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How Much Weight Have You Lugged Around?


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Mid to late 70's rig:

 

Hammond B-3 on metal dollies

Leslie 147

Fender Rhodes 73 stage with stereo satellite speakers

Wurlitzer 200A

Arp Omni 2

Arp Axxe

Heavy road cases for the Arp's

Sunn mixer/amp

Bullfrog 15" speaker cab with horn (this thing was heavy!)

 

Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK-1 + Ventilator, Korg Triton. 2 JBL Eon 510's.

 

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In the 80's I was in a Top 40 Holiday Inn band. We had two keyboard players. Between us, we had:

 

CP-70B (in single Anvil Case- fricking HEAVY!!!)

Rhodes

Hammond Porta-B

Mellotron (for a short time- couldn't keep it in tune!)

Korg Poly-6

Multimoog

Roland Vocoder Plus

ARP Quadra

Crumar Performer

Rack w/ effects, amps & 4 Cerwin Vega cabinets

 

No idea how much weight, but it took 4 of us to lift the CP-70 case. We took up half the stage at most places (often having to extend off the stage in those tiny hotel lounges).

Custom Music, Audio Post Production, Location Audio

www.gmma.biz

https://www.facebook.com/gmmamusic/

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The most I ever gigged/lugged around was in the 80's:

Hammond chop with flight case

Leslie 147 with flight case

Wurlitzer 200A

Clavinet D6

Roland Juno-6

Moog Rogue

Yamaha mixer

Yamaha big ass cabinet

 

Now:

Hammond XK-1c in soft case

Yamaha MOXF8 in soft case

Yamaha MG06 mixer

Yamaha DXR10 powered speaker

Quik Lok QL742 Keyboard Stand

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At one point, I carried a Yamaha SY99, Kurzweil PC88MX, an SKB 12 space rack with a Crown DC300 amp and other stuff in it and a EV SH-152 speaker.

 

But, the single heaviest piece of gear I carried was a Kurzweil K2500XS in an SKB case. :cool:

PD

 

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn, is just to love and be loved in return."--E. Ahbez "Nature Boy"

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How about performance to weight ratio? I've carried heavy shit...so what? What do you GET from said weight? Weight means nothing....results do!!!

Dan

 

Acoustic/Electric stringed instruments ranging from 4 to 230 strings, hammered, picked, fingered, slapped, and plucked. Analog and Digital Electronic instruments, reeds, and throat/mouth.

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CP-70B (in single Anvil Case- fricking HEAVY!!!)
single case? :o holy smokes!!

 

I can't imagine as I've never seen one in a single case. I just trashed (literally) the Anvil cases for my CP-70B 6 months ago. I had a case for each piece. The foam had completely broken down with age and became like gum. Yuk. Going to keep my piano for a while anyway but won't need any case(s).

:nopity:
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How about performance to weight ratio? I've carried heavy shit...so what? What do you GET from said weight? Weight means nothing....results do!!!

 

I had a performance to weight ratio of 236 to 5. Depending on the show, those numbers could be swapped...

'55 and '59 B3's; Leslies 147, 122, 21H; MODX 7+; NUMA Piano X 88; Motif XS7; Mellotrons M300 and M400’s; Wurlitzer 206; Gibson G101; Vox Continental; Mojo 61; Launchkey 88 Mk III; Korg Module; B3X; Model D6; Moog Model D

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Roughly:

 

6-Space Rack - 80lb

Fatar 76key - 50

Kurz PC361 - 38

EV ZLX-12P - 35

Cable Bag - 15

Stands - 15

Pedalboard - 10

-----------------

Total - 243lb

Gear:

Hardware: Nord Stage4, Korg Kronos 2, Novation Summit

Software: Cantabile 3, Halion Sonic 3 and assorted VST plug-ins.

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How about performance to weight ratio? I've carried heavy shit...so what? What do you GET from said weight? Weight means nothing....results do!!!

 

From other posts you're late 40's or so? You didn't gig in the 70's when EVERYBODY had a B3 or you didn't work. Just listen to all the classic rock from that era. There was nothing else to use, it was a B3 (or the variants) or nothing. I had an M3 for just over a year until my grandfather gave me the dough to get me my B. Clones had not been invented yet and I wasn't into a Farfisa. Same thing for a Rhodes. Any idea how much a Rhodes weighs? There's was nothing else for that sound either.

 

There's your results Dan. You had the real shit or you were a home wannabe listening to it.

 

Bob

Hammond SK1, Mojo 61, Kurzweil PC3, Korg Pa3x, Roland FA06, Band in a Box, Real Band, Studio One, too much stuff...
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Paging Michael Caliroso.....!

 

*bangs head on desk* That explains why my ears were ringing...

 

I may cart some heavy stuff but I have my limits. I would never own a B-3 or CP70 because they are just too d@mn heavy and bulky. Not to mention re-re-re-tuning the CP70 every time it is moved. Even when I was younger and stronger, those things were too much for club gigs.

 

My Hammond of choice was the Porta-B. I bought it from my piano teacher not knowing better. It may not be a B-3 but that things SCREAMS. Still have it but haven't gigged it since 2008.

 

The heaviest/bulkiest board in my arsenal is my XK3/XLK3 in Anvil case. The whole assembly sits in the lower lid like a tray so the top lid just lifts away. The lower lid is necessary because the XLK3 is a flimsy assembly - the bottom is cheap chipboard that is prone to breaking. I do not trust it on a keyboard stand by itself.

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Like most folks - my early 80's gig rig was the largest, heaviest thing I've schlepped.

 

Hammond C2 with Leslie 147

Fender Rhodes 73

Hohner D6 Clavinet

Korg Poly 61

EV "3 Way" Cabinet

Yamaha EM150 powered mixer

 

It weighed a ton ... but sounded great. Fortunately, gigs in those days were virtually always a weeklong "sit down" ... so I only had to move it twice a week. Plus we were all a lot younger ... so that certainly made it seem a little easier.

 

My current rig is still heavy by today's standards (CP300, Kronos 88, Yamaha DSR112s, Keyboard rack) - but with no single piece over 80 pounds and nothing that I can't lift myself - it's still very manageable. Whenever I get to thinking about trying to downsize - I remember that it ain't even close to the nut-buster stuff I used to schlepp and happily keep on keepin' on.

The SpaceNorman :freak:
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CP-70B (in single Anvil Case- fricking HEAVY!!!)
single case? :o holy smokes!!

 

I can't imagine as I've never seen one in a single case.

 

Actually, if memory serves, it was a Star Case, not Anvil. Same difference though. Built like a tank. It had 2 compartments for the harp & kbd. Took 4 people to lift. Once it was where it needed to be, it took two to get the lid off. It did have nice casters though, so it rolled most of the way from truck to stage.

Custom Music, Audio Post Production, Location Audio

www.gmma.biz

https://www.facebook.com/gmmamusic/

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great topic .. here goes...

 

High School band:

Hammond L100

Wurlitzer 200 (the tan model ?)

two (2) leslie 125's (I so wanted the horns LOL)

Fender bassman amp

 

the 1990's back in a band bug:

Kurzweil Pc88

Roland VK-7

Yamaha an1x

Leslie 145 (still have it, love it)

two (2) Mackie sm450's

beringer mixer

 

the current (still haven't learned to downsize) band

Kurzweil Pc1x

Korg CX-3 w/ speakeasy pre-amp

Nord lead 2

Motion sound KBR-3D

hot spot monitor (vocals)

 

and all the load in's , load outs ... stands, etc - still fun !

PC1x, Hammond XK1c, Deep Mind 6, MS500 (gig rig)

Kurz PC4, Mini Moog Model D, Little Phatty, Hammond M3, Leslie 145, viscount op-3, Behringer model D, Roland GAIA.. (home studio)

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All I can say is that I'm extremely thankful I didn't have to gig as a keyboardist in the 70s and early 80s before ROMplers came out! No idea how you guys lugged all that heavy stuff around every weekend. . .

'57 Hammond B-3, '60 Hammond A100, Leslie 251, Leslie 330, Leslie 770, Leslie 145, Hammond PR-40

Trek II UC-1A

Alesis QSR

 

 

 

 

 

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I did not have any roadies... Just depended on the kindness of strangers, and my reluctant band-mates.

'55 and '59 B3's; Leslies 147, 122, 21H; MODX 7+; NUMA Piano X 88; Motif XS7; Mellotrons M300 and M400’s; Wurlitzer 206; Gibson G101; Vox Continental; Mojo 61; Launchkey 88 Mk III; Korg Module; B3X; Model D6; Moog Model D

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This is why we all hate harmonica players. Well, one of the many reasons...

 

Hah ! I used to lug around a B3 / 122 , Wurli 200A , and a D6 clav almost every night in the mid 80's. I switched to the porta-B and an 860 which helped a little but not a lot. I got so tired of lugging all this stuff that I quit keys for a while and just played harp for about a year. A bag of harps, a green bullit and a small tube amp-cant remember what it was , all up about 40lbs....Now, the sk2 and SSV3 does the job, but I still haul around a 147 Leslie about 50% of the time.

"Ive been playing Hammond since long before anybody paid me to play one, I didn't do it to be cool, I didnt do it to make a statement......I just liked it "

 

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Once upon a backache:

 

Hammond C3/122 Leslie 470 lbs...(combined)

Marshall 100 Watt stack 270 lbs . . .

Mini Moog . . . 60 lbs (or so)

RMI Piano . . . 60 lbs (or so)

 

Mid 70's...many moons ago!

 

860 lbs Plus Pedals,Cases, Wires! :hitt:

 CP-50, YC 73,  FP-80, PX5-S, NE-5d61, Kurzweil SP6, XK-3, CX-3, Hammond XK-3, Yamaha YUX Upright, '66 B3/Leslie 145/122

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Not only am I impressed/horrified at the sheer cartage you all dealt with back in the day, but what an investment you all had in your setup!! Crazy! I was alive and playing during the "golden age of gear" (1975-85?), but forever a student (high school, community college, university), and consequently never had the money to put together anything of that magnitude. How in the hell did you all afford having $5-10K in gear in, say, 1978 dollars?
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what amazed me where the cats who owned and played Mellotrons. A M400 cost up to $5000 back then and were heavy as shit! I could never afford that!

'55 and '59 B3's; Leslies 147, 122, 21H; MODX 7+; NUMA Piano X 88; Motif XS7; Mellotrons M300 and M400’s; Wurlitzer 206; Gibson G101; Vox Continental; Mojo 61; Launchkey 88 Mk III; Korg Module; B3X; Model D6; Moog Model D

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I may have mentioned this in some other thread, but while in college (~1984/5) I worked MI retail with a guy who worked at the Guitar Center on Sunset (then the only one) in the late 70's. He told me they sold sooooo many CP70/Prophet 5 combos during that time, many a week. That's about an $8K investment back then, roughly $22K in today's dollars. And interest rates were insane back then; mortgages were running 10-14%, so I can't imagine what personal loan rates were to finance this stuff? I know musicians actually made money back then, but that was such a huge investment to be a well-outfitted keyboard player......
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- Leslie 122: 250 lbs in Anvil case

Don't forget to add the weight of the canoe. I bet portages were a bitch!

 

Not to mention re-re-re-tuning the CP70 every time it is moved.
Nah, just avoid the high notes.

 

Moving the CP70 was more work but easier than the Rhodes. More work because two trips for two people, rather than one, but easier because both pieces were easier to move. The shape of the harp made it a real easy carry, no knee-banging, easy to pick up and put down. The action was bulky like a Stage 73, but a lot lighter.

 

The biggest problem with the CP70 was that after setting the pieces on stage and removing the lids, I had to wait for a bandmate to be available to help lift the harp onto the hinges on the back of the action section. I eventually figured out how to do that alone, but I'm glad I didn't end up doing that for too many years! Hard on the back, IIRC.

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what amazed me where the cats who owned and played Mellotrons. A M400 cost up to $5000 back then and were heavy as shit! I could never afford that!

 

That's because they were/are shit Dave.....

only kidding they sound awesome :)

Brett

 

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