Are semi weighted keys less expressive?

[playsabadguitar]

I’ve been playing a Nord electro 6D since I started 4 years ago. I had lessons as a child which gave me a head start. I have come a long way in the last 4 years, but strictly on semi weighted keys. I am sluggish on fully weighted keys.

I just got a job in a touring band, so now I need a Nord stage 4. Trying to decide which keyboard to get. I will be on stage in less than two months, so I’m not sure if I have time to get used to fully weighted. But am I missing out on significant expression with the semi weighted?

Primary Tones: B3, piano, Rhodes, synth

[playsabadguitar]

You don't have the opportunity to test play the different keyboards, right?

I can't really play piano on my Stage 3 Compact which has the same key action as your Electro 6D. If you do, you are good to go with a Stage 4 Compact which now has triple sensor action - massively improved piano playing on that keybed. I don't call that one a semi weighted action - to me, it's a waterfall keyboard with rather stiff spring action.

The HA action on the other side is weighted, but slightly lighter than many pure piano actions - so probably an option as well; but not that good for organ playing.

How are you planning? Adding a Stage 4 to your Electro 6D or replacing the Electro by the Stage? If it's the former, a Stage 4 HA could be a great addition to your Electro. And you have a fallback instrument as well.

[Rusty Mike]

If you are accustomed to playing the SW action, and your first sound listed is B3, I would advise you select the Stage 4 Compact.

In my opinion, you do not have enough time to acclimate yourself to an entirely new keyboard action. The weighted piano action will be especially challenging for you to play organ if you’ve never done it before. Another upside is that the Compact will certainly be easier to haul around due to the lighter carry weight.

I’ll take a page from the cphollis playbook and say that you can always add a weighted controller under the Stage 4 Compact for piano playing in the future should you want to expand your horizons. I don’t think this is that time though.

One piece of advice if you’re going out touring - invest in a quality carry case or gig bag for your keyboard. Spending a few hundred dollars on a protective case is most worthwhile for protecting an instrument worth an order of magnitude more than that.

[cphollis]

I'd start with the NS4 Compact -- it's very expressive for instruments other than acoustic, electric and digital pianos.

For those, you want a weighted keybed action for expressiveness. It's a different technique that requires a bit of hand strength, which takes a short time to develop.

So, as you go along, you might want a weighted controller beneath the NS4C, which is what I do. Piano parts are played on the weighted controller, everything else on the NS4C directly.

Nothing wrong with the NE6D, as you have the same tones as the NS4C -- just SO much more you can do with them!

[cphollis]

Ooops, @rustymike beat me to it!

[Mr. Marko]

if your Electro has the patches you need...maybe you find a used weighted "something" and connect it via MIDI to get used to weighted when you need it as an add on and save yourself a boatload of money?

I play so little piano that the S4C is the right choice for me...if that changes, no way am I giving up the NS4 and getting stuck in a trade off with sluggish organ and synth playing...but that is just me.

[anotherscott]

I can't really play piano on my Stage 3 Compact which has the same key action as your Electro 6D. If you do, you are good to go with a Stage 4 Compact which now has triple sensor action - massively improved piano playing on that keybed. I don't call that one a semi weighted action - to me, it's a waterfall keyboard with rather stiff spring action.

It is a waterfall keyboard with rather stiff spring action... but it is also semi-weighted. The shape of the key (waterfall), the spring tension, and the presence of a weight are attributes that are all independent of each other. The weight is located under the front edge of the key, as illustrated in this diagram of the Fatar TP/8O that Nord uses:



A "fully" as opposed to "semi" weighted action doesn't mean it has "more" weight, but rather that it uses a separate weighted mechanism/hammer, as opposed to merely having weight attached to the underside of the key, to create a much more pianistic feel... here's the Fatar TP/40 used in numerous hammer action Nords:


In terms of overall feel, a "semi-weighted" feels kind of like an unweighted except with a bit more more heft; a fully weighted hammer action feels very different.

Back to the OP, then, yeah, semi-weighteds feel less expressive, you have less control of dynamics from pianissimo to forte. Some semi-weighteds are better than others in giving you control over dynamics. I think the NS4 is above average.

I haven't played the 6D. How do you feel about your ability to control dynamics on it? Maybe that will give you a sense of how valuable a hammer action might be to you. It's the kind of thing that can also vary with the kind of music you're playing, how much dynamic expressivity it requires. If you'd consider setting up two keyboards, the idea of connecting a low cost hammer action controller to your Nord is one that's also worth looking into.

[EdwardGlekov]

I have a 6D 61 and a Kawai VPC1 (a piano MIDI controller with wooden keys, basically what they put in the Nord Grand). I specifically put together this setup so I could take a lightweight, compact instrument for small gigs, and if the concert is big, or I need a lot of pianos, I can go with the Kawai (but damn - it's 30 kg without a case, 40 with a case). And yes, they are very different in feel and control. But it makes almost no difference to the final sound. I tried to record this difference, but the difference turned out to be more in the feeling, not in the final sound. But these feelings - you need to experience it, this is what inspires me - I can't live without heavy keys.