About to buy a new S4, but afraid.

[Y-Lnordist]

Hey everybody, need your advice here.
First, pardon me for my english.
I play NS3 76hp on stages mostly, and I want to get a new Stage 4 73 for my studio, and for some of my gigs as well.
I want to get it especially because of the key action and the third synth layer+ the effects per layer options.

It does look lovely, except for two “bad” things, in my opinion:

1) Those new faders (for the volume of each section) make the sound you are playing to jump in volume when the fader is being touched.
I’ll explain,
The faders do not have the option to “catch” the right volume of a current patch when you move it.
If your fader is not exactly in the right position for the current patch volume, and you move the fader, it ends up with a nasty jump in volume, snappy jump, the kind you don’t want to have in a live performance.

2) I see people complaining repeatedly that the effect’s trail is gone as volume decreases, because the effects are chained Pre-volume section.

These are my main concerns about buying a new nord stage 4.
My question to you is -

Did nord fix these problems by now?

According to my research they didn’t fix them yet, but I really think that it could be fixed with an OS update, at least the jumping fader problem.

I want to make sure that the volume jump problem gets fixed before buying this piece, which is quite expensive.

I’ll be happy to hear your thoughts.
Thank you

[Schorsch]

Yeah, the „fader catch“ is really an issue, as it was already for the drawbars with the previous Stage generations, wish they add at least a setting to chose between different types of behavior

[Evans The Song]

I can't believe that Nord haven't added the 'fader catch' function to their instruments yet, especially when you consider it's possible on keyboards costing a lot less (my Yamaha CK61 for example). I don't own a Stage 4 but I have a Wave 2 and it's very frustrating.

[Y-Lnordist]

Thank you guys for your replies, that confirm my concerns.
I really need to think if I want to buy this keyboard, considering they probably won’t fix those issues.

[Schorsch]

Well, for me it’s not an issue that would stop me buying a NS4 since the positives outweigh it a lot. However, it’s annoying

[Evans The Song]

Nord are a frustrating company sometimes - they do so much that is great with their instruments but often neglect to sort out the basics!

[Wolfgang T]

Nord are a frustrating company sometimes - they do so much that is great with their instruments but often neglect to sort out the basics!

You could say that if there is a lot of light, there is also a lot of shadow...

[cooltour]

I have an NS3 and an NS4. It wasn't worth the change! The biggest problem is the missing SONG MODE! You can't manage your sounds properly anymore... keep your NS3 and wait for an NS5! Maybe Nord will finally solve the problem then!

[Ecaroh]

I too have NS3 and NS4 and like @cooltour said, in retrospect it wasn’t worth it. I do my gigs still with NS3 and NS4 is mostly waiting (forever?) for real updates. To me it’s mostly MIDI which is MUCH worse in NS4. Those who want to use Stage connected to other gear NS4 is disaster. On the other hand if you use alone it’s mostly improvement over NS3. Missing Song mode isn't a big deal for me. I never used it in NS3 either.

[M_a_c]

Well, for me it’s not an issue that would stop me buying a NS4 since the positives outweigh it a lot. However, it’s annoying

I guess I am in the minority, but once I have the sounds programmed on my Wave 2, I almost never need to adjust a layer with the slider. If I must, I use the mod wheel morph.

-dj