Nord Stage 4 OS update

[232323]

Hmm..definitely not what I was hoping for from the OS update - there are several things in the user bugs thread I’d love to see addressed - but I hope this helps some other folks out! I’ll probably skip this one for now.

[SuperStage]

I'm pretty pleased they fixed my big problem - being able to set AUX midi channel to the same as an EXTERN one - great for using a second tier board.

It also reassures that they are still developing the NS4 (albeit slowly).

[Heatha05]

Can someone explain the "Implemented KB Zone setting for Extern, where an Extern Layer is not assigned to the internal keyboard. This is indicated by only the left- and rightmost KB Zone LEDs being lit"?

It means that the NS4 sustain pedal (and other MIDI CCs) can now be used to remotely control an external board. Without taking up space on the keyboard. It definitely improves the Stage 4 as a MIDI controller. I like this function. Although, like others on here, wish it didn't sacrifice a synth layer. That being said, on a dedicated MIDI controller this degree of external control would use a split on the keyboard, too, so I guess we might be being a bit harsh on Nord.

[Ecaroh]

It means that the NS4 sustain pedal (and other MIDI CCs) can now be used to remotely control an external board. Without taking up space on the keyboard. It definitely improves the Stage 4 as a MIDI controller. I like this function. Although, like others on here, wish it didn't sacrifice a synth layer. That being said, on a dedicated MIDI controller this degree of external control would use a split on the keyboard, too, so I guess we might be being a bit harsh on Nord.

To me this solution of EXT mode putting off corresponding synth is very stupid for several reasons. First, it takes out lot multitimbral power of NS4. (For comparison in NS3 EXT was indenpendent panel.) Secondly it was not like that in first NS4 OS’s: you could still play corresponding synth layer via MIDI while using EXT mode on NS4. This was in fact kind of a solution to one of the main MIDI problems of NS4: you cannot put individual parts to local off/no kb zone. In early OS ext mode was kind of a ”NO KB zone” to corresponding synth. I never understood why they took this away.

To me this update is a huge disappointment once again. No fix for the most crucial MIDI problems. To me number one is the fact that external Midi controller still cannot control NS4 with wheel, AT or exp pedal. And Nord have acknowledged this from the very early days and promised to try to fix it. It’s now over two years (I don’t even remember anymore when this "process” started).

[Tony Fuzz]

Nothing exciting , i've tried to contact the support to give them a hint of what needs to be implemented, i guess they don't trust their customers for new ideas to make their product better or it's not their priority.

[Ecaroh]

I plan on testing the latest OS against the existing bugs/issues list to see if more have been addressed than listed officially. I don't implement MIDI, so it would very helpful if someone checked the list for those items specifically. I'll report back what I find.

[anotherscott]

sending program change set in extern menu did already work with previous OS’s, which kept the synth sounds active without switching to extern.
This new setting only adds the possibility to send CCs with the screen encoders, while Extern is active.

Thanks for the correction. And to elaborate further, I think the more complete way of putting it would be, "This new setting only adds the possibility to send CCs with the screen encoders, while Extern is active, without having to also have that ext sound assigned to any keys in the current program."
Yes?

To me this update is a huge disappointment once again. No fix for the most crucial MIDI problems. To me number one is the fact that external Midi controller still cannot control NS4 with wheel, AT or exp pedal. And Nord have acknowledged this from the very early days and promised to try to fix it. It’s now over two years (I don’t even remember anymore when this "process” started).

Well, if they promised to try to fix it (which is obviously not the same as promising to fix it), they may very well have kept that promise. They may have tried, and for some reason, it was not as easy to do as they'd hoped, had other unintended consequences, etc. This reminds me of that software developer's take on the famous JFK quote: "We do these things not because they are easy, but because we thought they were going to be easy." But at any rate, if they've known about it for years, and have come out with numerous updates since then (some with some quite substantial updates that sound more complicated than what you're asking about), then at this point, I wouldn't hold out much hope. For whatever reason, it just may not have been as trivial as it might seem from the outside.

BTW, at viewtopic.php?p=182591#p182591 I addressed someone else's concerns about some of this with some possible workarounds, and for what he needed to do and the boards he had, he actually got it to do what he wants. While I know it still won't work exactly the way you wish it would, I wonder if anything there might help you achieve at least some of what you're looking to do, even if by some other route.

[cooltour]

And still no SONG MODE...

[anotherscott]

And still no SONG MODE...

I never expected that in an update, if for no other reason than the buttons don't exist for it. Shoehorning it into the design with no sensible physical interface is not something Nord would do. Without buttons for it, it would probably end up being something with a bunch of menu diving, which is inconsistent with the basic design philosophy.

Though honestly, I think the NS4 wouldn't benefit from it as much as the NS3 did anyway. As I mentioned in another post, I talked about this at viewtopic.php?p=182932 - and also as I mentioned elsewhere, in terms of patch navigation and selection, I think that, on balance, patch navigation is better on the NS4 than on the NS3. While you do lose Song mode, in exchange, you gain the ability to create banks of up to 8 screen-labeled sounds, instead of banks of up to 5 unlabeled ones, which, personally, is more useful to me for quick patch access than Song mode would be. (And we still have both Nord Sound Manager and an on-board Organize function to move patches into set list order in advance of a gig; and alphabetic view is still available to quickly find something that wasn't in the set when necessary.)

[Macnl]

Still no Aftertouch support via an external MIDI keyboard. I was hoping they'd finally fixed this. Does anyone know if this can be done via the external MIDI function?
The midi led reacts.. so the keyboard gets its data.. but ignores the aftertouch..