Nord User Forum

Hi guys,

maybe this is a stupid question or technically nonsense....

I use the B3 of my Nord Stages very much but some parts do not sound to me as good as I would like, and that’s for sure a subjective experience. I for example use a Ventilator II instead of the internal Leslie sim which sounds much better to me.

I also don’t like the scanner vibrato sound of the Nord, can’t really explain exactly why but it does not sound “alive”, more kind of artificial and “cold” to me. I therefore wonder if there is an external simulation of the Hammond scanner vibrato available which does it better than the integrated one in the Nord, something like the Ventilator is for Leslie sim. Do you know if some external gear is available, or would this not be useful since it may not improve when being added to the signal chain externally (don’t hesitate to tell me that this is a stupid idea if so) ...

I don't know of a device like that, but it would definitely take the Vent up a notch if it was a Leslie and Hammond Vibrato/Chorus emulator.
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Not a stupid idea but I am not aware of any commercial product doing that. Someone anyway made it as DIY and using an original Hammond vibrato scanner module!
https://modularsynthesis.com/modules/DJ ... canner.htm

I haven't understood how this works, but there used to be a small manufacturer who recycled old Hammond Organ vibrato scanners for separate use: https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/analog-outfitters-scanner. Alas, he seems to have closed his shop for quite a moment. The scanners were sold at a price around a new NE6D-73.

But particularly, those FX sets were meant for studio use, because they include an open oil pan for scanner lubrication! They have to be held strictly upright.

So I'd prefer a bit of some "dirty" digital research.

Yes, having the original mechanical scannervibrato unit is not an ideal solution in terms of portability and live use.

I was just wondering why there are really fabulous external devices available like the Neo Ventilator (II) or reverb units like the Hall of Fame which very much improve these specific parts of the whole sound significantly compared to what's built into clones (where Nord may still be one of the best ones), but nobody has looked into modeling the scannervibrato in a similar quality. From my point of view the vibrato/chorus is still the weakest part of the Nord organs, at least on my Stage 2 and Stage 3s - and yes I know thats really complaining about first world problems

I'll do some searching - I have a vague memory of a few years ago, another forum, someone had dialed in a C/V sound using an external processor that was pretty realistic although the outboard gear was not marketed as such. It just had a nice shimmery chorus sound.

If you have deep pockets, there's this:
https://reverb.com/p/analog-outfitters-scanner

This Nord Stage3 Compact sits nicely atop the Hammond A100.Always partial to that model,ergonomics of any 'rider' considered.While the speed of scanners are identical on both,
the depth of treble bleedthrough on subsequent chorus regeneration is always spot on with the real deal. Nord is close,the C2D is very realistic by comparison.Stage 3 not so much.
Because the mix of dry/wet chorus is critical,and the change of value of resistance from 22K in pre '55 organs,to 12K in post '55 organs,the 'mix' is very subjective.
One device that can be mixed almost identical to a scanner is a Boss CE1 chorus pedal set to vibrato,and mixed with 'dry'.

But on a Hammond percussion is not affected by chorus/vibrato so if you use a lot of percussion it will sound wrong. I tried this in an L-100 and a boss chorus but was never satisfied.