Conference napalm::commusic_v1

	Me?  I've been doing less watching the sales and more real music-making.
I've just finished a couple of live shows (non-midi) and will be trying now to 
put my studio back together.  I intend to do some serious taping of original
material and some taping of others doing their own material.  My hope, for this
time-frame, is to get better at recording.  I'm going to set up my recording
effort a little differently.  In the past, I've had no separation of the
performer from the recording engineer.  But I have this scheme I want to try now
where I run a snake from the basement (where the studio is) up the stairs to the
parlor where I'll house the performers.  This not only accomplishes the acoustic
separation, but gives the performer a little better environment to relax in and
think more about getting a better sound out.

	I think I'm going to record in mono for a while, until I'm satisfied 
that what I'm recording is good quality.  I might use some of Karl Moeller's
stereoizing tricks when mastering, though - just to widen out the sound.

	I've also been having an interesting time building up chops on a little
mono synth that I picked up a while back.  It's a Yamaha CS01 - just a mono 
analog synth with mini keys and your normal single oscillator, single EG 
controls.  What sets this unit apart, though, is that it can utilize the BC-1
(or BC-2, I suppose) breath controller.  The breath controller can be used to
open up the filter (or the VCA) in place of the EG.  I'm trying to practice in
such a way that it becomes a true musical instrument to me (like a wind 
instrument).  What's nice about it is that it can run on batteries and has
small built-in speakers - I like to take it in the car with me and play while
I'm on the road.  I've been getting some nice tones out of it.

	That's part of what I've been doing lately.  How 'bout the rest of you?

	Dan

    I'm utterly bored with it.  Every time I try to enter a piece I
    once spent hours a few years ago 
    transcribing off a record, such as philip glass
    or laurie anderson, I give up after a few minutes or a half hour
    because I really don't have time to enter their music, I mean, what
    did Philip Glass ever do to promote my music?  Heck, I don't care
    about my music any more, and after I sell of the PAiA oscillator
    box I probably won't correspond in here any more.
    Tom

                       <<< Note 2021.0 by NRCP::DEATON >>>
                             -< MIDI-life Crisis >-

Dan,

Being a big hardware enthusiast (could you tell 8^)) I'm most interested
in talking about the latest equipment. It's pretty hard to talk about
sounds; you really need to be there to hear them. We've pretty well covered
all the how-to-getting-started-cold-solder-joint topics. I've got my studio
pretty well set now; awaiting a Proteus as (clearing throat) the "last"
piece of gear... I'm trying to avoid multi-track recording by MIDI sequencing
using a Mac with MasterTracks Pro and MIDI-mixing everything right to RDAT.
This is working out well. It seems that once your studio equipment
is "stabilized", there is a rapid drop-off of participation in this notes
conference as well as reading the mags, (at least in my case). It's on to
producing some music, which is original or public domain and can be sold. I'm
still producing EPS disks for Ensoniq and working on a new VFX patch library.
I enjoy having other MIDIholics over to discuss ideas and experiment with the
equipment.

dave

    Well, I sorta got a bit disenchanted with it all.
    
    I decided that I really needed to PLAY and that I needed to PLAY
    with other musicians.   The idea of being independent was
    understandably appealing after my various band experiences, but
    what I hadn't figured on was the energy and input you get from
    other people.
    
    I found myself spending more time reading manuals, and less time
    playing and learning about the music itself (theory, etc.).  My
    chops were going way downhill, and I started compromising on a lot
    of things.
    
    I really want to be a player, not a technician.   I get the biggest
    "kicks" from playing and so I have to consciously preserve that
    aspect of what I do musically.
    
    I've all but given up on the idea of doing things on my own (except
    perhaps commercial music projects) and am now oriented to using my
    studio WITH a band.
    
    I'm trying to find the right people for that.
    
    	db

    After parting ways (quite amicably) with my band in January, I got a 
    chance to sit back a bit and think about what *I* want to do musically.
    
    While I still get the "new toy" bug occasionally, my studio is complete
    enough that I don't get preoccupied looking for the latest and greatest
    piece of hardware, and frankly I haven't said "Wow!" over a piece of
    gear since I got my HR-16. Realistically, the hardware hunt is over...
    
    I ran into a creative wall. Rather than get irked, I decided to start
    exploring and learning what made the music that I really liked work.
    I've spent probably 4 or 5 months going over Becker and Fagan's pieces,
    sequencing some. Recently, I decided to move ahead some more and picked
    up some great charts for Chick Corea's Elektric Band. This has set me
    right on my ear!! I like fusion, but never invested any energy into 
    learning what made it tick. Now I am. (The drum parts obviously are
    written by someone with a sick mind!! ;^)) Working these charts should
    give me a whole new set of chops...
    
    The gig bug bites occasionally, but my musical tastes don't generally 
    run towards what you're likely to hear in the average venue, and I've
    no desire to do it for free. I've considered trying to locate a woman
    with a voice who'd be interested in doing a duo thing similar to Jens.
    
    Not bringing lots of new gear into the studio has had the added
    advantage of keeping me off the learning curve. The MC-500 took me
    about 20 hours to come up to speed on. Now I spend alot of time
    programming the synths to get the sounds I want. ( I recently came
    up with the bass patch I always wanted. Fat, "Tube"-y sounding, and
    nylon strings. Just like my real bass!!. TX81-Z, 2 operators. I also
    came up with a nice rhythm guitar patch for the TZ.)
    
    I guess I'm kind of 're-trenching' at the moment...
    
    Edd

	Well, I find that once I feel proficent in one area, or abandon
	that area all together (like spending too much time tweeking 
	patches to get a 'perfect sound'), I find something else that
	needs work. For the moment I've discovered that a sequence that
	sounds great Live, sounds muddy when recorded & I'm spending
	time trying to master MIDI and MIXING (What a coincidence, this
	months Electronic Musician has articles on what was irritating
	me last month - good articles) on my 4 track deck, with the 
	sequencer syncing to my deck & the other 3 channels being
	music.

	I'd suspect that I change focus about every 3 or 4 months because
	I discover that my needs and abilities arn't tracking each other
	very well.

	I also get irritated at all the new equipment which seem to be
	one thing, but really arn't. Effects that claim to be sterio
	are one example. Take the Quadraverb, I tried one & it's not
	really sterio, in that you can't keep what's happening on one
	channel from messing with the other channels output. The effects
	create sterio output, but if I really want sterio (seperate left
	and right) I need 2 of them. Why is this a problem?? When you
	connect multiple sterio effects together, everything turns to
	mush when you try to mix it down.

	Burned out? No, because I play out alot & depend on what I put
	together. Lost in the maze of new products? Yes, so I stick with
	what I have & know I can work with.

	MIDI has created an opporitunity to always feel that your current
	gear is not quite good enough (ala, too noisy, not bright enough,
	no good patches, etc..) and if you only had an XYZ box, that you
	could casually drop into you MIDI network, everything would be
	better. In other words, waste a lot of your time. As for me, I find
	faults with everything that I work with but as life would have it,
	It does all work & it's light years ahead of anything available in
	the 1970's or early 1980's, so, I figure, If I just consider what
	I'm trying to do in the long run & keep attempting to attain that
	goal, I won't let the constant barrage of new MIDI gear bother me.
	After all, it's only 12 notes.  What could be so complicated about
	that??
							Jens

    I can't be accused of non-participation in this conference, even
    though I've had the same setup for over 18 months.  I stopped my
    subscriptions to Keyboard and EM, because I wasn't getting anything
    new.. flat on the learning curve.
    
    So once the equipment hunt slows, and MIDI is no longer strange,
    that means I'm now using the studio as an instrument, without too
    much conscious effort.  As you know I've got an album headed toward
    the stores, and just within the last few weeks got heavily into
    jingle 'bed' production.  
    
    And I can't say I've gotten any external encouragement from other
    musicians here in Tucson.. aside from some music store employees,
    MIDI studios and knowledge seem to be a rarity.  
    
    Plugging away in the hinterlands.
    
    BTW, this conference might be all the music/tech exchange I need!
    
    thanks for being here.  karl

    I'm letting my subscriptions to KEYBOARD and Musician lapse.  There's
    just not much new nowadays.  I don't own any MIDI gear anymore.
    Ironic that my MIDI studio seemed complete just before I had to sell
    it off.  My HOBBY (what's left of it) consists of humming hooks into
    my cheapie tape deck.  I have a piano that I've repaired a little so I 
    can noodle.  Some day I'll get back into MIDI.  But, I can't afford
    either the expense or the time right now.  Pathetic, ain't it?  Now is 
    turning into a time to gather ideas until the dearth is over.  I 
    participate and will continue to participate in anticipation of
    someday being able to start over.

    By the way, I've not yet reviewed the latest Commusic tape, but
    plan to when I can get some time (don't hold your breath).  I've
    listened to the whole thing.  I think it's quite good, as good as
    just about any album.  Many of the tunes were a bit too repetitive, 
    but overall it held my interest.
    
    
    Steve

	well, I'm almost totally non-motivated to make music right now.

	We're looking for a new house, for starters. One that can fit a MIDI
	studio. So the studio space has been (actually, is still being) vacated.
	The advantage is that the dup-deck is now home making commusic copies,
	instead of being somewhere else getting used by other people.

	The down side of it is that with all the external stress of trying
	to find a house and secure financing, I am too brain-dead to sit in
	front of the Atari and sequence or even play music at all. One band,
	which was supposed to be broken up, is making noises about starting
	back up (to my experience this is a BAD idea, if it's dead it should
	stay dead). My other band is getting upset with me because of my
	non-motivation. I'm trying to get everything finished before I start
	something new. 

	SO I'm not buying anything, not playing much, and just sort of sitting
	on the sidelines right now. This should change in the fall.

	/pjh

    There seems to be an echo in here somewhere... I too have let my
    subscriptions to KEYBOARD lapse (though I occasionally pick one
    up on the 'stands).  What got to me is that they never came out
    and said "This Sucks"; they seemed much more willing to suck up
    to a manufacturer than to their own sense of reviewing.
    
    Anyway, after finding their equipment reviews to be nearly useless
    (satisfy the manufacturer- nobody ever builds a dog, especially
    if they buy lots of full-page color ads...grrr..)  I didn't really find
    much of the magazine interesting (Freff's and Bob Moog's columns
    occasionally excepted).
    
    I haven't bought an SGU in nearly a year now.  But now I've got
    this problem...
    
    
    The problem is that I'm used to exceptionally good audio systems;
    either full digital or 90dB x 20-20K analog.  I honestly get upset
    at systems that deliver "only" 80 dB as too noisy.  When all I wanted
    was a mixer, that was OK, the CQM works fine for that.
    
    But now I want to start playing with multitrack recording.  The
    only multitrack cassette that sounded good to me was the Tascam
    246. Problem: I don't want to pay "new" prices for a piece of gear that
    Tascam says they will supersede before the end of June.
    
    Does anybody out there have a Tascam 246 they want to sell off?   
    	
    	-Bill

    Well, I see quite a few possible reasons for this file's inactivity. 
    
    1) WAGE FREEZE- Whether we like it or not,,,things are lousy right now
           for the company. I feel a LOT less secure here than I did,
           say a year ago. I have become very conservative on purchases.
           In general, my morale is low, causing me not to note a whole
           lot.
    
    2) SUMMER FEVER- Time to cut the grass/work outside/have cookouts/
           parties. Who wants to be couped up down my cold,damp,dark
           cellar?? 
    
    3) MIDI-MEDIOCRATY- There just isn't any peice of NEW gear that is
           REALLY exciting right now. Most of the stuff that is exciting
           has been bought by us and reviewed excellently and completely.
    
    4) PLAYING- By the past few replies, it looks like quite a few of us
           (including myself) are simply making music more than talking
           about making music.

    I've finally completed my physical studio reorganization, but topology
    is still a mess because I'm using some non-MIDI effects and I would
    like to get the processed version of the signal sent to the reverb.
    I'm also having a problem with the fact that my mono effect sends
    (especially when turned up) pan the signal to the center, ignoring the
    pan pot.
    
    I've complete the conversion to master keyboard (Oberheim Xk) and
    modules, mostly rack mount, but some on shelves over the keyboard
    because there are some good deals on those dumb table-top packages.
    
    I'm planning to buy a Mac sequencer package (leaning toward MTP) to
    stitch-together my improvised themes into longer compositions.
    
    Got a new module the other day, a Korg P3 sampled piano.  The piano
    isn't so great in the midrange, probably due to short samples and no
    velocity x-fade, but it is very usable in a mix and a touch of chorus
    livens it up.  Biggest win about this box is the ROM card that came
    with it--one of the instruments is a percussion kit of about 2 dozen
    pieces distributed across 88 keys of MIDI note numbers, in several
    transposed and detuned incarnations.  Very nice sounds.  I've been
    getting some really nice results playing with that and the transposing
    arpeggiator on the Xk controller.
    
    	Eirikur
    
    

    Gee, I'm as happy with Keyboard as I ever was.  I've found lots
    of good columns in there, especially the ones on music theory
    (are you guys ignoring those?).
    
>    There seems to be an echo in here somewhere... I too have let my
>    subscriptions to KEYBOARD lapse (though I occasionally pick one
>    up on the 'stands).  What got to me is that they never came out
>    and said "This Sucks";
    
    I don't understand this.
    
    Here I am, I take my latest issue of keyboard, open it up to a
    review (the Roland U-110) and while it doesn't it say "it sucks",
    it does say in effect "nice functionality, shame about it being
    too darn noisey to be useful".
    
    I've seen lots of bad reviews.  I just haven't seen any totally
    negative reviews.   Do you only read the reviews of items your interested 
    in?  If so, perhaps you're just not "interested" in things that are
    likely to get a bad review (this is entirely conceivable IMO).
    
    	db

    It is common practice for magazines to generally avoid running
    reviews of products that are total turkeys.  This has nothing to
    do with their advertisers.  I too have seen fairly negative reviews
    in both Keyboard and Electronic Musician.  And I agree with db that
    there's still a lot of interesting stuff (Bill Fowler's column comes
    to mind) in Keyboard, and I have found their "clinics" very useful
    at providing some additional insight into obscure features of a
    piece of equipment.
    
    I fully intend to renew my subscriptions to both these magazines.
    
    As to the intensity of the conference's activity declining, well,
    things do ebb and flow, wax and wane, you know?
    
    As to what I'm up to lately, mostly I've been traveling on business,
    so there hasn't been a whole lot of time left for studio effort.
    What I've been working on when I can continues to be "constructivist"
    originals and covers of classic oldies done with "modern production
    values".  Most recently I've gotten into sequencing some of my
    favorite hymns (that's right, church music) from my younger (choir
    boy) days.
    
    len.
    

I seem to have the same problem others have expressed here. I finally landed a 
gig with a GB band. Not my first choice of places to play, but I get to play 
and I pick up some extra bucks. I have hauled along the WX7, TX81Z, and 
DSP-128 to rehearsals and gigs and I use about 5 sounds total so far. I 
couldn't justify another SGU if I wanted to. I probably buy something I could 
play - like a bass flute. 

I originally got into MIDI with the idea I could sequence tunes, learn them, 
and improve my improvisation chops on the horns. My keyboard ability is so bad 
that I can't even do that without much pain and agony. I spend hours banging 
of the DX7 and I'm almost on the verge of being able to play an entire song 
(that's a joke - but not far from the truth). 

I want to perform - that's what's important to me. Midi just helps that. 

Geoff

side note - the WX7, et.al. is great for scaring people. Most folks can't 
believe what it can do.

I tend to be like my namsake db, I've ben playing with a Classic Rock band and 
1. find my time limited; 2. Am not as fired up by working in the studio alone 
as I once was.

New Gear? Well santa I want a new strat plus, and a tascam 238 and a tascam 312.

4 track doesn't really cut it anymore, I can't do everything I want to without
lots of bouncing and I dislike bouncing tracks, 8 tracks for me (and then of 
course it'll be 16....

As to this conference, I'vew been pretty quiet for a few reasons. I'm here 
primarily for equipment reviews. I'm currently not buying and I think the 
manufacturers haven't announced a whole lot I'm interested in.

But I will review CM VI eventually...

dbii

I am a bad time organizer.  I'm busy with night school and being a boy
scout leader.  Time with the equipment comes in spurts.  I need to
start practicing my trumpet and maybe get some gigs on it.  More as a way
to play than anything.  I also need to practice my piano a lot more.

I am interested in composition (eventually commercial music and my own stuff)
and tend to make little experimental things a lot.  Would like a few
pieces of gear more but no money.  I like KEYBOARD.  EM doesn't really
thrill me that much but can be useful.

I never have gigged with the type of stuff discussed here so that urge
doesn't hit me (though it would be fun).  Live playing is great but so
is comp.

Time is there but I can't find it.

Chad

re .17:

> and tend to make little experimental things a lot.  Would like a few
> pieces of gear more but no money.

I'd like a few pieces of gear more *and* more money :-)

Well, once I get my house sorted out (which has been dragging on for
about a year now - is it any easier outside the UK ??), I won't have any
more excuses to avoid finally committing something to tape (apart from
lack of talent, ability and equipment).

You'll hear from me on Commusic XXI :-)

Cheers,

    Derek

    Actually, I'm still here - and am expecting the arrival of a Proteus
    and a new baby in about 3 weeks.
    
    I also happen to find the Keyboard columns by Fowler, Pressing, and
    LaVerne to be quite useful.
    
    Anyone got any clues on what an 8track is gonna cost me?
    
    -b

    All the replies here seem to fall in about four categories:
    
    1.) Burned out, sold all equipment.
    2.) Want to get into MIDI but can't afford it
    3.) Into studio, burned out on gigging
    4.) into gigging, burned out on studio
    
    I am into the fourth category, having made the transition from category
    3. I hadn't been in any bands for quite a while, and find that I
    am really enjoying it. Despite the smoky bars, the obnoxious drunks,
    etc... I really get satisfaction from it. There is something magical
    when a song clicks in, and people get into it. As long as I have
    this I will continue to gig.
    
    	If it ain't fun, it's a lousy hobby/(good faith effort).
    
    			Mark
    

>>>    All the replies here seem to fall in about four categories:
>>>    
>>>    1.) Burned out, sold all equipment.
>>>    2.) Want to get into MIDI but can't afford it
>>>    3.) Into studio, burned out on gigging
>>>    4.) into gigging, burned out on studio
    
    I'll venture a 5th (but not necessarily new) category:
    
       5.) Just plain busy...
    
    Between work, reading all of the music magazines, and family/civic
    responsibilities, I'm lucky to have more than a few hours of
    music-making time per week.  I'm not complaining but it's the truth. 
    Thus my efforts have mostly been spent at making my set-up "quickly
    usable".  I was wasting too much time connecting/changing cables to use
    a particular configuration.  (This goes for MIDI as well as regular
    audio cables.)  Thus, I'm spending money on non-sound-producing stuff
    like patch bays and switchers.  It will be great when I can turn
    everything on and just start playing in less than a minute.
    
    I'm still here; music is still my primary hobby; COMMUSIC is my primary
    source of honest, "real-life experience" information.  (Magazines/music
    stores serve as a point of reference for what I should think about and
    ask about here.)
    
>>>    	If it ain't fun, it's a lousy hobby/(good faith effort).
    
    How true, how true.
    
    - John -

    I'm kinda shocked (but non-judgemental) about how little time some
    of you put into this hobby. I thought everyone was like me...
    
              Minimum 1 hour before leaving for work.
              Average 2 hours after work
              2-3 hours every Saturday and Sunday AM. (I get up
                                            with the chickens!)
              Probably 10 hours over the rest of the weekend.
    
    ...that's 25 hours a week! Practically another job!
    
    Edd

re .21

Gosh, a whole two hours a week!  Wish I had that much free time...

    >>>                        -< Then how come I still suck? >-
    
    Maybe all that "practice makes perfect" stuff is wrong and just some
    brainwashing instilled in our youth.

>>>    I'm kinda shocked (but non-judgemental) about how little time some
>>>    of you put into this hobby. 
    
    Well, if you'll let me count the time I spend:
    	1) reading COMMUSIC
    	2) reading music magazines, 
    	3) trying to convince my family that we really NEED to go to a
    		music store, 
    	4) driving to/slobbering all over/returning from the music stores, 
    	and 
    	5) sitting up at night figuring out how much money I can expect to
    		spend in the next few months
    then I can easily approach the amount of time needed for this "quality"
    hobby.
    
    - John - (smiley faces not included)

    Yeah, I used to put in at least an hour a day with an occasional
    all-nighter (maybe twice a month).  Now, if you count thinking up
    new stuff and COMMUSIC participation, I'm down to about an hour
    a week.  :,-(
    
    Steve

MIDI-life  Crisis?    It'll soon be two  years  since  I  was  born  into
MIDI-life with a Macintosh and Master Tracks Pro.  No MIDI-life crisis or
burnout here.  I try to keep MIDI-life stress to a minimum by maintaining
useablility standards on all new purchases.  This way, musical ideas flow
very easily, and I don't get bored or frustrated.  I  can  powerup on any
whim and start producing musical output right away.

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

Purchases?  I have  little need for much more than I have now.  I haven't
sold  anything since I started  with  MIDI.    Every  purchase  has  been
carefully chosen to fit nicely into  "The  Useable  Studio".    It's just
about complete now:

o 32 MIDI channels
o 64 "tracks"
o 16 "virtual instruments"
o 16 audio channels
o A pallette of 336 timbres, 3 percussion kits, and 99 effects available
  on powerup - no disks or dumps
o visual cut-and-paste song editing
o no front panel touching necessary
o no cable plugging/unplugging necessary - guest ports up front

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

Musical things going on these days:
1) Polishing a handful of pieces into an album format.
2) Working on a "Theme for a Movie".
3) Constantly recording bits and pieces.  (At least one idea everytime I
     sit down at the keyboard)
4) Finished 2 semester course  in  Music Fundementals - enough so that I
     can study more on my own now.

Technical things going on these days:
1) "Drawing" my vision of a Macintosh application.  No further comment.
2) Customizing  my  Macintosh  environment  with  Inits, CDEVs, DAs, and
     additional applications.   It's  great  to  be able to "dial in" to
     databases, with your sequencer :-).

-----------
COMMUSIC?    I read it every day.  I contribute when I feel it  is  worth
something.  I try to write reviews on most major  additions  to my setup,
and comment on things that relate to my setup or my philosophies.

I have copies of all the COMMUSIC  tapes  because  I  enjoy  listening to
them.  They're great stuff, all around -  even  if  I don't get to review
them.

-----------

Magazines?  I subscribe.  I  look  forward  to  reading  them each month.

Anyone read the EM review of Finale?   They ripped it apart so bad that I
wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pole.

-----------

Long live MIDI and the Macintosh.

/Mitch

    I've been so out of this conference, the previous reply was made six
    days ago!
    
    I've been creating within the limits of my ESQ-1 and TX81-Z. I've been
    doing some more ambitious scores (Len, Reger's Intro and Pasacaglia in
    D-Minor is next! ;^) and I've been hauling the system into my church to
    accompany the choir. The MIDI machine has been well received, because
    none of the parishoners have ever heard this stuff before, and it
    sounds good.
    
    I've let my subscription to keyboard lapse, and just haven't gotten
    around to renewing it. I like the mag, I just keep forgetting. I still
    get EM. You can count on EM for a nifty construction tip every now and
    then. It's been AGES since I've been to the BIM, and I'm sure I am now
    on the persona non-grata list. ;^)
    
    I'm still working with the TFC and the BSO. While I won't be at
    Tanglewood this summer (took the summer season off to enjoy newlywed
    life) I'll be back in Boston for the fall. Mahler 2 and Berlioz Requiem
    are on tap. I guess this fall is the LOUD season.
    
    I still diddle with the system daily.
    
    dp

    
    
    Interesting note....
    
    After years gigging and touring I still get a buzz every time I
    haul mysekf up the attic stairs and switch the power on. It's still
    fun. I still play wit others occasionally but when and where and
    what we want to rather than to fill out a social event. 
    
    As to buying gear I have slowed down on new SGU's effects etc and
    am concentrating on the "make the ergonomics better" routine.
    Unfortunately patch bays and midi-routers cost money as well.
    
    My goal is still to write and record R and B/Pop based songs but in
    an electronic environment. I may not be close  but its fun...
    
    					Paul.

 >      After years gigging and touring I still get a buzz every time I
 >   haul myself up the attic stairs and switch the power on. 
    
    Paul, have you checked your grounding. This may be the cause of
    the problem.   #;-)
    
    Ken
    
 

    
    
    re -1
    
    
    Well I used to get a kick (rather than a buzz) but I cured that
    by rewiring the earthing system on the Marshall.
    
    					Paulzzzzzz.

    Just a quick update in here.
    
    I'm in the process of selling off a bunch of my MIDI stuff, due to a
    reexamination of what I really want to do with it.  I found myself at a
    point a few weeks ago where I was actually scheming how to raise $800
    for another SGU, then realizing how crazy that was relative to my
    actual *use* or potential use of the equipment.  
    
    The fact that my band is reorganizing and buying some new PA gear means
    the money used on MIDI toys could be better spent on PA stuff that will
    actually generate new income.  
    
    I will keep my master keyboard/sequencer; if I ever have the urge (and
    $$) to expand again later, I'll be all set.  My contribution to the
    next COMMUSIC tape will be the swan song of my old rig; I committed all
    the sequences to tape this week while I still had the stuff in the
    house.  
    
    						Brian