Clavia Nord Electro 2 73

I have a new NE 73, with the last OS version (3.04). All functions are easily accessible from the panel.
Editing is easy, and so saving patches.

Nice keyboard action, especially for organ, but it's also suitable for playn' piano sounds.
It's a Fatar TP 80 (with thre keys less it's 73 not 76 keys), a quality brand in keyboards!

Faithful and realistic sounds. The B3 (truly it's an A 100 emulation) emulation is fantastic.Overdrive at low level gives a warmer sound (but if you play it through a tube amp...), and the Lesie emulation is absolutely the best.Better than Hammond Suzuki's clonewheels!!
Wurly multisample is the most realistic: it really bites when you play very strong on lower notes, an so thne Rhodes.
Acustic pian isn' the best, I'm searching the best sound in the library..
It's ashame that it hasn'tabuilt in reverb unit!!

It's a dream becomin' real..all my favourites pianos and organ in a light, stilish Swedish keyboard!!!

Firmware 3.04.

This clonewheel really matches up to my demands. Being an owner / player / transporter (!) of an M100/122RV and Rhodes Mark II, this is a very, very, very good alternative to the real thing.

The organ section is simply amazing. It takes a little time to covert from the real drawbars to the buttons, but at least the up/down buttons are placed logically and I really found it easy to get used to.
The rotary speaker emulation is also very convincing. Since I have a 122RV it's very easy for me to compare - and I have nothing but warm words for it. It takes the top of the key-click, which is a little to aggresive in my opinion.

Editing and using of the presets i another gift and is very easy to use and makes the gigs much easier for me..

The manual is perfect and leaves no questions unanswered..

I haven't met any limitations in the use of the NE2. It repsodices every tone, I want it to - no matter what. Keeping the sustain pedal down and challenge the polyphony leaves me with a great smile. There will not be any limits for my playing style.

The build in effects does precisely as they are supposed to. Perfect.

Again - they thought about it in Sweden..

The keyboard action on the organ sounds is so close to the real thing, but in the piano section, I have to adjust the touchsensitive level, since - even though the sounds (Steinway ie) are great - it doesn't feel right as it is in the standard setup.
The Rhodes, Clavinet and Wurlitzer sounds and playing experience is the same - compared to my Mark II (which might need a bit of service to be ideal). Again small differences in keyboard action..
I have had great pleasure in downloading the piano sounds I need and it was easy and convincing to do it. Thank you Clavia.

I use it in blues, soul and folk-music bands and it really does the job. It's funny to be the first one to be packed after the gigs and carry it away in the gigbag. This is absolutely not common with the old setup of Hammond, Leslie and Rhodes hardware.. ;-)

I haven't met any reason not to rely on this keyboard. I treat it with the same care in transport as with my original setup and I have no need for backup - yet..

Customer support via the internet is absolutely OK. I haven't had any desire to talk to anyone, since the Clavia website is logical and very easy to use in upgrading OS and downloading new sounds.

The overall rating is that I will have a Nord Electro 2 at all times - since the software updates are easy to handle and the waterfall keyboard is very convincing compared to the Hammond. Still, the keyboard action is best for me in the organ section and it doesn't give the same convincing Rhodes feeling as the Hammond feeling I have playing it.

I bought the additional and needed 3 pedals: sustain, slow/fast and expression.
The sustain works as excepted.
The slow/fast is placed with velcro on the upper left next to the control section on the keyboard and it reminds me of the fact that I'm not playing the real thing (I have the half-moon swithes on my Hammond).
The expression-pedal really amazed me in being not just a volume-pedal, but it also includes the famous tube-overdrive, you have when you step on the swell-pedal on the real thing. This is very convincing.

Plug it in and play as soon as it is out of the box! You don???t need the manual ??? just mess around tweeking a few knobs until you hear the sound you???re after.

I've had the Nord Electro 2(73) six months now and I'm still as excited everytime I sit down to play it. The creativity just flows.

(I have OS 3.0)

The Nord Electro is uncomplicated, allowing you to really get to know the few sounds they offer and hone them to perfection.

The big kick in the teeth is no reverb, which is essential to making the acoustic piano they offer useful. Delay would have been nice too!

The rotary simulation is the best I've heard - the way it gathers momentum is absolutely stunning! The distortion, whilst not great it adds the neccesary grit. Tremolo /wah / autowah are good. The other phasers / flangers / choruses etc are ok. Use the "presence" control to add some more bark to the rhodes and wurly - nice!

The keyboard range is a bit mad. Starting at F instead of A or even C. Catches you out every so often.

I think the instrument simulations are the best around!! Even the acoustic piano (the new steinway close) can be brought up to scratch with the aid of some reverb and compression from TC Electronics. The reason I don't give a 10 here is because I don't like the velocity curves in the Electro. However, the compression sorts that problem out.

I love the keys action for the organ and clavinet. It's a little trickier for the pianos, but still feasible with practice.

I recommend getting a control pedal such as the Roland EV5 asap. It's essential in controlling the organ volume and wah effects.

Seems like a solid construction considering its weight!

It took 3 months of delays due to limited stock, (causing a restless honeymoon) but they are only a small company after all. You forgive them the second you open the box and with all those OS updates / new free sounds you???ve gotta love those people at Clavia! (New wife VS new keyboard ... it's been a tough one!)

I am in love with the Nord Electro! It is my prized possession in the whole world and I would be devastated if it was stolen. I would however seriously consider the Nord Stage, so I could jack in my Roland 300SX and Korg Triton Rack for an all-in-one music station.

The Roland organ fades into oblivion in comparison. Korg CX3 is a worthy competitor, particularly with it's "real" drawbars VS the "virtual" (led/button) drawbars on the Nord Electro. However, the Korg CX3 doesn't have the piano sounds and it is NOT RED!! I rest my case!

It's not cheap ... but it IS worth every penny.

"PRAISE THE NORD" has become my legendary catch phrase ... even managed some-how to get a mention in the wedding ceremony sermon!

Very simple to use, compared to other keyboards of this price. I like how the distortion and other effects are controlled by knobs rather than buttons.

Great keyboard action. The keys feel just like waterfall organ keys. You can download new crap online but I dont feel the need to.

Every instrument is extremely realistic. The organ and leslie are better than the xk-2 and even the xk-3 I think. Great rhodes, clav, and wurlis too. I just wish it would include the farfisa and vox sounds from the stage 88 model.

Dependable and lightweight, a perfect combination.

Never needed it.

If you like all the vintage keyboards (hammond, rhodes, wurlitzer, clavinet), and if you have the money, then buy this keyboard! All you could ever want in one package. Nothing else can compete.

Software V2.20
Good preset Sounds
Editing possibile on the fly
No need for manual:-)

Keyboard Aktion good for all Stiles!
Effects are amazing and easy to use

Best key i ever had have!
Usefull Sounds i ever heard!

2 Years only gigging with my Electro, i love this red Monster!
The Auditorium loves me:-)!

Clavia are a 20 People Company, but good Eys on the Custumers Place!
Upgrades are costless and very usefull.
Never a Problem with my NE 73/2

I`ll definitive never buy a Keyboard thats not red!
I own a Clavia Nord Electro 2-73, Nord Modular G2X,
will buy a Nord Stage when its availible and when i have the money
i buy the Nord Lead 3!

Clavia i love you for that good Stuff!
I`m gigging 30 Years and my wishes comes true!
Keyboards with Character!

My next Childs name is Clavia!

Operating System 2.2 or whatever the latest is. Very easy to use. The presets for all the instruments (clav, rhodes, wurli etc) are spread across the banks, not grouped together. I over-wrote all factory presets and arranged banks by instrument. This was simple. The keyboard action is perfect for organ and Clavinet but tricky for piano and electric piano. It is do-able though and if Joe Zawinul and Scott Kinsey can do it........??? I would read the manual, it is brief and good and can be downloaded as a pdf from www.clavia.se

no sequencer and doesn't need one. It is not multi-timbral and at its price it should be. The effect section is good but lacks reverb and delay which have to be provided by another
unit. The distortion is horid and digital but is better than nothing if used sparingly. For really good phazer and flanger use a boss or ibanez pedal. Midi functions are very limited, you can select broadcast channel and which chanel it recieves on for the lower manual of the organ, good for playing authentic jazz/gospel etc. No pitch bend or Modulation so no good as a synth controller. All parameters have dedicated knobs and buttons so no farting around with sub-menues on miniture LCD. The piano patches do lack enough polyphony for lots of sustained arpeggios and legato playing. I'll take the good with the bad

The yamaha electric grand is the best patch I've heard anywhere, very very warm, think Tania Maria, Hermeto Pascoal, Herbie Hancock, George Duke etc... The Clavinet is good and warm and as variable as the real thing but lacks the distinctive click of the hammer coming off the string. Thus it lacks a really funky sound (and what indeed is a clavinet for??). Wurlitzer EP is good and better than any of the Rhodes which lack definition in the higher octaves but are perfect for comping and sound good with chorus and/or pan. The acoustic piano lacks the polyphony to use as a real piano but then the lack of weighted keyboard has already done that for you, however I think it sounds very nice and warm and fine for pop/rock/reggae. The organ is probably what it does best, the Leslie sim is the best I've ever heard, better than Hammond XK-3, Korg CX3, Native-Instruments B4, Voce etc. It is not tweekable but has the right ramp up and down time between fast and slow. The sound of the draw-bars (draw-buttons) is very good, and percussion is good but not loud enough for me and again not editable. The key click is there but I would like it louder. The vibrato/chorus is good but not as good as others. overall a very nice organ indeed.

seems very reliable, has a nice power cable, no wallwart. Metal casing, very good. I would gig without backup.

I emailed them and got no reply, but then I did buy 2nd hand. The website is very good

Would maybe get Hammond XK-3 if stolen, but would then need a real leslie, so on second thoughts might get it again. I have been playing for 20 years and professionally for 10, I have owned real tonewheel Hammonds and Leslies, several Rhodes and a Wurlitzer. Other gear I use is a GEM Promega 3 (amazing) Yamaha p90 (good action) Viscount DB3 organ (as good as the organ on the Electro but has very bad leslie sim, but more key-click) lots of analogue and VA synths, G5 iMAC with Logic 7.1 and every plugin out (almost). I can say this: for ease of use and portability the Electro is heaven. For unbeatable Rhodes, Wurli and Clav I use the Scarbee Vintage Gold Bundle that includes amazing amp modelling and FX, I use these Live with the Promega. I think the eletro is a great all round hardware board for smaller gigs and rehearsals and as a great organ controller or part of a bigger rig.

It has a very straight-forward and intuitive interface. No one should have any problems figuring this thing out.

Every Electric Magnetic keyboard you could want with effects built into one keyboard. The keyboard action is a little on the light side I found it very easy to play.

This is the reason I felt compelled to write this review! I currently own a Hammond XK2 which I play through a Motion Sound Pro3T & Low Pro rotating speakers. I went to the Guitar Center to check out the new Hammond XK3 and this Nord Electro II-73 was on the stand above it. After playing around with them both for about an hour I was really impressed with the sounds and versatility not to mention the size and weight of the Electro. The Organ sounds were all there plus some of the best Rhodes, Wurly and Clav sounds I have heard. I still have not made up my mind yet but now I am leaning toward replacing my XK2 with the Nord Electro II. The rotory speaker effect sounded good as well.

I will more than likely buy this keyboard within the next 6 months. I do not know yet if I will get rid of my XK2 and Motion Sound rig but it is possible that I will.

The Nord is extremely easy to use - very well designed.

Keyboard action was very nice for Clav, EP, and Organ, but horrible for Piano. Perhaps Nord shouldn't have ventured into the piano simultation arena for this one...

I've never felt compelled to write a review of an instrument before, but today I bought a Nord Electro 2 73 and took it home without even trying it since the reviews were so incredibly positive. I played it in parallel with my new Korg CX-3 (drawbar setting for drawbar setting) and I realized I made a huge mistake buying this instrument. After 2 hours of trying to make it sound good, I returned it to the dealer. I was desperately trying to make it sound good because I loved the idea of selling my new Korg CX-3 and Yamaha 88 key piano to being able to carry this extremely light-weight Nord under one arm to gigs/rehearsals. The acoustic pianos are unusable primarily due to the keyboard action/response/decay, the electric pianos are very good, and the B-3 simulation sounds like a million African bees in my ears (not good compared to my CX-3). I hate to say it, but it was a waste of a few precious hours of my day. I'm thankful that the dealer took it back without any questions.

Only had it for 2 hours, but I wouldn't doubt that it is incredibly reliable.

If you read the rest of my review, it is obvious that I would never buy another Electro 2.

I received this keyboard from Armadillo (Nord's USA distributor) in November 2004, with the latest software (I don't know what version). I haven't even looked at the Hammond presets, because I'm completely oriented towards using drawbars in real time, and these work well, although they are buttons instead of drawbars.

The other sounds- clav, wurly, rhodes- are killer, and are easily edited. The pianos don't kill me, although there is apparently an amazing grand piano sample that can be downloaded; I just don't care enough to check it out right now.

The manual? Well, I haven't used it, which lets you know that the electro 2 is pretty simple regardless.

The action is good for organ and clav, and I've gotten used to it for the Electric pianos, etc.

The effects are great- overdrive, flange, chorus, tremolo, and completely easy to use. The sound is very tube-ish. Midi? Well, I use this live without any other sound modules or anything, so I don't really know about that. I got this as a live substitute for my real B3 in a situation that makes dragging the big beast along impossible.

The pianos just seem like they're there just in case. This is really about Organ and Electric Pianos and Clavinet. The flexibility on the Clav settings is remarkable. The Rhodes and Wurlitzer are the best- you will not find better samples short of the real thing. The Leslie is fantastic- I am a purist- I HATE fake Hammonds and I LOATHE fake Leslies- forget everything else- the Roland, the Hammond XB, the Voce- this is the only thing on the market that really sounds great, especially in a live setting.

The drawbars are manipulated via in and out buttons, something I initially viewed as a concession, but am totally okay with.

The FX for the electric pianos are great as well, and the clavinet features are astounding.

The 'bark' of stabbing the keys is all there with the Wurly and RHodes sounds, and of course, velocity DOESN'T work with the organ, which it shouldn't.

I bought this piece specifically for a club tour with Buddy Miller, a roots artist who, like me, hates anything fake. We have both been blown away by the sound of this piece. I run it through a Peavey Classic 50/212 guitar amp, and it sounds great. We had no problems on our tour.

Armadillo, who distribute Nord in the USA, have been great to work with. So far, I haven't needed any assistance, but I have been in communication with them, and they've answered emails and phone calls.

I have an endorsement situation with Nord, which means I don't pay list price. But if something were to happen, I would definitely by another electro 2/73.

I've been playing professionally for 30 years. I own a Hammond B3 and a Leslie 122. I have played every fake Hammond out there, including the Hammond XB2. I recently toured Europe using an old Korg organ with a Leslie- we got used to it, but it didn't replace the real thing. The electro 2 really has satisfied me sonically speaking. Sure, I miss the wood and cabinetry of my real Hammond, but given the limitations of touring, I am really satisfied with the electro 2.

I chose this based on a recent comparitive editorial in Keyboard Magazine, in which the electro won the shoot out. I trusted the article and bought the electro without playing it. I listened to samples on the internet and made up my mind based on those factors. It was a leap of faith which I'm glad I made.

This is a great keyboard for vintage fans like myself. I don't have racks of samplers and synths anymore (just a lot of plug-ins, etc). My prized instruments are guitars, amps, drums, and the Hammond. This keyboard has truly replaced the Wurlitzers and Rhodes that I used to miss, and while I'll never sell my Hammond, I'm finally happy to have something that comes super close to replicating the sound.

Very intuitive and easy to use. Almost every parameter can be changed very easily in real-time. Some, however, has to be changed by using the shift button and some not very userfriendly codes on the display, but we're talking about changing velocity-curves, pedal polarity or amount of key-click (organ).
The virtual drawbars have been discussed a lot (and is propably also the most revolutionary feature on this synth) and of course it's not like real drawbars. I find them very well, however! They are quick and react as you want them to and the visual feedback is even better than normal drawbars. Their greatest strength is that they are ideal for patch-editing. There are 48 patches which save everything and eight userdefined drawbar settings (plus eight preset drawbar settings), which only saves the drawbars. They are all very easy to edit and even save and recall while playing.

I'm using software version 2.1 that features velocity curves. Nice feature.

The polyphony is full for the organ and enough for the pianos.

The action is very good, light enough for fast glissandos and heavy enough for playing with rhodes etc. And fast enough for short clav/organ notes.

Most of the effects are fantastic! The presence filter is essential and works very good - you can really personalize the sound. The tremolo, pan, chorus are as they shall be and very useful. Phaser, Flanger, Wah and Autowah are all good - you can even control the wah with a good midi pedal trough the control pedal input. Ring-modulation and Overdrive are not the best heard, but they still are very useful and good-sounding. A two-band equalizer is embedded - solid and good.

Talking about the organ effects (Vibrato, Key Click and Leslie): They rock!! Very natural and that leslie comes as close as it gets to the real thing (can be used with the piano sounds as well, funny, actually useful for some things).

All 60 variations of the clavinet D-6 are available and they sound very well and are easy to edit. Aftertouch, however, is a lack here, but it still sounds great!

There's no sequencer.

Reverb is missing and that is a lack. If you run it trough a mixer or even better a guitar-combo, however, you're rocking!

All of the sounds are very good and close to the real thing! The best clone in it's class!! Stay away from the grand piano sounds - they're awful with no reverb and aftertouch and so little richness (I wonder why Clavia seems to be so proud of them...really not worth using...).

The organ has some problems without the leslie-effect, but run it trough af guitar amp (Fender Blues Junior or Twin Reverb) and it comes back with so much strength!!

Four different Rhodes sounds are available for download - and they are all very good!!

I give it a ten here - it'll never be the same as the real thing, but it does not come very much closer. Especially trough a combo as I've mentioned.

Very realiable! No problems at all until now (I've had it for half a year - used). The buttons can be taken off. Only one spilled beer will be needed to take it out of function, but one of my mates actually took off the cover and let it dry after such an accident - and it has worked brilliant since then...

It is no tank, but it's really well-built and reliable. Comparing the weight (which is only 10 kilos!!) this will be an eight.

Haven't dealt with them. The extra downloads and OS upgrades are some really good concepts, worth mentioning!

If you want the real thing go and get it! If you can do with a clone, from which only a minimum of the audience can hear any difference and that looks great on a stage and weighs much less and cost a tenth (apart from all the other advantages mentioned above) go for the Nord Electro!

It will be exciting to see if Clavia gives us reverb and aftertouch within version three. That would be the next great step, which would finally fulfill this instrument!

Version 2.0 - darn easy, and I'm a analog guy. Physical nobs are good.

Keyboard action is really nice - perfect for organ (comparable to Hammond XK-2), different for "pianos" but really easy to get used to. Given what they were trying to do (that is, find a happy medium), I'd say it's perfect.
Effects: Like I said before, knobs are good. The Leslie Sim is amazing - way better than the XK-2 (I used to own an XK-2 - sold it for this puppy). Pan and tremolo are very nice.

Hammond - Practically perfect. Tone is comparable to the XK-2, but the Leslie sim puts it over the top.
Pianos - The lower notes sound really authentic, but the higher up you go the less like the real thing (I own a Wurli and a Rhodes Suitcase, and I've recorded with a real Clav, just in case you want credentials :) In the mix, though, and with the right EQing, etc., it's not a big deal at all. In fact, I'm pretty comfy recording Wurli parts on the Nord as well as playing it live (well, live is a no brainer - the difference between the Nord and the real thing is not significant enough to merit discomfort, unless you're more of a tone freak than me... in which case you need serious help).

I've only had it for a week, but it seems solid.

I love how this thing is updateable - as soon as new technology comes out, you can simply download it instead of having to buy a new keyboard. That's why I sold my Hammond.
This is the best Stage Keyboard for vintage sounds - period. The GEM keyboard is really good, but the action isn't well suited for B3 sounds at all. And it's not updateable.
No, the piano section isn't made up of perfect clones - but if you think of it in terms of being new EPs in their own right, it's really cool (i.e. the real Rhodes Stage Piano didn't sound exactly like the real Rhodes Suitcase, but it was still cool; the Nord doesn't sound exactly like the Wurli, but it's still cool). It nails B3 sounds, but only comes really close to electric piano sounds. Do I let that bother me? No. It's close enough for my purposes. The only times I'll use my real Wurli or Rhodes are when the EP sound is the leading instrument in a song. Even then I might use the Nord - if I'm going for a different sound.
God bless you, Clavia - I've been waiting for a keyboard like this for a long time.