Nord User Forum

Hey Folks,

I'm a proud owner of a NS3 88HA. However, I think about a second piano with semi-weighted waterfall keys for the organ parts, but also maybe synth soli. So, since I can control my NS3 via MIDI, I would only need any kind of piano with the desired keys (right?). But when there is another instrument which could even improve my "soundscape" (maybe with nice brass sections etc.) I would invest in such a piano/synth as well. So what is your experience/recommendation/etc...? It doesn't have to be a Nord product, but it of course can be one if it fulfills my needs.

I'm excited to hear your opinion!

Cheers!

If you don’t specify also what kind of music you play and in which context (live band, solo, home recording...) it is hard to give you any meaningful advice... and your budget is important too.

Let’s say that in general any workstation-like keyboard is a good complement, which brand and model depends on the above and your personal tastes.

Ah sorry, my fault.

I play in cover bands (Rock/Pop/Funk from 70s until today) so a good live usage is preferred. Also weight Plays a role for me.
My budget maybe up to 1.5k€ , but if something would fit perfectly this probably not the end. However, something cheaper is preferred. The organ keys have priority over all.

Thanks for your post anyway!

Waterfall isn't so important, as long as you avoid hammer (aka fully weighted) actions. Some low cost, lightweight boards that could be used to play the Nord's organs while also supplying some good sounds where Nord isn't so strong (i.e. brass, strings, winds) would be Yamaha MX49/61, Roland DS61.

When you also have Funk tunes in your programme I'd like to add that I love the brass and the clav sounds of my korg X50. So the korg kross 2 could be a good amendment to anotherscott's selection. Furthermore, when you intend to play the organ sounds from an external keyboard I would test and play all the mentioned keys to find the one with the right key feel. Regards from sunny Germany.

In general, I like the combination of Workstation + stage piano, it has been my goto setup for years.

I'm originally a Yamaha guy, so I use a Motif XS7 with my Nord Stage 2, I think they complement each other well. The Motif makes up for the lack of velocity switching in the Stage's sample section. Also, the Motif's synth weighted keys make a nice controller for Organ in Dual KB. (Watch the Yamaha demo videos with Bert Smorenburg, he's awesome and totally sold the XS to me). Only downside with Yamaha workstations, the keys are _slightly_ narrower than standard, so they don't line up perfectly. This seems to bug a lot of reviewers on the internet but has never been a big deal for me.

Other thing I discovered recently, add an extern section on the stage but don't don't let it play any zone. That way you can send the sustain pedal to the extern section. Multiple sustain pedals mess with my head.

Thank you for all your nice posts. I think I'll head to the next store and will simply try the keyboards as you have suggested it. But it's also good to know which products I should inspect more closely

MoonMonkey, for the use you are describing you may wish to consider a Roland VR 09. They're around $1000 in the US but during sales can be had for around 800 USD and probably around the same in euros https://www.roland.com/global/products/v-combo_vr-09/

MoonMonkey wrote:Thank you for all your nice posts. I think I'll head to the next store and will simply try the keyboards as you have suggested it. But it's also good to know which products I should inspect more closely

Yamaha just issued the MODX, scaled down version of the Montage, that’s one of the models to consider, imo.

Yep, really really interesting synth (except that has slightly narrower keys?). Makes you wonder how well the Montage sold (my guess is that it did not sell that well).