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So I've been slowly been bugged by ye olde Nord devices (1 & 2 synths, and the Drums, especially), and didn't find a dedicated thread for ILF-sanctioned Nordisms, so here be a thread.

Anyway, I have fond memories of noodling with a 2 back in high school at the local musictorium, at least until someone broke off the wooden glide cursor and they marked it down from $3K to $2.8K , but I also didn't know how synths worked or really cared for NIN's The Fragile (hits better today maybe, but not as hard as Autechre's LP5).

Modules keep popping up and I'm eager to jump, but I would also like to hear any thoughts ILF readers know firsthand.

Here's a few videos to keep the spices flowing for anyone that might not care yet:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrRbRw5wwHk[/youtube]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrRbRw5wwHk

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhZVStJefWQ[/youtube]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhZVStJefWQ

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQSN9ZTB0nc[/youtube]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQSN9ZTB0nc

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hD-t4onIJbk[/youtube]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hD-t4onIJbk

I don't have any Nord experience appart from my electro 5d which I love.
If only I was a great player...

I've seen some cool stuff by suddenlanguages on youtube with the nord drum, you might want to look him up

Nord Modular owner.

It has a very particular 90s sound that makes me want to play early Autechre leads every time (if only I could play lol).

The thing I'm the most impressed with though, it's the built quality. For being an almost 20 year old piece, and compared to most modern stuff I have played, the knobs and keys feel amazingly good that makes me actual play it instead of sequence it or make typical senseless krell patches.

The modules available have been are more than enough for me to build everything I need, but wish I could download/import custom modules from somewhere to expand the capabilities a little bit and be able to create delay-based effects (this is covered on the Nord Modular 2 I believe).

Made this video for the first 100 factory presets, it might give an idea of what it can/can't do and how it sounds:
I apologize for the playing

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E16vmDTkLU4[/youtube]

JTurbide wrote:I don't have any Nord experience appart from my electro 5d which I love.
If only I was a great player...

I've seen some cool stuff by suddenlanguages on youtube with the nord drum, you might want to look him up

The 5D looks absolutely nuts, but I am a ham handed keys player at best - you're lucky to have it, though!

The suddenlanguages channel is pretty great, so thanks for the rec!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyNN6TVJfXY[/youtube]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyNN6TVJfXY

tremolo3 wrote:Nord Modular owner.

It has a very particular 90s sound that makes me want to play early Autechre leads every time (if only I could play lol).

The thing I'm the most impressed with though, it's the built quality. For being an almost 20 year old piece, and compared to most modern stuff I have played, the knobs and keys feel amazingly good that makes me actual play it instead of sequence it or make typical senseless krell patches.

The modules available have been are more than enough for me to build everything I need, but wish I could download/import custom modules from somewhere to expand the capabilities a little bit and be able to create delay-based effects (this is covered on the Nord Modular 2 I believe).

Made this video for the first 100 factory presets, it might give an idea of what it can/can't do and how it sounds:
I apologize for the playing

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E16vmDTkLU4[/youtube]

This vid was badass! Thank you!

I've been dipping my toe into the rompler world, but I am a knob person at heart, so naturally I've been steering toward the old Nords for exactly that reason: tactility! And getting away from a computer interface, most importantly (though I do realize they have the ability to absolutely slay via that method).

The build quality is also a huge point, especially since there are few Nords that I've found that are in totally poor condition (from endless gigging, usually), or just somewhat fried from within and/or in need of a PC (i.e. the last few Micro Modulars I've found recently).

And as much as I'd love to drop $800 on a Korg Opsix (even if it's dope as hell), I'd rather do a little less with an older interface, even if that means forgoing some MIDI capabilities/ease of repair down the line. Wavestate prices are beginning to fall, but I've never been wholly convinced by Korg's overall QC, anyway.

The Nord Drum seems great but would it kill them to offer six outputs?

jirodreamsofdank wrote:The Nord Drum seems great but would it kill them to offer six outputs?

All drum brains should have all the outs and ins possible, but I still see why this is also driving the price of the Drum 2 up to $1K (or else a tidier form factor), even though the 3 has one (Kick), but it also has 6 actual pads instead so

In a fairer world, all the possible in/outputs would be great, too, but doesn't seem to be the style of the time (RIP olden gear times)

Also, I'd probably buy all these new cheaper synths if they were all simultaneously available as a stand-alone modules, but, again, Korg tried that and all of those slimmed Minilogues are actually more expensive than their keyed counterparts, so maybe I just need to buy a hacksaw. And learn to love giant rubber pads instead of having a jack to hook up my trash can + contact microphones.

I want a G2 soo bad. I've spen hours upon hours in the demo

i've been gassing for Nord gear for literally a decade, but they're just too far out of my income range.

qersty wrote:I want a G2 soo bad. I've spen hours upon hours in the demo

Those G2 standalone engines go pretty quickly, but I can't imagine buying an old Powerbook to run one just for the cause. However, I dipped into the demos and I totally feel your pain!

dubkitty wrote:i've been gassing for Nord gear for literally a decade, but they're just too far out of my income range.

This is exactly why I've been after the earlier eras, as at least they have leaner prices versus the models from the last decade or so, but if I had the chops & the means for gig use, I'd totally go for a modern version for ease of use/sound/overall reliability.

Havn't wanted a Nord a long, because I don't really like red, but recently went down this road for modular on a small budget and footprint. Love this little guy

Love it!

What is that Thinkpad? T model?

tremolo3 wrote:Love it!

What is that Thinkpad? T model?

It's an R32, I found it on CL with a clean XP install for $60. Turned out my friend had the higher end model with some cosmetic issues and dirty OS, so I was able to get it as a RAM donor + spare PSA/battery and parts down the road when needed. Should be smooth sailing with it from here

Psyre wrote:Havn't wanted a Nord a long, because I don't really like red, but recently went down this road for modular on a small budget and footprint. Love this little guy

I saw your post in B/S/T the other day & I'm glad you got the hookup! There's a small movement among some of the IG ppl I follow that have done just this, and it's so tempting
Meanwhile, I may have a Lead 2 rack on the way soon, if I can get all my ducks aligned just so......

Hope it works out! This pursuit and fulfillment happened really quick, thanks to an elektronauts moderator giving me the lead on one.
I've sold nearly all my synths and drum machines within the past year, so wanted something that could fill the hole I've made on the sound design front. I figured this would get me in step toward an approach to build off of and apply to my Orville and eventually max.

Personally haven't got any experience with a Nord, except playing in shops. Can't say anything about the sounds really, but everytime I've played one just loved the feel of it. Sure it's been different models each time but always feel like "oh, I could actually learn to play keys/piano" when I feel that keybed. Too expensive for me to invest in though and haven't got the space for it at home either, sadly.