How many of you would take a closer look at the Nord Stage if it had dual manuals?

Imagine if it looked just like it does now, but it is maybe four inches thicker, and had two manuals- one that has fully weighted keys, and the other manual was an organ-waterfall/synth type manual.

It could have two configs:

A) 88 fully weighted keys/73 o-wf/s

B) 76 fully weighted keys/61 o-wf/s

I ask this because I almost pulled the trigger on one, but I cannot justify this kind of money to compromise on feel. I am a purist of sorts, I want the real feel.

I think that making it a dual manual would take away from its market appeal and make it more of a Frankenstein or niche instrument. It is so svelte and easy to move as it is and the player has the ability to add a second keyboard of their choice. I recall other conversations of a similar nature about "hey why doesn't Yamaha or Roland package a dual manual digital piano with an unweighted synth" or something. It makes for a large, unwieldy instrument that gives the player fewer backup options...if the power supply dies, you've lost the whole rig.

With that said, I think rigs where people have gone out of their way to make their two boards interact closely and even building them into custom boxes is cool. But I think Nord would probably have trouble selling a dual manual stage with a weighted and unweighted board (plus the cost would obviously go up).

Just my thoughts.

valid points. But, one question- has any manufacturer actaully done it?....

I mean, I have a CME U-Key 49 key controller, and it weighs like nothing. If I could add that to the Stage, it couldn't really be that big or heavy. I see your point and all, but I would be all over it...

I honestly don't think it would sell...there just aren't enough people that want this and it would be very hard to craft the dual manuals to meet expectations of a lot of players. Some people like waterfall keys, others like synth keys, etc. Much easier to focus R&D efforts on a solid, focused instrument, rather than trying to build a jack of all trades.

As for your question, the Yamaha GX-1 is one I can think of, off the top of my head. Methinks a dual manual Stage could be the '00s equivalent and would be as rare and unusual 20 years from now.

Is it that hard to get yourself a Stage and then perch your CME controller over it? The Stage has plenty of internal horsepower to let you harness its sounds via an external controller.

There is the C-1 for dual manuals...

Really, it would be a keybed with dual action that could make this thing the best ever.

Then again, isn't the Stage's action triggered high when in Organ mode?

And yes, Stage+Midi Controller is a much better idea (more portable..)

What they could do, though, is market a midi controller made just for that!

A lower manual, onto which the stage would fit perfectly, with waterfall keys and a Half-moon switch and stuff like that..

You know, that would be a simple solution. Honestly, a mechanism that applies or lifts the weight from the keys. Like a cam shaft. seems like a no-brainer.

I know a bunch of us have lobbied manufacturers over the years to build some new standards for modular keyboards, similar to a MIDI spec. They could build all 88 note boards the same size and dimensions, with a way of adding in a second board that could lock to the bottom board...even if not a universal standard across manufacturers, wouldn't it be cool if Nord or Korg or whomever built a bunch of gear with this in mind?

You would start by buying the flagship that is built to interface with either a simple controller or a more complex synth or sampler. All the instruments would have common dimensions and it would be up to the player to decide which one he wants.

But at the end of the day, that would not be too different from the way things are today, with most all of the boards on the market being single-manual and players and pick their pair based on their needs. I think that it would be real tough to build a double manual that would meet needs of enough players. Heck, even Hammond is building the modular XK system, where you start with the XK3, then add the lower manual and the stand.

Didn't someone round hereabouts suggest an Electro 3 'd make a good gigging partner for ... an Electro2.

Yes.

hmmm.

You take a VMK-76plus and the VMK-161plus organ model, a set of drawbars(NIB4d or Voce) and wack em in the same box with the Nord stage engine. I'm there.

No it's not hard to perch a CME controller over your Stage, but how close are the 2 keyboards? Isn't this the whole point of getting them into the one package.

But then we'd be back to whining about the weight wouldn't we?

So I'm currently using a VMK-161 weighted board with the NIB4d sitting on the top left hand corner, and a CME mobiletone (yes you read right) 4 octave controller on the VMK. The CME weighs virtually nothing, and at 21 cm back to front and only 4 cm deep doesn't fall off the back of the VMK and the distance between the top of the keys on the VMK and the top of the keys on the CME is under 8 cm. No Hammond, but very comfortable. And very portable.

And then sometimes I miss an octave or so of piano keys

It'll never quite work out perfectly, but I do agree with Eric that anyone building what the op described would probably not please enough of us enough to make a profit. I mean we'd finally agree on 76 keys on the bottom, and then we'd have to decide which 76 keys ...

Didn't someone round hereabouts suggest an Electro 3 'd make a good gigging partner for ... an Electro2. Yes. hmmm. You take a VMK-76plus and the VMK-161plus organ model, a set of drawbars(NIB4d or Voce) and wack em in the same box with the Nord stage engine. I'm there. No it's not hard to perch a CME controller over your Stage, but how close are the 2 keyboards? Isn't this the whole point of getting them into the one package. But then we'd be back to whining about the weight wouldn't we? So I'm currently using a VMK-161 weighted board with the NIB4d sitting on the top left hand corner, and a CME mobiletone (yes you read right) 4 octave controller on the VMK. The CME weighs virtually nothing, and at 21 cm back to front and only 4 cm deep doesn't fall off the back of the VMK and the distance between the top of the keys on the VMK and the top of the keys on the CME is under 8 cm. No Hammond, but very comfortable. And very portable. And then sometimes I miss an octave or so of piano keys It'll never quite work out perfectly, but I do agree with Eric that anyone building what the op described would probably not please enough of us enough to make a profit. I mean we'd finally agree on 76 keys on the bottom, and then we'd have to decide which 76 keys ...

Dude- you have to post a pic of your rig!!

Dude- you have to post a pic of your rig!!

Hey, yes I should. And if someone wouldn't mind explaining how to upload pictures here I'd be happy to.

I do think a VMK under a Stage Compact would be far more sensible than a

Stage and an unweighted controller, if only because you then have the controls on the top of your rig rather than buried under the second tier.

One of the reasons I bought a Yamaha CP-300 was the fact that you could rest another keyboard right on it's flat top. It's perfect for putting that unweighted synth or organ on top with minimal space between keyboards while keeping your graded hammer 88 on bottom. Such a simple thing but only the CP-300 has it.

Until Waldorf can actually produce the Zarenbourg that's listed on their website.

BTW, I voted no on this poll. I'd rather have two seperate boards with their own distinct features.

not only. The Kawai MP9000/9500/8 also facilitates this, just like a Rhodes.

I believe the Kurz MIDI Board has a large enough ledge for a second keyboard, but that is old school. Speaking of old school, the Prophet T8 has the same thing.

Another solution that can be done with most any keyboard is to use an Invisible brand stand (long out of production, but available used). I know Pro hates them, but I think he must have experienced a bad batch. I've been using them for a few decades and have compared them against many other stands...best stand ever, in my opinion. And you can place keyboards in such close proximity. Here's a photo of my rig from NYE 2 nights ago.

A duel manual Nord Stage would be really cool.

Yamaha D-Deck, part of the Electone line.

This is sold in Japan and Europe with or without the stand and pedalboard. If these are sold in the US, they're fairly scarce.

I think Yamaha should release a midi controller version of this keyboard. It would really be cool on stage.

Hey, yes I should. And if someone wouldn't mind explaining how to upload pictures here I'd be happy to. I do think a VMK under a Stage Compact would be far more sensible than a Stage and an unweighted controller, if only because you then have the controls on the top of your rig rather than buried under the second tier.

Someone tried to explain it to me once, but I got pissed off said "screw it".

You'd think it would be simple

Nice setup, Eric. Do the LEDs change when you change the MIDI drawbars?

and a laptop and padKONTROL

the x-station keys are about five inches above the MIDBOARD's keys

Yep, the MIDI Drawbar unit takes over and controls the LEDs on the Nord. It is a very slick setup. I think I was the first one on the planet using this rig and have influenced several others.

Here is another photo.

I would only consider the Stage if it sounded good to my ears and had nice feeling keys. For piano/ep/organ sounds, as far as I'm concerned I already have the best option on the market.

yeh, this is really the crux of the problem. You like Yamaha pianos but their organs, esp. the leslie sim, are {censored}e. Or you like the Nord organs but hate their pianos. I think most of us that have a 2-tier rig have a Roland/Yamaha/Kurz on the bottom and a Nord/Hammond-Suzuki on top. Or something like that. Roland's VK-8 is good but generally rated below the Nord or Hammond stuff. The Korg CX-3 is great but Korg pianos aren't generally liked. And Clavia's piano samples aren't pleasing most of us. So in my case I have piano and rhodes coming from a FantomXr and my Hammond sounds coming from an EMU-B3. I think Nord's organs are fab but the rhodes aren't to my taste (prefer SRX-11) and their pianos don't work for me. The Roland organs (with SRX-07) are passable for pop, but I play too much funk to be happy with them. Basically those companies that provide us with the most liked piano sounds - Yamaha, Roland, Kurz, Kawai - don't overlap with our favourite Hammond patch providers - Nord, Hammond-Suzuki, Voce.

Nearly every other stand ever made is sturdier, easier to carry, and better in every way. Invisible Stands sucked and went away... if they were a good product somebody else would've picked up on the design and remade them. They are nothing more than flimsy hardware held together with screen door tensioners. You bring this dead product up over and over and I think you need to give it a rest until someone actually offers one for sale again, which means never.

Nearly every other stand ever made is sturdier, easier to carry, and better in every way. Invisible Stands sucked and went away... if they were a good product somebody else would've picked up on the design and remade them. They are nothing more than flimsy hardware held together with screen door tensioners. You bring this dead product up over and over and I think you need to give it a rest until someone actually offers one for sale again, which means never.

Yes sir, I thought we agreed to disagree on this years ago So I'll give it a rest if it's still getting on your nerves so bad.

Yes sir, I thought we agreed to disagree on this years ago So I'll give it a rest if it's still getting on your nerves so bad.

I don't believe you... no thread seems immune to your Invisible Stand worship service so I created a poll and thread under "worst keyboard stand design ever". You can renew your vows there if you wish.

how are the wurlis on the srx-07? Have you ever compared them to the Electro? Also, how do the srx-07 and srx-11 rhodes compare? How do they sound against the Electro?