Furniture for Musicians/Studios

I found that this stool is nice for practice and performance. I often have a difficult time sitting on a hard barstool, or any type of chair that has armrests. Thus I found myself sitting on the floor for practice, or standing. However, sitting on the floor doesn't exactly give me the kind of room I need to move my arms and breath, and is rarely conducive to good performance. Thus, I felt like I needed to get something that would allow me to comfortably practice playing acoustic guitar, without having to stand. I'd rather perform solo acoustic sitting down, so I figured a stool like this would be the way to go. It's actually really comfortable, which I was certainly hoping for. Beyond that, however, it's also good in the sense that it somehow encourages you to sit up, which gives you plenty of breathing room (good for singing) and also keeps your energy level high. That's often the biggest complaint for me, as I find myself fighting against my natural tendency to slouch or be comfortable. I think I would prefer this to most pieces of furniture which aren't specifically designed for playing. I know that this sounds like a waste of money to a lot of players, but the thing is, this will not only make you sound better, but you will be taken more seriously as a performer if you are shown to be committed enough to buy a stool just for performing. While it's certainly not an essential element to any performance, it'll make your life easier, and allow you to settle into playing in a strange place rather well. I wouldn't pay over $100 for it though, that's asking a little too much. Basically anything less, like the $80 range, would be as much as I'd be willing to pay. Since that's less than most nice chairs would cost, I'd say that's a pretty reasonable price.

The Omnirax Sonix C24 is a recording studio desk, specifically designed to be centered around a Digidesign Control 24 Pro Tools controller. The studio where I work has one of these in our C room, which is an overdub and mixing room that has of course, a Control 24 in it. Obviously, if you don't have a Control 24 to put in this, the Sonix C24 isn't for you. The good news is that Omnirax has a plethora of studio desks of all sizes and for all applications, so check out what they've got even if the Sonix C24 isn't for you. If you do have a Control 24 you're looking to case in a studio desk, this is absolutely perfect. In addition to having the large space in the middle for the Control 24, it's got a total of 27 rack spaces for your other gear. We've got our Apogee converters, Digidesign 192 I/O audio interfaces, an API lunchbox, and a variety of other outboard preamplifiers and processors in those spots, so it's very capable of handling a ton of gear. It's got a sturdy top space that's perfect for holding up your computer monitor and speakers, which of course is how we have it configured. As you can see, it's probably the easiest and best way to go for a desk if you've got a small to medium sized room and a Control 24 you're looking to case. Even if this doesn't do the trick for you, Omnirax has an endless amount of studio desks of all shapes and sizes. The Sonix C24 is a very sturdy centerpiece for our C room, and the Omnirax stuff in general is the perfect place to look for an all in one studio desk. It will of course cost you more than if you build your own or get something that's not a studio desk per say, but there's a lot to be said for the ease and convenience of something like the C24, so it's certainly at least worth checking out even if you're on a tight budget...

The On-Stage Stands KT7800+ is a height-adjustable keyboard bench that is perfect for many applications, even outside of the keyboard bench world. It has a nice, wide, large deluxe 3 inch black cushion, which can provide great comfort for many hours of play. It also has a spring-loaded double dead-bolt locking mechanism that keeps the bench locked into place. There are four different height settings, which can range to standard lower benches, to higher benches that can be used at standing keyboard heights. In fact, right now I use my bench on my main keyboard at the same height that I use it for standing, so the bench is relatively high, but still very comfortable and usable. It doesn’t tilt or feel wobbly or unstable at all.

The On-Stage Stands KT7800+ has a weight capacity of 360 lbs, and the bench seat has a size of 12.5” by 23.5”. The height of the bench, in its center position, is about 20 inches high, and the metal construction of the bench is all welded. No cheap plastic supports anywhere. The feet are removable rubber cylinders, common with On-Stage Stands equipment.

I’ve had a few minor problems with this bench, and one of them include the locking pins for the height adjustment. If you are not careful, you can untighten the pins too much, and the whole mechanism can come completely out of the bench, and you can lose some parts. At first, I thought this was a manufacturing error, and I returned the bench, but I later realized that it’s just part of the design. So do not untighten the pins too much. The second problem I’ve had, is that the bench is not super-durable. Do not throw it around the stage and expect it to hold up, because the metal will bend.

But overall, this is a wonderful, comfortable keyboard bench, if you need one with your digital piano setup. You can’t go wrong!