On this page are some pictures of the setup I was using at the church, where I played keys with the contemporary worship band until the bass player left, and I've been playing bass ever since. Picture #1 shows the setup: The equipment list: Roland A70 MIDI Controller with the JE-JV1 expansion board. I like feel of the "organ-weighted keys on this unit, and the Expansion Board has some nice sounds--particularly the strings for the quiet worshipful songs where the organ is not the right sound Mounted on an 18" square of plywood with a non-skid rubber backing: Fatar hold pedal Roland expression pedal Sony Vaio PCG-FX300 notebook computer running Native Instruments B4 software thru the built-in sound card Behringer MXB1002 Mixer to mix the outputs from the computer and the A70. Stereo feed to the house system thru the two direct boxes on the lower right Roland KC-500 keyboard amp serves as a monitor so I can hear what I'm playing -- and the mistakes I make :-) Leslie 25 (Orpheus) cabinet, modified to be essentially a Leslie 145, powered by a Rolls SX21 Active Crossover and a Stewart 2 x 50-Watt power amp. Doepfer Pocket Fader - this little MIDI fader box is programmed to give me control over the B4's upper-manual drawbars, tube amp volume, and the B4 internal Leslie speed MIDIMan Midisport 2x2 USB MIDI Interface provides MIDI input to the B4 software on the Sony notebook SMC 7" personal fan - keeps me cool during band practice--our church is NOT air-conditioned, and it gets pretty hot in Sacramento in the summer. I think it's cool that my little fan has my initials on it! Here's a close-up of the computer and mixer: The biggest problem with the computer is that the best latency I can get with Windows 2000 Professional so far is about 35 msec -- not very good, but no one seems to notice but me. Here's a shot of the Doepfer Pocket Fader, which is attached to the shelf with Velcro. Velcro is almost as valuable a tool as duct tape, IMHO: The shelf is a 1 x 12 piece of oak, with a 1-1/4" x 3/8" piece of oak doorstop attached to the lower edge to keep my sheet music from sliding off. The shelf is painted flat black--the unfinished oak was too conspicuous. Stood out like a sore thumb, actually. Finally, a shot of the band set-up, which went thru a major reorganization recently. Previously I sat in the front pew with my back to the congregation--that felt creepy. Now I sorta hide behind the piano, but the members of the band are closer together, and we can actually see each other. Here's the Leslie Model 25: And this picture shows how we set up the microphones to get the Leslie sound into the house mix: The output of the Sony laptop's sound card goes directly to the input of the Rolls SX21 Active Crossove unit. The high and low outputs of the active crossover drive the two sides of the Stewart power amp, which in turn drive the upper horn driver and woofer of the Leslie.

All Pictures and Text (c) Copyright 2003 by Stephen Cyr Page last updated on June 13, 2003

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