Do you use all of your gear?

[SW]

Just curious.. I sometimes feel that I've got too many keyboards, guitars, boxes, amplifiers etc. I simply don't have the time to play (with) them all. I feel that I would do just fine with much less.

[Bartolomeo]

I make a real effort to get rid of anything I don't use. Sell, give away, trash, depending on how much value is left.

[coyote]

Most of my stuff gets used at least once a week. And the remainder is there because it HAS been used, and likely will again. The xylohone is a great example. It's there for only one song - but without it, performing that song (Thick As A Brick) is much less effective and not nearly as charming.

 

IMO the key is to be judicious in what you buy to begin with. If you have keyboards sitting in a closet collecting dust, if you have five Gibson ES-335s, if you have synth modules or effects that have never come out of the box, you need to rethink your entire purchasing mentality/methodology.

[Krakit]

The things that I have that don't get any use at all are backup units for things that I use all the time.

 

Outside of that, I sell off (upgrade) the things that I no longer use. There are some things that I use seldomly, but they still get use.

 

Carl

[MikeT156]

Good point Coyote. Buy right to begin with. For me, "buying cheap" seldom worked. As far as getting rid of things you don't use, it depends on what it is. I hung unto my vintage keys, because 10 years ago or so, no one would give me very much for any of them, so I kept them. Now they're escalating in value. Some accessories, pedals, and low end devices won't go up in value, so if you can anything for them, that's a judgement call. Some gear will always be junk. That's the stuff I avoid at "all cost".

 

Mike T.

[flowthrough]

I do have things that mostly ly around.

I wish I could get rid of some of it- but the resale value is not enough to justify a sale.

[Markyboard]

With softsynths replacing some of my gear the hardware is no longer being used. I have 2 FS1Rs that have been replaced by FM-7 and soon Korg Leagacy will replace my WS A/D. But I'll probably hang on to the hardware units in the event that the software at some point is no longer supported on whatever platform/OS I end up on years from now.

[eric]

I have gotten to the point that any of the "modern" gear in my rig is sold if not being used on the gig. I am always flipping some of the gear to get something new and if I don't use it, it hits eBay pretty quickly. I do have a stable of classic gear that stays at home that I would never get rid of, though I don't actively use it every day. Example - my first synth, a careworn Roland JX8P. It is in the flight case that I carried it around in for a decade before I officially retired it from the road. I pull it out of the storage closet a few times a year for fun and actually take it to a few gigs here and there. I also have a Hammond and Leslie rig at home that I do not gig with, but will keep forever.

 

I keep my gig rig pretty fresh and sell stuff that I don't use.

 

Regards,

Eric

[DafDuc]

I packrat everything. There are some items that are wating for the studio to be built (a falling out with the contractor pushed that back a good year or so), like the old Rhodes, Clav D-6, and Arp String Ensemble. Some of the old modules are mothballed now, like a pair of TX-7's and a Roland P-55 piano module. And there's a KX-88 that needs repairs.

 

So about 1/3 of my stuff isn't getting used. But I have plans for most of it.

 

Daf

[Michelle ggurl]

Originally posted by eric:

I have gotten to the point that any of the "modern" gear in my rig is sold if not being used on the gig.

I pretty much agree with this sentiment. I don't have a lot of gear -- an acoustic upright piano, a Nord Electro, a Kurzweil PC2, and a Juno 106 -- and I won't be parting any of it out anytime soon ... UNLESS I decide to flip my most modern stuff, the PC2 and/or Electro. Those are the 2 I use to gig and practice. The piano I won't sell because I like having an acoustic and practice on it all the time. The Juno I never use anymore live, but I did record some pads with it recently. Even if I never used it for the pads, I wouldn't get rid of it, because it's not easily replaced and doesn't really sound/perform like anything new on the market. It has sentimental value cuz it's my first synth, which I bought with my own allowance.

 

I also have a couple of basses and a cheap-ish acoustic guitar and cheap-ish electric. I don't use the guitars at all anymore ... I HAVE used them to record demos and I suspect I will again, so I may as well keep them. I don't play bass right now, but I have one fretted I'd get rid of only for a better one, and then I have my fretless Pedulla MVP, which is a $3500 bass new that I got used for $1000, and it's a dream to play. I won't be selling that.

 

So I'd say my gear list is pretty lean, considering there are times when I want to record my ideas not just on keys but also the bass and guitar parts.

[Jeff Klopmeyer]

I have no gear that I don't use at least sometimes. it may be six months in between my reaching for a certain guitar, a certain effects box... but I'm glad it's there when I need it.

 

Some of my gear only gets used live, and some only stays in the studio, so what little duplication that's there is for this purpose.

 

If I have something I really don't use, i usually give it away to other musicians who will appreciate it.

 

- Jeff

[jay da cop]

My thought is this, if it is sitting around collecting dust, I get rid of it and let someone who will actually use it have a crack at it. I do have some redundant gear, sort of... i have a Korg 01W/pro, and a Wavestation SR. I take the WS SR on the road and leave the 01W at home. I have a QS7.1 and a QSR. The board stays in the studio and the QSR goes with me. So, in that sense, I have more gear than I take. This by no means that it is unused. I use all of my gear in the studio. I just pair down what I take on the road, and try not to take redundant gear. If I have a rackmount that does the same thing as a board I have, I take the rack. It's a matter of space in my vehicle, setup time and stage space. I am still in search of the "perfect" stage setup, and I'm almost there for my application, or at least I think so, and that's what counts, that I do everything that I need to with the gear at hand, without doing the Geoff Downes thing (remember the Asia videos with that insane setup he had?).

 

Jay

[Phait]

Being that all I have is a laptop, keyboard, headphones, monitors and guitar - yes.

[jay da cop]

Oh, I almost forgot - I do have more software than I use. I may be paring that down soon. I have too many softsynths to learn them well enough to make good use of them. Does that count?

 

Jay

[marino]

I do make use of every single piece of gear I own, although not always at the same time.

I tend to buy complex, expensive stuff and to spend the right amount of time on each instrument - I have thousands of sounds which I've made myself... it's a hard-earned treasure, which is difficult to give up.

I have 12 synthesizers, and on each one of them I have spent countless sleepless nights, whole years of work, in order to know them well. So, I tend to keep synths for a long time. My TG77 still get used, as does my two Wavestations and the Matrix-12. The turnover time in my studio is very slow.

 

At the same time, if I notice that a piece of gear is not getting used, or it's covered by something else, I tend to get rid of it very quickly. I hate to see a musical instrument to sit idle without making any music.

[JeffLearman]

I keep small items, guitars, and mixers, but tend to sell keyboards and other big items. As much as I liked my Juno 60, SCI 6-trak, and Yamaha CP70, I'm happy that someone else is getting good use out of them.

 

I'm still wondering whether to get rid of my '76 Rhodes or keep it, though. I plan at least one more round of sampling, and someone I know offered me a set of rosewood hammer tips -- the worn rubber on the current tips is the only thing I notice that's degraded over the decades, and rosewood sure would sound great!

 

The only reason I tend to keep mixers is that they all get used now & then, or loaned to friends -- and they're all pretty much worthless on the resale market anyway.

[Markyboard]

... I have spent countless sleepless nights, whole years of work, in order to know them well. So, I tend to keep synths for a long time.

Yep -same here. Thats why I classify 2 kinds of purchases:

 

1. The upgrades such as Dx7 to DX7IIFD/TX802 to FS1R to FM7 or Wavestation to W A/D to Legacy(soon) usually selling the replaced version eventually. I still retain all my patches from the original DX7 and Wavestation.

 

2. Non-replaceable such as Memorymoog, Z1, A6 and Voyager. None of these have a newer version(yet) that my current programs can be transfered to.

[freelance]

I still have a Juno 106 that rarely gets used - but I would not get rid us it - I can tweak up sounds quickly, that would take much longer with my "newer" boards (I did get rid of a Juno 60 - but kept the 106 for the MIDI).

 

I have a D50 that I havn't used it a few years - I keep thinking of getting rid of it (maybe one of these days).

 

I have two modules (EMU Proteus 1, Kawai K1r) that I use on occasion for recording - but I certainly could like without them.

 

If anything I have too many guitars - I make an effort to use eash one every couple of months, but I could easily get by with only a couple.