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¿Rhodes or Nord Electro?

Started by 100056255, May 23, 2006, 07:53:43 AM

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100056255

Hi all! I´m a rhodes sound lover, and I´m planning on buying this instrument in a near future.

My budget is really restricted, so I have to choose on buying a Nord Electro or a real fender rhodes.
I would buy Nord Electro mainly because of Rhodes emulations, and Hammnond B3, Clavinet and wurlitzer are a real shot!
Besides, portability, add-on effects and studio editing...

But I´m afraid about the feeling of playing the Nord versus the real fende r rhodes. I´m really confused so I would aprecciate your comments.
¿Does the Nord Electro get closer to the real thing, or there is a whole world between them? Thank you so much!

Mark II

Sorry, all I can do is: did you check this one?

As I don't have a Electro you will have to wait till somebody else gives his comment.
But allow me to mention one thing:
the action of the Nord is nothing compared to a real rhodes (how could it be as the action of the Nord must be playable for hammond patches aswell)

Cheers
Mark II
Rhodes Stage 73 Mark II 1980 / modified Peterson Suitcase Preamp

triphobbit

It depends on what you are looking for.  If you want an all in one unit to take to gigs then get the nord.  If you want to record or only need a Rhodes sound I would get the Rhodes.  I own a Yamaha S-90 and a Mark II along with a myriad of other keyboards.  At home I only play the Rhodes.  The Yamaha has the best Rhodes sounds to my ears and it still doesn't come close to the real thing.  Nothing can touch a real Rhodes.  The way the action works, the slight differences between the pickup and tine settings, all kinds of things add up to give the Rhodes its vibe.  When you play a real Rhodes it just has "that sound".  That being said the electro is a nice board.  I have played on it several times at the local music store.  The clavs and wurlis to me sound more authentic than the Rhodes does, at least to my ears.  Eveyone raves about the B-3 sound but I haven't been that impressed.  Unless you live in Europe a used Rhodes will cost less than an electro.  The electro does weigh less than a Rhodes, that can be important if you are gigging and practicing on a weekly basis.

100056255

I do live in Europe, so I have to consider the NE option rather than Fender Rhodes. However, I´m pretty demanding about the feeling of playing a real instrument... I just don´t know what to do!

Miguel Tuna

Have you played both of them yet? Where are you from?
'79 Mk1 Suitcase

Miguel Tuna

Portugal

100056255

No, I have never played NE nor fender rhodes. I just played vst emulations, like Elektrik from Native Instruments

100056255


Miguel Tuna

Try to play both first, then, you'll know what to choose. If you come to Portugal, you can try mine :wink:
'79 Mk1 Suitcase

Miguel Tuna

Portugal

100056255

Jeje, I wish, maybe a quick tour this summer... how did you get your rhodes?

andi85

That's always the same - I thought about the same things:

10kg vs. 70kg;
3 years warranty vs. well... that depends...;
about 5 patches from Clavia you can choose from vs. almost endless possibilities of adjustments,
but vice versa Mark I-V vs. the natural limits of your Rhodes;
an always well balanced sound vs. the endless search for THE perfect tone;
built-in effects you can like or not vs. spending extra money on buying some, but also choosing them a la carte;
a cool slim red design vs. a cool piece of 1970s design;
Rhodes, Wurly, Electric Grand, Acoustic Grand, B-3 and Clavinet in one instrument vs. only one sound;
digital technology vs. ringing tines (that can break)...

what else...

I guess you know what I mean. I decided for myself to spend all my money on a Rhodes and never regretted it.

But you have to see that its really heavy and that almost nobody is willing to haul that beast to every rehearsal and every gig with you. With an Electro you don't need any help.
Another important thing is that only a Rhodes in fairly good shape is fun to play & hear and that you need to know how to get the best sound out of it.  The Electro is more like plug and play of course.

But on the other hand...if you have somebody set up your Rhodes according to your wishes - or even better, do it yourself - it is your personal instrument. The more you play it, the more you will get used and acquainted to it, to its individual strenghts and weaknesses.
I don't know if you care about that - but an Electro on stage (and also in your flat) is something different than a real Rhodes.

Yes, try to test both of them and decide.
Tuning instruments makes the band sound thin!

triphobbit

I don't know how you guys over in Europe do it.  There is a used instrument store around here that gets in a Rhodes around every other month for around $500.  It must be a pain to track down pianos and parts over there.

HammondToby

In Europe, or Germany to be exact, it's not hard to find a Rhodes. BUT you must be willing to pay prices of about 700-1200 Euros for a well-maintained Rhodes that's eventually not tuned.

I had luck to find two MK-IIs in playable condition and repaired them myself. Mostly took the parts from both of them and screwed one in good condition from the parts, payed about 200 Euros for each one at various garagesales ;-)

At the moment, I don't take my Rhodes with me, 'cause if I'll do that, I have to take my Hammond with Leslie with me. That's what the Nord Stage ist for. Sure, for some gigs it has to be the real thing, but not for everyone.

Best regards

HammondToby
1981 MK II Stage 73 > MXR Phase 100 > Boss CE-1 >  Twin Reverb (livesetup)
1980 MK II Stage 73 > Reussenzehn Max Röhrig > Dunlop TS-1 > Boss DD6 > Roland Jazz Chorus 160 (homeuse)
http://www.myspace.com/hammondtobymusic
http://www.soulyla.de/

andi85

That's right. I take my Rhodes only to gigs I'm playing because of the music and not because of the money and I don't take it to rehearsals or sessions. Furthermore the repertoire and the Rhodes sound should fit.
That means, you should additionally have something more portable w/ other sounds.
Tuning instruments makes the band sound thin!

triphobbit

I only take the Rhodes to big gigs.  Usually I just bring the S-90 to small bar or club gigs.  What type of gigs do you get in Germany?  I thought everyone in Europe listened to DJs and Electronic music.

Miguel Tuna

yes, jazz, funk, classical and other music styles don't even exist here :roll:
'79 Mk1 Suitcase

Miguel Tuna

Portugal

Mark II

This may be true in portugal, but in Germany there is a nice jazz scene with a lot of regular gigs. In Hamburg, the place I life in, I know at least 5 locations, which have jazz or jazz-like music every night (live, with real musicians).

BW
Mark II
Rhodes Stage 73 Mark II 1980 / modified Peterson Suitcase Preamp

HammondToby

Most of the time I play rock/pop- or funk- and soulgigs, some jazz- and fusionstuff too. In winter 2003 we produced a little dvd with an unpluggedprogram. I admit, that we used a MP9500 für the pianosounds, because the stage was not big enough to hold another 'keyboard' (read: grandpiano) but the Hammond and the Rhodes where there.

In my region (Heidelberg/Mannheim and Stuttgart) is a very active livescene. You can always find a gig or session to play...

Best regards
HammondToby
1981 MK II Stage 73 > MXR Phase 100 > Boss CE-1 >  Twin Reverb (livesetup)
1980 MK II Stage 73 > Reussenzehn Max Röhrig > Dunlop TS-1 > Boss DD6 > Roland Jazz Chorus 160 (homeuse)
http://www.myspace.com/hammondtobymusic
http://www.soulyla.de/

triphobbit

Cool!  Sounds like Germany has a happening scene!  Not sure about Portugal though. :)

andi85

Yes, in Germany there is definetly something going on.  
I'm playing mostly jazz, also because it is very popular in my city, but with a bit patience you also get people for playing some funk and stuff like that.
Since about 2 years there are more than enough jam sessions (mainly mainstream jazz-oriented) and other gigs...well...they come and go :) Admittedly you don't need a Rhodes for that. But it is fun, though :D
Tuning instruments makes the band sound thin!

100056255

You are so wrong about europe music culture...
I live in Madrid and here there are dozens of clubs where you can hear some blues, jazz, funk, and all these warm and lounge styles...

It´s true that this scene is something underground, but In my opinion this is even better because there´s no economic benefits so...

Anyway, USA must be something really different, you man made this music up!

Miguel Tuna

'79 Mk1 Suitcase

Miguel Tuna

Portugal

triphobbit

Dude, I know you were kidding.  I was just funning you.  Of course there is jazz and blues and funk in Portugal, I am sure it is a cool scene.  Our scene here is also somewhat underground.  Unfortunatly, here in the States, the majority of the people seem more interested in American Idol, Britney Spears type of music as opposed to anything with real soul.

Miguel Tuna

fortunately, Jazz music in Portugal as grown a lot in these last 3 years or so, I hope it's not just a fashion wave...
'79 Mk1 Suitcase

Miguel Tuna

Portugal

andi85

triphobbit, it's very similar here: most people listen to whatever junk they play on the radio. i still remember the questions when i was say 16 or so:

"why don't you listen to proper music?"
"don't you listen to charts?" "hm, no. not really." "but...you really don't listen to charts?" " no, i've got my own stuff i like more" "but...really no charts?" and so on... :D

AAANDDDD something on topic:
Don't forget that buying a Rhodes in many cases not only means buying extra gear, like effects, preamps, guitar amps...
...but also (especially if you dare to work on your piano by yourself) the endless search for YOUR sound :)

If you don't mind...buy one and have lots of fun :D
Tuning instruments makes the band sound thin!