Stage 3 - Paint blemish out of the box

[usrockband]

Hey all,

This is a question out of curiosity. Has anyone ever gotten any Nord keyboard which had a blemish in the paint out of the box? I just got my NS3C and noticed theres a tiny little spot one the red top panel on the front curve where it looks like some paint dripped from the silkscreen that they would use to apply the grey paint around where the knobs are. Being someone who is OCD it is absolutely jarring to me, especially because it looks like pencil marks which can't be erased!

Has anyone else ever seen anything like this? I never considered it, but perhaps it's normal given that these things are hand made.

Thanks in advance!

[cgrafx]

Hand made is a bit of a misnomer. They aren't out back of the Nord office hand painting or screening the chassis one at a time. I am 100% sure they are getting these done at a production shop. Maybe not 1000's at a time but at least in batches of 50 or 100. They aren't hand soldering their boards either, they get them batch produced at a manufacturing facility.

It shouldn't have paint drips on it.

If its going to bother you send it back and get a replacement.

[Fallboard]

For what it's worth I have a really nice Boutique synth and sequencer that is a first-run product that has several such blemishes in the silk screening. Normally I consider myself an obsessive perfectionist but I have convinced myself this is part of the character of owning an instrument that isn't strictly speaking mass-produced

[solmaster]

Has the seller been informed? When I first opened the box, I found I had a very small dent in the metal chassis of my new Stage 3 88, just below C3. Not a big deal, but annoying non the less on a brand new and very expensive piece of gear. I took a photo of it and attached it to an email to the seller. A new one was sorted for me within a few days. No issues. They returned the original unit to Nord. My point is, if you're not 100% happy with the instrument, inform the seller and ask for a replacement. You've paid a lot of money.

[fieldflower]

It's also a question of second hand value. If You intend to take good care of your keyboard and this will be the only cosmetic con when it's time to sell it I'd be kicking myself for not taking care of it immediately. Either price off or replacement unit, wouldn't matter that much to me...

[cphollis]

No, never had a problem. But if it bothers you (OCD or otherwise), best to take care of it immediately. Otherwise, it will bother you each and every time you play it.

[usrockband]

Thanks for the replies!

It does bother me but I’m conflicted; it’s a pretty tiny thing that sort of feels silly in my head to exchange for, considering the keyboard functions perfectly otherwise. But as has been mentioned, it was a considerable chunk of change (especially here in Canada where no deals are to be found on these things...). Other problem is that the store is quite far away from me, and making the trip is a bit of a hassle.

The other issue is getting a replacement will take quite a bit of time. They have a floor model which they gave me to use until mine came in that was basically brand new when I got it (still had the stickers on the keyboard and everything), so going back to that one is potentially an option...

Thanks for the replies!

[usrockband]

Just wanted to post an update to set the record straight.

After looking at it closely I realized that this "blemish" looked alot like a pencil mark. However I assumed after trying to wipe the mark several times with a damp cloth and looking closely that it was in the paint.

I was wrong.

I finally almost jokingly decided to take an eraser to the mark, and low behold it slowly went away completely after rubbing at it for a bit. Nothing to even suggest any mark was originally there. Perhaps something left on accident during production? Who knows. I know it wasn't me who did it, and I opened it from the box myself so it must have been done at the factory. But not a big deal after all!

TLDR: not a paint blemish, just a pencil mark.

[cgrafx]

Thanks for the follow-up. Glad you got it sorted without having to exchange your unit.