Cars and big keyboards

[SK]

Oh... I know, MonksDream. Just joking. And it was harder to make as many gear mistakes back then because there weren't as many choices.

[SK]

I will add this: that gear questions are usually relevant. I came to this forum seeking gear advice myself. And I'm all for musicians helping others with musical questions. All of that is positive.

 

The underlying thought in my post was mostly about how we have a ton of info, music and music history on the net, yet there seems to be a lack of curiosity in digging into things for real insights. There's so much info available, it gets glossed over.

 

In earlier days, musicians would travel great distances to buy records and thoroughly digest each one as a big part of their musical education. That research is just as important today, but there's a tendency on the net to look to others for every single answer, which no one can have without digging for it themselves. Pardon the OT.

[Bosendorphen]

76 key boards really make the difference. Both my gigging boards are 76 keys and I can fit them, my QSC K10, PA speakers and head, stands and cables/pedals bag all in my mid-sized 2002 Toyota. I think having a Yamaha board wouldn't allow me to quite fit everything - my Yammy stuff (save the little S03) stays at home. Always felt their full sized boards to be way too bulky as you've found the S70 to be.

[stillplaying]

+1 for the 76 key option.

 

Used to have a horse box sized trailer thing and a big estate to pull it along.

 

I get by with a little Toyota Yaris now (and try to choose venues with in house PAs).

[bloodyMary]

I drive a Mazda 3 (same size as the Skoda).

 

No chance of using any keyboard larger than a 76. Currently it's a compact 61 in an SKB case, and it's already a PITA to load in/out.

And I never carry any PA - just the 61, keytar, and a stand.

 

[Pale]

You can always take down the back seats, right? I drive an Opel Corsa (Vauxhall in some countries) and I can fit a leslie, clonewheel and 88 key stage piano easily. If I wanted I could fit a rhodes too, but I don't carry a rhodes to gigs anymore.

 

Even without taking down the back seats I could fit 2 boards on the back seat, the trick is to put them in vertically (bottom keyboard case part goes where the passenger legs go, upper part goes where the passenger head goes).

[livestagekid]

I can't think of any standard cars that has a wide enough boot to fit a full 88 note keyboard across. There are simply too many keys to fits in. You could look at an SUV or people carrier which are generally slightly wider but this would be an expensive alternative.

I would look at either a 76 note keyboard like the Nord Stage or a 73 note keyboard like a Korg SV-1 73 or the upcoming Nord Electro 3 73HP. Do you really use the extra octave and a bit. I rarely do.

[DanL]

Even an SUV is hard pressed to fit an 88 across the back. I have a full sized conversion van and my 88 has to go in long ways. There are just not many options if that is the need. You either use 88 and pack it long ways, or you use a shorter keyboard.

 

I used to pack an 88 note board in a big SKB case in a Hyundai Accent, along with 2 speakers, 2 racks, another shorter keyboard case, and all my stands and other stuff. I don't know how I did it, but I did.

[mcpepe]

So this is my car with my Kurzweil PC3X in it:

 

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/8640960/16042011725.jpg

 

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/8640960/16042011726.jpg

 

Anyway. My ideas are more clear know.

 

If I want more portability I need to buy a 73 keys. The new Nord Electro 3 HP is maybe the best option (but very expensinve). Maybe I need to reconsider using a 61keys for some gigs (I like the new Motif X6).

 

Thanks for the help.

 

[AUSSIEKEYS]

Mate you are lucky

 

check out my Skoda Octavia...i think you can appreciate yours fits ok now

 

hee hee.

 

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4143/4930801347_6463e274d1_m.jpg

 

edit: yes fairdinkum this is mine amoung a lot more unrestored octavia versions [wagons and convertibles] but it is soon makin its way to a new owner after years in my ownership , selling off all my vintage skodas bar a 1950 roadster, I have had enough of hoarding.

 

I have just gone thru [last week] the "looking for a replacement car for my wife" [yes weighing up if my gear will fit easy enough without it with me to trial].

 

We considered the new model [but slightly used] Skodas like yours [we didnt have enough for new]as I am obviously a Skoda nut]..

 

but found a good deal on the new shape Holden Sportwagon but at half price as a 3 year old car...should fit all my gear without a second thought.[we pick it up this weekend]

 

my choice would be load from the rear boot if the seats fold down enough.

 

Just as an aside..my Casio Privia was able to fit in sideways in a mid sized wagon my wife is trading in, it also fit at an angle in the back of her previous Toyota Echo..these privias are able to fit where many cant becvause they are short and skinny.

[Theo Verelst]

In the 90s I'd the method of putting my HP3000s (a weighed version of the well known Roland RD300 stagepiano, with a lot of lead in it to make the keys feel heavier) on the front seat of my Audi, by using the rear door to slide it in.

 

Currently I'd do that with the Yamaha S90 (the original) too, and possible strap it in with the safety belt and some extra cover (in case I should want to brake heavily or otherwise engage in hefty driving):

 

http://theover.org/Diary/Ldi41/car1be2.jpeg

 

I must admit the Kurzweil PC3 "has never left the studio" yet. It looks a lot better that the current Audi 100 I can luckily drive though as a consequence, maybe.

 

I don't know if the 76 key would fit in the rear somehow.

 

[Eric Iverson]

This makes me glad I'm a mere guitarist. My one stage guitar and small amp fit easily in the back of my 1987 Plymouth Horizon (car of the century... last century I mean), plus a gig bag with all my goodies. No 20 guitars + 500 pedals + 5 or 6 boutique amps....

Even so, I don't really like lugging my guitar around on the subway, so there have been times I just bring the flute and mandolin to my weekly jazz seminar. Usually I bring the guitar, though.

I read about this jazz organist who would lug his organ up three flights of stairs on the fire escape (with a friend, of course) and be delighted to do so! Me, I'm a wimp, I guess! LOL

[JeffLearman]

I drive a Honda Odyssey.

3 cheers for minivans!

In addition to more space, lower cost, and better mileage than SUVs, they also serve as birth control / marriage savers. When the chicks see us loading into or out of the minivan, all those temptations disappear in an instant!

 

76 key boards really make the difference.

Many of today's 88-key boards are not much longer than older 76-key boards, especially the ones without mod/pitch wheels to the side of the keys.

 

My 76-key MR76 is 51" wide. My case is 53" wide, inside, with foam pats to take up the extra 2". I find I could fit a Privia or a number of other newer 88-note boards in the same case.

[Synthoid]

On a slight side-note... I posted a picture here when this thread started and now it's gone. That's happened before. Who does that?

 

[JeffLearman]

Whoever hosted the image you linked to must have deleted it. Musicplayer.com doesn't copy and save the image, it just posts your link.

[curly]

Minivan or SUV - whatever. I've just resigned myself to removing seats every time. Tossing it in the backseat of a car is a pain, and seems to result in damage to the car as well. Just want a flat, unobstructed space to slide it all into...

[darc68]

+1 on the 76 key option. My boards are also 76 keys w/ the exception of my new CP33. With gas as high as it is any chance I have to bring my PT Cruiser to a gig I do. It saves me an easy $10 most of the time. Having my new Mackie Punches(12s) really helps too. Beats the bulky KB amps I used to carry.

 

Ideally I want to go with the trailor option. I like the idea of having everything at a gig. Sometimes you need things unexpectedly. It would also save me from having to unload my car after a gig for my family to use it only to reload it again for a gig later that same night.

[Outkaster]

I have a S-90 XS with a Anvil type case. It goes into my pathfinder easy. Anvil cases really increase the weight and what you can put in the back of a truck, I have to arrange everything carefully. I gig enough that it is worth it to have hard cases but they are a pain in the ass.

[curly]

I have a S-90 XS with a Anvil type case. It goes into my pathfinder easy. Anvil cases really increase the weight and what you can put in the back of a truck, I have to arrange everything carefully. I gig enough that it is worth it to have hard cases but they are a pain in the ass.

 

+1 on the hard case. They're heavy and awkward, but the boards are expensive. I put four casters on the bottom. Works great for gigs that don't require stairs.

[EscapeRocks]

Just want a flat, unobstructed space to slide it all into...

 

A major reason why I have the '05 truck below.

 

I also have hard cases for my boards CP33 and Triton Ex 61

 

My rig, and other band stuff (banners, stanchions for banners, etc) travel in this:

 

http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh58/escaperocks1/tr3.jpg

 

This is what I call my multi tool as it also tows my race car trailer to the drag strip.

 

 

[lightbg]

If you mean Earth, yes.

 

Jake

[Docbop]

When I played upright bass I got it in my BMW just moved up the passenger seat then dropped the back of the seat down and bass fit in. I knew guys who drove Prius and got a upright bass, amp, and all in by dropping the back seat and passenger seat. An upright bass doesn't weight as much, but it's bigger physically.