Thinking about a used Receptor

[AnotherScott]

IMO those subtleties are often total overkill in a live setting... unless it's a quiet live setting and your piano sound is fairly exposed.

I agree that the effects are relatively subtle, but I do think they contribute to the overall effect of a "better" or more "real" sounding piano. That is to say, while whether or not it's overkill is a matter of opinion, I do at least think the difference is noticeable. If nothing else, it will at least make it more pleasurable to play as you listen through your monitors. ;-)

[Ashville.Guru]

Jim, the Receptor is hands down the EASIEST module/keyboard I have ever had to work with. It has saved my butt with the new rig. I have shrunk my rig down to the Stage 2 EightyEight and SK1, and a 6space rack with my Receptor, Fantom, Motif and mixer. I have a Voyager that I will bring to certain gigs as well. The Receptor really elevates the Stages midi controller inadequacies to pro level, and while Ive had a Receptor for 6 years now and couldnt imagine gigging without it, Ive gained even more love for it after this rig change. Reallyuntil youve used it, you just dont know how stoopid easy it is to use.

Tony, I have used and owned a Receptor. My experience was not as pleasant as yours...

Tony, I was browsing the Receptor site, and just discovered that you are an endorsee, and official 'Receptor Expert'. I found it a bit jarring, that this info isn't made loud and clear, in your posts here.

Please don't take this personally - I've been an admirer of your posts and reviews for quite sometime now . And I personally believe, that whatever you've posted in about the Receptor is your honest perception. But perception is a bitch, and can shift dramatically depending upon affiliations.

 

I can't speak for the OP, but the value of this forum, is as a community of musos, sharing experiences/opinions about products. The official company reps add to that value ( to Dave Weiser, Mike Martin and RichF) - because of full disclosure. I still value B3-er's opinions on the Privias and Hammonds, even after knowing his affiliations with them. It's just a lot nicer when things are made explicit up front.

Cheers,

 

Guru

[Cadmann]

Well handled, Guru.

And Tony, your advice and comments are appreciated.

[Spherical]

I got an old Receptor 1 Rev B a couple of years ago, and found it so useful I had it upgraded to a Receptor 2+ Pro, and then bought a second Receptor. It's absolutely invaluable in my live setup, especially for top quality organs (VB3), Mellotrons, and high quality sample playback. However I do use hardware synths as well, and I would say the ideal is a balance of the two - a hardware synth for convenience and a Receptor for huge flexibility/power.

[Cadmann]

That's encouraging to hear about the Receptor, Spherical. But compared to some of the complex rigs that a lot of you guys have, mine is pretty simple, I guess: two boards hooked up directly to my Traynor K4 amp. And I'd like to make things even simpler and faster than that, if possible. (What a baby!) The only realistic way to do that is to change to one board that does it all -- great piano and organ sounds (EPs, strings and the rest are going to be good enough for me on any decent keyboard.) The Nord Stage 2 does that.

 

The next level up from that, for me, would be getting a Receptor to run one controller, or more likely two (the second for organ-friendly keys). But with that extra hookage time and effort, the Receptor would give me nearly unlimited ability to take advantage of great new sounds in the future. To Nord's credit, though, they regularly create new sounds and make them available to their customers, free of charge.

 

I think I have the information I need. Unfortunately my Buyer's Remorse is so severe that I've developed Early Onset Buyer's Remorse, which often causes me to stall decisions for fear that I will regret them later. So I just need to block it and pull the trigger. Thanks again to all.

[AnotherScott]

A PX-3...will give you the ability to call up Nord presets from the 88 (more conveniently than you could do it on the Nord itself)

It's well past the editing period, but I hate to leave mistaken info stand if discover/remember an error... I think it was an overstatement to say that it's easier to call up NS2 presets from a PX3 than right from the NS2. That would be true if the Nord were an E3. But the NS2 has decent preset recall itself, and whether it's better or worse than what you could do from the PX3 would be debatable. For example, the PX3 presents banks of 8 at a time instead of 5 as on the NS2, but it's easier to get to different banks on the NS2 than on the PX3.

 

As an aside, I've also discovered some other advantages of driving an unweighted NS2 from some other weighted board, compared to using Nord's own weighted board. One is that Nord's weighted action is resistant to being able to do a thumbnail gliss, most other weighted boards are better. Another is, in the case of the PX-3, you get the ability to retrigger a note without fully releasing it, like you can on a real piano. That's a nice feature of the PX-3, but it might not have been obvious that the function carries over through MIDI, so you get the same benefit when triggering, for example, a Nord piano sound, even though the Nord can't do that on its own keyboard.

[TechEverlasting]

I've spent years avoiding using computer-based rigs for live applications because of concerns about reliability and complexity. The Receptor has been a nice "best of both worlds" alternative. I just picked up a new 2011 Mac-mini server (Quad core 2GHz, two 500GB 7200 drives inside) for $1,200 including Apple Care and an upgrade to 8 GB RAM (OWC memory, not Apple).

 

I've got Komplete 8 and Logic/Mainstage installed and so far this little 64-bit guy is fast and solid - I have a PreSonus Firebox connected via a 400-800 Firewire cable, no drivers needed.

 

This might end up being my dream live "synth module".

[AnotherScott]

I think Mac Mini might have the potential to be the best live computer. Laptops always seem ergonomically awkward and generally precarious to me. The issue is what to do about a keyboard and screen... but there are flexible bluetooth keyboards I would think could often be conveniently placed, and I think there are apps that let you use the ipad as a wireless screen for a Mac (perhaps that can provide on-screen keyboard functionality as well), I'd be curious to know if anyone has tried this. It seems like it would be smaller/lighter than a Receptor, and not limited to non-copy-protected Linux-friendly plug-ins as I think Receptor is. If you prefer the Windows to the Mac environment, you could easily turn the Mini into a Windows PC, too. As for whether it is sufficiently low latency, glitch free, etc.... I don't know... but at least in theory, it's an appealing sounding setup for going virtual.

[Mizu]

Not to take this completely off-topic, but I like the idea of the Mini as a music "slab". However, I can only say: Keep backups.

 

I'm talking from recent experience - I had a MacBook Pro and 2 Mac Airs die on my within a three week period (the 2nd air was the brand new replacement for the first, which was only 3 weeks old). Very painful. The best thing you can do with the Macs is mirror your system drive (regularly) with Carbon Copy Cloner to an external hdd, and boot from that in case of trouble. It won't save you if your logic board is on the fritz, but it's a cheap insurance against hdd failures. I would want to have a PX-3 or similar as a controller to fall back on if all fails...

 

Hey, just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they are not after you, right?

[TechEverlasting]

No doubt, computers can die when you need them the most, so backups are crucial. The Mac mini packs a lot of stuff into a small package, it remains to be seen if heat will be a problem in live performance. (This is something the Receptor handles exceptionally well.)

 

The Mac Mini server comes out of the box with two identical 500GB 7200 rpm drives. Carbon Copy Cloner could be used to create an onboard backup boot drive.

 

Another cool feature of all the 2011 Mac Minis is the onboard Thunderbolt port. Sonnet Technologies has announced a rack-mount enclosure for the minis which includes a single PCIe 2.0 x4 expansion slot (with 75W power supply and fan). With the optional 16 GB RAM expansion what you end up with here is a 1U rackmounted 2010 Mac Pro.

 

http://www.sonnettech.com/product/rackmacminixserver.html

[AnotherScott]

The Mac mini packs a lot of stuff into a small package, it remains to be seen if heat will be a problem in live performance. (This is something the Receptor handles exceptionally well.)

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Sonnet Technologies has announced a rack-mount enclosure for the minis which includes a single PCIe 2.0 x4 expansion slot (with 75W power supply and fan).

Well, that fan should address any heat issue. Rack mounting it in a box with a small rack mixer would be a nice way to travel with it and help keep its audio connections secure, too.

 

With the optional 16 GB RAM expansion

That's news to me, what optional 16 gB RAM expansion?

[johnchop]

not limited to non-copy-protected Linux-friendly plug-ins as I think Receptor is.

 

Correction: the Receptor runs Komplete, Omnisphere, AAS stuff, even iLok-protected software. It's running a slimmed-down Linux distro with Wine (Windows emulation), hence its ability to host and display Windows-based VSTs (dlls).

 

You can't ANY Windows plug-in though. Arturia's out, as is the Korg Legacy stuff (which would be AWESOME if it worked... darn).

 

I'm still considering one. I'm waiting for the price on the Pro 2+ to go back down (appears they raised it $200 a few months ago).

 

-John

[TechEverlasting]

That's news to me, what optional 16 gB RAM expansion?

 

This one:

 

http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Other%20World%20Computing/1333DDR3S16P/

 

$879 from Other World Computing. A few weeks ago it was $1,400, I hope it will continue to drop in price. Of course the 8 GB expansion is less than $70, that's what I got.

 

Omnisphere does work reliably on the Receptor, but it's a total PITA to edit. Controls respond sluggishly and elements of the GUI blink constantly. Receptors do a great job running Ivory, Komplete 7 and many other VSTs. If a Receptor will run what you need I think it's an excellent solution for live performance, especially touring.

[johnchop]

Omnisphere does work reliably on the Receptor, but it's a total PITA to edit. Controls respond sluggishly and elements of the GUI blink constantly.

 

I heard about the blinking but didn't realize it was that much of an issue. Hrm... would need to defer purchase until that calms down, or just edit on the computer and transfer patches.

[Cadmann]

I'm not trying to bump my thread here, guys, but after all the great advice and support you've given me over the past two weeks, I felt I should announce the new addition to my family. It's 51 inches long, weighs in at 41 pounds and is red as a firetruck. Yes, I got the Nord Stage 2! It was somewhat painful, but my credit card is resting comfortably. Unfortunately, the actual delivery probably won't be until the first week of October. I got the last of a 12-unit shipment (I'm told) that Musicians Friend is getting from Sweden on Sept. 30. I'm already going crazy waiting for it.

 

It was a tough choice, so I'm not going to dwell on the Receptor for fear my buyers remorse will flare up. But I'm definitely looking forward being a one-board man for live shows.

 

Thanks again!