ELECTROBOX for the Nord Electro 5/6

Pitch Bend and Mod for Nord Electro 5/6  - Why?

Well unlike the Stage the Electro has no Pitch and Mod wheels. That isn't a problem because you can just attach another keyboard and use the Ext to Lo feature. But what if you don't have a spare keyboard and even if you have one you are still missing......

• Freely assignable split point
• Vibrato on the Ext to Lo channel - depth controlled with joystick Y axis
• Simulated Mono Mode
• Ability to control an external sound module
• Assignable Electro CC to joystick Y axis (Pitch Bend)
• Flip switch - Upper > Lower & Lower > Upper

Feature list:

• Joystick X-axis for Pitch Bend +/- 2 semitones
• Joystick Y +ve axis for Modulation (vibrato)
• Joystick X axis for CC control of Electro
• Assignable control of one parameter on the Nord using the Y axis of the stick
• Assignable control retained in memory
• Triangle wave LFO with rate control
• Mono/Poly switch - with last note retrigger in Mono Mode
• Split switch - freely split Internal/External zones on the fly
• Flip Split switch - sets external to lower and internal to upper
• External  input - requires a foot switch
• External input can be changed in code - currently used for external Sustain
• MIDI in/out on 5pin DIN - 2 buffered outputs
• External MIDI out for external synths 
• External MIDI channel can be set from 1-16 and is stored in memory
• Control knobs for CCs on the External Channel (can be changed in the sketch)
• USB powered

                                   

As the Electro does not have an built LFO I have created pseudo vibrato by adding or subtracting values from the Pitch Bend data. This is basically a software generated triangle wave LFO that is added to the Pitch Bend output. Crude but effective. The LFO is generated from a wavetable so it would very easy to have a number of different waveforms such as square or saw. The pots are programmable and there is an input for an sustain pedal. I've gone with the joystick version as it is cheap and small. 

ElectroBox V2 - joystick version

Joystick version housed in a stompbox enclosure

More information about ordering and building here

Setting up the ElectroBox

• Connect MIDI Out from Electro to MIDI In and MIDI Out from the ElectroBox to Electro MIDI In.
• Switch on the Electro and wait for the OS to load
• Now connect the ElectroBox with a USB cable - you can just use USB power 
• Use the System Menu to select Local Off - this setting is not remembered and will default to Off
• Set Global MIDI Channel to 2 and ExtKb to MIDI Channel 16
• Select a Preset on the Electro and check MIDI is working.
• To enter ExtToLo mode hold SHIFT and Press ExtToLo - The Ext Channel light on the ElectroBox should be lit
• Hold SHIFT and Press ExtToLoTo to exit this mode 
• To set a split point play a key and press Split. The last key played is used to set the Split point
• The last Split Point is retained across program changes so depending on the mode you are in you may need to disable it
• If you want to control an External Synth press Ext Channel - the light should flash
• You can set the External channel by holding Poly + Flip and pressing a key from C1 - Eb1 (lowest keys on the 61)
• To disable the Split Point and use the Electro Split Point simply press the KeybSplit button 
• To program the Pitch Bend CC - hold Poly + Flip and move the control on the Electro you want assigned. I like using Drive - Wah is another good one.
• Out of the box  VR1 controls Vibrato rate and is assigned to CC74 (Cut Off) and VR2 is assigned to CC71 (Resonance) and CC93 for the Electro which is Delay Wet/Dry
• CCs  71 and 74 are enabled when External Channel is on. CC93 is then disabled for the Electro.
• If you plug a sustain pedal into the ElectroBox you can have separate control of sustain on Global and ExtToLow channels. This will also independently send Sustain to the External MIDI Out.

Note the 2 rotary pots for additional control

2nd Version - with a Roland Bender!

I picked up a Roland bender on eBay last week. I always preferred the bender for performance despite being less versatile than 2 wheels. I tried to fit into the PW box but there wasn't space.

Roland Bender

So.... thinking outside the box!

Bender fitted in place of the Pitch Wheel

At some point I might rehouse it in a proper enclosure. This is more pro but you have to have a bigger box so it's a trade off. The smaller stomp box fits nicely on the left panel of the Electro.