Nord User Forum

Hi all,
How can we find out the models of the piano samples? Some are easy eg Grand Lady D is a Steinway D. But for example what model Fazioli is the Italian grand, what is the Velvet grand, what is the Amber upright or what model Bosendorfer is the Queen upright etc?
Thanks Pete

This is often not mentioned directly, but there is often a clue on either the name or the info you see when you press the info button.

a rose is a rose is a rose, by any other name smells just as sweet. it's all about the sound, not the name....

baekgaard wrote:This is often not mentioned directly, but there is often a clue on either the name or the info you see when you press the info button.

That and also a search on this forum may help...

pablomastodon wrote:a rose is a rose is a rose, by any other name smells just as sweet. it's all about the sound, not the name....

also true @Pablo "the poet" Mastodon

Maybe true everything, but as a beginner, I would like to know a little more especially about the miking and the optimal uses. I find the given names quite helpful for a first impression and somewhat cute, but don't like them much - I'm coming from classical music, and it makes my stomach rumbling having to play just a "white", a "bright" or a "queen" piano - not to mention "velvet" which I don't like as a feeling at all. And as there are words to discern the different sounds, I would appreciate having other connotations for those sounds.

I fully understand that Clavia may not be allowed to mention the names of the instruments as far as it is a branding thing. But we should be allowed to share real names if we have hints, don't we?

I guess that as soon as my ears will recognize the sounds, I won't need the names any more - but at the moment, I think I do. And maybe, I will even then say "the 2019 Steinway approach" instead of "White Grand".

BTW: What do you think about a "knowledge base" in the forum where faq info is stored? I think I sometimes came across such piano info on the forum but couldn't find that again - even with the search function. I also had to find out about the way the Stage 3 is handling sound names. Could have been easier if you know that (trunking the version no. with space before).
Edit: Sorry, there is one - I hadn't noticed, or forgotten.

(last updated: 2024-04)

Name	Version	Instrument presumed	Technical notes	Released	Sizes, MB (legacy)
Soft Grand	6.1	Yamaha G2	?	12/2023	200/117/97/61
White Grand	6.3	Steinway B-211	? (by SampleTekk 2016?, maybe related to SampleTekk's White Grand)	06/2019	204/130/114/69
	6.1				245/155/110/67
Royal Grand 3D	6.1	Yamaha S6	dummy head (ambient), for use with headphones	12/2016	208/103/86/54 (200/99/82/51)
Velvet Grand	6.1	Blüthner Model 1	?	12/2015	197/112/92/61 (190/106/87/58)
Silver Grand	6.1	Shigeru Kawai SK-7	?	07/2015	203/105/89/55 (194/100/85/53)
Italian Grand	6.1	Fazioli ?	slightly ambient?	12/2012	189/101/85/51 (182/97/82/49)
Bright Grand	6.1	Yamaha S4	?	06/2011	195/88/74/45 (196/87/72/44)
Grand Imperial	6.1	Bösendorfer Imperial	? (maybe related to SampleTekk's Emperor MkII)	03/2011	198/90/75/44 (197/90/74/44)
Grand Lady D	5.3	Steinway D-274	(maybe related to SampleTekk's Old Lady Mk2)	03/2011	79/61/39
Studio Grand 1	5.3	Yamaha C 7	close-up (derived from SampleTekk's The Big One Mk2)	03/2011	69/57/35
Studio Grand 2	6.2	Yamaha C 7	close-up, custom preamps (maybe related to SampleTekk's 7CG Mk2)	03/2011	177/94/81/49 (69/55/34)
Concert Grand close	5.3	Steinway D-274	close-up, for live (related to SampleTekk's Black Grand Mk2)	03/2011	58/46/29
Concert Grand ambient	5.3	Steinway D-274	ambient: concert hall, for recording (related to SampleTekk's Black Grand Mk2)	03/2011	57/44/29
Steinway No1	5.2	Steinway No.1 'Kitchen Piano' replica (1836/2006)	?	01/2017	132
Mozart FortePno A.Walter	6.1	Anton Walter Fortepiano (1780~1800)	?	01/2016	157/110/95/59 (149/105/91/56)
Beethoven ForteP Broadwood	5.3	Thomas Broadwood Fortepiano (~1820)	?	01/2016	151/99/84/52
Perl Upright	6.0	Grotrian-Steinweg Mod. 120	?	12/2022	182/121/102/65
Felt Piano	6.2	Yamaha SU118	modified: felt inserted between hammers and strings	01/2022	186/115/97/61
Baby Upright	6.1	Nordiska compact	?	12/2017	136/95/83/50 (124/87/76/46)
Amber Upright	6.2	Grotrian-Steinweg Concerto G132	?	07/2017	165/102/87/53 (162/100/84/51)
Bambino Upright	6.1	Baldwin spinet piano (Acrosonic, as Pscooter63 guesses)	6.1 L and XL have an issue on the loudest F6 and F#6 sound; obviously, 6.2 (available through the NP5 factory bundle) and 5.4 versions don't (see here)	07/2016	132/102/86/55 (125/97/82/52)
Mellow Upright	6.1	Bösendorfer C 130	extra soft felt hammers	10/2014	170/98/81/50 (171/98/80/50)
Grand Upright	5.4	Yamaha U3	?	10/2013	160/86/71/43
Queen Upright	5.3	Bösendorfer ?	?	03/2011	66/52/32
Black Upright	6.1	Petrof 132	softened hammers	03/2011	79/59/38 (65/52/33)
HonkyTonk Upright	6.1	Baumgardt	modified: nails replacing felt hammers	03/2011	57/47/29 (55/45/28)
Saloon Upright	5.3	Baumgardt	detuned	03/2011	61/49/30
Romantic Upright	6.1	Schimmel Fortissimo 108 'Chippendale' (1967)	?	03/2011	73/59/ (60/48/29)36
BlueSwede Large Upright	5.3	Östl...

(got corrupted, probably during forum software update and format change; restored version in a later post)


I won't label the timbre of the APs because this will schedule too much. Besides, most information given at the moment is available through hints that anyone can get with a Nord under his/her fingers. There are some claims and rumours about relations to SampleTekk sounds; the only one I really believe in is this short forum entry. Time details thanks to a post from ajstan.

Jekyll Fosco likes FZiegler's post , but Hyde Fosco loves Pablo's

I'm convinced that the Bambino is a Baldwin Acrosonic, although what year I couldn't begin to guess. Sonically, it's a dead match for my mom-in-law's, from the mid-1940s.

Haven't ever seen an instrument like that: Baldwin Acrosonic from 1955, another one even more beautiful. I've rather seen some old hulks in the family with 1.5 times the volume - sound astonishingly quite near: not really bright, but rather thin - a little muffled, but with little bass.

Thanks, PScooter63, for that tip: I'll get it back onto my Stage, had already kicked it off.

pablomastodon wrote:a rose is a rose is a rose, by any other name smells just as sweet. it's all about the sound, not the name....

Yes - I must remember that!

To FZiegler - thanks so so much for your chart - brilliant!