cphollis

A couple of thoughts? - as I am already a user of Logic Pro on Mac, why would I want the iPad version? Ok, the touch interface would be nice vs. mousing to everything or keyboard shortcuts, but what else? - if I didn't already have Logic Pro, I would find $50/yr subscription quite reasonable given the level of functionality, ecosystem, etc. - I just picked up a 10th gen iPad 256GB for ~$500 at Costco. Has a real USB C port. Nice piece of hardware if you're upgrading. - I might give it a try for my next big project

Although, from what I remember, it would make a fantastic midi controller.

It sounds like it was some sort of close-out when you bought it, as the NS3 was already available at that point in time. I believe the NS2 was designed around 2011-2012? I wouldn't expect many computer parts from that era to be available in 2023. Even if the part was still somehow available, finding a tech that would be willing to replace and test it would be quite difficult as well. Not a lot of people willing to work on older computer logic boards, I've found. The good news: it's still a very playable keyboard, even with a small midi dongle!

For those of you who may not be familiar, the "Karen" meme is typically a white, educated suburban woman sporting an aggressive hairstyle and wanting to know who is in charge. Karens will get in your face if they think something is "wrong". They have an aggrandized sense of self-importance, very little self-awareness, and tend to be spectacularly self-absorbed. Not a judgment here, just a description!

I think it's mostly a regional American thing. Doesn't translate well to Europe or Asia or much of anywhere else

Scanning various forums, I realized I could write a useful chapter entitled "Basic Acoustics For Band Leaders", sort of a survival kit. As before, any commentary on strengths and weakness is always welcome!

Also, not mentioned on this thread, you can get pretty awesome five driver IEMs for around $50, and upgrade the tips and cable for about $20 each. Give them about 10 hours or so to break in, and you will be very pleasantly surprised. I own a pair of Westone ambients, they really can't compare to a five driver design. The "ambient mic" trick does work, but it also can be weird, especially if two very drunk people start having what should be a private conversation right next to your microphone. I don't use one any more. Like anything else, it takes a bit of adaptation.

Lots of ways to "stage mix" prior to sending to FOH, splitters not really required but certainly an option. For example, there are enough inputs and outputs on the X32 to input the entire 16-channel band, drive custom mixes for each of our ears, and also output each input channel to someone else's main board. I run a digital snake down to the main board (single piece of ethernet), and they are free to plug in there and do what they want. Note that all the channels already have EQ, compression, FX as we control that. This is more of an accommodation to certain event companies where it's gotta be "their board". Most everyone knows how the X32 works, for example. Most of the time, there is no external board, and the X32 does both jobs easily. If you used the XR-18, you would be limited to the six auxes it provides.

Yes. Not to mention that you might be comparing unprocessed sounds vs processed ones. Listening to recordings can be deceptive in the real world.

I did try and give that some thought, in rough groups. You can guess for yourself how many people might be in each group. Group 1: Leaders of active local musical performance groups. I am presuming that most active bands have one or more people that act in some sort of leadership capacity. Locally, I could name maybe 7-8 band leaders that I know, plus probably an equal number that I don't know. And it's not a big town. There are maybe 4x as many band leaders as, say, reasonable keyboard players. Only a few would be interested in a forum like this. You do find them online when changing up their PA gear, for example, or considering a big lighting purchase. Low hit rate. Group 2: People who are considering starting their own band or are actively in the process of doing so. These people are easy to find on different forums, as they always ask the same questions about PAs, lights, rehearsal spaces, promotion and so on. When you are doing all of this, you do a lot of searching, so these people would likely find any relevant forum that covers the topic well. I have no idea how many are out there, but I've found a few between KC and the Nord User Forum. The Live Sound subforum on Gearspace is pretty active with band leaders who run PA, as well as places like the forums for key products like QSC TouchMix, XR-18 and similar. While there may not be many at any one time, the arrival rate of newbies is pretty regular. Group 3: People who are in a non-leadership role in a band, and wish to provide advice to others on how to improve the experience. There are a lot of people who are frustrated by their band situation, but aren't sure about why there is a problem, or what might be done about it. These people are easy to find on different musician forums: guitars, vocalists, drummers, etc. Lots of potential targets, but a low hit rate. How large is the universe on these forums? I don't know, other than the interaction I got on the KC thread, which was pretty decent. I'd expect a proportional response on other performer-oriented forums. My two cents!

That took me a few months as well, but I just got the green light to proceed. I will probably run for a while with a single NS4C, keeping a NS3C as a backup in case the NS4C has a complete meltdown. Once it's clear that the NS4 is the way forward, the NS3C will get sold and a second NS4C will be on its way, maybe a year or so from now. Since my wife really likes the band I'm in, she's a bit more supportive than during my prog rock era.

I guess with the "Heritage" branding they are aiming at the nostalgia market. But that's an awfully expensive dose.

Also: As you suspect, Nord is aggressively upgrading their hardware builds during the lifetime of their models. As I mentioned, I have both early and late examples of the NS3C, and they are different builds in a very nice way. I think this continual improvement philosophy extends to their partnership with Fatar, which got a warning shot when they used the Kawai action in the Nord Grand. Every time I get a new Nord, their actions seem to get better and better. My recent NP5 73 is perhaps the best weighted action I've ever played on a Nord, and compares well with a Yammie AG, for example. It's nicer than it needs to be, if that makes sense. Over on the Nord forum, many new NS4 owners are saying the same buttery weighted action is showing up on the NS4 equivalents, albeit with an aftertouch strip underneath. If it's a standard Fatar keybed, then it's great. But I bet it's not a standard Fatar keybed action due to Nord's now-considerable volumes, as they are not as boutique as they used to be. So, yes, the consensus is that the NS4 88 weighted action is "better" than its NS3 predecessor. I also think that Nord reserves the right to improve whatever is in there today, and the keybed is not excluded. So if they come up with a keybed improvement during the model run, they'll put it in. And the NS4 will likely have a very long run. I don't know about you, but I realize that the NS4 will require me to learn to play it in a new way, relying more on the sliders and section presets to vary the sounds, and less on dialing up presets. I'm planning at least three months to do this as well as recreate all my patches etc.

All good suggestions, but ..... Like many of you, I have been a participant in many bands over many years. Despite that experience, I was unprepared for what was involved in creating a band from scratch and making it successful. In doing so, I had to learn a lot about a lot of different things, some of which are covered elsewhere, and much was not. If you do it right, there's a lot to learn. And there are a number of very important decisions you'll have to make along the way. Being responsible for the ultimate success of a band is very different than being a participant. Much like opening a small business, someone's gotta be in charge. Making decisions democratically does not eliminate the need for a band leader. Has anyone here actually done this as I have? If so I would love to chat with you! I would not be interested in a general band forum, other as a fun bitch session to see what other people were complaining about. If there is not enough interest in a band leader forum, that's fine, I'll go back to commenting on the subtleties of the keyboard actions between different Nord models

I, for one, would be happy to moderate alone or with others. Driving traffic is a bit more challenging, and would probably take a collaborative effort. For example, I can think of a few relevant places where there would be some interest, but it would not be enough. Others might know of other relevant places, perhaps adding more. Not an easy answer to the second part! Any best practices to crib from?

Yes. I bought an early one, then a recent one. The later keybed has a nicer, tighter feel, the switch gear feels a bit better, the external graphics are updated, and the end cheek blocks are much better. So the later one is the nicer of the two.

The video labels it as the "White Grand with effects", so a stock preset. It might even be the default preset on the NS4. The samples are said to be from John Lennon's piano by the same name. It's the go-to sample for many Nord players in a live band setting, as it cuts pretty well, holds up when layered, reasonably balanced across the keyboard, and so on. I don't know if I'd do a solo piano night with it, probably preferring the Faz sample, or maybe the Bosie. Also, a few of us suspect that there's a better DAC in there vs predecessors. The same samples are sounding better to new owners.

I'm going to share this video with anyone who wants to get picky about Nord piano actions. Jeez, that was fun to watch!

There is some basis in physiology for this -- basically, the circuitry responsible for processing all the incoming audio gets overloaded, and draws processing power from other parts of the brain. Reducing the volume of course lessens the load, which is also related to why we don't like loud music as much as we age. Listening to overly complex music can do this to me as well -- it's downright fatiguing. Probably little to do with the synesthesia aspect. Also, minimizing sh*tty days at work will help a lot!

The same gap in the market exists for integrated iPad and keyboard. You would think it wouldn't be hard to build a slot in the top, etc. that was not a toy. I chalk it up to a lack of vision, really. Give me a gig-grade keyboard that does what it does, and also does everything an iPad does, and I'd likely buy it.

I use the Behringer equivalent, their PM-16 with my main band. Two of the channels are "main mix", and then I can season to taste using the remaining 14 knobs. Everything is fully assignable. Most digital mixers support an app, so I'm good there. I just wait until everyone is done with their s**t before mixing mine. If no such mixer is available for a non-band gig, I bring an XR-18 (overkill, but it's what I have) and run two stereo pair to it, in addition to the monitor feed, so five inputs. I sent one stereo pair mix to the main mixer (I could send two pair), each with it's own L and R aux mixed so that the monitor feed is not present. The "main" outputs go to my ears, with monitor feed blended in. The same could be achieved with two of something like a Yamaha MG6 mixer. Once you get used to it, you don't want to go back.

I control what's in my ears at all times. I can use a small separate mixer to take the FOH monitor feed, mix it with a split off my keys, and put it in my ears. So, either two small mixers, or a larger more capable one with aux sends. I can't fix a clumsy mix, but at least I won't suffer for it. If the other band members can't hear you, that's an issue for the monitor mix, and doesn't mean you should bring several thousand watts of amplification. Other notes: the IEMs take a while to break in, you'll want to upgrade with (inexpensive) tips and cables. I have several in case one pair gets lost, damaged, etc. Best $40 you ever spent. I have sold off all of my stage monitors as a result, or given them away. No use for them any more. Other thought: When playing with my band, I mix the stage sound in people's ears. Sound tech is responsible for what audience hears.

Yes. The onboard EQ and compression can cover in 95% of situations. For that last 5%, I've found I need an external compressor and EQ, much like you'd find on any digital mixer or DAW. When you listen to most recordings of a Nord piano, they all sound like they're using some nice compression and EQ. The only ones that aren't appear to be the short recordings associated with the sample itself. This is part of why your pianos always sound better they audience than they do to you -- audience members get the benefit of a bit of natural compression and EQ by being some distance from the PA speakers. There's a discussion about this going on right now on the Nord User Forum. Looks like there might be some improvement in the NS4.

Not to derail the thread with the obvious, but you can get an awesome pair of five driver IEMs for $41.99 on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/KZ-ZS10-Linsoul-Earphones-Detachable/dp/B07QKYTGH9?th=1 So, one perspective might be "why all the extra cost and weight for an Altos monitor when the IEM alternative is cheaper, lighter and sounds wayyyy better"?

Well versed in the era, but nothing here from me. Sounds like theme music from a TV show from the era.