Alternative to Nord Electro?

[fundikira]

Hey

 

I desperately want a Nord Electro. Unfortunately my finance situation will

not allow it. So I'm looking for an alternative to the nord Electro. What

I need is a good piano sound, a good rhodes sound, and some good organ. I guess

I could sacrifice having the whole hammond emulation the nord offers, but I

definitely need some good Hammond sounds on different settings to make up for it.

I would really like the Whurly and Clavinet sounds, but am willing to

sacrifice them if need be. I guess I am just looking for quality in those

three areas, and a cheap price. Also, I'm looking for a hardware

alternative only, as i'd be using it for gigs.

I currently have a Gem prp7, which is ok

for rhodes, but pretty shitty for piano and organ.

 

So what other set-ups would you recommend considering these factors?

 

Otherwise, does anyone have any good ideas about getting an electro for a

cheap price (esp. in Australia)?

 

thanks

[Analogaddict]

I´d sell the GEM and get an Electro rack and a used Fatar SL 760 or something similar. That kind of setup would work without costing a fortune. Myself, I use an Electro rack with an oldie-but-goldie Roland A-50, and it works great for me. The Roland A-33 has piano-style keys that don´t hurt your hands like synth keys can when you´re doing organ smears. Don´t worry about pedals and MIDI; all the pedal connections you know from the keyboard version are also to be found on the rack. This is worth a mention, since the Fatars only transmit CC pedal as CC07, master volume, instead of the CC11 you´ll want. You can use one CC pedal for expression connected to the rack, and another connected to the Fatar for master volume. On my A-50 you can change all these preferences. Good luck!

 

/J nas

[eric]

If you want this all in one keyboard, there are not many other solutions that do what the Electro will do. That said, you can start shopping around for a good price. I recommend that you investigate BT Productions for an Electro (Tony LeBrasca). He's a great guy and will very likely have a better price for you than most of the huge catalog shops.

 

If the Electro is still out of your league, look into something like a used Roland XP30 with the 60's/70's expansion board.

 

Regards,

Eric

[b3keys]

If you don't need the keys, then check out the new E-mu 60s/70s/80s module.

[Jdub2k1]

Man, I hate to sound like a scratched record that keeps saying the same thing but here it goes...If I were you, I would get a used Voce V5 for about $400, throw in a Hughes and Kettner Tube Rotosphere or Voce Spin leslie sim for $200 used, and either the Kurzweil micro piano module or Voce electric piano module for about $200. Now, if you can survive the evil of wal-wart power supplies and midi cables, you have a very strong organ, rhodes, and clav setup for about $800.

[Botch.]

If you can deal with only 61 keys, you can pick up the Emu Proteus Keys for $599 right now from Guitar Center, won't sound as good as the Electro but not bad!

[fundikira]

Originally posted by b3keys:

If you don't need the keys, then check out the new E-mu 60s/70s/80s module.

What is this? Does it have another name? I can't seem to find it on the E-mu website. Also, thanks alot for your questions, and does anyone know any sites where i could hear some audio files of the modules + keyboards you have been suggesting?

 

Thanks

[Cowfingers]

Originally posted by fundikira:

Originally posted by b3keys:

If you don't need the keys, then check out the new E-mu 60s/70s/80s module.

What is this? Does it have another name? I can't seem to find it on the E-mu website.

 

Thanks

Yeah i cant find it either - does it exist or is it out of production?

[joegerardi]

It's called the Vintage pro. It's the successor to the early 90's module, The Vintage keys, and Vintage Keys Pro. This is the press release:

 

E-MU ANNOUNCES VINTAGE PRO SOUND MODULE Most comprehensive collection of '60's, '70's and '80's Keyboard Sounds

 

SCOTTS VALLEY, CA. - November 1, 2002 - E-MU® Systems has announced the new Vintage Pro, a sound module that delivers the classic keyboard sounds of '60's, '70's and '80's in one rackspace. E-MU has loaded Vintage Pro with a host of brand-new keyboard samples - everything from analog and digital synthesizers to suitcase pianos and more - and topped off this incredible collection with hand-picked samples from its acclaimed B-3 module. Vintage Pro ships late November and retails for US $795.

 

Classic Keyboard Sounds, Cutting-edge Power Vintage Pro features a 32 MB soundset that offers the most extensive single collection of sampled vintage keyboards from the '60's, '70's and '80's ever collected, topped-off with an assortment of samples from E-MU's B-3 module. Vintage Pro delivers the keyboard sounds that defined three decades of music in a cutting-edge, one rackspace sound module with all of the performance of E-MU's most powerful sound engine. Meticulously sampled from the finest vintage instruments available, E-MU set out to offer touring and studio musicians an all-in-one, no-compromise source for all of their classic keyboard sounds. Product Manager Sean Wilhelmsen explains "Vintage Pro is an indispensable tool for musicians playing almost any kind of music - from classic rock and blues purists to the latest in dance music productions - these keyboard sounds have a timeless appeal that are heard in almost every genre of music. Being able to carry an arsenal of classic keyboards in a one rackspace module is a dream - especially when they sound this good." he concludes. You can also expand your available sound palette with up to three additional Proteus® Expansion ROMs, allowing you to customize the soundset to fit your specific needs. With 128 voice polyphony, 6 analog outputs, digital output and real-time control knobs and features, Vintage Pro gives you all of the classic keyboard sounds with all of the power (and stability) of E-MU's cutting-edge sound engine.

 

Classic Hardware Style Vintage Pro not only delivers a host of classic tones, but offers them in a stunning, one-rackspace design complete with retro knobs and faceplate. "Vintage Pro soundset just oozes history," explains Sean Wilhelmsen, "and we wanted the module's design to exude some of that vibe. Each of the keyboards that we sampled had its own identity, both sonically and from a design standpoint - we just couldn't offer this incredible soundset in a plain brown wrapper." The retro knobs don't just look great - they are programmable, real-time controllers that give you an incredible amount of control over a host of synthesis parameters, especially for tweaking the assortment of analog and FM synthesizers under the hood. With all of its incredible sounds, power and looks, there's only one way to describe Vintage Pro - instant classic.

 

About E-MU Systems

 

Founded in 1972, E-MU Systems develops digital audio and music products based on digital sampling technology for professional musicians, sound designers, composers and audio engineers worldwide. E-MU Systems is a wholly owned subsidiary of Creative Technology Ltd. (NASDAQ: CREAF). Visit our Web site at www.emu.com.

[Cowfingers]

mmm...tasty.

does anyone recon on it being likely that an expansion Rom of 60's/70's keys being released by E-mu at any stage?

though looking at the website, there is a ROM there called 'Proteus Pop Collection' which seems to have a pretty big selection of rhodes/wurlies/clavs etc...anyone know if its any good?