Motion Sound Pro 145 - Worth anything?

[cgiles]

Cleaning out some jun..., uh excess gear. I bought this about 5 years ago, didn't like it, upgraded the woofer as per recommendations, better but still didn't like it. Tweaked the heck out of it, still didn't like it. Came with the remote and a very nice custom padded cover. Since I've owned it I have put, at most, 5-6 hrs. on it. Haven't turned it on in several years but it's stored in a heated/air conditioned environment so I assume it's still in the like-new condition I bought it. My question is, is it worth anything or should I just give it away (if I were in the market for anything, I'd try to use it for a trade-in). What do you think it might be worth? It really is in like-new condition cosmetically and also mechanically/electronically (AFAIK). Would probably be costly to ship.

[David Loving]

See if eBay has any completed auctions for the Pro 145. That should get you in the ballpark.

[Delaware Dave]

Put it on ebay, start @ $400, you'll get a bid for it.....

[MikeT156]

What was about the sound you didn't like? At one time that was a very popular rotary speaker.

 

 

 

Mike T.

[cgiles]

What was about the sound you didn't like? At one time that was a very popular rotary speaker.

 

 

 

Mike T.

At the time, the description sounded like a dream come true, so I bought it without ever even listening to it. Sounded way less like a leslie than the onboard sim played through good powered monitors (even after upgrading the woofer). Also, didn't like the footpedal controller. I immediately got a 3300 (for gigging) and used the powered monitors at home. Never turned it on again. Too bad too, as I still love the concept. Thanks to Delaware Dave for that suggested starting bid; that's sort of what I was looking for.

[Losendoskeys]

I love mine - my Vent isn't in the same league, so clearly we have different ears.

[cgiles]

And I'm hoping a potential buyer will feel the same as you. Given it's great design and portability, I figure if the sound were there it would have been a runaway best-seller. JMO.

[Outkaster]

It never really caught on and saw very few people gigging with them...almost never actually.

[JeffKeys]

I love the MS Pro-145 especially with a speakeasy 122 preamp, but the Vent is just too easy and sounds too good through a stereo setup. I"m keeping the 145 with the intention of using it on organ only gigs, but that hasn"t happened now in years!

[SamuelBLupowitz]

It must be a tricky product to market, because it's for a small niche of keyboard players, many of whom are Leslie purists. The weight and price are certainly more accessible than a 3300 and even competitive with the Studio 12 (which weighs 40 more pounds than the Pro-145!). Still, I wound up compromising with a used KBR-3D so I could get the real rotating horn but not have to bring so many amps (or tell the sound guy at the junky clubs I often play that I needed five lines).

 

Outside of jazz organists, I feel like most folks playing organ have at least one piano board/sound they need on the gig, and people who can bring multiple amps generally have at least a small road crew, which makes the weight of a Leslie less of an issue. Or, they're using it in the studio, which again makes the weight/fragility of a Leslie less important. I know Adam Wakeman was using the Pro-145 with Ozzy and his original band, at least a few years ago, but I also don't see them out and about very often.

 

All that said... have you put yours up on eBay yet? :wink:

[Delaware Dave]

It never really caught on and saw very few people gigging with them...almost never actually.

I think part of it is the cost, a new one is close to $1500. Kind of hard to justify. I have a LowPro/Pro3T. The only difference in sound (in my view) is that the Pro145 has a 70 watt horn amp where the Pro3T's is 45 watt. The Pro145 sounds a little brighter than the LowPro/Pro3T due to this difference. Also, I bought the two separately, purchasing them 2 years apart and paid $350 for each piece, $700 in total, half the cost of a Pro145. This didn't break the bank for me; also what I did like about the combination was that for smaller gigs I just brought the Pro3T and used the simulator through my K/B amp and used both on larger gigs. What i never warmed up to was the solid state amp, it gives a harsh sound at higher volumes that I didn't like. Once the vent came along with its 2 pounds of weight and a 30 second hookup (plus my aging body) it became a no brainer. 15 years ago the sims were all pretty bad; not so much in today's world, which is why you probably don't see many of them being used.

[Losendoskeys]

Mine cost me £500 - around $700 at the time.

Right now it would cost £1850 so it has actually appreciated if you can realise the value!

 

I would suggest go with a higher number and if you can do international shipping on EBay, thats how I got mine.

[cgiles]

Thanks all. No, I haven't put it up on ebay yet because I can't find the darn controller/switch. I know it's packed up in a box somewhere in my storeroom but just the thought of unpacking all those boxes (the result of a move three years ago ) has brought out one of my worst characteristics, laziness. I peck away at it a little each day but keep getting distracted by the discovery of all sorts of interesting things from yesteryear .