Nord User Forum

jeddy3 wrote: I need something with plenty of sounds, split key function and a good appegiator. Thanks

What's your budget? What kinds of sounds are you most interested in? (For example, are you more interested in acoustic vs electronic sounds?) Is travel weight an issue?

ok guys,

I'm reviving this thread because I still need help/opinions. I got the Nord Electro 5 which I absolutely love. I'm still thinking about upgrading my top keyboard, which currently is a dated-but-much-loved Roland XP-60. I bought the Roland FA-06, but I didn't like it. I know we all want lighter boards, but this was almost built like a toy. Also the arpeggiator didn't work properly, so I sent it back. I'm now torn between the Yamaha Motif XF7 and the Roland Jupiter 80 or something similar. What you guys think?

jeddy3 wrote:ok guys,

I'm reviving this thread because I still need help/opinions. I got the Nord Electro 5 which I absolutely love. I'm still thinking about upgrading my top keyboard, which currently is a dated-but-much-loved Roland XP-60. I bought the Roland FA-06, but I didn't like it. I know we all want lighter boards, but this was almost built like a toy. Also the arpeggiator didn't work properly, so I sent it back. I'm now torn between the Yamaha Motif XF7 and the Roland Jupiter 80 or something similar. What you guys think?

To be honest, I don't think we could advise one over the other without more knowledge of exactly what you need.

Which one do you like the sound of better? Do they both have the sounds and features you need?

They're both top of the range pro instruments. Unless there's something very specific you need that one of them can't actually do, I would imagine that sound-wise they're both more than good enough for almost anything.

The Motif is far more of an all-rounder in terms of what it can do beyond basically being a keyboard. It's an extremely fully-fledged workstation, complete with sequencer, arpeggiators, sampling capabilities, DAW integration, sound expansion, and probably a hot-dog stand as well. I believe its sound capabilities are exclusively sample-based.

The Jupiter 80 is more of a pure player's keyboard than a workstation. Arpeggiator, but no sequencer. It does have a fairly powerful VA synth section (which the Motif doesn't have) as well as being a sample-based keyboard.

Be warned, they are both extremely large and heavy. How large? Think aircraft carrier.

Ahh, that could be a bad thing for me, as I live in a first floor flat, maybe a re-think is in order, but thanks for your reply, most helpful