Nords, they're everywhere. Should they be?

[Krakit]

Looks like everyone plays a Nord doesn't it? They're so ubiquitous it's a wonder how everyone can afford one of these things. 

I can't justify the cost myself, but seems like everyone else out there can. 

 

Does anyone feel any pressure to save up for a Nord? Those that have them, are they the pinnacle in your opinion? Why'd you get one? 

 

[Doerfler]

can't wait for this, should be fun.  

[timwat]

Yup, long time driver of a Nord Wave. I got it as I needed a 2nd board to complement the Kronos in a 2-board rig. The Wave accomplishes that in spades - it sounds NOTHING like the Kronos, cuts through any mix, is incredibly flexible, rewards the programmer with a bit of experience in subtractive, and loads samples to boot.

 

It's a wonderful machine, built like a tank, quality, stability, longevity. And the accompanying software works well (there's a manager/librarian and a sample editor), is easy to understand. A lot of thought went into the design, panel layout, and controllers (including the positioning of the wood pitch stick and wheel. I think it's a marvelously designed instrument. Not at all like an anemic linux computer duct-taped to a Fatar key bed. It feels like an instrument.

 

I haven't ever owned an Electro or Stage, but the few times I've played them, they also seemed to play like well-built, well-designed instruments. I don't know if they are the "pinnacle" - but they are certainly very good choices for what they do - which is quite a bit different than workstations or attempts to be encompass all things for all players.

 

How does anyone afford them? That's actually a rather simple answer - it's not easy, just not complex.

 

At the risk of being Captain Obvious, one practices the discipline of delayed gratification, saving up for it a bit at a time. If a gigging player needs a good tool for the job, one is well advised to save for the best tool - buy quality, buy once. For a lot of uses, a Nord may be that best tool.

 

 

 

Or, I suppose I could have said:

 

Mac, never a PC.

 

No, man, PC, never a Mac.

[AUSSIEKEYS]

Well i was turned off them the first time i tried out the first Stage model in a shop when i was searching to buy a portable band board. 

 

What turned me off...well the keybed felt like playing on squishy slugs (over here thats a snail without a shell not a fake coin).

 

So i was actually shopping for a board but It totally destroyed any inkling of gigging with a Stage plus at 18kg it was not light enough to put up with a bad keybed.

 

I bought a Casio Privia instead because it felt good and was light weight. Had I waited longer the PX5s came out which would have given me the stuff from the stage i missed out on on the Privia. But i decided to stick with the Privia as i didnt want to keep spending and swapping.

 

But to me feel of keybed and lugging weight beat out against the stage and other contenders. First thing i check now is actual weight if its over 12kg then im out. If its weighted its got to feel like a piano not a field of slugs chomping on lettuce.

 

Im guessing the later Stages improved the keybed feel although still at a heavy 18kg id guess. But they lost me because of the keybed feel.

 

Oh yes in the days before Nord I always wanted red keyboards because i had a Vox Jaguar. I thought to paint the casio but then Nords became common so i didnt want to be another red keyboard warrior.

[zephonic]

 

I was the first one to purchase the original Nord Lead when it was released in the Netherlands. Replaced it with a Nord Lead 2 when I forgot the original one on the train. 
 

Now those were great at the time, and virtual analog wasn’t as ubiquitous then as it is now.

 

However, I eventually sold the 2 when I emigrated and with the proliferation of ever better softsynths I felt no need to replace it.

 

Bought a used Nord Piano 1 in 2012, which was great at the time, but I wouldn’t have spent the MSRP money on it. I sold it a few years ago as I needed a more versatile bottom-tier board.

 

I can’t say I miss them. I like the immediacy of the NL, with the one button-per-function, but at this point I feel the competition is just as good (or better) at lower prices.

edit:

I will say that non-keyboardists seem to think Nords constitute premium instruments. They take them a lot more serious than most keyboardists I know.
 

 

[AUSSIEKEYS]

1 minute ago, zephonic said:

 

I was the first one to purchase the original Nord Lead when it was released in the Netherlands. Replaced it with a Nord Lead 2 when I forgot the original one on the train. 

 

Holy crap that would have traumatised me for years. Is there an interesting story to that?

[Docbop]

Funny how Nord threads are always love 'em or hate 'em never seems to be a middle ground.    It's almost like it should be no discussing politics, religion, or Nords. 

[Mighty Motif Max]

Here's my take...Nords serve very specific needs, mainly for people who really just want organ, acoustic piano, and EP's, with a little synth/sample here and there (the Wave notwithstanding). Folks who maybe don't even have much of a use for pitch/mod wheels are a target for the Electro line in particular. I used to be a Nord detractor, but that was because I hadn't heard their newer AP samples or played one with a non-HP action. These days, I think they are nice for certain purposes, but have odd limitations in other areas. My ideal use case would be a jazz trio/quartet setting with mostly acoustic piano with a smattering of EP's and organs. Because their pianos are, like, really good (at least the newer samples). Or a great board if you are in a band with a second keyboard player who covers synths/strings/brass etc. I do think that they have priced themselves out a bit much, at least in the US, for the Stage 3 88, which is their only non-Piano model that has a good weighted action. $5,300 before tax is getting up there.

 

I do find it interesting how many people buy the Stage models and then just use them as glorified midi controllers with Mainstage and such; that's one expensive controller considering you basically have a slightly-tweaked TP-40 action with pitch/mod and limited split capabilities (sure, you can overcome the split stuff by doing all your mapping/zoning in software). I mean, that's basically a Studiologic SL88 Grand for a lot more money and a red paint job (plus having more flexible splits, and you can add a Mixface and get lots more controllers too).

 

My thread from a few months back with assorted commentary: https://forums.musicplayer.com/topic/183290-played-some-nords-recentlyextended-commentary/#comments

 

Edit: oh yeah, one other thing. I do feel like the red look does help people notice the keys player. Is that worth over 5K? Probably not, but I do like the look.

[zephonic]

10 minutes ago, AUSSIEKEYS said:

 

Holy crap that would have traumatised me for years. Is there an interesting story to that?

 

You bet. Not just once, no sir, I'm the guy who left his Nord Lead on the train twice.

 

Think I've told it before here on the forum, many years ago, so apologies to those who already know it.

 

It was back when I lived in the Netherlands, I had done a late night session at some studio and took the night train back to my home town. Fell asleep to some Snoop on my DiscMan and nearly missed my stop. I woke up with a start and rushed out of the train just before the doors closed. I didn't even realize I had left my keyboard behind until the next day. I panicked, called the station, and the next station where by some miracle it had been found on the platform. You can imagine my relief.

 

But as great as my relief was, it was not as great as my self-loathing when I left it on the train again a few months later. This time it was a train that went all the way to Paris, and it was not found again. I replaced it with a NordLead2 which had four times the polyphony, but somehow it never had the magic that my original one had.

 

[zephonic]

1 minute ago, Docbop said:

Funny how Nord threads are always love 'em or hate 'em never seems to be a middle ground.    It's almost like it should be no discussing politics, religion, or Nords. 

 

I thought my take was pretty much in the middle? 

 

Don't love them, don't hate them. 

[AUSSIEKEYS]

Just now, zephonic said:

 

You bet. Not just once, no sir, I'm the guy who left his Nord Lead on the train twice.

 

Oh man that is priceless. Best nord story ive heard.

 

I think ive just invented a "forgetmenot" device for your train travelling. Simply buy a surfboard leash. Connect it to your wrist and the Nord and youll never forget it.

 

Or youll be pulled along by the guy who tried to steal it when you were asleep.

[zephonic]

Just now, AUSSIEKEYS said:

 

Oh man that is priceless. Best nord story ive heard.

 

I think ive just invented a "forgetmenot" device for your train travelling. Simply buy a surfboard leash. Connect it to your wrist and the Nord and youll never forget it.

 

Or youll be pulled along by the guy who tried to steal it when you were asleep.

 

My solution was to move to places where we don't ride no stinkin' trains!

 

(or at least not when schlepping gear)

[CEB]

For Skyrim. 

[Mike Kent]

Pros and Cons. It's a bit difficult to justify the new price, IMO. On the other hand, I own one. Hypocritical?

 

I stumbled across a rare deal at 60% off new price for a current model Nord Electro 6HP - it is worth that. I was kind of looking, albeit a bit reluctantly. As musical director in a church and playing in several other groups, I felt some pressure to get a Nord. Every keyboard player in worship videos is shown playing a Nord. The visibility of the red pays off on stage or video. Some of the people I play with (non-keyboard players) assume that serious players all use a Nord. In spite of my reservations and my opinion that they are somewhat overpriced, I found that I really like mine. It is justifiable for me at the discounted price I paid - mostly as a piano.

 

The piano library is good, very good. There is a great variety and they are easy to swap in and out of memory with a straight ahead software application. With lots of memory in this model, I have mine loaded with 9 grand pianos, 2 uprights, 7 Rhodes, and a couple of Wurlitzers. I find the grand pianos have more character than the more perfected pianos in my Yamaha YC-61. Not better, just different. The Yamaha is probably better for electric pianos. I know people don't like the Nord HP key action, but it doesn't bother me.

 

The rest of the sounds are passable, most not competitive to the alternatives such as Yamaha and Roland. The sample player in my Electro is too limited (Stage would be better), but adequate to layer pads with a piano and as a 2nd board behind a more capable synthesizer. There are some nice sounds in the library. At least their software application makes it easy to put new samples in and there are lots to choose from. The organ is barely usable - okay hidden behind a band.

 

There are plenty of great alternatives for less. But I appreciate mine as a great piano. And it is Red.

[Shamanzarek]

One way to acquire a Nord is to take advantage of Guitar Center's 48 mo. no interest financing. Other dealers have 0% interest payment plans but GC has the longest term I know of. The $5299 Nord Stage 3 88-key payment is $111 mo. Sometimes a B-stock or open-box deal comes along. That's how I was able to get a great deal on a Stage 3 Compact.

[Dockeys]

I’ve never been a fan. I like the sounds but I think the interface is a mess. Too many buttons and not logical to my mind. I had to use a Nord stage as a back line a few years ago for a fly in gig and I hated every minute of it. I spent lots of time beforehand brushing up on the interface so I could organise splits and layers but couldn’t get it sorted on the day. Added to that their prices have always been absurd especially when you consider what they offer. And the keybed actions are at best meh. Put me firmly in the “not for me” camp. Of course ymmv. 

[CyberGene]

I’ve tried Nord Electro with hammer action that felt horrible, it’s that awful TP-100LR. It’s beyond me how one can use that action in an instrument that costs more than €330. Mind you, I couldn’t stand it even in my €330 Studiologic SL73. But each to their own. I’ve also tried a Nord Piano that had OK-ish action but the piano sounds just didn’t feel connected to the action. I like their ergonomic though. But then there’s the Yamaha CP/YC with so much better action and sounds. 

[Krakit]

The whole Nord thing reminds me of how the DX7 dominated everything in the 80s. I almost bought one but in the end got a Roland JX-8P instead and never regretted it even to this day. 

 

I feel that Nord's marketing is just a juggernaut that won't quit. Kinda like Teenage Engineering in that regard. 

 

[16251]

[ElmerJFudd]

😂😂😂 

 

Nord addressed a market for lighter weight keyboards of better quality build with a tactile easier to use interface.  They allow us to pick what sound sets are most useful to us by offering access to their own growing proprietary  samples and a simple sampler w/ software.  

Nord does not have as Robust a workstation as far as features go as their competitors who come in at better price points.  
 

Nord does not have access to the best synth or piano actions in their designs.   The Grand has an action built for them by Kawai.  
 

I don’t have a desire for Nord.   But I understand why others choose them.  Their pricing in the US market is cost prohibitive for me compared to their competitors who offer either greater functionality or better actions (or both) at a better price point.  
 

 

 

 

[nadroj]

6 hours ago, CEB said:

For Skyrim. 

True Nords never back down. 

[kaptainkeys]

4 hours ago, SynMike said:

Some of the people I play with (non-keyboard players) assume that serious players all use a Nord.

Not just the people you play with!  I was talking with a member of my extended family (how we are related is a very, very, long story) who is a singer in a number of wedding bands in my area and I mentioned to him that I was looking to buy a workstation, and he said he'll keep his eyes out for some deals on some private facebook groups he's a part of.  He then asked me if I was interested in a Nord, because that is what most of the really good players in the area have.  I told him that I wish I could afford a Nord made in this century, let alone this decade.

[ewall08530]

   I’ve been buying and playing Clavia Nord keyboards since 2002.  Before that I’d spent 

30 years in bands  that had a 2 man crew that doubled as light man, sound man and, roadies. 
I’d always had multiple keyboard rigs that at times included a Hammond C3 chop, Fender Rhodes, A200 Wurlitzer, etc.  

   After leaving a band that I was in for 16 years I was looking to play more locally and reduce the size and weight of my rig. That’s when I bought my first Nord Electro with money from selling my Hammond and some other gear (which I still regret). The Electro over a lower board for piano was the beginning. Later I was able to successfully gig mostly with 1 keyboard thanks to the Nord Stage 2 -76. I’ve always found that Nords hold they’re value as much as anything I’ve seen and they have been super dependable, fun to play and program and continually lusted after and in demand.

   The sum total of problems I’ve had with my Nord experience is in 2015 I had 3 key contacts replaced on a Nord Electro 3!  I have owned:

 

-original Electro

-Electro Rack

-Electro 2

-Electro 3 (twice)

-Electro 3 HP73

-Stage 2 -76. (still own, 10years)

-Stage 3 Compact. (still own, 4years)

 

Since the pandemic the prices for Nords has risen dramatically. I may someday soon sell the Stage 2-76 but at 72 years of age I believe the Stage 3 compact will stay mine for “the duration”.  My desire to play band gigs has dwindled to about 2 a month and I’m doing 95% of playing as solo/ duo on the Casio S-7000 or Kawai ES520. 

 

 

 

 

 

-

 

[Adam Burgess]

I loved my Stage2 (and a Kronos 61) rig. 
 

Only sold the Stage as for around 2 years I did more or less piano only gigs. Just stayed in the case. Thought that was a waste.

 

I did buy it in 2011/12 when I had a free hotel room and F&B getting paid relatively well, however. It was a bit of a self-indulgent purchase for sure, and did I feel a bit special? Yeah, I think I did!

 

Build quality was really very good, I thought. It did have that finger/ear connection with me, although it didn’t feel the best. Almost an oxymoron, there…

[Al Quinn]

I had a Stage 2 88 and an Electro 4D for a few years each. Neither lived up to my hopes and expectations. I never warmed up to the action and finger-to-ear connection. The APs sounded great when someone else played them but left me cold when I played. The Hammond organ was very good but not great. I hated the Electro action and swapped out the springs with lighter springs which made it much more playable. I didn’t like the horns or strings, but the synth in the Stage was a blast. I enjoyed the EPs and the user interface. With the Nords I found myself spending a lot of time trying out different APs and EPs whereas with Yamaha I pretty much just turn them on and play — I much prefer playing to fiddling around with a lot of sounds that, in the end, come up short. The crazy thing is that when I used the Nords for studio recordings the APs sounded wonderful. I don’t quite understand why they fell short for me on gigs. The Yamaha YC73 I bought a few months ago is close to everything I wished my Nords were. I’m very happy with it. I never played a Nord Lead or Wave.

[stillearning]

(puts on old man ‘you kids get off my lawn’ hat)

 

I started playing in the very late 60’s. Rigs back then consisted of multiple instruments. Eventually I went through a Baldwin Electropiano, Baldwin Solid Body Harpsichord (still have it), Yamaha organ w/Leslie 145, Yamaha CP30 EP, and eventually dozens of synths… Minimoog, Odyssey, Quadra, Prophet 5, and then onto various workstations too numerous to mention and racks full of modules.

 

I could never have dreamed that someday in the future, 1 keyboard could more or less replace them all. For me, the Nord Stage 3 88 I own is as if someone in Sweden crawled into my head and built it from my imagination. Knobby, very little menu diving, I can creat patches in seconds. Gigging Nirvana.

 

Pricey? Maybe. But consider back in the late 80’s, an Arp Quadra listed at $5000, Prophet 5 about $3500. What would that be in today’s dollars? I shudder to think. We saved up. “But Mom, I’m in a band that’s gonna be famous someday!” To me, Nords are worth every penny. Yeah, I’m a fanboi, but only because it fits my gigging needs perfectly. 
 

Oh, and the operator’s manual is a pamphlet, not a tome.

 

Of course, big multi keyboard rigs looked cool.

 

(old man hat off, sorry, carry on)

 

 

 

 

[ElmerJFudd]

19 minutes ago, stillearning said:

(puts on old man ‘you kids get off my lawn’ hat)

 

I started playing in the very late 60’s. Rigs back then consisted of multiple instruments. Eventually I went through a Baldwin Electropiano, Baldwin Solid Body Harpsichord (still have it), Yamaha organ w/Leslie 145, Yamaha CP30 EP, and eventually dozens of synths… Minimoog, Odyssey, Quadra, Prophet 5, and then onto various workstations too numerous to mention and racks full of modules.

 

I could never have dreamed that someday in the future, 1 keyboard could more or less replace them all. For me, the Nord Stage 3 88 I own is as if someone in Sweden crawled into my head and built it from my imagination. Knobby, very little menu diving, I can creat patches in seconds. Gigging Nirvana.

 

Pricey? Maybe. But consider back in the late 80’s, an Arp Quadra listed at $5000, Prophet 5 about $3500. What would that be in today’s dollars? I shudder to think. We saved up. “But Mom, I’m in a band that’s gonna be famous someday!” To me, Nords are worth every penny. Yeah, I’m a fanboi, but only because it fits my gigging needs perfectly. 
 

Oh, and the operator’s manual is a pamphlet, not a tome.

 

Of course, big multi keyboard rigs looked cool.

 

(old man hat off, sorry, carry on)

 

 

 

 

🤷‍♂️ most of the  digital keyboards available on the market at a wide variety of  price points have the same advantage of replacing a truckload of analogue, electro mechanical and acoustic instruments and gear.   

[cphollis]

" ... it should be no discussing politics, religion, or Nords."  So true.

 

Another longtime fanboi here who would credit them with changing my entire approach to gigging.  

 

Prior to Nords: multiple keyboards, external effects, manual re-patching between songs, etc.  Gigs were exhausting that way, and I was always one mistake away from a sonic disaster -- like intending to call up the singing angels, but getting the quacking ducks instead (true story).

 

The Stage 2 did enough that I could get 98% of what I needed (pianos, organs, synths, samples) on a single board.  After a short learning curve, it was all very intuitive and obvious how to drive the thing.  That meant I could focus much more on the music and the moment -- which was a big shift for me!

 

When the NS3C came along, that checked even more boxes for me, especially with a weighted piano controller down below.  I code up my set lists ahead of time, and then enjoy the night going from song to song, making small tweaks from the front panel as the situation dictates.  

 

As others have noted:

- they can sound absolutely great

- they are built like tanks -- I've never had a really broken one, just slightly damaged

- there is great software and a great community behind them

- they feel like real musical instruments vs. a circuit board with plastic keys attached

- you're ready for just about any gig that comes your way

- they have excellent resale value and look great on stage

 

My only negative is that it's a seriously dated architecture: memory, USB, effects section, etc.  But I could say the same thing for other popular keyboards.

 

-- Chuck

 

 

[ABECK]

8 hours ago, Mighty Motif Max said:

 

I do find it interesting how many people buy the Stage models and then just use them as glorified midi controllers with Mainstage and such

Yeah, that one always makes me tilt my head like a confused German Shephard.  

[AnotherScott]

10 hours ago, Krakit said:

They're so ubiquitous it's a wonder how everyone can afford one of these things. 

I can't justify the cost myself, but seems like everyone else out there can.

Those are really two different question... can you afford it, and can you justify it.

 

People can "afford" a whole lot of things that others may find of questionable value. Lots of people choose to buy a car that is thousands of dollars more than some other car that would get them where they're going just as reliably, just as safely, still with the amount of people/stuff they need to carry. Not everyone, by any means, but a whole lot. Other people spend thousands on vacations. Other people spend thousands every year dining out. Heck, if you want to talk about poor investment of huge sums of money, some people even choose to have children! ;-) What your priorities are and so what you can "justify" can really be a different question from what you can afford.

 

And as stilllearning said, adjusted for inflation, Nords are still cheaper than lots of what people used to buy. The DX7 was considered a tremendous value and was one of the biggest selling keyboards of all time. Adjusted for inflation, that $1995 DX7 in 1983 would be almost $6k today.

 

(Also, not everyone who has a Nord is paying what you may be thinking of as "Nord prices." Relative to other boards, the Nord premium is bigger in the U.S. than it is in Europe, for example. And people can also buy them used, which reduces the premium as well.)

 

The funny thing is, I remember Nord as being a somewhat high value brand! Back in the days of the Electro 2.

 

But what does make them worth a premium for so many people? I suppose for some people, it could be something of a status thing, as with any other commodity that has a cachet. But I think that often nothing else has a particular set of attributes you may be looking for, e.g....

 

...Nords do sometimes fill particular niches especially well. Coincidentally, I just similarly posted in the YC/CP thread about how, if you want an "upper tier" board over a piano-type of board that will give you the full benefits of both a clonewheel and a knobby poly synth by adding just one board instead of two, Nord Stage 3 is basically the only game in town (maybe also the Fantom, at higher weight). And I think the Nord Lead 3 still has the best operational interface of any knobby synth (if you want to work with recallable presets and not just from a dedicated front panel).

 

...Even something probably more universally appealing and as seemingly simple as "a single, lightweight, easy to use board that gives me a really good organ and a really good piano" was, for a long time, probably the exclusive niche of the Nord Electro series. Some might say it still is, maybe apart from the Yamaha YC. How many other boards are people likely to think are competitive with Nord in organ AND competitive with Nord in piano? I think almost every piano+organ board is widely thought to lag Nord in either piano or organ.

 

... Even just for piano alone, I think Nord remains unique in its combination of sound quality, variety of piano sounds of different character, and portability. (As an aside, years ago, I did a pretty thorough comparison of sounds alone, and at the time, having played virtually every piano board in existence, the only one I thought sounded better than the Nord was the Kawai MP10, but at 70 lbs, that was out of the question for me.)

 

But basically, I think Nord prioritizes two things with mass appeal: Ease of use and light weight. And for a long time, almost no one else did, and even now, few do it as well. Maybe that's all I had to type. ;-)

 

9 hours ago, Mighty Motif Max said:

I do find it interesting how many people buy the Stage models and then just use them as glorified midi controllers with Mainstage and such; that's one expensive controller considering you basically have a slightly-tweaked TP-40 action with pitch/mod and limited split capabilities (sure, you can overcome the split stuff by doing all your mapping/zoning in software). I mean, that's basically a Studiologic SL88 Grand for a lot more money and a red paint job

 

48 minutes ago, ABECK said:

Yeah, that one always makes me tilt my head like a confused German Shephard.  

 

While a pricey way to go, I get why someone could see it as one of the best controllers. If you want a controller where all the organ controls and all the synth controls are logically laid out and appropriately sized/grouped/labeled for their intended functions, what's better than a Stage? A bunch of generic identical sliders and knobs in rows makes me feel like I'm operating a computer. A control surface that is actually intelligently designed for the particular tasks at hand makes it feel more like playing an instrument, IMO.

 

5 hours ago, Dockeys said:

I’ve never been a fan. I like the sounds but I think the interface is a mess. Too many buttons and not logical to my mind. I had to use a Nord stage as a back line a few years ago for a fly in gig and I hated every minute of it. I spent lots of time beforehand brushing up on the interface so I could organise splits and layers but couldn’t get it sorted on the day. 

 

While the Stage is relatively simple in operation for what it does, it is perhaps the most complicated Nord. There are two things you have to make sure you understand before you start, which will make it a lot easier (and which Nord could have designed to make less obtuse)...

 

...It's really two identical keyboards in one chassis, and you toggle the front panel to be operating one or the other at any given time. This is the single thing that makes the board virtually incomprehensible if you simply walked up to one and started playing. It would help if the "Panel A and B" selection buttons had been implemented more clearly. The patterns of lit versus unlit versus flashing LEDs is not immediately communicative or obvious. Instead, imagine if the Panel A and Panel B buttons each had two distinct, labeled LEDs next to them, one indicating whether the panel was audibly on or off, and one indicating whether the Panel was or was not live for editing. That would make it immediately easier.

 

...There are a whole bunch of functions you access by holding the shift key. This could have been made more clear if the text for the shift functions were printed in a different color from the main functions (say, yellow), with the shift button itself made that same color. As it is, though, that functionality is not immediately obvious, it's something you need to learn/discover, and even then, it's somehow not really quick to see the association as currently indicated merely by the position of the text relative to the control.

 

Get really comfortable with those two aspects of the implementation, and 95% of the board's operation falls into place, IMO.

 

But absent that background, I think a Nord Stage is a terrible thing to provide as a backline instrument unless someone knows and specifically requests it. It's one of the easiest to use if you have prior experience, but almost unusable if you don't. Even finding patches is a chore. It really requires that you set up your patches the way you want them, compared to other boards where you can more easily search for the kind of sound you're looking for.