Nord User Forum

I own a Nord Stage 2 and a Nord Lead 2X. Right know I'm considering to buy a
Nord Lead 4 or a Nord Lead 3 on the secondhand market. In order to reach a
fully informed decision I would like to compare the features of the Nord Lead
3 with os 1.08 with that of the Nord Lead 4. The reason for this is that I
need to be able to sync the arpgiator with midi clock. The Nord Lead 3 OS 1.2
has a known bug with arpegiator sync. Hence my request.

Can anyone please provide me with the manual for the Nord Lead 3 OS 1.08 in
pdf format?

Only v1.2 is found on the Nord site:

http://www.nordkeyboards.com/sites/defa ... 0(eng).pdf

Should be fine for your intended comparison.

What is the alleged problem with the arpeggiator sync in OS 1.2 ?

As to comparing the two, a comparison chart goes a certain way, but you'd really need to do a side by side comparison. The reason I say this is that there are functions where the end result is the same but it is implemented in different ways in the two machines.

For instance, on the 4 there is a global HOLD button on the front panel, which enables HOLD for all voices that have HOLD ENABLE set. HOLD ENABLE is reached by pressing shift + HOLD, and is this a simple toggle operation. On the 3 the corresponding HOLD ENABLE function is selected by again holding shift, and toggling through a series of ENABLE functions on another button. Doing HOLD ENABLE is thus not a simple toggle operation which makes it rather more awkward to enable/disable hold for a given slot, even though the actual functionality is there on both machines.

I find that type of information very hard to spot by reading a manual. I actually have to sit at the machine in order to get a feel for it. YMMV.

There are other differences which I personally need to experience to get a feeling for how it works for me. For instance, unison on the 3 always puts out 5 voices (2 left, 2 right, 1 center) but the detune amount is variable, as opposed to the 4's three unison modes (2, 3 or 4 voices) with no adjustment of the detune amount. Personally I find 5 voices excessive, and while it can create a wonderfully diffuse wide image on some sounds, it's over the top on the others, blurring the sound, making me long for the simple 1-left-1-right unison of the 2/2X, with adjustable detune amount.

Then there's the sound. Although one would think that a programmable synthesizer should be capable of any sound, whenever I've tested the 4, it comes across to me as a die-hard in-your-face solo synth, in contrast to the 3 which is more apt at producing swirling ethereal pads. In fact, I've not been able to get any decent pad sound out of a 4, everything sounds like it has an edge to it. On the other the 3 seems slightly lacking in the bass department, the sound is more 'crystilne' than 'edgy'.