I wonder if a number of people committed to buying expansion

purusha · Joined: Mar 13, 2008 Posts: 131 Location: Ilkley

I wonder if a number of G2 owners committed to buying an expansion board, we could persuade Nord to do another small production run of them?

Say if 50 people said: yes, I'll have one if you can produce one, would it be worth their while? 50 times a couple of hundred UKP = 10,000UKP.

Long shot I know, but what do people reckon?

ersatzplanet · Joined: Jul 24, 2005 Posts: 65 Location: Seattle, WA, USA

Derek Cook · Posted: Mon Dec 15, 2008 10:00 am Post subject:

Axiom Crux · Joined: Sep 16, 2008 Posts: 8 Location: Detroit Florida

clavia made it very clear to me when I contacted them that there was a key component of the g2 and expander, the dsp cores or something essential like that, which is no longer being made, and they bought up the last batch and made this run of expanders. that is why the G2 and expander will no longer be made.

dioioib · Joined: May 23, 2008 Posts: 56 Location: canada

Well if there are no more parts that is understandable but right when I want to buy the expansion its no longer available. Man that really sucks.

varice · Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 8:59 pm Post subject:

dioioib · Joined: May 23, 2008 Posts: 56 Location: canada

Thanks for the info.

So technically if we could reverse engineer the board we could make our own. If Clavia won't support the unit any longer maybe we can?

varice · Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 9:24 pm Post subject:

dioioib · Joined: May 23, 2008 Posts: 56 Location: canada

I can't find the part is it Motorola?
I agree if there is a replacement why not produce more if there is demand. Unless there is a Nord Modular G3 in the works..

Personally I love my G2, but now that I am at a stage where my patches could use the extra poly, sadly its not available. 4 years of production on an expansion board really doesn't seem like that long.

varice · Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 9:47 pm Post subject:

dioioib · Joined: May 23, 2008 Posts: 56 Location: canada

Could you give a breakdown of parts / components on the board? Such as the RAM? Perhaps that has something to do with it.

But if the DSP is pin-for-pin compatible and has the same instruction set it is ridiculous for them to stop production out right. Why not do a build to order when you hit a certain quantity of units requested.

Looking at mouser.com the DSP in question is only $25 USD retail, so the cost of these is not unreasonable for a DIY project. I'd build my own if I could get a PCB or BRD file.

But I will keep dreaming.

varice · Posted: Sun Dec 28, 2008 9:20 pm Post subject:

Four Alliance AS7C34098-12TC SRAM are the only other IC chips on the expansion board. These may be the problem. I could not find any information that confirmed that they are RoHS compliant. The rest of the components are just a handful of SMT resistors, caps, and two connectors.

varice · Posted: Sun Dec 28, 2008 11:16 pm Post subject:

The RoSH compliant version of the SRAM is AS7C34098A-12TCN. After a quick look around, did not find any available. The industrial temperture version AS7C34098A-12TIN is available from newark.com for less than $10US each.

Axiom Crux · Joined: Sep 16, 2008 Posts: 8 Location: Detroit Florida

you guys should talk with the people at clavia through their contact info on the site if you want more info. All I know is they aren't making any more for a reason and no g3 is planned. I dont think these sold that well and are more of a cult piece of gear, those who love them, love them to death, and the general keyboard user doesn't understand them. This is why the nord wave and their organ/rhodes thingies are still in production and this isnt.

buzzr · Posted: Tue Dec 30, 2008 11:35 am Post subject:

I did get in contact with the company, here is the email back from them and my question...

Hi

Thanks for your email,

I really can't discuss or make any comments on future products or
updates, we just have to wait and see.

Best Regards
Tomas Johansson
Product Manager - Clavia DMI

-----Original Message-----
From: rud4@gmail.com [mailto:rud4@gmail.com]
Sent: den 22 december 2008 17:45
To: feedback@clavia.se
Subject: Webform Comment From buzzr

User: (rud4@gmail.com)
Description:
Hello-

I own a G2 and I use it everyday. I notice that most channels to buy a
G2 are now dried up.

Is there a new modular project in the works or is this it for the
modular.

sincerely,

spiral · Posted: Mon Jan 12, 2009 1:02 pm Post subject:

Thanks for the efforts to get more boards. If it does actually go somewhere towards getting a new run made, count me in.

If Clavia is indeed making a Nord Modular G3 then i would probably pony up for it. I would understand if they didn't sell enough, since it seems like a hard sell (ie. innovative) to the masses. But i am crossing my fingers for this week's NAMM.

purusha · Joined: Mar 13, 2008 Posts: 131 Location: Ilkley

I do wonder what they're doing for spares!?

If my G2 dies at some point, unless I can find a second-hand unit, it'll be a dead-end.

moonpatrol · Joined: Jan 27, 2009 Posts: 4 Location: NYC

Long time lurker here....

I know it's a long shot, but I wrote them feedback proposing as much (possible petition for a short run, etc.). I have yet to hear back - figured it was at least worth a shot. Figured the more they hear of this the better.

I am among the regretful owners who have slept a little too long on getting the expansion.....

Crying or Very sad

purusha · Joined: Mar 13, 2008 Posts: 131 Location: Ilkley

I guess if there's a vague hope of getting some more made, we could organise a petition similar to the Virus Powercore one we ran a few months ago.

That certainly seemed to make Access take notice!

Something like: we the undersigned would buy an expansion from Nord if they've make some more.

G2egory · Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 7:18 pm Post subject:

Their accountants probably won't let them manufacture another batch of expansion boards. It's a profit numbers game: manufacturing a few expansion boards would be expensive and the margin would be low. Clavia Nord needs a bigger market so that they can get economy of manufacture and increase the profitability of the expansion board product line. If Clavia Nord wished to do it right as a business and maximize profitability, they wouldn't make more of the original expansion boards for the G2/G2X. They would develop a new 2X expansion board that would double the number of voices again compared to the original expansion board. That way the new expansion board product would be bought by nearly the entire market of G2/G2X owners. The people without expansion boards would buy the new 2X model and those of us with old expansion boards would be ripping them out and installing the new 2X expansion board model. It is a much bigger market so they can make a large batch at reduced cost.

dioioib · Joined: May 23, 2008 Posts: 56 Location: canada

you are correct but at times its a matter of the original IC's capabilities. IE, how many slave DSP's can be chained to a master, etc. The other issue is the OS, which would need to be rewritten to support more than the original number of intended DSP chips.

At this point I am considering just buying a DSP development kit an writing my own program for modular synthesis, and maybe I could address other issues like the lack of a knobby interface. Smile

I have to agree with what someone from another tread said Access has really done some impressive things with their upgraded Virus TI2's although I am an irritated owner of a MK 1 Virus Polar, at least the OS works on my older machine. Although the Virus TI is not a modular analog, and as such sells more readily like canned ham, I think the issues of G2 sales being low could be totally rectified with an interface redesign and different marketing.

I agree that low board production would raise prices and thus make it less attractive to Clavia, but if I am all ready considering building my own, the potential costs would be much higher for me, and would I pay that increased price to save myself the time and hassle of reverse engineering a board for sure I would. But you are correct at best we can hope for a board with even more DSP power, increased poly, and maybe even some new modules.

Although with the recent OS update I am hoping for some news about a new Modular or new expansion to the existing modular. Failing that I am going to buy an Arturia Origin.

varice · Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2009 1:04 am Post subject:

dioioib · Joined: May 23, 2008 Posts: 56 Location: canada

varice · Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2009 12:59 am Post subject:

ersatzplanet · Joined: Jul 24, 2005 Posts: 65 Location: Seattle, WA, USA

1) Clavia could charge more for a limited run of expansion boards and still get it.

2) They could sell bare PCBs and people would buy them.

3) They could release the PCB files and BOM and someone would build them and make a profit.

4) They could publish a price and say "We won't do this run unless X number of people order and put a down payment of X first" and people would do it.

Any of these options would work with different levels of hassle for Clavia. The fact that none of them are likely to happen basically says that they are demonstrating little or no care for this product or it's owners. Pretty soon it will be cheaper to buy a 2nd G2 or G2 engine than an expansion board cause people will be dumping their G2s.

I'm actually amazed they came out with the editor update. That will probably be the last support we will ever see for the G2.
-J