Seamless transitions when changing programs

[maxpiano]

+ on OrpheusNY

Most of the great music we listen and play was composed and played (also live) without using "seamless transition"; although it can be useful in some cases, particulary when 1 keyboard player is being asked or self-supposes to have to do more than the original keyboard player(s) of a song did... but there are plenty of ways to live without it.

[anotherscott]

So if anyone can talk me through where they would use such functionality in a live situation, I'd be delighted to learn.

If you're playing LH bass, and you want to change your right hand sound for the next part of the song, it's nice to not have the RH sound cut out when you hit the button to invoke your next RH sound. That's even assuming your board has an easy way to change the RH sound alone to the one you want, while leaving the LH sound untouched, which on the Nord Stage, would limit your "new" RH sound to something easily selected from the front panel (like switching from piano to organ). If you're changing your RH sound from one synth sound to another, you'll probably want to call up an entirely different program. Without seamless transition, the LH bass sound will be inclined to glitch even if you're changing from one preset to another where both presets have the identical LH bass sound... you have to carefully time the program change to be in between bass notes. One workaround for not having seamless transitions is to plan clever use of slot combinations, but even this doesn't help in this case, because the LH bass is a sample/synth sound, and you're only allowed two sample/synth sounds between the two slots, so you couldn't create a two-slot program that had LH bass paired with two different selectable RH sample/synth sounds.

It doesn't have to be LH bass. Even a LH pad sound can give you this issue, if it is supposed to keep playing through changing right hand parts.

So that's an obviously issue for one-board playing. Yes, it is greatly ameliorated by adding a second board, but it's still an issue to deal with, as the second board doesn't necessarily have all the sounds of your main board, assuming you don't have two essentially identical boards. So then it may need to actually affect your choice of second board, if you need this functionality and that is your way of getting it. You may not want it to be a board that, itself, has a limited palette, and that creates complications. Say your Nord is a SW model. Commonly, people might want to pair that with a lightweight weighted action board, but many such boards have only a handful of sounds.

[analogika]

I have a hard time swallowing the fact that you can switch programs seamlessly on a $600 beginner piano, while I just paid close to $3,300 (plus trade) for a keyboard that doesn't do that. I'm NOT slamming Nord! I love my 5D and intend to use it until the ends turn brown .

Nord makes some of the best gear on the planet. What I don't understand is, companies in general, with all their trendsetting technology, that create amazing gear but sacrifice the most basic benefits we've enjoyed for years. That makes no sense at all and mimics the morons at Microsoft. Don't even get me started on their business model!! Everyone knows how pathetic they are already .

If the advanced level features on the 5D come at the cost of eliminating the most basic functionality we've enjoyed for years from lesser keyboards, then no company has the right to release said product until it's ready - period.

I have a $150 Casio MT 150 that has rhythm accompaniment. I have a hard time swallowing the fact that the new $3000 nord stage 3 sacrifices the most basic benefits we've enjoyed for decades.

...actually, I don't. Every piece of gear is a set of particular compromises; we all choose according to which sacrifices we're least prepared to make.

[maxpiano]

I have a hard time swallowing the fact that you can switch programs seamlessly on a $600 beginner piano, while I just paid close to $3,300 (plus trade) for a keyboard that doesn't do that. I'm NOT slamming Nord! I love my 5D and intend to use it until the ends turn brown .

Nord makes some of the best gear on the planet. What I don't understand is, companies in general, with all their trendsetting technology, that create amazing gear but sacrifice the most basic benefits we've enjoyed for years. That makes no sense at all and mimics the morons at Microsoft. Don't even get me started on their business model!! Everyone knows how pathetic they are already .

If the advanced level features on the 5D come at the cost of eliminating the most basic functionality we've enjoyed for years from lesser keyboards, then no company has the right to release said product until it's ready - period.

I have a $150 Casio MT 150 that has rhythm accompaniment. I have a hard time swallowing the fact that the new $3000 nord stage 3 sacrifices the most basic benefits we've enjoyed for decades.

...actually, I don't. Every piece of gear is a set of particular compromises; we all choose according to which sacrifices we're least prepared to make.

And what about the Minimoog? How is it acceptable they ask all that money for just 1 note polyphony... ??

[Quai34]

+1 on the MiniMoog...It was really a deal breaker for me, that much amount of money just for one note?...MM samples in the Nord Library are good enough for me...

[LudovicVDP]

So if anyone can talk me through where they would use such functionality in a live situation, I'd be delighted to learn. I feel like I might be missing a whole other world of sound design...

Pads are a great example. Like for intro's (but not only). You have a huge string or bass pad filling the room during an intro. You need another program to start the song. The huge pad stops
I understand the use of two keyboards can solve it. I also understand that most songs can be played with one or two set of sounds. But that's why I like having only 1 keyboard and not bring a second one just for the few songs where I would need it.


Another things: Sometimes I use the split to have the two synth sounds I need in one program. But if I need them both to be played around the middle C, I don't like having one sound on the left of the keyboard, tuned +12 and one sound on the right of the keyboard tuned -12 or -24. When using my computer, I would rather use two different programs so that switching from one to the other would allow me to play everything right where it's supposed to be played on the keys.

[ericL]

So if anyone can talk me through where they would use such functionality in a live situation, I'd be delighted to learn. I feel like I might be missing a whole other world of sound design...

Pads are a great example. Like for intro's (but not only). You have a huge string or bass pad filling the room during an intro. You need another program to start the song. The huge pad stops
I understand the use of two keyboards can solve it. I also understand that most songs can be played with one or two set of sounds. But that's why I like having only 1 keyboard and not bring a second one just for the few songs where I would need it.


Another things: Sometimes I use the split to have the two synth sounds I need in one program. But if I need them both to be played around the middle C, I don't like having one sound on the left of the keyboard, tuned +12 and one sound on the right of the keyboard tuned -12 or -24. When using my computer, I would rather use two different programs so that switching from one to the other would allow me to play everything right where it's supposed to be played on the keys.

You can solve for these scenarios on the NS2 or NS2EX using the slots and switching between them. You can sustain Slot A and toggle over to Slot B for your next sound. There's your seamless transition!

[anotherscott]

+1 on the MiniMoog...It was really a deal breaker for me, that much amount of money just for one note?...MM samples in the Nord Library are good enough for me...

It's cool that they have the samples, but it's nothing like having a MiniMoog. Meanwhile I spent quite a lot on a grand piano, a lot more than I paid for my Nord, and it has only one piano sound. It's all relative.

You can sustain Slot A and toggle over to Slot B for your next sound. There's your seamless transition!

Yup, people do that, but it's obviously quite limited. For example, since you can only have two synth sounds total between the two slots, you would not be able to switch from a layered synth sound to another synth sound this way. And you need to assemble separate presets for every pair of sounds you may want to switch between in this manner.

Obviously people don't always need this feature, or can find ways to work around it, as evidenced by the fact that tons of people have been buying Nords... but this is still a welcome addition to the NS3 (which might also help sell more Nords, as there are probably some people who considered this to be enough of a factor that they ended up buying something else).

[LudovicVDP]

You can solve for these scenarios on the NS2 or NS2EX using the slots and switching between them. You can sustain Slot A and toggle over to Slot B for your next sound. There's your seamless transition!

I use that function already. I talk about in a few other topics. But it's indeed limited to two programs. I have a song in mind where I use 5 programs with sounds on each slot.

I would not say it's THE most important feature for everyone. I'm just saying it's important to me, in some cases.

[dmandaddy67]

Is there any workaround for seamless transition on the Piano 3? I think I may have blown it and bought a piano 3 when I should've waited for the Stage 3. Seamless transitions are extremely important to me and I was so excited about what the piano 3 had to offer in terms of replacing a grand piano, I didn't even think that seamless transitions wouldn't be a part of the package. I'm bummed at this limitation in the piano 3.