Nord Lead 2. Is the polyphony / freeze issue 'normal'?

[E:pp:ik]

I'm just wondering if this is something that actually needs troubleshooting. I posted my msg below originally. Since I got no response I can only assume that the first few basic, obvious things to check are the same items that have been posted in other threads here.

Having said that, can someone clarify if this is a behaviour on all the NL2s? When yours was new could play the demo without crashing? For me, if I have a longer release time in amplitude or unison, it's dropping out notes depending on how many were 'stolen' from the full 16 note spectrum. However, if I hit a pile of notes at the same time, say 8 or 10, while it's layered or in unison, it definitely crashes. Demo mode does the same. It just crashes.

I haven't owned an NL2 long enough to know what its behaviour should be like. If it's more than cables, flaky midi, or an AC outlet not delivering consistent power, where does one look? Which chips handle the polyphony?


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Hi there!

I'm new to the forums here but I've stumbled onto the site many times over the years. My registration here was long past due

I have a Nord Lead 2 here that is also experiencing the freezing and polyphony issue I've read about in numerous places. I've checked the cables. They appear to be just fine. It's also not connected in any to a Midi rig yet nor is is on a flaky power source.

Is there actually an answer to this issue? Has a component failed? I've collected and serviced analog gear for a some time so I'm inclined to try to repair this if it's a hardware issue. Can anyone shed some light on what's really happening here? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

[E:pp:ik]

Well I have my Nord open for surgery here and I went through every basic check noted in this forum.

- The cables appear to all be seated correctly. They don't look damaged so I suppose they're working? If I put a multimeter to it are there some voltages I can check to test their integrity?

- Nothing appears to be damaged on the power supply. I'm not having power surges since I've isolated this synth so it has plenty of amperage. Is there a voltage I can reference to on the power supply to confirm that it's not behaving erratically? What should its output be when going to the main board?

- I don't have it connected to my DAW via Midi so right now there is no outside influence in this area. It doesn't sound like there's anything I cna check or test here.

So where does this leave the situation? Could the OS have a problem where it would make sense to flash a fresh version of the firmware into it?
Could an IC have failed? It's obviously happening to several of these so it must be at least 'somewhat' common, no?

[blue hell]

Doesn't really come an answer for this .. sorry to see ... some remarks .. basically NL2 is a computer that calculates the synth ... as such there is not really a chip responsible for a certain task other than the DSP chip and the household processor .. and indeed when all cables and chips seem to be seated properly there is not really much one can do .. did you try to contact Clavia about this?

A belated welcome too E:pp:ik.

[Wout Blommers]

[E:pp:ik]

Whoa! You all replied! I thought this question went nowhere and stopped visiting for a while.

I actually spoke to Clavia and they forwarded me a contact here. He had never heard of this issue. Likewise with a local reputable Clavia retailer with a service desk.

I'm pretty disappointed that it may have to come down to sending it out to Clavia or something. It's just very odd and clearly mine's not the only one doing this and being the 'fix it yourself' type with synths it's sad really. I guess Clavia are protective of the service info.

I'm willing to bet a chip has failed on the board. It's also possible it's just maxed out on voicing so that wouldn't be such a big deal then. I'll post back my findings once this is resolved!

Having said that - the synth is really quite nice even with this issue. I really like the sounds and its flexibility.

[Wout Blommers]