Nord Lead vs. QS6.1+

[brandon.w]

I had to move into a small apartment, so I trimmed and changed my recording setup from a mic'd up analog 8track rig to a PC based direct rig.

now I need a keyboard and I'm fussing over two...the original nord lead, or a QS6.1 with the vintage synthesizers and orchestral cards.

I'm trying to do instrumental soundtrack stuff with a bit of a hard edge. I keep thinking the nord is a superior synth, but the QS6.1 has the orchestral and piano sounds, but the nord is so pretty, but blah blah blah...so opinionate away!

[zuke]

2 totally different animals . I have never liked the Qs range from Alesis, sure the DM pro(drums) is a great module, but their sounds are always bog standard and weak. The editting power is also limited. The nord is a beast and quite specific in what it does, but for sound mangling it's a dream and you can create some great sounds fopr film work. From lovely pads or hard edgy effects but you'd need to know a little about programming, and the beauty of the machine is it's all hands on, no menu/sub menu options blah blah.

[subtractor]

How much are they?

leads can be made to have just about any kind of sound but you've gotta know how to program it.
Unless you are proficient at va programing the alesis would probably be a better choice.
I've played with a lead and lead2's, and I own a lead3, but I've only been on the QS's a few times.

But from what I know and have played, taking into consideration your vague description of your music genre, I'd say the alesis... Then I'd shoot myself for recommending it.

The nord will be alot more fun though.

[regebro]

For orchestral sounds I'd go with some special module with orchestral sounds. They are usually better. Doesn't Kurzweil have one that sounds great?

And remember: The Nord has the WOODEN PITCH STICK!

[zuke]

Kurzweill K200 with the Orchestral board is a beast, but then that's a sampler and a rack, the K1000 is the keyboard. If you have the dosh get the K2600 or the AES by Kurzweilll, all sounds will be covered but seriously pricey.
The Korg Wavestation springs to mind whenever ambience is mentioned and the Waldorf Micro Q is a great toy as well. Go to a shop and A/B the ones you like.

[Lambo]

For your music genre, the Roland XP-30 would be a nice fit.

[69ShadesofRed]

Originally posted by zuke
If you have the dosh get the K2600 or the AES by Kurzweilll, all sounds will be covered but seriously pricey.

Yep, but worth every penny. It will do just about anything you want. And KDFX will beat the FX section of any synth, including the Tritons, and prolly a whole lotta stand alone FX units in the $1000-$2000 range both in depth and the quality of sounds. And yes you can route external signals both through the VAST synth engine and KDFX if you get the sampling option.

You can get the Orchestral ROM for it, that should cover your orchestral needs. I have always been impressed with the realism of those samples. The VAST synthesis engine is very capable of doing VA and other types of synthesis, but can be quite daunting to program. It can easily do evolving pads, harsh industrial FX, warm, beautiful leads, bass, FM, wavesequencing, waveshaping, whatever, but you do need to invest the time and explore VAST. Check e-Bay for some reasonably priced K2600 and K2500. If you look for K2500 make sure to get the KDFX option which is standard on the K2600... definitely worth the extra cost.

But back to the original question... I'd get the Nord. Alesis Q line feels way too cheap. I wish they didn't discontinue the Andromeda... now THAT's a synth!

[zuke]

Nice1 69, add to that a huge third party library support and you have one mutha of a synth/sampler.

[rjt]

The Alesis is a nice machine for "bread and butter" sounds that often sit surprisingly well in the mix. I have both of the cards you are interested in and they are the two that sit in my QS8 most of the time. Between them and the factory sounds, you can create some nice patches. It is pretty easy to program. Note that the QS doesn't have resonating filters, filters yes, but they don't self resonate. The Alesis is also pretty reasonably priced.

I don't have a nord, but I do have a Virus Access (and a few other hardware synths for niches). The Virus is great for synth type stuff, very fat.... I suspect the nord would do a similar job for you.

The other thing to keep in mind, as you go to a computer.... is that if you go with some of the bigger name sequences, Sonar, Cubase etc. you will also have the world of softsynths opening up to you. This will let you have very good analog emulations like the new Moog Modular to realistic instruments through samplers like Gigasampler or Kontakt. There are also great stand alone programs like Project5 or Reason that give you sequencing and softsynths in an all-in-one studio package. Softsynths are a good way to expand you sound palate.

Take Care