Dig My Rig--Let's see your setup!

[Doerfler]

vwey cool, Jerry. Looking forward to more as it developes

[MAJUSCULE]

From a recent soft-seater gig, NS3/CP73 with the ol’ Cellini.

[NewImprov]

In the exact opposite spirit of Zukskywalker's post above, here's my new, pretty maximalist, rig redesign...

 

I have a few big outdoor and theater shows coming up this summer/fall, and, after dealing with some frustration on my last few gigs, I did a pretty total redesign of my setup. I built 2 pedalboards, completely rewired my rack, replacing the KMix with a Radial KL-8, and using some custom-made pedalboard-aids made by a friend and his new startup, Gnomind.

 

Basically, the setup is 2 keyboard stands, the first has my Rhodes and an Arturia Keylab 61, the second has a Crumar Mojo and a Sequential Take 5. There are pedalboards under each stand, pedalboard 1 has the Rhodes sustain pedal, some audio FX for the Rhodes, and controller pedals for the full setup. Pedalboard 2 has a Ventilator, for the Mojo, Exp. pedal for the Mojo. All audio from the pedalboards go into the Gnomind devices, which cover 4 channels of balanced TRS to 1 cat5 cable, there's 1 Gnomind box on each board. The Cat 5 is received by 2 Gnomind boxes in the back of my rack, which feeds the audio into channels 1-8 of the Radial KL-8. The KL-8 also acts as an interface for my laptop/Mainstage setup, controlled (mostly) by the Arturia. All Midi and USB-MIdi is handled by a iConnectivity Mio XM, also in the rack. The Mic is not totally necessary for the live rig, but simplifies re-integrating the live setup into my studio. 

 

It's been out to one gig so far, and it worked fantastically. Setup time is not unreasonable for its' size and complexity, basically, the process is setup stands for keys and rack, set pedalboards below stands. Set rack, Rhodes, and other keys onto stands, connect power, connect Rhodes sustain and controller pedals, connect 2 cat5 cables for audio, and a few USB cables. Main out is on 2 XLR's to FoH, Monitor out is 1 mono XLR to my powered monitor. 

 

Here's the full setup:

 

Here's a diagram of the full system:

 

Here's the rack, with the laptop, KL-8, Mio,  and power conditioner:

 

Here's the back of the rack, showing the Gnomind boxes receiving audio from the pedalboards:

 

 

Here's the first (Rhodes) Pedalboard:

 

And here's the obligatory action shot, with a Behringer 2600 added, from the first gig I dragged this whole mess to:

 

[yannis D]

On 7/5/2022 at 6:44 PM, zukskywalker said:

Theory of operation being that as went the “wall of sound” show methodology….so will go the Uber expensive/massive keyboard rigs and as smaller gets better downsizing becomes easier.

 

 

so here is the beginnings of my first micro rig.  More soon as I integrate stuff.

 

 

I see the little Yamaha Reface. But what do you use the controller keyboard for? There's no laptop/ipad there.

[zukskywalker]

An iconnectaudio 4plus (powered usb) hub attached will mount on top with iPad resting(somehow) on top of the interface.

(the top micro controller is a midiplus AKM 322  and it’s a tiny little beast!

 

Wow! This thread has taken on a kinda David and Goliath feel

to it and clearly Goliath wins! But dang!!

 

(that, and I think I’ve earned the micro rig as in my early years I hauled a few Hammonds, Leslies and 88s. (I’m too old for all that now….)

 

oh, and Goliath….let me introduce you to my little friend…the 31h/A100 combo. pics when I get back home. 
 

this is going to be fun. Let’s make some music!!

[vonnor]

On 6/30/2022 at 8:02 AM, Rod S said:

It would be cool if people posted photos of themselves with the gear as well.   At least for me, I think it's cool to match faces to the names.  

OK.

 

[KRK]

On 7/1/2022 at 5:19 PM, Doerfler said:

yeah, Marco, that white tambourine makes all the difference 

😃😃

[Jose EB5AGV]

Well, my rig right now is pretty simple (as my playing 😅)

 

This is what I used on my second gig, yesterday. It was a setup for a 10k run so our public were mainly runners.

 

As you can see, it is pretty basic: Montage 6, iPad Air 2 (just for ForScore in this case), a K&M Spider Pro, a K&M stool, an small Behringer B205D monitor and my pride and joy 😄 self-made pedal support. I built it from a 2mm thick Makrolon sheet, using my CNC router (I have attached some pictures of the making of and details), added some genuine Velcro and the results are excellent. Note that the size is such that it fits in the keyboard bag pocket.

 

Jose

 

 

[Mighty Motif Max]

27 minutes ago, EB5AGV said:

Well, my rig right now is pretty simple (as my playing 😅)

 

This is what I used on my second gig, yesterday. It was a setup for a 10k run so our public were mainly runners.

 

As you can see, it is pretty basic: Montage 6, iPad Air 2 (just for ForScore in this case), a K&M Spider Pro, a K&M stool, an small Behringer B205D monitor and my pride and joy 😄 self-made pedal support. I built it from a 2mm thick Makrolon sheet, using my CNC router (I have attached some pictures of the making of and details), added some genuine Velcro and the results are excellent. Note that the size is such that it fits in the keyboard bag pocket.

 

Jose

 

 

[pics]

 

You can cover a LOT of ground with that setup! Very cool. Neat pedal support system as well!

[drawback]

34 minutes ago, EB5AGV said:

Well, my rig right now is pretty simple (as my playing 😅)

 

This is what I used on my second gig, yesterday. It was a setup for a 10k run so our public were mainly runners.

 

As you can see, it is pretty basic: Montage 6, iPad Air 2 (just for ForScore in this case), a K&M Spider Pro, a K&M stool, an small Behringer B205D monitor and my pride and joy 😄 self-made pedal support. I built it from a 2mm thick Makrolon sheet, using my CNC router (I have attached some pictures of the making of and details), added some genuine Velcro and the results are excellent. Note that the size is such that it fits in the keyboard bag pocket.

I like that little B205D - that’s all you need. And nice job on the pedal board. 

[EscapeRocks]

A little Sunday evening work with the current gig rig

Arturia Keylab MK2

Roland Fantom-08

14" MacBook Pro M1 Max

 

[Al Quinn]

My rig from Saturday's gig: Hammond SK Pro 61, Yamaha CP4, Motion Sound KP-610S.

Pros: great sounds, great actions, enough volume to play small venues without FOH support (like on this gig)

Cons: a bit heavier than I'd like. I may have a YC73 in my future...

 

[Al Quinn]

Thanks Dave!

[Synthaholic]

On 3/4/2022 at 12:27 AM, GotKeys said:

Looks nice!  Not sure why, but I've always really liked L shaped keyboard rigs, especially when there is one board serving as a 'master' with the other boards acting as modules, and their internal keybeds are only used when necessary.  If I were you, I would swap the X stand for a double braced one, even with a lighter keyboard like the Fusion, the single brace stands are very wobbly.  That and I once saw the death of a Korg X5 by way of single braced X stand, when the bottom foot snapped off the brace.  It was not a pretty sight.

I would do the L-shape more often if I wasn't restricted by my microphone boom, since I sing every song. Plus, some right shoulder issues sustained from years of throwing baseballs way harder than I should have, and bad posture from keyboards and computers limit how long I can play with my arm in that position. I may be the first to ever say this, but it sucks getting older. 😉

 

I have found a solution to the X-Stand worries, though. Put a small padlock through the hole below where you have it set. It's not going anywhere now, unless it completely separates, which is unlikely. I'm now just using it to hold up my very light rack to the left of me, instead of the relatively heavy platform stand I also use for my Kurzweil. It was overkill, since those things are made to hold up to 300lbs. The X-Stand is like 2lbs. 

 

[vonnor]

On 7/6/2022 at 6:47 PM, NewImprov said:

In the exact opposite spirit of Zukskywalker's post above, here's my new, pretty maximalist, rig redesign...

 

I have a few big outdoor and theater shows coming up this summer/fall, and, after dealing with some frustration on my last few gigs, I did a pretty total redesign of my setup. I built 2 pedalboards, completely rewired my rack, replacing the KMix with a Radial KL-8, and using some custom-made pedalboard-aids made by a friend and his new startup, Gnomind.

 

Basically, the setup is 2 keyboard stands, the first has my Rhodes and an Arturia Keylab 61, the second has a Crumar Mojo and a Sequential Take 5. There are pedalboards under each stand, pedalboard 1 has the Rhodes sustain pedal, some audio FX for the Rhodes, and controller pedals for the full setup. Pedalboard 2 has a Ventilator, for the Mojo, Exp. pedal for the Mojo. All audio from the pedalboards go into the Gnomind devices, which cover 4 channels of balanced TRS to 1 cat5 cable, there's 1 Gnomind box on each board. The Cat 5 is received by 2 Gnomind boxes in the back of my rack, which feeds the audio into channels 1-8 of the Radial KL-8. The KL-8 also acts as an interface for my laptop/Mainstage setup, controlled (mostly) by the Arturia. All Midi and USB-MIdi is handled by a iConnectivity Mio XM, also in the rack. The Mic is not totally necessary for the live rig, but simplifies re-integrating the live setup into my studio. 

 

It's been out to one gig so far, and it worked fantastically. Setup time is not unreasonable for its' size and complexity, basically, the process is setup stands for keys and rack, set pedalboards below stands. Set rack, Rhodes, and other keys onto stands, connect power, connect Rhodes sustain and controller pedals, connect 2 cat5 cables for audio, and a few USB cables. Main out is on 2 XLR's to FoH, Monitor out is 1 mono XLR to my powered monitor. 

 

Here's the full setup:

 

Here's a diagram of the full system:

 

Here's the rack, with the laptop, KL-8, Mio,  and power conditioner:

 

Here's the back of the rack, showing the Gnomind boxes receiving audio from the pedalboards:

 

 

Here's the first (Rhodes) Pedalboard:

 

And here's the obligatory action shot, with a Behringer 2600 added, from the first gig I dragged this whole mess to:

 

Being a loather of spaghetti cables, I am intrigued by "Gnomind." Do you have any further information on that system? Not looking to steal intellectual property, or for any technical details, just mainly capabilities overview.

 

~ Bill C. (vonnor)

[NewImprov]

4 hours ago, vonnor said:

Being a loather of spaghetti cables, I am intrigued by "Gnomind." Do you have any further information on that system? Not looking to steal intellectual property, or for any technical details, just mainly capabilities overview.

 

~ Bill C. (vonnor)

Sure, it's a pretty simple concept. Each box basically takes in 4 balanced or unbalanced 1/4" signals and sends them out over a standard Cat5 cable, or vice-versa. It's a purely analog system, no digital conversion, it just takes advantage of the fact that Cat5 has 4 pairs of wires, and a braided shield. Steve originally built them as send/return units for guitar pedalboards, and, when I saw what he was doing, I saw how it could be used for my keys setup. I also had him build a set of boxes that have multed 1/4" and 1/8" inputs that I use to send CV signals between various modular gear. I could put you in touch with Steve if you want more info, Also, I believe Radial makes a similar product.

[vonnor]

15 hours ago, NewImprov said:

Sure, it's a pretty simple concept. Each box basically takes in 4 balanced or unbalanced 1/4" signals and sends them out over a standard Cat5 cable, or vice-versa. It's a purely analog system, no digital conversion, it just takes advantage of the fact that Cat5 has 4 pairs of wires, and a braided shield. Steve originally built them as send/return units for guitar pedalboards, and, when I saw what he was doing, I saw how it could be used for my keys setup. I also had him build a set of boxes that have multed 1/4" and 1/8" inputs that I use to send CV signals between various modular gear. I could put you in touch with Steve if you want more info, Also, I believe Radial makes a similar product.

Ah ok. Very sweet! I do the same thing basically (and electrically) but I use multi-chan snake and multi-pin twist-lock connectors at the pedalboard and rack junction boxes. I run both midi and audio to the rack through the same snake.

 

~ vonnor

[NewImprov]

On 8/6/2022 at 6:48 AM, vonnor said:

Ah ok. Very sweet! I do the same thing basically (and electrically) but I use multi-chan snake and multi-pin twist-lock connectors at the pedalboard and rack junction boxes. I run both midi and audio to the rack through the same snake.

 

~ vonnor

That is awesome! My only issue might be that, being dependent on a custom cable could be problematic, where Cat5 is pretty universally available. But with a well-made cable, and a backup, it probably is not a problem. 

[vonnor]

On 8/9/2022 at 9:01 PM, NewImprov said:

That is awesome! My only issue might be that, being dependent on a custom cable could be problematic, where Cat5 is pretty universally available. But with a well-made cable, and a backup, it probably is not a problem. 

I have 2 back-ups. 🤪 Soldering 28 tiny little pins and 28 tiny little sockets onto the ends of tiny little awg26 wires one by one is so relaxing. Not to mention soldering right-angle Switchcraft MIDI plugs - getting those tiny little wires into those tiny little holes... It's how I spend my weekends. 😄

 

~ vonnor

[NewImprov]

On 8/18/2022 at 5:01 AM, vonnor said:

I have 2 back-ups. 🤪 Soldering 28 tiny little pins and 28 tiny little sockets onto the ends of tiny little awg26 wires one by one is so relaxing. Not to mention soldering right-angle Switchcraft MIDI plugs - getting those tiny little wires into those tiny little holes... It's how I spend my weekends. 😄

 

~ vonnor

I totally get it! I recently spent a day soldering mic cords, it can be very relaxing, and gives you great focus.

[Justin Havu]

Church rig this morning.

 

[RudyS]

On 7/7/2022 at 12:47 AM, NewImprov said:

In the exact opposite spirit of Zukskywalker's post above, here's my new, pretty maximalist, rig redesign...

 

I have a few big outdoor and theater shows coming up this summer/fall, and, after dealing with some frustration on my last few gigs, I did a pretty total redesign of my setup. I built 2 pedalboards, completely rewired my rack, replacing the KMix with a Radial KL-8, and using some custom-made pedalboard-aids made by a friend and his new startup, Gnomind.

 

Basically, the setup is 2 keyboard stands, the first has my Rhodes and an Arturia Keylab 61, the second has a Crumar Mojo and a Sequential Take 5. There are pedalboards under each stand, pedalboard 1 has the Rhodes sustain pedal, some audio FX for the Rhodes, and controller pedals for the full setup. Pedalboard 2 has a Ventilator, for the Mojo, Exp. pedal for the Mojo. All audio from the pedalboards go into the Gnomind devices, which cover 4 channels of balanced TRS to 1 cat5 cable, there's 1 Gnomind box on each board. The Cat 5 is received by 2 Gnomind boxes in the back of my rack, which feeds the audio into channels 1-8 of the Radial KL-8. The KL-8 also acts as an interface for my laptop/Mainstage setup, controlled (mostly) by the Arturia. All Midi and USB-MIdi is handled by a iConnectivity Mio XM, also in the rack. The Mic is not totally necessary for the live rig, but simplifies re-integrating the live setup into my studio. 

 

It's been out to one gig so far, and it worked fantastically. Setup time is not unreasonable for its' size and complexity, basically, the process is setup stands for keys and rack, set pedalboards below stands. Set rack, Rhodes, and other keys onto stands, connect power, connect Rhodes sustain and controller pedals, connect 2 cat5 cables for audio, and a few USB cables. Main out is on 2 XLR's to FoH, Monitor out is 1 mono XLR to my powered monitor. 

 

Here's the full setup:

 

Here's a diagram of the full system:

 

Here's the rack, with the laptop, KL-8, Mio,  and power conditioner:

 

Here's the back of the rack, showing the Gnomind boxes receiving audio from the pedalboards:

 

 

Here's the first (Rhodes) Pedalboard:

 

And here's the obligatory action shot, with a Behringer 2600 added, from the first gig I dragged this whole mess to:

 

Really nice setup!

 

how is the take 5 holding up live?

[LarsHarner2]

On 7/24/2022 at 10:53 PM, EscapeRocks said:

A little Sunday evening work with the current gig rig

Arturia Keylab MK2

Roland Fantom-08

14" MacBook Pro M1 Max

 

I've been using the keylab mkii as well for over a year- it has been a game changer with me along with a m1 macbook as well. One thing I would like to figure out better is using the faders for mixing within Studio One

[The Piano Man]

On 9/4/2022 at 3:36 PM, justin_havu said:

Church rig this morning.

 

RD1000 and Korg TR rack? Nice.

[Justin Havu]

Thanks.  Main piano sounds from the RD, pads/strings from the TR.  I usually jump between Piano 1, 3, and EP 2 on the RD, and set up a couple of pads on the TR, one in Combi, one in Program.

 

We've had a CP300 for over a decade, and over the last year, the action has gotten heavier, more stiff, and really difficult to play.  A few of us from church were asked to play a festival set up in Newport, VT back in August, and I decided to bring along the RD, all 95 lbs of it, and my MODX7, MIDI'd into the RD.  Yes, it's not the most realistic piano sound, but the action is light, smooth, very playable, and I love every bit of it, and since then, it's been my main axe at church.  Haven't been able to find a modern instrument with this kind of playability at all.

[The Real MC]

2 hours ago, justin_havu said:

Haven't been able to find a modern instrument with this kind of playability at all.

 

That's a major pet peeve I have with modern DPs and weighted action MIDI controllers.  Too damn stiff.

[nadroj]

For all of its limitations, this simple setup still manages to put a smile on my face...

 

(sadly the old organ in the background is only a part of the furniture!)

[NewImprov]

On 9/4/2022 at 8:05 AM, RudyS said:

Really nice setup!

 

how is the take 5 holding up live?

Pretty great! The first few gigs I took it to, I had issues with tuning stability, until I learned more about how it handles temperature and tuning. After that, I would set it up and leave it powered up, and run the oscillator tuning routine about 5 minutes before starting the gig. For the next few shows, If I noticed the pitch drifted, I'd run the tuning again. For the last several gigs, I have not had to tune in the middle of the show. I guess it keeps a record of ambient temperature and tuning compensation, so the more you tune it in different situations, the more data points the tuning table has for reference, and the better the tuning stability. I used to gig with a Minimoog, and it required more tuning attention than the Take 5.

 

Other than that, it's been a great live synth. It's rapidly becoming a favorite synth!

[RudyS]

22 hours ago, NewImprov said:

Pretty great! The first few gigs I took it to, I had issues with tuning stability, until I learned more about how it handles temperature and tuning. After that, I would set it up and leave it powered up, and run the oscillator tuning routine about 5 minutes before starting the gig. For the next few shows, If I noticed the pitch drifted, I'd run the tuning again. For the last several gigs, I have not had to tune in the middle of the show. I guess it keeps a record of ambient temperature and tuning compensation, so the more you tune it in different situations, the more data points the tuning table has for reference, and the better the tuning stability. I used to gig with a Minimoog, and it required more tuning attention than the Take 5.

 

Other than that, it's been a great live synth. It's rapidly becoming a favorite synth!

Was curious about the tuning. Great to hear it is stable!

[bjosko]

Last gig, a couple weeks ago. It was a little arrangement where we tried to do a minimum gear setup. Since we had the PA behind us, we could drop the monitors, used a little Yamaha Stagepass 600 for PA ( vocal, acoustic guitar and keys into it).

My Mojo was going through the Numa Line in. Excellent feature on the Numa, except I couldn’t get any sound through input 1 and 2 on the Numa.

I have not figured out what was wrong, it worked at home with the same cables, but the software in it seems to be a bit randomly unstable yet.

Otherwise excellent keyboard.

Even if I want to downsize, I am trying to be independent on my Nord Stage, but would love to bring my Take5 into action instead.