Nord User Forum

Totally new to electronic drums. I am going to get some sort of multi pad. I LOVE the sounds of the 3p, by far my favorite. However it is lacking some features like sampling, looping, loading additional sounds and such.
Could these limitations be overcome by other software? I would,like,to connect it to my iPad. How well would a looper sound source app work with the 3p?
If an app would work how easy would it be to integrate?
Thanks.

Hi Antknee,
The Nord drum 3P is a synthesizer that can’t play any form of samples. You can sculpt your own sounds with a bunch of parameters, a collection of waveforms to choose from, noise, filters etc. Very unlike the SPD-SX, which is 100% sample based and can’t do any synthesis like the 3P..

if you want to trigger samples with a 3P you’d have to connect it via MIDI to a sampler, either hardware or software (or an app). So you’ll need is a MIDI cable or interface. I can’t give you advise on sampler apps

Cheers,
Albert

Right, I understand it's a different beast than say the SPD-SX or DTX-Multi12. That is why I am having a hard time deciding.
So if the 3P is connected to an iPad via MIDI I should be able to capture what I am playing on the 3P in a loper app on the iPad (provided the app supports MIDI in)?
thanks!

disclaimer: i play drums and have owned a full roland electronic kit in the past.

I have a 3P and almost never use it. I still think it's a decent value and I haven't gotten rid of mine, but I mostly lust after a Dave Smith Tempest. You have to figure out what you want the 3P to do. I have an iPad (but i'm traveling today). Let me see what the iPad can do with it when I get home.

Basically I want the augment my acoustic drum kit. I definitely want to be able to loop and sample. That could be built in
Like the spd-sx or (hopefully) with the iPad.
Thanks.

I bet there is an iPad midi sequencer available - you'll need an iPad midi interface though.

I have my 3p hooked up to my laptop via midi, no probs playing, recording and looping there!

I agree that sample and hold would be a cool addition. I do like that you can beat on it. I have the roland kick pedal trigger (highly recommended) and I have it on a sturdy roland drum stand. I like mine, I just always go play with something else, no real reason.

Antknee wrote:Totally new to electronic drums. I am going to get some sort of multi pad. I LOVE the sounds of the 3p, by far my favorite. However it is lacking some features like sampling, looping, loading additional sounds and such.
Could these limitations be overcome by other software? I would,like,to connect it to my iPad. How well would a looper sound source app work with the 3p?
If an app would work how easy would it be to integrate?
Thanks.

If you want to loop the nord drum, meaning
lay down a groove then switch programs and play something else on top of what you already played, then repeat that until you're happy, you can't use MIDI for this.

Reason being is that the first thing you recorded will play with the sounds of the program you just switched to, so you have to use Audio.

It's pretty easy to integrate. If you think of playing the nord through an amp, your signal chain looks like this:

Nord Drum -> cable -> Amp ( if you use headphones only, then Nord -> Headphones )

adding the looper is like this:
Nord Drum -> cable -> Looper -> cable -> amp ( if you use headphones only, Nord -> cable -> Looper -> headphones )

So you need the looper and one more cable( if you use an amp).


If you want to loop with your iPad and 3p I'd recommend the following:
1) AudioBus 2 or 3 or whatever the latest is.
WHY? Audio bus lets you turn off the 100hz High Pass Filter on the iPad input so all of the rich low frequencies come through into the Looper App.
2) Loopy HD
WHY? super easy looper. touch the circle to begin recording, tap it again to stop recording and play back what you just recorded, touch a different circle to make a new loop that plays along with the first. It also has a metronome and supports audio interfaces with multiple outputs.
3) an audio interface that has 1/4" input, 1/4" output, and a headphone output.
WHY? Headphone output so you can hear the click without it going to the main output, 1/4" input ( guitar cable ) because your Nord has one, and 1/4" output because most amplifiers and studio gear is ready for that

Does this all make sense to you?

All of us were new to this stuff at one point, so ask questions. AFAIK there is no drum multipad with an inbuilt looper. Also the 3p isn't missing any features.. I don't think it was ever meant to be a sampler or a looper... just a modern-day throwback analog percussion box.


Ed