There are a number of very unique electric keyboard instruments that have always been a vital component in music over the years. Instruments that have a distinct sound and a soul of their own. Remember that great organ sound in Procol Harum's 'A Whiter Shade of Pale', or the wonderful electric piano in Supertramp's 'The Logical Song', or the Clavinet sound in Stevie Wonder's 'Superstition'? The list could go on forever. These types of keyboards have inspired generations of musicians and continue to gain new admirers every day. They certainly also inspired us here at Clavia and therefore we decided to create the ultimate "electromechanical" stage keyboard.
The organ section of the Nord Electro 2 is based on a digital implementation of the mechanical tone wheels of the B-3 organ. It offers innovative solutions to mimic the typical B-3 sound, for example:
A complex digital model of the original chorus and vibrato scanner
Simulation of the individual random contact bounces for each partial
Simulation of the unique frequency characteristics of the built-in pre-amplifier which forms the "body" of the B-3 sound
In the other section of the Electro 2 you will find a selection of electromechanical pianos. All piano instruments are built up by a vast number of multi-samples to catch every nuance from soft to hard hits. The Nord Electro 2 comes with several legendary electric piano sounds stored in a large Flash memory. By using Flash memory you will be able to download and/or replace piano sounds with new ones via the built-in USB interface.
With the Electro 2 you simply get the perfect combination of heavy sounds and light weight. Clavia proudly invites you to check out the new legend among musical instruments - the Nord Electro 2 Virtual Electromechanical stage keyboard.
A complex digital model of the original chorus and vibrato scanner.
Modeling of the individual random contact bounces for each partial.
Modeling of the unique frequency characteristics of the built-in pre-amplifier which forms the "body" of the B-3 sound.
Simulation of the energy stealth on the tone wheels that results in the typical "compressed" sound.
Authentic tuning of the tone wheels according to the original B3 design.
The piano section comprises five carefully multi-sampled electric piano instruments: Rhodes Mk I Stage Piano, Rhodes Mk I Suitcase Piano, Wurlitzer 200A, Clavinet D6 and the custom modified Clavia Electric Grand Model G. As a bonus we also included an acoustic Malmsjoe Grand Piano - in stereo! The Electro features a unique multi-sample playback, catching every nuance throughout the whole dynamic range. The Electro also sports a USB interface for quick and easy download of new piano sounds .
The chassis of Nord Electro 2 is made out of roadworthy steel plate and comes with genuine wooden sides. Nord Electro 2 comes in three versions: Nord Electro 2 SixtyOne (61-key version), Nord Electro 2 SeventyThree (73-key version) and Nord Electro Rack 2 (19" rack version).
Organ section
Polyphony Full polyphony
9 electric drawbars with memory functionality The drawbars of Nord Electro 2 are represented by up/down buttons and LED bar graphs instead of ordinary mechanical drawbars. This gives you a big advantage: when you change presets, the correct drawbar settings are shown immediately by the LEDs. In other words, no need for the regular ’trial and error’ method. It's very easy to get the hang of changing the drawbar settings in a natural way with the buttons.
Drawbar settings presets 8 drawbar presets + a random preset function in ROM plus 9 user configurable drawbar settings. Effects Swell (the characteristic B-3 volume pedal function) - Percussion (2nd, 3rd, normal/soft, fast/slow). Chorus/Vibrato (C1, C2, C3/V1, V2, V3).
Keyboard Split Makes it possible to play an organ sound with two different drawbar settings (Lower and Upper manuals) on the internal keyboard.
Dual manuals - MIDI Split Nord Electro 2 is designed to support an extra MIDI keyboard in addition to its own. This makes it possible to play the Nord Electro 2 as a 2-manual (Lower and Upper manuals) organ with different drawbar settings for each manual.
Electric piano section
Instruments 5 multi-sampled electric piano instruments in Flash memory: Rhodes Mk I Stage Piano, Rhodes Mk I Suitcase Piano, Wurlitzer 200A, Clavinet D6 and the custom modified Clavia Electric Grand Model G. As an extra bonus we also included an acoustic Malmsjoe grand piano - in stereo!
Effects Presence Filter (or Filter and Pickup selectors for the Clavinet D6 sound).
Global features
Memory 48 user memory locations (6 Banks holding 8 Programs each) in which you can store complete setups, including instrument settings (organ or piano) and effects settings.
Effects Overdrive, Rotary Speaker simulation (slow, fast, stop), Equalizer, Chorus (2 types), Flanger (2 types), Phaser (2 types), Tremolo, Wah-Wah (2 types), Auto Wah, Auto panning and Ring modulation.
Connections 2 Audio outputs, 1 Headphone output, 1 Control pedal input, 1 Sustain pedal input, 1 Rotary Speaker speed switch pedal input, MIDI In, MIDI Out. USB interface for fast and easy download of new piano sounds .
Physical Dimensions
Nord Electro 2 SeventyThree: W: 111.5 cm, D: 29.5 cm, H: 9.5 cm (incl. feet and knobs). Weight: 9.4 kg. Nord Electro 2 SixtyOne: W: 90 cm, D: 29.5 cm, H: 9.5 cm (incl. feet and knobs). Weight: 7.8 kg. Nord Electro Rack 2: W: 19", H: 4 rack units (incl. space for cables), D: 10.5 cm (incl. feet and knobs).
Q: Is it possible to play several sounds simultaneously on the Electro/Electro 2? A: No, the Nord Electro/Electro 2 is mono-timbral which means that you can only play one sound at a time (except for the dual manual organ configuration).
Q: Are there any differences in functionality between the Nord Electro Rack 2 and the Nord Electro 2 61/73? A: The Nord Electro Rack 2 has all the functions of the Nord Electro 2 61/73 except for the keyboard.
NORD NER How to Choose
How To Choose / Useful Information for Pro Keyboards
Click a question to see the answer.
Why a Pro Workstation keyboard vs.a Portable/Electronic/Arranger keyboard vs. a Synthesizer?
Pro keyboards have a multitude of other features like audio recording,
editing the sound to the most elemental part of the sound, a 16+ track sequencer
with detailed editing, a lot of synth sounds, they will run 4 to 18 simultaneous
higher quality effects like reverb, … and have no arranging or styles other than possibly
arpeggiators or drum patterns, . . A fully orchestrated sound/song can be accomplished
with a pro keyboard but it assumes you want to create each part or instrument sound in
a song much more closely (from scratch) than a portable ++
Portable/arranger type keyboards are more for fast songwriting,
for backing tracks when you play or for one person band with drum patterns,
bass, and other sounds with the accompaniment having different song style genres
(blues, swing, rock,...) with different patterns for the verse, chorus,...
of the song. The song styles and performances are very educational as well for
learning genres that you may be unfamiliar with. You can have many instruments
follow what your left hand plays in real time and chord recognition for
fast performing,
portables have more meat and potato sounds and fewer synthesizer sounds
Synthesizers- typically do not have workstation features
like sequencing, recording audio, having all types of sounds, . . .
but rather focus on doing a few or sounds extremely well which usually
are not acoustic or real world instruments but 'other worldly' sounds
with many ways to manipulate the sound.
What affects the price you will pay and what should you look for?
The level of realism and selection of the sounds-
each keyboard typically does some sounds better than others so decide
which main sounds are important to you and play each model (or listen to sound files)
you are interested in to find the one that sounds best to you. Does it have all the
sounds you are looking for to make a completed song?
Ease of use- hardware knobs, buttons,... amount and location and logically placed
Display size- touchscreen, color, icon based, easy to read, backlighting not too dark,...
Sequencer- depth of editing features, ease of use as you could spend most of your time here, linear recording only or pattern based recording as well, ...
Quality and number of effects- reverb, EQ per part, compressors, master FX, number of part insert FX, master/global FX, does it have enough DSP to finish a 16 track song without needing external processing
Audio recording/sampling -2 to 8 tracks or more- how easy is it to actually record and playback, does it have enough recording memory/time- re: roughly 10 meg a stereo minute, how is the recording backed up,..
Drums- does it have ‘easy to chain’ patterns or is the arpegiator easy to use, does it have pads on top of keyboard or none at all,...
The number of simultaneous notes the keyboard will play (polyphony)- important if you write denser arrangements or use instruments that use a lot of polyphony (piano,...)
Control computer software via hardware sliders, knobs,...
Computer control the keyboard with editor/librarian- as VST plug-in,
standalone, 100% editing, the visuals on a big
computer screen can shorten the learning curve (much more intuitive)
Operating system- is it intuitive or obtuse, ...
Maximum RAM memory- will determine possibly how much recording time is available
or how much room you will have for adding external samples/sounds
Connectors- # of audio outputs, balanced or unbalanced input,
data storage- memory card, jump drive, USB to computer connection
Please notice that almost every keyboard on our site has a sound file
you can play on your computer to hear for yourself.
What about speakers?
For home or studio use we prefer powered studio monitors
for the best audio quality without spending a lot and keep
the sound in stereo (versus a mono keyboard amp) which is much better with full orchestrations,...
All have headphone jacks if you prefer not to be heard.
For stage, keyboard amplifiers come in all sizes depending on the size of the venue
What accessories should I consider?
Stand- stabds come in many shapes and styles- X style, Z style, ...
Bench- consider a more sturdy 4 leg bench if you do not need portability,
X style if you do -- the wider the better.
Headphones- full size will be more comfortable and quieter
and may offer better quality audio
Pedals- most come with a sustain pedal, some have jacks for more control
- volume, expression, etc.
Bag or case- we recommend the manufacturer bags and cases first,
then Gator Cases and bags. Do you need wheels? Will only you be carrying it? Will it be on planes? (should have ATA rating)
Jump drive/Storage card for audio, midi ...
Computer interface if no USB connection- need multi-port midi,
how many channels of audio ...
Dust cover
Glossary
What is a Style?
combination of sounds like drums, bass and keys with rhythms and chord progressions
in a certain genre (rock, big band, jazz,…) which create backing tracks that you can play a lead part over
What are Song Sections?
these are divisions of a song that portable arranger keyboards identify as an intro, verses, choruses,
bridge, fills, outro,… with performed by musicians that reflect the mood/feeling of each of those sections that enable
faster song arranging
What is MIDI?
an
interface to connect a keyboard to the computer like USB port for printers. It
sends note and other data from the keyboard to the computer or vice versa.
Basically says play this note at this time at this volume level- it is not an
actual audio recording. It also makes it possible for one keyboard to play
another keyboard.
What is polyphony?
the number of
simultaneous notes that can be played, though if it’s a stereo sample/recording
each note can use 2 notes at once. Its important for anyone who plays a lot of
notes at the same time and holds down the sustain pedal. The earliest notes
played will cut out when the limit is exceeded. This can happen with pianos
with 32 note polyphony especially.
What is a sequencer?
a
recorder with 1 to 16 tracks usually so that multiple instruments can be played
back for fully orchestrated songs and can have elaborate editing capability.
Typically digital pianos have only 1 or 2 tracks for playing back a piano
performance and archiving another. These can be downloaded to the computer with
a midi interface
What is sampling/samples?
a short audio
recording of a note. For more realistic sound, digital pianos can be recorded
at different velocities so that when you strike a note harder, the timbre
changes for better realism
What are effects?
to modify and
enhance the sounds in the keyboard including non- piano sounds. e.g. - reverb
will put the piano in a small room or up to a large concert hall.
Don’t see the answer to your question?
Call us toll-free at 1 877 778 7845 and speak to our piano experts
3900 Fiscal Ct, Suite 200
West Palm Beach
Florida 33404
USA
Telephone:1-877-778-7845 Toll Free
or 561-842-7451 Fax: 561-840-9032E-mail Us! Hours: Mon-Fri 10 am -7 pm EST, Sat 10 am -5 pm EST
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