Anyone also disappointed by the W2?

[mkastrup]

I prefer NW2 because i like its filters and much much better stereo spread. Summit only got a medicore chorus to make up for spreading the mono signal.
However there is much much more synthesis to be done in Summit and its Reverb is crazy good.
NW2 plays samples, Summit plays Wavetables.
NW2 MIDI sync is much more stable than Summit Midi sync.

Thanks for the reply! I actually went and played a Stage 3 88 at the shop and it's not as heavy as I remember it. I think I will be fine with the Wave 2's keybed if it is just marginally heavier than the Montage.

Regarding the Summit comparison, it was my number one choice other than the Wave 2, well with the OB6 thrown in there somewhere. I love vintage analog synths, but want something a bit more versatile, hence the Summit and Wave 2. Is the Wave 2 capable of getting close to the Summit in terms of "vintage analog" feel? Also, how does the new cathedral reverb on the Wave 2 compare to the Summit's reverb?

Both synths are digital but not cold as you would expect from something digital. I come from a background of Juno 60, Yamaha CS serie and Prophet 5. When it comes to filter between those old synths and these 2 synths then i prefer NW2. NW2 can stack 4 sounds into 1 big varied sound but Summit can also do some nice big sounds due to its 3 OSC's. I would say that Summit is for unusual sounds whereas NW2 is for typical sounds. When it comes to reverb comparison then NW2 cant touch Summit. That Summit reverb is the best reverb for ambient stuff in any hardware synth made so far. In general i would rate NW2 reverbs better than reverbs in Yamaha Motif, Montage and the new Roland line of Jupiter X/XM Zencore line.

[ChrisCopeman]

I love reverb, and I'm quite new to this game. The NW2 is my first hardware synth (since October). I'm thinking of buying a Strymon Big Sky, Night Sky or perhaps an Eventide H9. Should I just be happy with what the NW2 gives me or would a reverb peddle be worth it???

[bettinamonk]

I prefer NW2 because i like its filters and much much better stereo spread. Summit only got a medicore chorus to make up for spreading the mono signal.
However there is much much more synthesis to be done in Summit and its Reverb is crazy good.
NW2 plays samples, Summit plays Wavetables.
NW2 MIDI sync is much more stable than Summit Midi sync.

Thanks for the reply! I actually went and played a Stage 3 88 at the shop and it's not as heavy as I remember it. I think I will be fine with the Wave 2's keybed if it is just marginally heavier than the Montage.

Regarding the Summit comparison, it was my number one choice other than the Wave 2, well with the OB6 thrown in there somewhere. I love vintage analog synths, but want something a bit more versatile, hence the Summit and Wave 2. Is the Wave 2 capable of getting close to the Summit in terms of "vintage analog" feel? Also, how does the new cathedral reverb on the Wave 2 compare to the Summit's reverb?

Both synths are digital but not cold as you would expect from something digital. I come from a background of Juno 60, Yamaha CS serie and Prophet 5. When it comes to filter between those old synths and these 2 synths then i prefer NW2. NW2 can stack 4 sounds into 1 big varied sound but Summit can also do some nice big sounds due to its 3 OSC's. I would say that Summit is for unusual sounds whereas NW2 is for typical sounds. When it comes to reverb comparison then NW2 cant touch Summit. That Summit reverb is the best reverb for ambient stuff in any hardware synth made so far. In general i would rate NW2 reverbs better than reverbs in Yamaha Motif, Montage and the new Roland line of Jupiter X/XM Zencore line.

Great to hear that you actually like the digital filters in the Wave 2 more than the analog ones in the Summit. I thought that the Summit/Peak were the closest you could get to analog with still having the flexibility of digital. I’ve owned a System 8 in the past and could never get over the slight digital edge it had in its emulations. I actually preferred playing the Nord Lead A1 over it. It couldn’t get to the same level of accuracy regarding its emulation, but it just felt more alive almost like it was a produced sound out of the box. I always get that same feeling when I side by side Nord keyboards with Roland and Yamaha flagship workstation synths. The Nord always seems more full and present.

I hate a harsh metallic reverb. The Wave 2 cathedral isn’t harsh like that is it? To put it in context, I find Roland reverbs to be metallic and Yamaha Montage/MODX reverb to be pleasant and not harsh.

Thanks for the input! It helps a lot.

[ChrisCopeman]

I love reverb, and I'm quite new to this game. The NW2 is my first hardware synth (since October). I'm thinking of buying a Strymon Big Sky, Night Sky or perhaps an Eventide H9. Should I just be happy with what the NW2 gives me or would a reverb peddle be worth it???

My opinion is that it would not. If you are doing recordings into a DAW, you will have plenty of software reverbs which would be applied after tracking. For live performance, I think the on-board reverb is fine and flexible enough. If you have a sound man, then he will make the decision if there is to be reverb at all. Most live rooms are live enough on their own where reverb is not only unnecessary, but can actually worsen the overall sound of the keyboards.

-dj

[ChrisCopeman]

I love reverb, and I'm quite new to this game. The NW2 is my first hardware synth (since October). I'm thinking of buying a Strymon Big Sky, Night Sky or perhaps an Eventide H9. Should I just be happy with what the NW2 gives me or would a reverb peddle be worth it???

This depends on how important reverb is to your sound. If all you need is a little subtle room ambience then the Nord is fine (I still prefer external gear, but the pedals you mention would be expensive just for that sound.) If you need a wide variety of reverb sounds from typical to crazy, or want more control over the tone than the Nord provides, then I'd certainly get a pedal. The Night Sky is by far the most unique of the ones you listed and while when it first came out I was not impressed, I heard demos later which have sold me once I can find a decent deal on one. That pedal goes waaaaaayyyy beyond what the Nord will give you, if you want to get experimental, and it also appears to be able to produce some fairly standard reverb sounds when you want something classic. Also, no menus like on the other pedals you mentioned, just knobs, buttons and switches so it would fit well with the Nord's design philosophy.
If you use software extensively and don't care about modifying the sounds in real time, you may be better off with VST plugins. I prefer hardware all the way personally but everyone has their own process.

[mkastrup]

I hate a harsh metallic reverb. The Wave 2 cathedral isn’t harsh like that is it? To put it in context, I find Roland reverbs to be metallic and Yamaha Montage/MODX reverb to be pleasant and not harsh.

Thanks for the input! It helps a lot.

I also hate metalic reverbs and Nord reverbs are not harsh like Rolands and i still better like the Nord reverbs over the Yamaha reverbs.

[mkastrup]

I love reverb, and I'm quite new to this game. The NW2 is my first hardware synth (since October). I'm thinking of buying a Strymon Big Sky, Night Sky or perhaps an Eventide H9. Should I just be happy with what the NW2 gives me or would a reverb peddle be worth it???

Its correct that Nord reverbs are not offering the huge spacious reverbs those are only found in software or hardware pedals (and Novation Summit/Peak). Do some youtube search for Eventide Space, GFI Specular, Neunaber WET and Strymons pedals. However the builtin reverbs in Nord Wave 2 will cover anything else.

[tsss27]

So now that I have a Wave under my fingers again to compare, I have an idea on why some people think the key action is comparatively heavy. I tested the Wave as a MIDI controller and found that the velocity response is a lot different than the various other keyboards I've played in that role. There is a wider range of the velocity response that is dedicated to softer velocities on the Nord, which could give the impression of feeling physically heavier as you have to play the keys a lot harder to get the maximum sounds. This is less noticeable on the Wave itself, I can play monosynth runs just fine on it, but with a wide velocity range (I.E. playing rhodes on an external sound module) it is very easy to notice. The Motif XF/Montage's action feels physically heavier to me but the velocity response can be adjusted for a lighter touch, so even though the keys themselves may be heavier with a longer travel they can feel lighter to play.

[ChrisCopeman]

I've been having fun playing with my new Waldorf Iridium. It's made me appreciate how visible everything is in the Wave 2. Don't have to dig deeply to figure what's happening to the sounds with the Wave 2. Figured I'd throw a positive into this sea of disappointments.

[DJKeys]

I , for one, have never been disappointed in the W2. It is a logical descendant of the Wave and A1, simple to program, 5 octave keyboard, and has a huge sweet spot. I am not sure what a lot of users were expecting, but most of the complaints I have read really do not affect my use case at all. Sure, there are things that should be addressed in an update, such as vibrato across layers and the weak EQ drive algorithm, but all keyboards have issues. The W2 has not been widely adopted as many other current synths, but I think its sound and programming potential will continue to attract users.

-dj