programming it.

Do you have any recommendations of videos etc that will help me wrap my brain around both what the unit is capable of and some of the programming stuff?

[mthomashow]

I have a similar setup—Nord Stage 3 Compact and Nord Lead A1. I assumed that the Nord Wave 2 would be somewhat redundant but I figured I would eventually replace the A1. You have many more synths than I do, so I don't intend this as advice as much as an opportunity to discuss how I'm using the Wave 2 in my early days with it. I hope other users also discuss how they are exploring the instrument. I've been exploring the Wave 2 for a few weeks now. At first I was underwhelmed by the presets, but then I made a conceptual switch and began to look at the presets as instructional rather than a great library for personal use. However, there are some great presets, and some with interesting hidden features. One way I'm understanding how the Wave 2 works is by studying my favorite presets. Another approach is finding programs I most like on the Nord Stage 3 and the A1 and then reproducing them on the Wave 2. Obviously you can't do that with the pianos, organs, and clavs on the Compact 3, but you can for pretty much everything else. On the A1, the only thing (I believe) that you can't reproduce are the formant waves, but they are less important as there are so many great vocal samples on the Wave 2. Having said all of that, I have not yet begun to do what I suggest, leaving it, I suppose as a winter activity. What I have done is modify many of the presets, and then experiment with the samples. For me, the best feature of the Wave 2 is the ability to seamlessly layer four different samples, or to mix them with FM (something you can't really do with the other instruments). The two best features of the wave are (1) the fantastic layering-oriented interface (2) the rich mix of virtual analog, FM. Wavetable, and samples. I've been taking an experimental approach to sound design, flipping the knobs, seeing what happens, and learning from that. I think the most challenging learning curve is understanding how to integrate the arpeggiator with the delays, syncing them so as to create dynamic movement possibilities. A hands-on video of that process would be invaluable. Also, the A1 especially had a terrific online library fo sound design possibilities and it would be great to eventually see that for the Wave 2. In the meantime, I'm enjoying the purity of the sound.

[e8ndave]

When I first got the NW2, I still had my A1 and used it for a couple of weeks as a guide for programming the sounds I needed. The NW2 is similar to the A1, but much more powerful, in my opinion. I erased all but about 100 sounds (kept the ones that I could learn a lot about the instrument from how they were made) and, using the A1 as my guide, programmed about 70 patches from scratch. The NW2 is easy to program coming from the A1, and has the added flexibility of samples. In my experience, you cannot accurately judge the power of a keyboard by its presets. I
actually like the keybed. It is solid and has less throw than my NS3. The A1 keybed was much lighter (as was the NL4), and had no aftertouch.

-dj

[e8ndave]

Thanks guys! Your words are encouraging! I think they may end up being a winter activity for me also to just rip apart some sounds. I did some playing around with creation on the NS3 synth, the Wave and the A1. The NS3 actually killed them both because of some of the effects available for it, however I know there is a way to make something just as killer on the Wave if I put the time and energy into it.

[tsss27]

The NS3 does have effects that the others lack. You could try using external gear like pedals to solve that problem.