Music stand 'pedal board' setup

[Methos1979]

I had a few people inquire as to my unique 'pedal board' setup on a music stand from the Bose S1 Pro video review. I wanted to wait until I made few changes to it to make a short demo video of that. Now it's done.

So basically it's a metal music stand by Precision Instruments that I purchased many years ago to be used as a, well, music stand! It served me well over those years in that capacity. Recently after buying the Bose S1 system I knew I was going to need a mixer and wanted something to hold it up at waist height for easy access while performing. I thought the music stand would be perfect but I couldn't have imagined just how perfect it would be!

First, the stand's holding area is full of large holes. Back when I bought the stand I thought that was weird but whatever. I'm still not sure this was their plan but the holes just happen to be the perfect size for an XLR cable to go through! So this is perfect for routing cables. The next thing was the power strip. I needed something with more outlets and also outlets that were oriented 90 degrees from the norm so the bulky power supplies did not cover adjacent outlets so much.

I found the perfect power strip on Amazon that could not be better. It's like it was made exactly for this purpose. I was able to bend the mounting clips that came with it 180 degrees and it made for a perfect attachment to the lip of the stand. I applied a couple of slim bar magnets which help keep it firmly in place but it's still easy to remove if I need to, which I don't. The cord is heavy duty and 15' long, so again perfect for what I need as how often is the outlet nearby?!?

Here's a link to the strip on Amazon (Note - this takes you to the 16 outlet model with is all black. They appear to be out of the 12 outlet model I got which has the yellow outlets):

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

And before some asks here's a link to the magnets I bought. Note that there are many shapes and sized but these were relatively thin and long bar shaped which seemed like they would be perfect for this application and indeed they were!

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The next cool thing is that I used magnets to mount most of the pedals to the stand. I bought some neodymium thin bar magnets from Amazon. These use 3M tape to attach the magnets to the pedals and then the pedals magnetically attach to the stand firmly enough to hold very securely but they can still be slid around easily. I say most pedals because the little BodyRez pedal would not work with the magnets for some reason so I went back to the 3M hook/loop tape for that one.

Here's 10-minute video which basically summarizes what I just wrote but you can better see what I'm talking about. I'll post a few photos as well.

[Methos1979]

Some photos - you can see on the first few screen captures (from the Bose video so a little blurry) where I had the original ordinary power strip. Due to the orientation of the outlets and way the large plastic body of the AC adapters mount, you lose access to the few outlets you have and run out of space quickly. Also with this setup (tie-wrapped to the center of the stand) I was unable to retract the legs which made transportation more difficult. Last, because the cord is so short, it all but guarantees the need for an extension cord.





This power strip solved all of the above problems like it was made for this exact purpose! Plenty of outlets, outlets turned 90 degrees so less interference with the adjacent outlets, is the perfect size and mounts perfectly to the music stand up and out of the way of the center pole so legs can be folded and a heavy duty 15' cord. Win, win, win! Note that I ultimately rotated the power strip 180 degrees from what is shown here so the outlets are facing with the ground plug on the bottom as they should be!

[FrankHudson]

Looks like a nice setup, and for guitarists who don't need to do the tap-dance on multiple effect or looping foot-pedals, superior to bending down on the floor every time one needs to adjust a knob.

I sometimes wonder why even efx addicted electric guitarists don't use a similar setup more often, as many efx pedals have multiple interesting sounds available via knob twist. Fancier efx pedals have saveable presets and "scenes," but a lot of more traditional pedals do not.

[GHS]

Great idea using the music stand with the holes to be able to route the wires thru. I would use this for my mixer and digital recorder with the outlet strip attached so as to have only one cable going to ac power. But pedals dont make sense up top ( no disrespect). You would have to take your hand off the guitar to activate the ones you want. I use the Boss looper, TC helicon singer, and Trio and need to tap them with my foot when I need them. Computers, mixers, and recorders okay, A+ for that.

[Nymuso]

Very nice summary. I see you not only have the same mixer we do, but use #15 for reverb as we do. To mount mine, I bought a speaker adapter that fits on a mic stand, bolted a small square of plywood to it to which I secured some Velcro, the opposite piece of which is on the back of the mixer. I make sure to keep the vents of the mixer unobstructed.

I wanted to have a back up mixer, so I bought another small mixer but I got a Mackie. Big mistake. The phantom power causes an audible buzz in all channels. Fortunately we don't need it, so I do keep in the car as a back up, but will stick with Behringer in the future.

[Captain Jim]

Thanks for a more thorough explanation and the video, Scott. I can see how that works well for you two. Last year, I replaced the TCH Gxt with the Play Acoustic - while I like the Play Acoustic, it is a pain to have to reach down to the floor to make any adjustments. I do need to have that foot-switch control, though.

Sounds like the S1 is working out well for you.

[Petty1818]

Originally Posted by FrankHudson

Looks like a nice setup, and for guitarists who don't need to do the tap-dance on multiple effect or looping foot-pedals, superior to bending down on the floor every time one needs to adjust a knob.

I sometimes wonder why even efx addicted electric guitarists don't use a similar setup more often, as many efx pedals have multiple interesting sounds available via knob twist. Fancier efx pedals have saveable presets and "scenes," but a lot of more traditional pedals do not.

It's not really practical. I can see what you are saying but as an effects addicted electric guitarist, I would need a pretty massive music stand to make this work. Also, I like this set up but as a singer as well, I couldn't make this work.

[varmonter]

That music stand is quite robust. most of them are
pretty flimsy

[Methos1979]

Originally Posted by Nymuso

Very nice summary. I see you not only have the same mixer we do, but use #15 for reverb as we do.

Lol - hey! Great minds and all that. I actually spent a fair amount of time taking the time to listen to each of the 33 reverbs and found I liked 15 the best. Go figure.

As to the other comments, definitely only works for people that don't need the stomp action, which we do not. And yes, people with a gagillion pedals would obviously also have an issue. We're minimalists for sure. In fact, this is the MOST pedals I've ever had!!

[GHS]

I will probably build one. I could place the mixer, the TRio pedal because once it learns a song and you turn it on you can use your hand to fine tune it up higher easier. but the Boss looper and Harmony Singer need to be on the floor to use momentary contact for voice fills and music fill. I need to use my feet for that. I like stuff like this. I modified a tripod legged mic stand to incorporate an articulating arm for a sheet music stand to read off of, an other adjustable mic stand lower to play small hand held drums or harmonica into. I like a unit refitted not to used for its original purpose. A+

[BT55]

I agree that foot pedals should be on the floor. One ten foot power cord and an XLR cable extend from my pedalboard. Guitar is wireless to the pedalboard (G30 receiver mounted on bottom). I have a Yamaha MG10XU Mixer on a speaker stand that quickly mounts with two wing bolts. Add a Fishman Loudbox Performer and a mike on a stand and that’s all I need. Quick setup!

[stevety]

i like my pedal board on stand to .i only play at home for myself

IMG_1528 by steven montgomery, on Flickr

[MikeBmusic]

For home use, or solo playing, I can see that the stand set up is useful. For live use, I need to be able to hit the boost pedal on my PZ Pre, and very occasionally the distortion or delay pedals during a song.
I also think having that spaghetti monster of cables up in the air in front of you is a real distraction (to the audience) for live work.

[Nymuso]

Originally Posted by MikeBmusic

I also think having that spaghetti monster of cables up in the air in front of you is a real distraction (to the audience) for live work.

On that point, I must agree. For that reason I keep the stand-mounted mixer behind, rather than in front of me. The spaghetti monster of wires is a necessary evil however; gotta have mics in / lines out. The advantage for me with respect to the guitar signal is a multi/fx unit on the floor, resulting in a relatively clean stage.

Given that many acoustic gigs are throw & go, I get what the OP is trying to accomplish. Those venue owners don't want to move tables out of the way until the last possible second (stage? what stage?) so you want to be able to slap the stuff down, plug in and hit the first chord. Having everything condensed and packaged helps a lot in that regard.

[Methos1979]

I constantly have people come up to me and say, "I would have enjoyed listening to your music but those five cables coming vertically out of those thingamabobs in the corner just kept me from focusing on anything else..." Not.

The music stand is off to the side, to my right, generally speaking. In all honesty, the gigs we play no one is paying attention to me anyway. Most are watching the lead singer if they glance our way at all.

We're not any sort of musical act people are paying to see. Our main gig is an Acoustic Brunch. People are looking at their food. But I do understand that since this is an internet forum, people need something to nitpick. Glad I could help.