Infusion Posted February 28, 2005 Share Posted February 28, 2005 I've got the opportunity to get a NL3 at a reasonable price. I've been interested in adding a VA to my setup. What's your opinion on the Nords and that particular pallette. I do mostly jazz/fusion. I'm trying to avoid any redundancies if I can. My setup:SGproXFantomMotif rackTriton RackVoceV3/Motionsound R3-147 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Analogaddict Posted February 28, 2005 Share Posted February 28, 2005 The Nord is a great addition to almost any setup. I´d take a look at the Ion too, but the Lead 3 is a great synth, and I don´t think it will disappoint you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tusker Posted February 28, 2005 Share Posted February 28, 2005 The nords add a VA sound that's pretty close to traditional analog. And a palette of additional sounds that can range from DX7ish to industrial/grungy. You'll certainly add something you don't currently have. Joe Zawinul is using an NL3 at the moment I believe. And there are a number of fusion tracks from the GRP group (Dave/Don Grusin et al) as well as Pat Metheny stuff that works well with a class of analogish timbres. Not to mention Herbie and Chick. For leads, but also for pads and comping things. Apart from that "traditional" fusion sound, there are a number of nontraditional things you can do with a VA. You could also buy the moss board for your Triton, but your current setup does not offer the timbral control you would get by adding a VA or RA. The question to you would to what degree you want change your current style of play. For simply playing up a lyle mays square wave lead, your romplers might be fine. But if you want to pull that flut-ey lead down into the tenor range and play with some unusual timbral changes ... for some part of a solo. Well I imagine that would be a departure from what you are currently doing. It would require something different from your synth rig, but also from you. Is that sort of stuff attractive to you? The NL3 keyboard is a little on the light side, but the rest of the controller (and morph) capability is world class, IMO. As is the sound. Even though it is not as immediately warm, hearty and effusive as some RA's it is extremely clear and compelling in it's own way. Jerry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mildbill Posted February 28, 2005 Share Posted February 28, 2005 have you auditioned it?you'll probably know right away if it's for you or not.my opinion - go for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infusion Posted February 28, 2005 Author Share Posted February 28, 2005 I auditioned it briefly. Basically the banks are filled with lots and lots of "Techno" patches that are unusable for me. I hate techno.......but I digress. I do think with enough time and effort, I can shape and eventually tweak some really nice/fat lead lines for fusion and jazz. Am I correct in that assumption? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tusker Posted February 28, 2005 Share Posted February 28, 2005 I'd hesitate to make that assumption. One person's fat lead sound is another person's weak sound. If that's what your ears are saying about the essential character of the synth, I'd listen to that. While the NL3 appears closer to analogue than the previous Nord DSP's, it is still a Nord sound of sort. And it is a VA, which to many ears is clearly not as nice and fat as analog. Have you tried Andromeda, DSI poly evolver or (gulp) a Minimoog Voyager? Perhaps you should also try the Access Virus and the Alesis Ion. Both of them are capable of warm sounds ... at least far as VA's are concerned. Best, Jerry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeT156 Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 The Nord Lead 3 is a nice synth. Very good quality. I think it sounds a bit more "digital" than what I like, but then don't pay too much attention to the factory patches. Techno is so big in Europe, so that shows up in the factory patches. You can do your own sounds, it has the tools to create your own stuff. I have an ION, and Alesis has done a great job of making an inexpensive synth to do the classic analog sounds. The place where all VA's fall a little short is in the filters, they're not quite as gutsy as RA. But that's splitting hairs, its marginal. The way I look at it, I can play around to my heart's content with my RA at home, and take the ION out to live gigs. It's a bargain. If you lust after the RA sound, the DSI KB Evolver is the pick of the litter IMO. It is capable of doing the traditional RA sounds, and with 4 individual voices and a sequencer for each voice, you can create some things on that you won't get out of other synths in that price range. I'm plotting on where I can round up the money to get one, legally. Mike T. Yamaha Motif ES8, Alesis Ion, Prophet 5 Rev 3.2, 1979 Rhodes Mark 1 Suitcase 73 Piano, Arp Odyssey Md III, Roland R-70 Drum Machine, Digitech Vocalist Live Pro. Roland Boss Chorus Ensemble CE-1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yannis D Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 I remember listening to keyboardist Scott Kinsey playing a Nord Lead 2 (wich has many similarities to NL3) in a Miles Davis tribute, with a bunch of top nocth players. The CD is called "Animation/Imagination" and i've got the live version, from Montreal Jazz Fest - buy it if you find it (it's on Blue Note records) as it will give you an idea of the Nord keyboard on jazz/fusion context. Kinsey plays superb lines on the Nord: not only the classic fat almost alanlog leads, but comping and soundscapes as well. RegardsYannis Be grateful for what you've got - a Nord, a laptop and two hands Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monkey Mouse Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 The nords are great machines - I have a 2X rack and love it. I will say that the 1&2 are different than the 3 in both sound and interface, but having a 2 and a 3 in a setup would not be redundant by all that much. However, you might want to look at the 2 because of the fact of price and sound - you might prefer the 2 over the 3 if you compare head to head. You also might want to look at the Virus classic, which is about the same $ as a 2X and has a different sound. Live 6, Battery 3, Project 5, Atmosphere, Albino 2, Minimoog V, Oddity, Nord 2X, Proteus 2K ***I can't play for sh*t, but I can sequence like a muthaf*ck*r*** Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infusion Posted March 1, 2005 Author Share Posted March 1, 2005 I saw Scott Kinsey on Matt Garrison's DVD. He was playing a Nord and I really dug his sound. Saw H. Hancock and he was jamminig on a Nord aswell. Been playing with the NL3 a bit more and it's growing on me. It's the same ole story. You buy a new keyboard and it's filled with crazy unusable "sound effects". But it's just a matter of getting inside of it and tweaking things. Of course, it's always nice when things are playable right out of the box. Just call me lazy. The Nord doesn't have built in effects on board, which is kind of a bummer. Reverbs, delays and chorus are always useful, but no biggie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tusker Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 When I got my Nord Modular (similar DSP to NL1 and NL2) it took me several months to accept it's exuberent personality. You could diminish the personality, but then you also diminished it's impact. Now a number of it's basic sounds have colorations and richness that I did not hear before. But that kind of adjustment is not for everyone. Jerry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infusion Posted March 1, 2005 Author Share Posted March 1, 2005 I hope the 1 & 2 aren't too different from the 3. I auditioned a NL1 at Sam Ash a few years ago and it had this one patch that has just stayed in my head after all this time. I desperately want to achieve that particular patch again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mildbill Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 you have a motif rack and a triton rack so i assume you're ok with modules? you may want to seriously consider a nord lead 2x rack and a virus classic desktop - you can get both for about the price of a NL3 keyboard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Botch. Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 Originally posted by mildbill: you have a motif rack and a triton rack so i assume you're ok with modules? you may want to seriously consider a nord lead 2x rack and a virus classic desktop - you can get both for about the price of a NL3 keyboard. This brings up two comments: 1. I'm still using my NL1 (with a Yammie spx-900 for effects) mainly because of the pitch stick; damn, I love that thing! I've got mine set up for logarithmic response, which allows me a subtle vibrato around dead center yet I can dive-bomb one to four octaves if I want to, wonderful MUSICAL application. 2. You were concerned that the Nord may be redundant with your current setup, yet you have the top ROMplers from each manufacturer (Motif, Triton, Fantom). The Nord'll be a quite different flavor from those three, I'm willing to bet! (I do envy you of having the top voices from each manufacturer at your fingertips!). Botch "Eccentric language often is symptomatic of peculiar thinking" - George Will www.puddlestone.net Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeebus Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 If it's good enough for Steve Winwood... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
platypus Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 Originally posted by Botch.: Originally posted by mildbill: you have a motif rack and a triton rack so i assume you're ok with modules? you may want to seriously consider a nord lead 2x rack and a virus classic desktop - you can get both for about the price of a NL3 keyboard. This brings up two comments: 1. I'm still using my NL1 (with a Yammie spx-900 for effects) mainly because of the pitch stick; damn, I love that thing! I've got mine set up for logarithmic response, which allows me a subtle vibrato around dead center yet I can dive-bomb one to four octaves if I want to, wonderful MUSICAL application. 2. You were concerned that the Nord may be redundant with your current setup, yet you have the top ROMplers from each manufacturer (Motif, Triton, Fantom). The Nord'll be a quite different flavor from those three, I'm willing to bet! (I do envy you of having the top voices from each manufacturer at your fingertips!). Would you care to explain how you set up your logarithmic response, please? I have a NL2x, and I'm intruiged. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Botch. Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 Originally posted by platypus: Would you care to explain how you set up your logarithmic response, please? I have a NL2x, and I'm intruiged. My mistake, Platypus, I guess I didn't "set" it that way, that's the way it's programmed. I'm guessing your 2x is set up the same way. It's not linear as most other pitch wheels and sticks are, it's less sensitive around the center and more sensitive at the limits of travel. Botch "Eccentric language often is symptomatic of peculiar thinking" - George Will www.puddlestone.net Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
platypus Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 Ah. I understand now. Thanks..I see what you mean. Don't you love the stick? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mildbill Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 this place: http://www.sounds-of-revolution.com/ has some nice demo mp3's of the nord lead 3 and virus b/c which give some indication of the range of sounds you can get from them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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