Hammond EXP50 with nord stage 4

[mozart999uk]

Hi all. Tried searching for this but the forum won't let me search for EXP 50 as it says the phrase is " too common".

TLDR : is a hammond exp50 going to feel better / more "hammond like" than an m-audio expression pedal for organ swell? Feel free to link to existing posts if there are some

I'm currently trying to develop my hammond playing chops with the stage 4.

I've got an m-audio expression pedal set up as swell for the organ section but I don't enjoy using it.

As background:

• I play seated.
  
  I was a church organist for many years playing pipe organs with mostly mechanical l (not electronic) swell pedals.

The M-audio doesn't feel right to me. The pedal travel / response doesn't feel smooth and weighted and it's not comfortable to play seated as the angle is wrong (for me)

I've only ever played a real hammond once so I can't remember what the feel was like.

I see people recommend the yamaha FC7 and also the boss 500l.

Over on hammond forums I've seen people recommend the EXP50 as having a feel closest to the B3 when seated.

Any experiences?

I'm aware they will all be heavier than my m-audio pedal.....

I've got a second m-audio as a control pedal to do wah effects and for that it's great!

Thanks in advance and sorry if this has already been discussed.....

[ajstan]

I wonder if it’s a new forum software update that unbeknownst to the mods, set the rule that each search word must contain four or more characters. How would someone go about searching for posts regarding the stage 3 or electro 6, or any of the number of accessories or keyboards that are designated with three letters or fewer?

To answer your question, if you can’t find answers here, maybe try the reviews on Sweetwater and other sites that sell the pedal. I found that using an FC7 swell pedal on the floor to be awkward and I’m not sure if any pedal will be comfortable flat on the floor. I have a two tiered pedal board and I put my swell pedal on the second tier which is angled, and it feels more natural. It’s probably important to note that i use a mini pedal, I play standing up, I use it with my left foot, and it’s been decades since I played a real organ, but the travel and range of foot motion is comfortable and more familiar.

[ebrown88]

Hi Mozart999UK,

First question: are there really 998 other Mozarts in the UK?

Sorry, bad joke.

I have a Yamaha FC7 that I plug into the Stage 4 Organ Swell jack and I think it works quite well. If you press Shift - Output the second page is Swell Pedal Type. The choices are Roland EV7, Yamaha FC7, Korg, and Fatar SL. That doesn't mean you can't use the M-Audio pedal, but I suspect that it would be less than ideal (as you have found).

I happened to have an M-Audio pedal lying around so I've got it plugged into the Control Pedal jack on my Stage 4. It works satisfactorily for morphing various things (you just hold down "CtrlPed" in the Morph Assign section and move the controller(s) you want the pedal to move. I find it OK for that.

The FC7 has probably twice the physical movement from 0 to 127 as compared with the M-Audio, and it should therefore be much closer in feel to the Hammond swell (expression) pedal that you have used in the past.

I sit when I play now (no more party bands for me, I'm 75!) and I find I can place my entire foot on the FC7 to control the organ swell. I'm comfortable with it.

I don't know anything about the Hammond EXP-50 so I can't comment on that.

You'll find many keyboardists using FC7 pedals to control various parameters and most are happy with them. They're very rugged and built to last.

Let us know what you end up with.

Cheers,

Dennis

[mozart999uk]

Thanks both. Very helpful and much food for thought

My plan is to order both and then see which I prefer.

Myself and the other Mozarts will keep you posted.

[ryanpaton]

I totally get what you mean about the M-Audio pedal—it doesn’t have that smooth, weighted feel that makes expression playing natural, especially when seated

[mozart999uk]

I totally get what you mean about the M-Audio pedal—it doesn’t have that smooth, weighted feel that makes expression playing natural, especially when seated

Thanks for that. Glad it's not just me.