TLectual Posted October 29, 2005 Share Posted October 29, 2005 Hi, this is my first post to this forum, but I have been reading Keyboard for a couple years now. I go to Full Sail in Orlando. Well, I was writing to get an expert opinion on a good Hardware Synth to add to my growing studio. This will be my first piece of outboard gear besides my Yamaha o1x. I want quality so I'm willing to spend from $1,000 to $2,000. I produce mainly dance music such as progressive house and break-beats. I've had my eye on a Nord for awhile, but which one is best? Or other suggestions? Any help would be very appreciated! Thanx! -Tony http://www.demostreams.com/?ID=TLectual Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric Posted October 29, 2005 Share Posted October 29, 2005 Dance music, progressive house, break beats. You probably should look at the Korg Triton series, Yamaha Motif ES and Roland Fantom X series. There are millions of posts on the forum about each of these, so a little searching of the archives might help. Regards, Eric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TLectual Posted October 29, 2005 Author Share Posted October 29, 2005 How are these better than the Nord Leads? http://www.demostreams.com/?ID=TLectual Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric Posted October 29, 2005 Share Posted October 29, 2005 The Nord Lead is a great virtual analog synth that can recreate organic synth tones. The Triton/Motif/Fantom are ROM-based sampler workstations that have hundreds, if not thousands of sampled instruments imbedded, along with the ability to sequence and sample. The Nord Lead is a great-sounding instrument, but if I was looking to buy just one keyboard, I would pick a Motif ES, Triton or Fantom long before I would choose the Lead series. Do some searches on this forum and you can learn a lot about each of these. Regards, Eric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kanker. Posted October 29, 2005 Share Posted October 29, 2005 Since you have the 01x, I'd say go for a Motif ES for the mLan integration and the virtual analog expansion board capability. A ROMpler is just a polyphonic turntable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TLectual Posted October 29, 2005 Author Share Posted October 29, 2005 hmmmm... http://www.demostreams.com/?ID=TLectual Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mildbill Posted October 29, 2005 Share Posted October 29, 2005 Originally posted by kevank: Since you have the 01x, I'd say go for a Motif ES for the mLan integration and the virtual analog expansion board capability. that's the first thing i thought of. 01X, Motif ES, Studio Connections (included software). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
synthdogg Posted October 29, 2005 Share Posted October 29, 2005 TLectual, Nord's are great..they really are. I've got a Nord 3 and I use it all the time. It's hard to get a good read on what would be best for you since you haven't told us what else you're using. The Nord will get you good, punchy analog type sounds with a terrific user interface. Is that what you need? What are you using for other types of sounds? What about drums, samples, etc>? Are you already doing all of that in software? A workstation synth (eg. MotifES) would still give you great analog emulation plus a ton of other sounds (and EFFECTS!!!) and IMHO would be a better starting point as a first synth. The Nord would be a great add-on, specialty synth. Admittedly, the Nord is sexier, being specialized it seems much hipper and it really does some very cool things. I would try to forget all that and ask yourself what your music needs, and then find the instrument that fills that bill the best. Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TLectual Posted October 29, 2005 Author Share Posted October 29, 2005 Right now the biggest thing my music needs is that full, professional sound. I have been using a lot of sounds off of Re-fill cd's(Sonic Refills, Creative Ess., Chemical Beats), and it seems like my sounds are missing that fatness. I do dance music so I need those fat sounding kicks, rich-full basslines, and silky-smooth pads, along with plenty of FX. Right now I use Cubase SX 3 with Reason 2.5, along with Juno X2, Pro-52, and the Cubase synths. Hope that helps you guys! Thanks a lot, as this is going to be a huge purchase for me! So Nord or Motif eh? http://www.demostreams.com/?ID=TLectual Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeebus Posted October 29, 2005 Share Posted October 29, 2005 Two completely different animals. You need to determine whether you need all of the capabilities and sounds of a workstation like the Motif. If the majority of your needs are analog-style sounds, you'd be better off "specializing" with a VA which would give you a better "analog" sound than the Motif, and more realitime tweakability. There are many VA's that offer advantages over the Nord, mainly in that they offer on board effects and/or more polyphony. The Virus comes to mind. If you're looking for emulation of more classic analog sounds, an Ion might be a better fit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sizzlemeister Posted October 29, 2005 Share Posted October 29, 2005 For that budget you could get an Alesis Ion and a Roland XP30. Or a JP8000 and Yamaha Motif. Why limit yourself to just one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TLectual Posted October 29, 2005 Author Share Posted October 29, 2005 So if I already use a sequencer like Cubase would I really even need all the extra stuff on a full workstation keyboard? http://www.demostreams.com/?ID=TLectual Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sizzlemeister Posted October 30, 2005 Share Posted October 30, 2005 Unless you want to use it for live sequencing then no. You're paying for functionality you already have if you buy a work-station. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeebus Posted October 30, 2005 Share Posted October 30, 2005 - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeebus Posted October 30, 2005 Share Posted October 30, 2005 If you're going to buy two keyboards, you can also save a few bucks by buying the keyboard version of one, and the rack version of the other. (For example, Motif keyboard, Nord Rack.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TLectual Posted October 30, 2005 Author Share Posted October 30, 2005 Well, $2k is probably strecthing it, so let's say $1500 max. I can only handle one right now. Money's thin so I want this to be a real quality purchase for me that I can get the most out of in one. It'll be a little while before I could get another. http://www.demostreams.com/?ID=TLectual Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sizzlemeister Posted October 30, 2005 Share Posted October 30, 2005 http://www.music123.com/Dave-Smith-Instruments-Evolver-i159446.music And http://www.music123.com/Korg-Triton-LE-61-i10826.music ...if you want new. Don't forget the used market - the world is your oyster going that route. Many quality purchases available either way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windreaper Posted October 30, 2005 Share Posted October 30, 2005 Hmm, since he's working mainly in the studio environment, why use a workstation (other than for songwriting). He might as well use extensive sample libraries for much better sound quality than Motif can deliver. The way I see it, he's looking for an analog synth for bass/FX/pads(?) and a good software sampler for drum sounds and the rest. As for the fat kicks, as long as your source material is fine, it's all about production techniques. It's the unskilled craftsman who blames his tools, no offense intended. If mono is fine (for basses and FX it will be), I'd look at Studio Electronics SE-1, DSI Evolver or Waldorf Pulse. SE-1 has plenty of knobs and replicates the Minimoog timbre to some extent so that'd be my #1 choice since it's well within your budget. If you need couple notes of poly for pads, try DSI Polyevolver. Otoh you can get pretty convincing pads from sample based instruments (Atmosphere, anyone?) so I wouldn't sweat it. All of these can be had for reasonable amount of cash in the used market (or new), leaving you with some for sample cds/dvds . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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