Stage 2 vs Nord Wave

MonoPoly307 · Post by **MonoPoly307** » 04 Jan 2012, 13:36

Hi Guys,

I have currently got a Nord Wave on test at home, and I'm pretty blown away by it! Having come from a workstation background (my rig until now is a Kurzweil PC3x and on top a Korg M3-73) I'm really excited to be getting into using dials to change the sound in real time. I'm having so much fun!

But I'm wondering if I should actually be going for the Stage 2 instead, and replacing my Korg M3-73 on the upper layer of my rig. Currently the Wave isn't on my main rig and won't come gigging with me...

My question is... how do the synth sections of the Wave and the Stage 2 compare? I know the pianos and organs on the Stage are astounding (although I use my Kurzweil for these at the moment anyway), but I'm wondering how the synth engines differ.

As far as I can tell, they are more or less the same, with the advantages of the Stage 2 being:
- Much larger wave memory for the synth (380mb on the Stage 2 vs 180 on the Wave)... and that's before you count the 500mb of pianos on the Stage 2!
- "Live" features, making it easier to switch between patches when gigging (rather than just going up or down patches)
- More effects on the Stage 2
- Arpeggiator on the Stage 2
- Aftertouch can be used as a morph source on the Stage 2

Is there anything I'll be missing out on if I opt for the Stage 2 instead of the Wave (apart from portability?!)

Cheers and thanks in advance,
Mike

anotherscott · Post by **anotherscott** » 04 Jan 2012, 15:57

yeloop wrote:As far as I can tell, they are more or less the same, with the advantages of the Stage 2 being:
- Much larger wave memory for the synth (380mb on the Stage 2 vs 180 on the Wave)... and that's before you count the 500mb of pianos on the Stage 2!
- "Live" features, making it easier to switch between patches when gigging (rather than just going up or down patches)
- More effects on the Stage 2
- Arpeggiator on the Stage 2
- Aftertouch can be used as a morph source on the Stage 2

One other NS2 synth function missing from the Wave is that you can hard pan a synth sound to one side or the other. Oddly, that was important for my own needs, and was probably the main reason I didn't keep my Wave. But it would hardly be a deal-killer for many people, I'm sure.

yeloop wrote:Is there anything I'll be missing out on if I opt for the Stage 2 instead of the Wave (apart from portability?!)

Plenty. The Wave has a FAR greater number of morphable parameters, and the ability to morph via velocity. Each patch can have two independent oscillators. The Wave has three separate sets of envelope controls (for the amp, filter, and mod functions), the NS2 instead has just two (the filter and mod share envelope controls), and they are three-stage instead of the four-stage ADSR amp/filter controls on the Wave. There are other feature differences as well, like chord memory, additional keyboard tracking settings (instead of simply on or off), two independent LFOs, and more. Some of the sounds you can create with these features can be accomplished in some other manner on the NS2, but many cannot.

The NS2 synth is remarkably versatile for an integrated synth section with relatively few controls, I think it's better than most people first expect it to be, but it is still not nearly what a Wave is, IMO.

You're correct that live patch switching is better on the NS2 than on the Wave. But either way, if I were you, I'd probably take advantage of the fact that your other boards are excellent MIDI controllers as well, and you can use either of them to change patches on your Nord as well.

If I understand correctly, the two setups you're comparing are "PC3X + M3 + Wave" vs. "PC3X + NS2," right? One issue you might be considering is whether you care about having 2 boards vs. 3 in your setup... but you can also use the PC3x and Wave along with just the sound module portion of the M3 and have all the same sonic abilities in just two boards, too, if and when you want to "travel lighter." Though you probably figured that already.

I think that, while the synth section of the NS2 does have a few advantages over the Wave, the Wave has far more advantages over the NS2 (strictly from a synth perspective). Therefore, considering what your other boards are, the only reason I'd probably go for an NS2 over a Wave is if you liked the NS2 piano and/or organ much better than what you could get out of the other two boards. If that isn't the case, or if you hardly use piano/organ sounds, then I'd go with the Wave.

Post by **Lyonart** » 04 Jan 2012, 16:00

Hi Yeloop

So you would have the PC3X on the bottom and a Stage 2 on the upper tier?

The Stage 2 is great, although the synth section on it is quite different to the Wave insofar as you have two oscillators per slot (A & B) on the Wave where as you ony have one oscillator per slot (A & B) on the Stage 2. This means the type of sounds you can create on the Stage 2 are, for want of a better word, less complex than the Wave, although the Stage 2 does have "hidden" oscillators. The Wave has the beneft of having 2 LFOs and this affords the sound designer more opportunities. This said, the Wave lacks an arpegiator and this function on the Stage 2 plus the MST CLK function is brilliant fun (especially combined with use of the MST CLK for effects).

The Stage 2 is clearly a lot more expensive than the Wave (I got my Stage 2 for £2,650 in the UK and the Wave can be had for about £1,400-1,500 with a bit of haggling) so it really depends what your budget is. I nearly bought a Wave about two years ago (it was £1,200 back then) so I understand your dilema.

It ultimately depends what you want the board to do. If you just want a synth there a quite a number of good boards out there (some even don't have a red colour scheme) but you are making the right decision to try them out before buying.

Post by **Lyonart** » 04 Jan 2012, 16:05

anotherscott - you just got in there before me - I agree with what you say and if it is just a synth you want then you can't go far wrong with the Wave.

It'll be interesting to see if the Wave 2 is coming soon though which might incorporate some of the missing features that are found on the Stage 2.

Petrounic · Post by **Petrounic** » 04 Jan 2012, 16:20

Hi there,Something very nice for me... Nord Wave is just 6 Kg

The perfect portability on synthesizer!Like my macbook.

This is very important for me.

Happy new year!

Post by **Hanon_CTS** » 04 Jan 2012, 16:28

yeloop wrote:My question is... how do the synth sections of the Wave and the Stage 2 compare?

Hello yeloop,
Welcome to the forums.

Hi Mike,
The Synth section of the NS2 and Wave are very similar, and do share the some of the same hardware and software.
The control over the sound parameters is much greater with the Wave, as one would expect from a dedicated synth instrument.

The Wave has the following:

2 dedicated oscillators per voice where the NS2 has just one.
2 dedicated LFOs where the NS2 has one.
More detailed Envelopes (ADRS) rather than just (ADR)
Far more modulation choices.
Additional filtering choices and keyboard tracking modes.
Velocity crossfading of samples via the morph function.
Chord memory.

I've probably missed a few things.

The NS2 is intended to be a jack of all trades, swedish army knife of instruments.
It's synthesizer section is very powerful and capable, but certainly not the only feature to buy the instrument for (that if you don't have interest in the others)

While the NS2 has one oscillator per voice, that oscillator has modes that simulate detune and interval tunings just as if it were more than one.
It just can't have two different waves per synth at the same time.
The oscillator also has a unison (# of voices) control where it can be made to sound like 10 osc all on one note, this is every bit as good as the Roland Super Saw of the JP8K and 8080.

I hope this helps.
Cheers, Hanon

MonoPoly307 · Post by **MonoPoly307** » 06 Jan 2012, 00:59

Thanks everyone for your thoughts on this!

I tracked down a Stage 2 at a store I don't normally go to, so I was able to have some time with it and get a sense of how it compares to the Wave from a synth point of view.

My thoughts were:

1 - just going from the pre-set programs (I didn't have time to try editing them or making my own), the synth (especially the leads) sound way less interesting than the Wave's ones. There are some good basic staple lead sounds, but none have the interesting tonal qualities of the Wave. Is this just the presets though...?

2. The Arpeggiator is GREAT, especially being able to sync it to the master clock (and therefore to any tap tempo you like). I really wish the Wave had this, and wonder if it's something that will appear in Wave 2. (Soon?!)

3. It's great to be able to use aftertouch as a morph source... something the Wave really should offer!

4. Even though this is a second-layer synth for me, the pianos blew me away. The grands were very impressive, but the UPRIGHTS... number 1 in particular... were stunning! Wow! I love my Kurzweil PC3x pianos but I think these sound more organic and alive... so this makes the decision harder!

5. The "live" features, especially the ability to include external synth programs as part of a Stage 2 program are brilliant - I also use a Prophet 08 and can imagine being able to call up its patches instantly by just selecting the program for the next song on the Stage 2. Really amazing for live...!

So now I'm EVEN MORE TORN!

The two risks I would take in getting the Stage 2 over the Wave would be:
- That the synth section - even after tweaking - doesn't have the magic that the Wave synth has
- That in parting with my M3 AND the Wave (both of which I am currently trialling - and which together cost the same as the Stage 2), I am losing more flexibility in opting for the Stage 2 only.

Really not sure what to do!

And to add to that, I'm sure that the Wave 2 is not far away (Wave 1 dates back to 2008) - and it will probably include the arpeggiator and perhaps compressor, aftertouch as a morph source, and other goodies that have turned up on the Stage 2...

Help!!

Cheers,
Mike

Post by **DJKeys** » 06 Jan 2012, 01:13

Mike-

Here is another thread I started on the subject. I have a Nord Wave and an Electro 3. May help, may make you even more torn LOL!

http://www.norduserforum.com/nord-stage ... t1931.html

MonoPoly307 · Post by **MonoPoly307** » 06 Jan 2012, 01:33

DJKeys wrote:Mike-

Here is another thread I started on the subject. I have a Nord Wave and an Electro 3. May help, may make you even more torn LOL!

http://www.norduserforum.com/nord-stage ... t1931.html

Ha ha! Thanks!

I've just had a look... yeah, that does make me feel a little more torn - sounds like the Stage 2 synth is up to most things with a bit of programming...

So if I go with the Stage 2, it replaces my M3-73 and Wave (both on trial at the moment), meaning it's easier for gigging (just one top layer instead of M3 on top and Wave on side) but in a way less diversity than the M3 and the Wave....

But then I get that magic upright piano, and the arpeggiator...

Of course I could wait for the Wave 2, but now I have instruments on trial with my music store, they won't let me hand them both back and buy nothing!

Post by **DJKeys** » 06 Jan 2012, 01:45

I would like to have just one keyboard, not two. But, I really don't think I would sell the wave even if I get the NS2, it is just a great instrument, and I grew up on the old style subtractive synths like Prophet 5 and OB 8.

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