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Here

Nice, but still hoping for some big Rhodes/Wurli samples soon.

Oooooh yeah!
Merry bl**dy Christmas!

No time to try it now, but will definitely be loading the new piano onto my Electro this evening.

voxpops, time to bite the bull and get yourself a NE4D? You could MIDI it up to your MP6 and have the best of both worlds.

Cheers,
James
x

If it was bi-timbral and had the upgraded memory, I wouldn't hesitate, but I need to have organ available at the same time as AP/EP.

Yeah, I hear you man, but that's never going to happen while the Stage is their flagship board.

James
x

Whooaa! Finally, another piano from Nord. I'd better like it. They built my hopes up with the awful Bright Grand. I'm off to update the Nord now......

I just listened to the samples and they do sound a lot like a nine foot Faz. Such nice pianos. One of the best in the world in my opinion.

WOW! And the best thing is you can download the XL version into the piano RAM of the Electros - for the first time. This is EXACTLY what I'm doing now. (All other XL versions of pianos don't fit.)

What a great present from Clavia! Thank you!

maurus, good call! How much memory is left after uploading the XL version? It must take forever to transfer...

James
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It's still transferring... 3.2MB remaining says the Sound Manager. So it's not really practical if you need anything else in the piano RAM. Still!

I'm loving it! It has a wide range of colors and nice dynamic range. It's not nearly as in your face sounding as the Bosie or S4 Bright Grand but seems to be more even, and the Lrg sample is actually larger than the previous 2 pianos in Lrg size. Christmas comes early yet again. They did this 2 years ago with the Bosendorfer Imperial sample. I now have:
1. Fazioli Italian Grand Lrg size
2. Bosendorfer Imperial Grand Lrg size
3. Steinway Lady D Lrg size
4. Yamaha C7 Studio Grand 2 Lrg size
5. Yamaha S4 Bright Grand Lrg size

I've grown to really like all of them for various purposes and uses. Somedays ill use the Bosendorfer, others the C7. Aside from the portability, this is the best part to owning the Nords.

I totally agree Zach!

Shigeru Kawai sample for Christmas 2013, perhaps?

James
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+1!
I++;
++I;
I = I + 1

EXACTLY what I was thinking! I think.

Just been playing the new Fazioli. I'm impressed but with two caveats: firstly, like other Nord sounds it still plays a bit too loudly at low velocities and again like other Nord piano sounds the top two octaves are weak. It's like you can only go up to velocity 70 or 80. Whereas in the mid range and bass it will really bark if you give it a good smack. One other minor gripe is that I think the bass could use a tad more richness and warmth. It's not that I want more bass, just the character of the sound is a bit dry.

They are the negatives but the positive is - and I know it's early days and the honeymoon has barely begun - but I think its basic tonal character is perhaps the best I've heard on a hardware DP. In terms of bright/mellow it is neutral and there is just something nice about it, especially in the middle octaves, where it is very expressive.

I'm currently "controlling" it from a Kawai MP10 which might be having an effect on my perceptions but I prefer the new voice to all other previous Nord piano sounds.

Cheers,

Steve

Have been playing the new Fazioli on and off for the last hours, on my lowly Electro 3HP. The description on the Website, "slightly ambient, brilliant and boasts an amazing dynamic range" is quite correct. A very even, rich, and somewhat distant tone, very playable, invites to indulge in phrasing even the shortest lines, in all positions. The XL version in particular has a very rich sound, and I find it rather less problematic in the highest octaves than the other pianos (with a suitable bit of high mid boost). Slow chords with a bit of sustain have an awesome lingering sound.

In order to load something else at the same time, however, I have to cut back to the Lrg version, where a tad of the richness gets lost (but not the character). Comparing this version with the Bösendorfer Grand Imperial I have to say I can't say which one I prefer, I just love the straightforward nature of the Bösendorfer except in the high treble (can't compare that one with its XL version, unfortunately, which is too large for my Electro).

The new Fazioli (Lrg) will stay on my Electro, replacing the Grand Lady D. For certain types of music I find it the best overall so far. For other kinds I still prefer the Grand Imperial. Playing a Bach piece, for instance, the Fazioli induces me to try a more romantic interpretation than the Bösendorfer with its more analytic character and thundery bass (and usually I prefer my Bach less romantic...).

@maurus. How are you finding the action on your 3HP with piano samples such as the Fazioli and Bosendorfer? Are you able to articulate and maintain sufficient control when playing classical works? I find the same action in the Numa Piano slightly problematic.

voxpops, it's quite difficult. While you can adjust to the action, it's no comparison with the real thing. Subtle articulation differences tend to get evened out.

However, this limitation I also found in the Nord Piano when I tried it extensively in shops, and I found the NP's action not sufficient to convince me to give up the Electro's fantastic portability (my main reason for getting one). The best I can do is to control the Nord from a better action. Using my P155's GH action is already a good step up, and then classical pieces begin to make quite a bit more sense. Articulated improvisation is less of a problem.

Still, practicing classical pieces on the NE3HP works well enough when traveling, and when no acoustic is at hand... and you could see it this way: If you manage to control a classical piece well on the Electro you will probably be able to do the same on a serious piano.

Thanks, maurus. It's much as I expected: the Fatar actions will take you only so far - even with Nord's tweaks. I think KJ should commandeer a large batch of Kawai's previous generation of DP actions (there must be a bunch lying around the factory somewhere) and sell them to Nord - even older Kawai actions would be a large step up.

Steve -

Which version do you have loaded?

Lawrence

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