The Modular G2 Editor has great deal more functionality built in than building synth models. Below are several of its most useful and inspiring features.

The parameter overview gives you a representation of the parameter pages accessible from the G2's panel. By clicking on the page groups (A - E) and individual pages (1 - 3) you can see which modules' parameters are assigned to the physical knobs. In the Editor, these are easily assgned by clicking on a page location and dragging over to the module's knob you want assigned. It will instantly appear on the Parameter Overview window, as well as the corresponding LCD in the G2.

With larger computer monitors or very advanced setups, it may be necessary to see all of your parameter assignments at once. For this, the Parameter Pages display expands on the Overview window above, and parameter assignments can be done in the same manner as the Overview.

This Virtual Keyboard can be used to play a Patch without using the G2's keyboard by clicking on a key to play a single note. The selected note will be indicated by a black dot on the corresponding key. The note will sustain if you keep the mouse button depressed, just like pressing a key on a real keyboard.

You can expand the keyboard to cover the whole MIDI note range simply by placing the cursor on either side of the window frame. When the double-arrow appears, click-drag horizontally to desired size. You can also show/hide the button bar by resizing the Virtual Keyboard window.
The four buttons to the left are used to scroll up and down the keyboard, either one octave (the doublearrow buttons) or one note (the single-arrow buttons) at a time. Click on the ‘Drone’ button to make the next played note start sounding “infinitely”. Click the Drone button again to disengage. Click on the ‘Repeat’ button to make the last played note play repeatedly. Click the Repeat button again to disengage.

The Patch Browser gives a very good overview of all Patches and Performances currently stored in the internal memory of the connected synth, as well as of Patches and Performances stored on the computer. The Patch Browser can be used to save and load Patches and Performances both from disk and the internal memory of the synth.

The Patch Adjuster contains a number of knobs for quick adjustment of all parameters of a certain category, such as all attack times or all resonances. In this way, you can quickly shape a sound in a more general way, without knowing the specifics of the patch.

For example, turning the Attack knob to the left will decrease all attack times in the patch, relative to their current position. Turning the Timbre knob will adjust filter frequencies, FM amounts, shapers and some other parameters that affect the timbre of the sound. If the result is not what you expected, just turn the knob back to its middle position, or click the centre marker. As soon as you move the focus to another variation or add or remove a module, the changes will be permanently applied, and the knobs will return to their middle positions.

When browsing a large number of patches, or when evolving new patch variations with the Patch Mutator, this kind of quick changes can be very useful. A patch may be promising, but not exactly what you want. Then you can apply that last touch with the Patch Adjustor knobs. You do not need to track down where the specific parameters are situated in a complex patch.

The Patch Mutator is a toolbox for creating new patch variations guided by your ear. It will help you explore different knob settings within a certain patch by simply listening and selecting the sounds you like. Most patches can generate a vast range of different sounds, but it is tedious and difficult to explore them manually, because of the sheer number of parameters in a patch, and because of the difficulty to predict the sonic results. Also, with the extreme flexibility of the Nord Modular G2, it is tempting to always look for new patches, and neglect the fact that one single patch often equates a full hardware synthesizer, with vast possibilities waiting to be explored.

In an interactive process inspired by natural evolution, the Patch Mutator creates a number of variations for you, based on one Mother sound, or based on a Mother and a Father, or more or less random. You listen to these new Children sounds one at a time, and select which one will be the parent of the next generation of children. This process can be repeated any number of generations, until you find the sounds you want. Usually you find lots of interesting sounds in the process.

The Patch Mutator is designed for speed and ease of use, with great care put into the interface design. In a few minutes you can create whole sets of new sounds, or series of interesting variations on existing sounds. The evolutionary approach makes it very different from simple patch randomizers available in some synthesizer editors. You always work with a “family” of related sounds, comparing and selecting the best from each generation.