Korg SV-1 or Clavia Nord electro 3 ??

[paulisima]

Hiya!! what about the differences between the Nord E. 2 and E. 3 ??? would you recomend the Nord 2 over the SV-1 ??? I'm actually between thoose two because of the budget but I just want to make a good buy. (need the keyboard to get a vintage sound and play funk, reggae, jazz, R&B)

 

[delaware dave]

The Nord Electro and the Electro 2 are for all practical purposes the same thing. A free software upgrade will upgrade the Nord Electro to a Nord Electro 2. The Nord Electro 3 is the next generation. More memory to allow the loading of better quality pianos (the acoustic piano on the Electro/2 is horrible). NE3 also allows the loading of non-piano sounds like synths, strings and brass. The NE3 also has the next generation B3/leslie sim which is the equivalent to the Nord C1.
I would not recommend the NE2 over the SV1. The SV1 strengths are the pianos which is the NE2's weakness. The fair comparison would be the NE3 to the SV1. The one caution would be that the NE3 is monotimbral, i.e. you can only play one sound at a time. In other words you can't split the keyboard to play piano on the top and organ on the bottom in the same patch.
I would be remiss to not throw the Kurzweil PC3 into the mix. It does what the other two keyboards do as well plus much more. See the video posted several posts up. I did keyboard research about a year ago and like others was leaning toward the NE3 until I heard the PC3. Smartest decision that I ever made.

 

[brenden]

I think you gotta find a store that'll let you play them all,. and the one that you keep going back to, is the one for you.

 

[delaware dave]

Hiya!! what about the differences between the Nord E. 2 and E. 3 ??? would you recomend the Nord 2 over the SV-1 ??? I'm actually between thoose two because of the budget but I just want to make a good buy. (need the keyboard to get a vintage sound and play funk, reggae, jazz, R&B)

You might want to read through this thread:

http://forums.musicplayer.com/ubbthreads.php/topics/2388004/1

 

[Josef_K]

I bought the NE 2 before the SV-1 came out if I remember it correctly. Anyway I have tried the SV-1 a few times and while it blows my NE out of the water when it comes to piano sounds, it just cannot compete on other areas. The organ SOUNDS good, but it is very inflexible. Both keys have nice leslie-emulations, though the Korg lacks the most important part, the drawbars. The korg does have nice keys for acoustic piano though those are much less flexible imo.

I personally find it a lesser inconvenience to play piano on waterfall keys such as the NE 2 has. However it is plain impossible to play an organ solo on the Korg. Of course this is something you get used to but still.

Finally, I find it surprising that no one has mentioned the clavinet. I use this instrument a lot and on the NE 2 it is extremely flexible and warm-sounding. The Korg, just like any other keyboard that even features clav at all, is nowhere near the Nord for this instrument. If you are looking for nice electric and acoustic pianos (except clavinet) then go for the Korg. If you want organ and clav, get the electro 2. If you want mellotron/strings/synth sounds as well, I would personally not recommend the NE 3 or Nord Stage, never liked those sounds too much. I'm looking at synths for pads/strings myself at the moment and not one single modern keyboard has impressed me so far... unfortunately.

 

[brenden]

I agree, i find the hammond useless on the sv1, although i like the clavinets... You have work on the amp configuration a bit etc.. To get it fat but it works for me, and i also use a lot of clav. But for me the sv1 is an electric piano.. And it makes me feel like i have my Wurly, a rhodes mk1-5, and a stack off amps to choose from at every gig.,, and it inspires me.. I agree its a long way short of the versatility of many keyboards, but that is precisely why i like it. A Wurly has only volume and vibrato! ( i use a korg R3 and a Oberheim B3squared module for my synth and hammond sounds), but i still think as " electric piano" the sv1 is the one.

 

[Josef_K]

I couldn't get as many Clavinet tones out of the SV-1 as from the NE 2, that was my main concern. I like to have a softer clav that isn't as funky as the most famous settings in my music. I do get your point when it comes to choosing different amps and such for a wide variety of Electric Piano's, that is an extremely good feature on the SV-1. The NE 2 does have some good Rhodes sounds, though it is extremely limited in that department.

 

[delaware dave]

I'm looking at synths for pads/strings myself at the moment and not one single modern keyboard has impressed me so far... unfortunately.

well if these strings don't impress you then you are not impressionable. Kurzweil strings are considered to be world-class by nearly everyone's standards.

http://kurzweil.com/product/pc3/audio/

 

[Josef_K]

well if these strings don't impress you then you are not impressionable. Kurzweil strings are considered to be world-class by nearly everyone's standards.

http://kurzweil.com/product/pc3/audio/

Yeah those strings are quite good. The thing is that I'm not looking for good string samples, I'm looking for a good string synthesizer. This means I want a synth with oscillators sounding symphonic, with a great, warm and lush chorus unit. I guess I'm looking for a Solina String Ensemble or Logan String Melody, there simply isn't any modern synth that could get the sound that I want. I've tried several virtual analog synths as well, they are, although great in their own right, nothing compared to the Solina when it comes to my standards. The PC3 isn't available in any of the music shops in Sweden, and judging from zzsounds it costs 3000$, three times the cost of a Solina. Since I only want the strings, that price is far beyond ridiculous.

For more all-round purposes I'm sure it's a great keyboard though. It's just very far from what I'm looking for and far beyond an acceptable price range. So yeah, I guess I have no choice but to get a vintage string synthesizer. It will probably be some work (and costs) with repairs and maintenance but I am sure it will be worth it, comparing with the modern synth string sounds...

 

[delaware dave]

Check this price:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kurzweil-PC3-Keyboard-/251127105863?pt=Keyboards_MIDI&hash=item3a78578947

 

[Josef_K]

That's a much better price for sure. For that price I agree with you, it is able to compete with the Nord Electro and the Korg SV-1. Not with the Solina though of course ^^

 

[Funkdaddyone]

What it comes down to is which board is going to fulfill your needs. If you tour, or are in a working band you'll benefit more from the Kurzweil as you'll have all those sounds at your disposal.

If you're an artist, or maybe you play in a band that only requires specific sounds like the piano, e pianos, and maybe the occasional pad then either the sv1, or the electro 3 is better for you.

What is your end goal?

I personally am chiefly a piano player. My needs consist of a great Wurlitzer A200 sound, followed by a solid playable acoustic upright sound. I'd buy the SV1 based solely on bang for buck.