Clavia Nord Lead User Manual

Owners Manual

Software Version 2.x – English

The lighting flash with the arrowhead symbol within

CAUTION

RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK

DO NOT OPEN

ATTENTION:

CAUTION: TO REDUCE THE RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK

REFER SERVICING TO QUALIFIED SERVICE PERSONELL

INSTRUCTIONS PERTAINING TO A RISK OF FIRE, ELECTRIC SHOCK, OR INJURY TO PERSONS.

RISQUE DE CHOC ELECTRIQUE - NE PAS OUVRIR

DO NOT REMOVE COVER (OR BACK)

NO USER SERVICABLE PARTS INSIDE.

an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user to presence of uninsulated “dangerous voltage” within the product’s enclosure that may be of sufficient magnitude to constitute a risk of electric shock to persons.

The exclamation point within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user to the presence of important operating and maintenance (servicing) instructions in the literature accompanying the product.

IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS

SA VE THESE INSTRUCTIONS

WARNING - When using electric products, basic precautions should always be followed, including the following:

1. Read all the instructions and observe the graphic symbols above before using the product.

2. This product must be grounded. If it should malfunction or break down, grounding provides a path of least resistance for electronic current, to reduce the risk of electric shock. This product is equipped with a power supply cord having an equipment grounding conductor and a grounding plug. The plug must be plugged into an appropriate outlet which is properly installed and grounded in accordance with all local codes and ordinances.

DANGER : Improper connection of the equipment

grounding conductor can result in a risk of electric shock. Do not modify the plug provided with the product. If it will not ﬁt the outlet, have a proper outlet installed by a qualiﬁed electrician. Do not use an adaptor which defeats the function of the equipment-grounding conductor. If you are in doubt as to whether the product is properly grounded, check with a qualiﬁed serviceman or electrician.

3. Do not use this product near water – for example, near a bathtub, washbowl, kitchen sink, in a wet basement, or near a swimming pool, or the like.

4. This product should be used only with a cart or stand that is recommended by the manufacturer.

5. This product, either alone or in combination with an ampliﬁer and headphones or speakers, may be capable of producing sound levels that could cause permanent hearing loss. Do not operate for a long period of time at a high volume level or at a level that is uncomfortable. If you experience any hearing loss or ringing in the ears, you should consult an audiologist.

6. The product should be located so that its location or position does not interfere with its proper ventilation.

7. The product should be located away from heat sources such as radiators, heat registers, or other products that produce heat.

8. The product should be connected to a power supply only of the type described in the operating instructions or as marked on the product.

9. The power supply cord of the product should be unplugged from the outlet when left unused for a long period of time.

10.Care should be taken so that objects do not fall and liquids are not spilled into the enclosure through openings.

11.The product should be serviced by qualiﬁed service personnel when: A. The power supply cord or the plug has been

damaged; or

B. Objects have fallen, or liquid has been spilled

onto the product; or C. The product has been exposed to rain; or D. The product does not appear to operate nor-

mally or exhibits a marked change in perform-

ance; or E. The product has been dropped or the enclo-

sure damaged.

12.Do not attempt to service the product beyond that described in the user-maintenance instructions. All other servicing should be referred to qualiﬁed service personnel.

For the USA - for equipment with polarized line plug:

This product may be equipped with a polarized line plug (one blade wider than the other). This is a safety feature. If you are unable to insert the plug into the outlet, contact an electrician to replace your obsolete outlet. Do not defeat the safety purpose of the plug.

For Canada - for equipment with polarized line plug: CAUTION: TO PREVENT ELECTRIC SHOCK; MATCH WIDE BLADE OF PLUG TO WIDE SLOT; FULLY

INSERT.

ATTENTION: POUR EVITER LES CHOCS ELECTRIQUES, INTRODUIRE LA LAME LA PLUS LARGE DE

LA FICHE DANS LA BORNE CORRESPONDANCE DE LA PRISE ET POUSSER JUSQU’ AU FOND.

Table Of Contents Page 1

Introduction 5

Welcome! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

About This Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Clavia on the Net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Connections 7

Connecting a Pedal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Basic Operations 9

Demo Play Function. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Basic MIDI Settings for the Nord Rack. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Selecting Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Selecting Percussion Kits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Using the Slots To Switch Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Layering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Replacing One Program In the Layer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Selecting Performances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Monophonic and Polyphonic Operation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Stereo/Mono. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Pitch Stick and Modulation Wheel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Master Tune . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Pedal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

The “Panic” button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Editing Programs 21

Changing An Existing Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Changing One Sound In A Layer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Getting Back To The Programmed Sound. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Using Manual Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Customizing Manual Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Storing Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Copying Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Using PCMCIA Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Programming Velocity Sensitivity 25

The Filter Velocity Function. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Making Any Parameter Velocity Dependent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Clearing Velocity Programming For One Knob. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Clearing All Velocity Programming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Morphing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Page 2 Table Of Contents

Percussion Kits 29

Selecting and playing a Percussion Kit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Editing the sounds in a Percussion Kit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Copying, Extracting and Importing individual Percussion sounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Saving Percussion Kits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Sys Ex Dumps of Percussion Kits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Using Percussion Kits in Performance Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Performances 33

What Are Performances? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Recalling A Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Editing the Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Extracting Single Sounds from a Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Saving a Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Exiting Performance Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

What a Performance contains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Panel Reference 37

Oscillator 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Oscillator 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Settings For Both Oscillators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Amplifier. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

LFO 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

LFO 2/Arpeggiator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Modulation Envelope. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Mod Wheel Destination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Poly Legato Mono . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Unison . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Portamento. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Oct Shift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Shift Functions 55

Accessing The Shift Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Tune (Master Tune) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Out Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Local . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Prog/Ctrl. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

MIDI Channel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Special . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

MIDI 67

About the MIDI Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Using Nord Lead With a Sequencer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Bulk Dump. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Table Of Contents Page 3

About Subtractive Synthesis 73

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

The Building Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

The Oscillators and Waveforms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

The Filter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

The Amplifier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

LFOs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

MIDI Implementation 89

Controller Number List. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

System Exclusive Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Factory Settings 99

Factory Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

Factory Percussion Kits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

Factory Performances. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

About the Organ Sounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

About the Prophet-5 factory sound recreations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Restoring the Factory Programs in RAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

MIDI Implementation Chart 107

Index 109

Page 4 Table Of Contents

Introduction Page 5

1. Introduction

Welcome!

We’d first like to thank you and congratulate to the purchase of a Nord Lead. You’re about to begin a journey into the world of virtual analog synthesis. Analog because the Nord Lead mimics traditional analog synthesizers in a way no one thought was possible. Virtual because the Nord Lead is actually a digital instrument, remaining true to the traditional analog concept, and still managing to go beyond it!.

But not all the magic lies in the sound creation. A major part is in the front panel, comprehensive, clearly laid out and smooth to operate.

About This Manual

If you have some basic knowledge about programmable synthesizers, you probably won’t need this manual much. Therefore it is arranged mainly as a reference text for those rare situation where something isn’t as obvious as it should be.

Clavia on the Net

If you have access to the World Wide Web you can get free sounds for your NordLead on www.clavia.se. Here you will also find all the latest information about the Nord Lead and other Claiva products.

Page 6 Introduction

Connections Page 7

2. Connections

▼

Make all connections before turning on your power amplifier!

▼

If you are using a Nord Rack together with a MIDI keyboard, connect a MIDI cable from MIDI Out on the keyboard to MIDI In on the Nord Rack.

▼

All signal cables used with the Nord Lead must be shielded.

▼

The L/R Outputs are line level.

Midi in Midi out Pedal R out L out Headphone

Expression pedal or footswitch

MIDI equipment (sequencer etc.) Audio equipment (mixer, PA etc)

Headphones

Page 8 Connections

Connecting a Pedal

▼

If the Pedal input should be used for sustain, a regular footswitch and cable can be used.

▼

If the Pedal input should be used as a replacement for the modulation wheel, an “expression” pedal with a “stereo cable” should be used.

Pedal R out L out Headphone

▼

For information on how to set the Nord Lead up for sustain or expression pedal, see page 17.

Basic Operations Page 9

3. Basic Operations

Demo Play Function

Before you try out the new features for yourself, you may want to listen to what can be done with the instrument. Luckily, the Nord Lead is equipped with a built-in demo playback function! There are six demo songs in ROM, showing the instrument’s versatility and features in different contexts. To listen to the demo songs, proceed like this:

1. Simultaneously press the Shift and Sync (Demo) buttons.

FM AMT.

OSC 2

Amount

OSC 1 OSC 2

SYNC

POLY

LEGATO

MONO

SPECIAL

SHIFT

Portamento

AUTO

SYSTEM

LFO 1

OSC 2

FM AMT

FILTER

MORPH

Pulse width Mix

polyphonic lead

DEMO

OSC 1 OSC 2

The Shift and Sync buttons.

Playback starts. During playback, all knobs and buttons on the panel are disabled, except for Master Volume.

2. The demo songs are played back one after the other. If you want to move to the next or previous demo song, press the Up or Down button in the Program section of the panel.

3. To exit demo play mode, press any other button on the panel.

Please note that some of the demo songs make use of 12 voices, and will therefore only be played back on an expanded Nord Lead. If you use a 4-voice Nord Lead, you will not be able to select these demo songs.

Page 10 Basic Operations

Basic MIDI Settings for the Nord Rack

If you are using the Nord Rack and controlling it from a MIDI keyboard, the Nord Rack must be set to receive on the same MIDI channel that the keyboard transmits on. To get started, proceed as follows:

1. Set the keyboard to transmit on MIDI Channel 1.

2. Press the Program Slot A button, so that the LED above the button is lit.

Program

ABCD

STORE

TUNE LOCALOUT MODE PRG.CTRL.

3. Hold down the Shift button and press the MIDI Ch (Unison) button.

LEGATO

RL. SYSTEM

UNISON

MIDI CH

Pitch bend

MONO

SPECIAL

SHIFT

AUTO

LFO 1

OSC 2

FM AMT

FILTER

MORPH

The MIDI Ch button

The Shift button

The display will now show the MIDI Channel setting for Slot A (1 – 16 or off).

4. Use the Program Up/Down buttons to select MIDI Channel 1.

MIDI Channel 1 selected.

The Program Up/Down buttons

Program

5. Press Shift again to return to the normal play mode.

If you use Slot A when you play the Nord Rack (if you like, together with other Slots), this simple setting should be sufficient in most situations - even when playing Layers and Performances, as described later in this manual. For more information, see page 69.

Basic Operations Page 11

Selecting Programs

Program are sounds that you have prepared in advance. The basic memory in the Nord Lead contains 99

Programs . 40 of these can be used for storing your own Programs, see below.

There are also four Program slots labelled A to D. The slots can be used for layering and quickly switching between programs as described below. They are also used when the Nord Lead is played via MIDI.

1. Select a Program Slot to play by pressing one of the four buttons A to D.

When you are only playing one sound at a time, as you are now, you can select any slot.

Program

Use these four buttons to select a “Program slot”.

Program

ABCD

TUNE LOCALOUT MODE PRG.CTRL.

STORE

This “slot” is selected (lit up).

2. Use the Program Up/Down keys to select a Program for that slot.

Holding down a button scrolls the value quickly. Holding down the Shift key (the button above the Modulation wheel) while pressing the buttons makes the value change in steps of ten.

Press these buttons to increase/ decrease the Program number.

If you hold down the Shift button while you press the Up/Down keys, the Program value will change in

Program

STORE

ABCD

steps of ten.

SHIFT

LFO 1

OSC 2

FM AMT

FILTER

MORPH

There are 99 Programs to select from. If you have a PCMCIA card inserted in the holder on the back (to do this you must have the expansion card installed), you may have another 297 on this, arranged in three banks. Dots to the right and between the numeral in the display indicate new Banks.

A single dot to the right indicates Bank 1.

A single dot between the numerals indicate Bank 2.

Dots both to the right and between the numerals, indicate Bank 3.

Page 12 Basic Operations

Selecting Percussion Kits

In addition to the 99 Programs in the basic memory, there are 10 Percussion Kits . Each Percussion Kit consists of eight different virtual analog percussion sounds, arranged in zones across the keyboard. The Kits are located “above” Program number 99, and numbered “P0” to “P9”.

▼

To select a Percussion Kit for a Slot, proceed just as when selecting a regular Program: Use the Program Up/Down buttons to scroll to the desired Percussion Kit location.

Program

ABCD

STORE

TUNE LOCALOUT MODE PRG.CTRL.

Percussion Kit P0 selected.

For detailed information about how to play and edit the Percussion Kits, see page 29.

Using the Slots To Switch Programs

The four Program Slots A to D can be thought of as four independent synthesizers, each capable of playing one Program or Percussion Kit. When you select one of the slots you will switch to play the Program set for that slot.

For live performance, for example, you can set up each slot to play a different Program and quickly switch between those four by pressing the buttons A to D.

Basic Operations Page 13

Layering

Activating

You can play more than one Program at a time. Proceed as follows:

1. Set up the Program slots to play the Programs you want to use.

2. To activate more than one Program slot, simply press all the Program Slot buttons you want to use, at the same time.

All those slots’ LEDs light up. The last one you pressed, is blinking. This will be the one you are editing from the front panel, but more on this on page 21.

Program

STORE

Slots A and D (LEDs lit) are activated.

ABCD

Slot C (LED dark) is not activated.

TUNE LOCALOUT MODE PRG.CTRL.

Slot B (blinking) is selected. Any editing will apply to this Program slot.

Deactivating

To turn of the layer, press a slot button that is not part of the layer, or press all the buttons that make up the layer.

Polyphony

How many notes you can play when layering sounds depends on two things:

1. How many voices you have in your instrument (the basic four or the expanded twelve). 2. What Play modes and Unison settings each Program uses. See page 53.

Replacing One Program In the Layer

You might want to select another Program for one of the slots in the layer:

1. Press the Program Slot button that you want to select Programs for.

Its LED will flash to indicate it is the active slot.

2. Select a new Program for that slot.

Page 14 Basic Operations

Selecting Performances

A Performance is a collection of four Programs, one for each slot. Furthermore, the Performance contains information about which Programs should be active (layered).

In fact, a Performance also contains information about what MIDI Channels to use for each slot, and a number of other settings, but this is described in detail on page 33. This text is only meant as a quick introduction to playing the factory Performances.

1. If you have the rack version of the Nord Lead, make sure you transmit on MIDI Channel 1.

This is because the factory Performances are set to receive on MIDI Channel 1.

2. Enter Performance mode by holding down Shift and pressing Performance (Manual).

The display shows the latest selected Performance.

The Performances are organised in 10 Banks, named alphabetically from A to L (the letters I and K are excluded because they’re hard to write clearly on the display). In each Bank there are 10 Performances, for a total of 100. If you have a PCMCIA card inserted, the Banks on the card are found after the internal (ROM) Banks and labelled in the same way, but indicated with a dot to the right of the digits in the display.

3. If you want to select another Bank (A to L), hold down Shift and press the Up and Down buttons.

4. To select a Performance in the Bank use the Up and Down buttons.

The Performance is instantly loaded and you can try it out. For a list of the factory Performances, see page

102.

Use the Up/Down buttons to change Performance (indicated by the digit 1-9 to the right in the display).

If you hold down the Shift button, you can change Performance Bank (A-L) with the Up/Down buttons.

Program

ABCD

TUNE LOCALOUT MODE PRG.CTRL.

STORE

SHIFT

LFO 1

OSC 2

FM AMT

FILTER

MORPH

5. When you are done, exit Performance mode by again holding down Shift and pressing Performance (Manual).

Basic Operations Page 15

Monophonic and Polyphonic Operation

For each Program you can set a Play Mode (Poly, Mono, Legato). The exact nature of these modes is described on page 53.

To make a sound fatter, you can activate Unison. This reduces polyphony. See page 53 for details.

Press this button to turn Unison on and off. The LED above the button indicates that Unison is activated.

UNISON

POLY

LEGATO

MONO

Portamento

AUTO

MIDI CH

SPECIAL

SYSTEM

Stereo/Mono

If you are using both the Left and Right outputs, or headphones, you might want to know something about how the sounds get positioned in the stereo image.

The complex answer is that this depends on the Out Mode settings as described on page 57. However, the simple truth is that in the basic mode, which the Nord Lead is set to when it comes from the factory, all Programs are in mono. In fact, there’s one exception: If a Program is set to Unison, the instrument is switched to stereo operation.

Pitch Stick and Modulation Wheel

Pitch Stick

The Pitch Stick is used to bend the notes, just as with a pitch bend wheel on traditional instruments. The pitch stick differs from other pitch bend devices in a couple of ways:

▼ There is no dead centre in the middle of the throw. This allows you to use the pitch stick for natural vi-

brato, pretty much like a guitarist can.

▼ The effect on pitch is logarithmic, that is, the further you move the stick away from the centre position,

the more drastic the effect will be.

To set the range of the Pitch Stick, proceed as follows:

1. Hold down the Shift button.

Page 16 Basic Operations

2. With the Shift button down, press the button labelled System.

Hold down the Shift button...

LFO 1

OSC 2

UNISON

MIDI CH

MONO

SPECIAL

AUTO

SYSTEM

SHIFT

...and press the button labelled System

FM AMT

FILTER

MORPH

(the LED above the button lights up).

3. Press the System button repeatedly until the character to the left in the display says “b” (for Bend).

4. Use the Program Up/Down buttons to the left of the display, to change the value.

The table on page 66 shows you how many semi-tones each value in the display represents.

If the Pitch Stick should be malfunctioning on startup, the display will scroll the message “PITCH BEND ERROR.”. The Nord Lead will then work as usual, but the Pitch Stick will be disabled.

Modulation Wheel

The effect of moving the Modulation wheel can be different for each Program. You can change the function by pressing the button just above the Modulation wheel. It steps between five possibilities. A description of each can be found on page 52.

Master Tune

To tune the Nord Lead to other instruments, proceed as follows:

1. Hold down the Shift button.

2. With the Shift button down, press the button labelled Tune.

Program

ABCD

TUNE LOCALOUT MODE PRG.CTRL.

STORE

Hold down the Shift button...

LFO 1

OSC 2

FM AMT

FILTER

SHIFT

MORPH

...and press the button labelled Tune (the LED above the button lights up).

3. Use the Program Up/Down buttons to the left of the display, to change the value.

00 is normal 440Hz tuning. Lower pitches are indicated by a dot to the right of the number and values higher than normal pitch are indicated without a dot. The values are in cents (hundreds of a semitone).

4. Press the Shift button again.

Basic Operations Page 17

Pedal

As shown in the picture on page 8, the Pedal input accepts either a foot switch or an expression pedal. The procedures for setting up and using a connected foot pedal differs depending on the pedal type:

Using a Foot Switch

A connected foot switch works as a sustain pedal. Set it up as follows:

1. Hold down the Shift button, and press the “System” button.

2. Press the System button until the left digit in the display is “P”.

3. Use the Program Up/Down buttons to switch the right digit between “1” (Sustain pedal – closed when pressed) and “2” (Sustain Pedal – open when pressed).

4. Press the Shift button again.

Using an Expression pedal

As indicated in the illustration on page 8, a regular expression pedal can be connected using a stereo cable. The connected pedal will either duplicate the Modulation wheel or independently control one of a number of parameters. Set it up as follows:

1. Hold down the Shift button, and press the “System” button.

2. Press the System button until the left digit in the display is “P”.

3. Use the Program Up/Down buttons to switch the right digit to “E”.

This tells the Nord Lead that the connected pedal is supposed to be an expression pedal. Now it’s time to assign a control function for the pedal:

4. While holding down the Shift button, press the Special button.

5. Press the Special button repeatedly, until the left character in the display is an “E” (for “Expression Pedal”).

6. Select a slot for which you want to set the pedal function by pressing one of the buttons A to D.

7. If you want the connected pedal to duplicate the functionality of the Modulation wheel, press the Program Down button until the right character in the display is a dash (“–”).

Program

With this setting, the expression pedal will have the same function as the Modulation wheel.

STORE

8. If you instead want to select an independent control function for the pedal, press Store.

The display will flash, showing one of the abbreviations in the table below.

Page 18 Basic Operations

9. ‘Use the Program Up/Down buttons to select one of the following control functions:

Display shows: Pedal assigned to:

LFO 1 Amount.

LFO 2 Amount.

Filter Cutoff Frequency.

FM Amount.

Oscillator 2 Pitch.

10. After you have made your choice, press Store again.

You return to the “E” display.

11. Use the Program Up/Down buttons to select a control amount value (“1” to “7”).

This value (shown to the right of the “E” in the display) determines the range of the pedal control signal. Lower values give a smaller difference between the pedal’s “full up” and “full down” states. High values give a big difference between the pedal’s up and down states.

12. If needed, repeat steps 5 to 10 to set pedal control function for the other slots.

13. Press Shift to exit the Special menu and return to play mode.

No matter which function is selected for the Pedal input (“E”, “1” or “2” on the System menu), the Nord Lead will recognize Sustain and Expression pedal messages via MIDI (Controller message 64 and 11, respectively). For example, it is possible to connect a regular sustain pedal to the Pedal input on the Nord Lead, and simultaneously accept Expression pedal messages via MIDI, controlling a parameter assigned as described above.

Basic Operations Page 19

The “Panic” button

If notes “get stuck” or the Nord Lead behaves strangely all you need to do is hold down the Shift button and press “Panic” (the Kbd Track button in the Filter section). This will execute an internal All Notes Off, and reset certain parameters to normal values.

Filter

Filter type

HP 24 dB

LP 24 dB

LP 12 dB

Attack Decay Sustain Release

VELOCITY KBD TRACK

NOTCH

+LP

Frequency

Resonance Envelope amount

The Panic button.

PANIC



Page 20 Basic Operations

Editing Programs Page 21

4. Editing Programs

Changing An Existing Program

Actually, how to change a programmed sound can be described in one sentence: “twist the knobs and press the buttons”. It is as simple as that!

▼ For information about editing Percussion Kits, refer to page 30. ▼ Don’t be afraid to edit and overwrite the RAM Programs in the internal memory (Program 01 - 40). If later

you want to restore any of the original RAM factory programs, they are backed up as ROM Performances as described on page 106.

Changing One Sound In A Layer

If you have layered sounds you can still edit one of the sounds from the front panel. Proceed as follows:

1. Press the Program Slot button that you want to edit.

Its LED will flash to indicate it is the active slot.

2. Use the front panel to change the sound.

Getting Back To The Programmed Sound

If you have edited a Program and want to get back to the programmed original, proceed as follows:

1. Select another Program for that slot.

2. Select the first Program again.

It will now have reverted back to the way it was when you selected it last.

Page 22 Editing Programs

Using Manual Mode

Master

level

Velocity / morph

ACTIVE

SET

CLEAR

MANUAL

The Manual button.

PERF. MODE

If you want to use the front panel to make up a sound from scratch, press the Manual button. This leaves you with exactly the sound that the knobs and buttons on the panel indicate (just as if the Nord Lead was an old non-programmable instrument).

When you press the Manual button, the instrument only plays one Program, layering is not possible.

Customizing Manual Mode

When you press Manual mode, the button functions (waveform select, modulation destinations etc.) will be set to some default values, for a basic sound. However, if you would like Manual mode to be different the next time you turn on power, proceed as follows:

1. Enter manual mode.

2. Set all button functions as you want them.

3. Press Store twice.

Editing Programs Page 23

Storing Programs

Storing is done identically regardless if you are saving an edited Program or if you are saving from Manual mode.

Saving a Program will permanently overwrite an existing Program. Be careful so that you don’t accidentally erase a Program you’d like to keep! However, there is no danger of permanently losing the Factory Programs in RAM locations 01-40, since these are backed up as ROM Performances (see page 106).

1. Press the Store button.

The display flashes.

2. Use the Program Up/Down button to select a Program number.

You can play the now selected Program, in this mode, to decide if you want to replace it or not.

Only Program numbers up to 40 in internal memory Bank can be used for saving!. If you try to save in higher program numbers, nothing will happen!

3. If you change your mind at this point, press the Program Slot you want to return to or press the Manual button to return to Manual Mode.

4. If you decide to go ahead with overwriting the existing Program, press Store again.

The display stops flashing to indicate the Program has been saved.

Copying Programs

Copying Programs between memory slots is just a variation on Storing:

1. Select the Program you want to copy.

2. Press Store.

3. Use the Program Up/Down button to specify the memory location you want to copy the program to.

4. Press Store again.

Page 24 Editing Programs

Using PCMCIA Cards

If you have the eight voice expansion card installed in your Nord Lead, you can use a standard PCMCIA computer memory card in the slot at the back of the instrument. This allows you to save another three Banks for a total of 297 programmable memory slots and 30 programmable Percussion Kit locations, and 100 Performances (which in practice includes an additional 400 Programs). PCMCIA cards are also perfect for “backing up” (making safety copies of important Programs and Performances).

You can purchase Clavia cards at your Nord Lead dealer. These come with sounds for your instrument, but can be used to store your won. Ask your dealer for the Nord Lead Sound Library Series.

If you purchase the card at a computer retailer you should ask for this: A 64 kilobyte S-RAM-based, bat- tery-backed PCMCIA card. There are cards with larger memory capacity than 64 kByte but using one with the Nord Lead is simply a waste of money.

Formatting of New Cards

For the Nord Lead to be able to use a new PCMCIA card, it has to be formatted. The instrument will do this for you, if you perform the following steps:

1. Check that the card is not write protected.

This is done with a switch located directly on the card.

2. Insert the card.

The display will flash with the letters “Fo”.

3. To format the card, press Store.

Storing Programs On the Card

This is nothing different from storing into the internal memory Bank. When specifying where to store Program, simply select one of the memory slots above “99”, as when selecting Programs from the card (see page 11).

Storing Performances On the Card

This is described on page 35.

Before storing, make sure the card is not write protected. If it is write protected, the display will not stop flashing when you press Store the second time, to indicate the Program hasn’t been stored.

Updating Older Cards

A number of new parameters were introduced with the Nord Lead Software version 2.x. If you have a PCMCIA S-RAM card formatted with a previous Nord Lead software version, you need to update the card to be able to properly save settings for the new parameters. This updating procedure will not erase or alter any sound already on the card. Proceed as follows:

1. Check that the card is not write protected.

2. Insert the card.

The display will flash with the letters “UP”.

3. To update the card, press Store.

Programming Velocity Sensitivity Page 25

5. Programming Velocity Sensitivity

The Filter Velocity Function

Press this button to make the Filter Envelope Amount respond to velocity. The LED indicates that the Velocity function is activated.

VELOCITY

Frequency

The quickest way to make a Program velocity sensitive, is to activate the Velocity function in the Filter section. This makes the Filter Envelope Amount vary with striking force, to a pre-determined degree. See page 46 for details.

Resonance Envelope amount

Making Any Parameter Velocity Dependent

You can make any continuous parameter (those controlled with knobs) react to velocity. You can also set the maximum and minimum boundaries for this, yourself.

Setting The Range

1. Set the parameter to the value you want it to deliver when you play with minimum force.

2. Press the Active Set button in the Velocity/Morph section.

The LED over the button will flash, indicating that the Nord Lead is in “Velocity Learn” mode.

3. Turn the knob to the value you want it to have at maximum striking force.

You can try out different settings for maximum velocity until you find the most suitable. While the Nord Lead is in “Velocity Learn” mode, you can set ranges for as many parameters as you wish.

4. Press the Velocity/Morph button again.

Page 26 Programming Velocity Sensitivity

The Velocity/Morph LED is now lit to indicate that at least one parameter in the sound is velocity dependant. What you have done now is to set the range, the span within which the parameter will change with velocity.

Velocity / morph

ACTIVE

SET

If you press the Velocity/Morph button...

...and move a knob from here to there...

...this range will be the one that the parameter

CLEAR

MANUAL

PERF. MODE

varies within.

Pulse width

polyphonic

5. Turn the knob back to the value you want it to have when you play with minimum force.

What you did now was moving the entire range, as described below.

Set the value you want the parameter to have when you play with minimum force.

Move the knob back down to set the val- ues that should correspond to the lowest velocity value.

Pulse width Mix

OSC 1 OSC 2

SYNC

DEMO

OSC 1 OSC 2

OSC 1 O

SYNC

DEMO

polyphonic lead syn

If you have set the range as described in the previous picture, the value you get when playing with maximum force will be this.

6. Play the Program to try out the effect.

Please note that any two values can be used when setting the range. To make a parameter value decrease when you play with more force, i.e. have “reversed” velocity response, simply use a low value for the “maximum force “setting and a higher value for the “minimum force” setting, when you are defining the range.

Programming Velocity Sensitivity Page 27

Moving the Range

As explained above, step 1 to 4 sets the range of the parameter, how far it should be between the minimum and maximum values.

If you then turn a knob that has been programmed for velocity sensitivity, without holding any buttons or anything, you will adjust the minimum value only and the maximum value will move with it, accordingly.

If you adjust the value for a parameter programmed for velocity control, you move the entire velocity control range up/down:

This minimum value

will result in this maximum value.

This minimum val-

Pulse width

polyphonic

ue will result in this maximum value.

Pulse width

polyph

Clearing Velocity Programming For One Knob

1. Turn the knob to its lowest value.

2. Press the Velocity/Morph button.

3. Turn the knob a bit up and then back to its lowest value.

4. Press the Velocity/Morph button again.

The Velocity/Morph function is now cleared for the knob.

5. Turn the knob back up to any desired value.

When velocity programming is cleared for all knobs, the Velocity/Morph LED goes out.

Clearing All Velocity Programming

To clear all velocity programming, press the Clear button in the Velocity/Morph section.

Page 28 Programming Velocity Sensitivity

Morphing

Morphing is a term used to describe a continuous blend or “transfer” between two images, sounds or similar. As described above, Nord Lead’s Velocity/Morph function is normally controlled by velocity. But you can route the function to the modulation wheel instead which allows you to continuously fade between two sounds – morphing!

The only thing you have to do to activate morphing for a sound that’s already set up for velocity control is to press the Mod Wheel destination button until all the LEDS for the Mod Wheel destination go out.

Push this button... ...until none of these four

SHIFT

LFO 1

OSC 2

FM AMT

FILTER

MORPH

LEDs are lit.

When the four LEDs are dark, the fifth, printed Morph “LED” is considered lit.

However, if you are setting up a Morph sound from scratch, we recommend the following procedure:

1. Press the Mod Wheel destination button until all the LEDS for the Mod Wheel destination go out.

2. Make sure the Modulation wheel is all the way down.

3. Set up the basic Program as you want it.

4. Move the Modulation wheel all the way up.

5. Press Velocity/Morph button and adjust the knobs so that the Program sounds the way you want it at “the other end” of the Morph.

6. Press Velocity/Morph again.

7. Play and move the Mod Wheel to try out the effect.

You can also use an Expression pedal for Morphing, see page 17.

Please note that the Velocity function in the Filter section can be used even if Morphing is active, so that a Program can be basically Velocity sensitive even though Morphing is activated.

+ 84 hidden pages