From SimpsonDan@aol.com Tue Dec 04 10:10:14 2001
Subject:Nord Electro Review

There is a very interesting review of the Nord Electro in the December issue of Sound on Sound. For those of you who are not familiar with it, Sound on Sound is the #1 music recording magazine in the UK. In the U. S., it is available at Virgin Records and a few high-end newsstands, and it is also available as an online subscription. Web address is http://www.sospubs.co.uk. It is actually a very good publication, and I have been a subscriber since I first saw it at a NAMM show a few years back.

Interestsingly, the Nord Electro review is fairly negative. Some of it is typicaly British candor, which is frankly refreshing. In sum, the reviewer thinks that the concept is great but that Nord's execution of it is not. The review is quite detailed and very specific on both strengths and weaknesses. The summary box is not as good, but I'll provide it nonetheless (comments in parentheses are mine and not his):

Pros
- many of the sounds, the rotary speaker, the organ's chorus/vibrato, and some of the other effects are first class.

- Set it up and play - you don't need to read the manual.

- MIDI control of all performance paramters is a bonus.

Cons:
- A 74-note grand piano multisample mapped onto a 61 note keyboard? That's silly. (he also had a lot of issues with other note mapping problems on the EP sounds)

- Not enough detailed control over some sounds or modulation effects (the reviewer sites some specific complaints in the review itself)

- the keyboard is too light to accurately emulate some of the instruments it models (not an issue for me, since light is good in a lot of ways. It does require a different style for Rhodes and Clav sounds, though, and he also sites issues with the velocity curves)

- Some of the effects are third class.

- Not mutitimbral, limiting use in a sequencer setup

- Not cheap for this level of performance

Summary
I want to like the Electro. I really do. It's a great idea, and most of its sounds are very good. But it has too many niggles to get an unresevred thumbs-up. I hope there's a Mark 2 on its way. With suitable forethought and appropriate revisions, it could be a killer product.

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An example of British candor I find refreshing - "The programmers responsible for the organ's chorus/vibrato, the overdrive and the rotary speaker effects should be treated to an expensive smorgasbord and given the keys to the company sauna. Fire the others."

I've played the Electro several times and like it overall, but the reviewers comments do have some merit. Those who are thinking about the Electro may want to check it out.

Dan