2 nord stage 3 in rig not sounding the same

[ariel888]

Hey

My rig has 2 nord stage 3’s

An HA88 and a compact.

I use to have only the 88 keys - but a month ago I realized I need a 2nd nordstage in my setup.

However- during sound check - I noticed that the compact sounds allot more present , big and focused - (checking it while playing the very same patch on both) - sound engineer- set the nord channels on his console to unity with no effect Ed or dynamics.

Both boards where connected with great cables to Radial - DI’s going straghit into the FOH console.

This was tested twice...in 2 different locations - 2 different sound checks...

Important to say that the compact is the newer board and the HA88 was bought 18 months ago....

Do you think there is a problem with the 8* keys output circuit ?

Does the newer boards manufactured recently have been upgraded with better output or better electronics?

Maybe the time factor is taking its toll? Maybe the these 18 months moving the board constantly- working with it 2-4 times a week made the output sound different then it was when I first got it ?

Let me know what you think.

[23skidoo]

These boards are digital, and the output stages don't "age" with time. They should sound identical at 10 years to one brand new. I can't say if there are any meaningful differences in the sound engines between the various keybed options, but I'd put money on them using exactly the same hardware. So the difference is possibly in the system setup (which isn't saved with the preset), output volume (also manual - volume has a strong psychological effect on timbre, believe it or not), or perhaps the Radial DIs themselves (did you switch those between the units? You don't say). There are also other factors, but the electronics on the boards is not likely one of them as they're likely identical - unless Nord somehow put out a really different batch (not unheard of but these are high quality mass-produced chipsets that have tight tolerances, so it's very unlikely that your D/A are so different as to be audible, let alone clearly audible). That difference, as you describe it, sounds more like one board is somehow in mono and the other is in true stereo to me.

Edit: I'd also recommend you take recordings of both on the same patch being played via MIDI from a DAW using the same cables to the same inputs on your audio interface. See if they show any differences under those circumstances too.

[ariel888]

Hey 23skidoo
Thx for the quick answer.

I forgot to mention that both nords were set to the exact same volume at 12 o’clock- both were true stereo and I asked the stage crew to flip between the radial boxes to see if there is a problem with the di’s. The nord compact is an exact clone of the older 88....I restored it with a backup I’ve done.

I will try to record both with midi and throwing an analyzer on each to see the actual difference.

[bartley99]

I have both a Stage3 88HA and a Compact 73. I have not noticed a difference in sound between the two HOWEVER, I have not done a side-by-side comparison of an identical sound/patch set at the same volume going through identical outputs. I'll give it a try tomorrow morning and see if I notice anything. Now I'm curious.

Bought the HA88 in Jan 2018 and the Compact in June 2018 in that makes any difference.

[westharp]

Are both Nords on the same OS version? There was a subtle change in the sound characteristics between OS 1.6 and 2.0.

[baekgaard]

Did you play each unit via its own keyboard?

There could be subtle differences in the velocity scaling that eg for piano based sounds would make them sound different as different (velocity) samples would be used.

[offrhodes]

To rule out the keyboard, you could play the 2nd unit though a MIDI cable, then they both see the same input signal.
And, did you check that the firmware versions are the same?

[ariel888]

Both units are identical - and the OS is the same on both

[baekgaard]

Both units are identical - and the OS is the same on both

Ok, then I must have misunderstood - I thought you said you had a compact (with SW keys) and a HA88 (with weighted keys), and they are not identical in terms of how the keyboards respond to playing.

[Mr_-G-]

Yes, they might sound different because of the keybeds. Most likely have different velocity scaling. Have you tried playing from the same keybed via MIDI?