Nord User Forum

OK Mr. G, your MP3 is a pretty extreme version of what I am hearing, but that is the basic sound.

If I plug in the PRS McCarty with the tone knob pulled (single coil tap position), bridge pickup selected, Boss Super Overdrive pedal engaged, and Mesa Mark V 25 on the lead channel, I can easily get that very sound at a very high level through the guitar cab if the guitar is anywhere near the center of the NS2 (e.g. if I am singing into the mic located over the NS2 with the PRS strapped around my neck). This is by far the worst case setup as this guitar signal chain is extremely hot and the guitar body is within 20-30cm of the NS2. Every other configuration that is "less hot" exhibits less of the induced hum, but still too prominent to be usable. If I reach over and power off the NS2 things are "normal" in the guitar rig (meaning that "hot" signal chain is still a bit noisy as one would expect, but no distinct loud hum).

I was rehearsing a little while ago, and noticed that same noise (considerably less gain) coming through my Taylor 914ce expression system every time I moved near the NS2 to hit a few key licks or sing into the mic. Most of the time it is not a serious issue for the acoustic unless it is in just the right position relative to the NS2. If I am strumming/hitting key licks/singing I can't hear it, but if everything else stops it is pretty obvious. On stage through the big mains, it will definitely be a noticeable hum between songs for the audience to ponder and me to stress over.

I have spoken to both a very helpful US Nord rep and the great folks at Sweetwater where I purchased the NS2, and they are all keen to make it right. Both have strongly advised the NS2 should not be doing this, and a replacement is on the way. Let's hope it does not exhibit the same issue. I will post the results on this thread.

BTW. I love this keyboard and truly hope this problem can be solved, as I have no idea what I would use otherwise after being spoiled with the Nord for the last couple of weeks!

I can confirm power supply issues with a stage 2. have had symptoms slightly different to the above with the first model where it was producing random interference which was audible in recording and live playing situations. my unit was replaced by my dealer as an emergency. Symptoms include noise generated like white or pink noise in any module which is intermittent, warm power supply from the rear vents that becomes hotter. synth section cutting out, etc.

ed

Not that makes me any happier, but I just checked with the home made coil and the JX8P also makes noise near the place where the tranformer is (on the top right hand side of the body. This is not random intereference but the AC noise, very much like my NS2.

Quick update ...

I received a brand new fresh in the box NS2 from the good folks at Sweetwater and it exhibits exactly the same behavior. So, my conclusion is my original NS2 is not unique. That does not mean there isn't a problem with it. It simply means 2 brand new NS2s do the same thing.

I am rehearsing next Sunday and plan some additional testing with the band. This will be a completely different environment. Also, the lead guitar player has a different rig and 3 other guitars. I figure it should be straightforward to confirm if the NS2 is emitting something unusual or if there is something unique about my gear and/or environment at home.

I still strongly suspect the NS2 is the problem. I would love to know if anyone else on this forum has put a typical electric guitar and rig with a typical overdriven signal chain near an NS2 and had any of this same issue.

The problem is not limited to the NS2, also the Nord Stage Classic shows the same issue. I suspect it is a design issue.

I suspect that this is not unique to the NS2 or Nord. My Roland also leaks some noise that could be potentially captured by electric guitar coils.
I wonder if you might alleviate (but not sure how much) by shielding the cavity with copper tape where the microphones sit.
There are lots of videos in Youtube where they show how to do it. It seems to be easy and cheap to do.
Here is one:

Another update...

The lead guitar player in our band came over today so we could work through some of the band’s set list. As a part of that rehearsal, we did some additional experiments with his gear and the NS2. He has a brand new Texas Strat (single coil neck and center, humbucker bridge) and a small Crate tube amp he uses for practice. Unfortunately, his guitar also reacts strongly when moved near the NS2, both through the humbucker and (much worse) through the single coils. The effect starts about 3-5 feet from the NS2, and gets more intense as the guitar is moved closer to the NS2. In close proximity to the NS2 (about 1 foot away from the keys near the center) the interference is so bad that the guitar would be all but unusable. From a practical standpoint, a mic on his amp would have to be gated at such an extreme threshold that it would interfere with the wanted sounds from the amp. He is also an experienced (=old) musician, and was shocked at how bad the problem really was. His first comment was “there is something wrong with this keyboard”.

Since I was able to duplicate the issue with another new NS2, I must conclude 1 of 2 things:

1) I received 2 different new NS2’s with exactly the same defect (not likely), or
2) There is something in the design of the NS2 (probably the power supply) that produces an unusual amount of interference in a range that adversely affects electric guitar pickups.

I believe it is the latter. While I continue to receive assurances this is an unusual complaint, I wonder if anyone else is actually doing what I am doing? Are there others out there who are playing both electric guitar (pop/rock distorted signal chains) in close proximity to an NS2? Has anyone actually taken a guitar and held it near an NS2 to try and reproduce this unwanted behavior? This issue is very obvious and easy to reproduce, at least on the 2 NS2’s I’ve had my hands on.

Not sure where to go from here. Can the NS2 power supply be shielded some way? Do I live with this (e.g. try and work around it on stage) or return the NS2? I love it except for this major issue.

OK I am not guitarrist, but I just tried a Fender Squire at 30 cm from the edge of the NS2 keys in the middle, then going into a Peavey mixer at half gain.
I can't hear hum in mic positions 2 and 4. I can hear some low hum in position 1, 3 and 5.
You said before that you are running an extremely hot line with your guitar. Could it be that the noise arises from some preamp steps of the effects? Have you tried with no effects? If that is "bearable" then perhaps you can tweak the effects chain. Or perhaps add a noise gate early in the line. Or if you want to keep the NS2, are piezo electric pickups an option? I admit that I do not know much about these.

Mr. G -

I appreciate your continued interest in my issue. I wish a few others would chime in with some similar testing.

In your example, 30cm is well within the range I am seeing this issue. Closer increases the effect dramatically. As you describe your test arrangement, there is no overdriven signal chain. Plugging an electric guitar directly into a mixer (I assume you are trimming up the mic preamp accordingly) is a very clean signal chain. I get similar results if I keep the guitar signal chain squeaky clean. There is a hum, it increases in closer proximity to the NS2, but it is not an issue relative to the ambient noise floor. However, this is not a real world situation. Electric guitar players utilize high gain structures (usually through a tube preamp as a preference) to produce rich, overdriven tones. This also produces some noise that is usually not an issue in a live situation since it still "lost in the roundoff" relative to live music levels. It can be more of an issue in a studio recording situation.

I have completely eliminated all effects ... guitar plugged in to the amp directly. "Clean" channel does not pick up much hum (or more accurately, hum is there but not reinforced to an unacceptable level). Dirty channel (for us guitar heads that means a higher gain structure in the amp's preamp circuit/tubes) which gives the saturation/overdrive sound so common in almost all pop/rock music is where all the trouble is. The noise induced by the NS2 is in exactly the right (=bad) frequency spectrum such that normal layers of overdrive in the amp that produce the rich rock overtones instead accent the "buzzy hum" induced by the NS2. It is a cumulative issue (more overdrive=more noise) that is common in the electric guitar world (try setting up in a club with neon lights nearby), but it is way over the top around the NS2. Does not matter which amp, which cable, or which guitar.

There is simply no way the NS2 should be causing this much trouble. I think for reference if folks reading this would compare the problem to having a guitar rig near a neon light, they would better understand what I am trying to describe. It is abnormal versus almost any other situation I have been in in over 25 years of live music experience, and it is clearly isolated to/coming from the NS2.

I continue to pursue a practical resolution to this.

1) I am going to go through a thorough shielding of my PRS guitar to see if I can get it to be less sensitive to the NS2. Not that I should have to, but that would at least allow the 2 instruments to live near each other if it works.
2) I will continue to talk with the Sweetwater and Nord techs to see if something can be done with the NS2 itself (short of returning it and going to something completely different).
3) I will continue to monitor forums such as this for any golden nuggets that help me get past this issue.
4) I'm considering ordering a replacement NS2 power supply and doing some experiments with it on a stand-alone basis (for example see if I can reproduce/isolate the issue to that component). If, as I suspect, that is the bad actor, I may go so far as to try and design some isolation for that component directly. An even more radical step would be to design a separate housing for the NS2 power supply to in essence relocate it to the floor away from waist/guitar level similar to a laptop dongle. These would be very extreme steps to take on something I just paid well over 3 grand for, but I am a pretty resourceful and determined individual, and it may take some creativity to solve this.

I understand the frustration. Separating the power supply might be the way, but what a hassle! Perhaps further shielding of the power supply I mentioned earlier might work? That white plastic (?) transformer cover (if it is really unshielded) could be a place where the electro magnetic noise leaks from. But I would not try any of that unless it has the blessign from the technical support.
Please let us know what you find out as it would help others in the future.