How did you get your 1st keyboard?

[Somnium7]

Then I got in a band with a keyboard player who forced us to learn "Melt With You" so we could get gigs, so he could get girls (oddly enough, he liked girls). I still want to orchestrate the death of millions when I hear that song

It's a shame that this song was the only one from the album that got any play. The rest of the album is really listenable - not a dog on it with that one overplayed exception.

I have to give a +1 to the Juno 6. It was my 1st analog synthesizer. It was the best sounding of the Juno lineup. Eventually I got the 106 for doing Midi stuff and could never get it to make the same patches I loved on my Juno 6 - was very disapointed with the 106.
At one point I built this simple circuit that would turn a snare hit coming from one output of my drum machine into a clock pulse. I used this to "sync" the Juno 6 arpeggiator to Midi tempo. Add a digital delay and you had instant early Front 242

 

[mwthompson]

Then I got in a band with a keyboard player who forced us to learn "Melt With You" so we could get gigs, so he could get girls (oddly enough, he liked girls). I still want to orchestrate the death of millions when I hear that song

Bwahahaha!!! "oddlly enough..."

 

[Coughmist]

bought mine with a college grant. couldn't graduate with a degree in rock guitar...

Yamaha psr-gx76

 

[fraserhutch]

Korg DW6000 in 1986 for $749.00. Bought it from E.U. Wurlitzer in Worcester, MA and still have it.

hahahah mine was the DW 8000 around the same time. I still have it as well

It was HUGE at that time. I took a loan to get it, and learnt a hard lesson from that - never take out a loan to buy gear.

 

[mikeh]

While I'm not a fan of borrowing money for anything - other than an auto or a home......I did take out a loan in 1974 to buy some drums - which paid for itself many times over.

In 74' I came off the road and moved back to the midwest (where I grew up). I got a day gig with the intent of staying away from music for a while (7 years on the road worn me down - and most of the time the music part was not all that much fun).

After about a month I got a call for a 3 night a week house gig for $150 a week (not bad money in 74'). My drums were in storage on the west coast and I did not have the money to get tem out of storage. However, the company I worked for (the day gig) had a credit union and I could qualify for a relatively small loan...enough to buy a Fibes kit and several Zildjians.

The house gig lasted about 6 months and I paid off the loan in 3 months - and I used those drums for about 15 years - probably a couple thousand gigs(I never did get my drums back from the west coast).......so in that case, a loan to buy gear turned out to be a good investment

 

[Supercreep]

My dad bought me a Juno 106 in it's first week out, for about 1500 bucks. He also got a Roland cube 60 and an MSQ-100 sequencer.

I'd had it fixed four or five times, broken keys and bad chips.

I traded it for studio time in the mid 1990s and have never forgiven myself for it.

 

[Nakatira]

First one I got was back in 98, I got my self a Roland E-28 Keyboard.
Cost me about 900 $.

Gave it to my niese a year ago.

 

[fraserhutch]

You bastard!

My dad bought me a Juno 106 in it's first week out, for about 1500 bucks. He also got a Roland cube 60 and an MSQ-100 sequencer.

I'd had it fixed four or five times, broken keys and bad chips.

I traded it for studio time in the mid 1990s and have never forgiven myself for it.

 

[HappyTapper]

I can relate to an earlier poster.......

I also bought my first keyboard at E.U. Wurlitzer in Worcester MA around 1985-86.

It was a Roland Alpha Juno 1.
I was a Guitar Player in a local band and wanted a Keyboard Player in the band. They seemed to be hard to find at the time so I finally decided to do it myself and just get another Guitar Player.

I still have it and use it. Great Pad sounds out of that baby.

 

[lumbago]

1976 - Korg PE1000 (120 oscillators)
1979 - Roland RS-09, Hohner D6 Clavinet
1980 - Arp Odyssey and 16 note sequencer
1983 - Korg Poly61
1985 - Roland MKS20 (serial number 0007!!!) and MKB300
1989 - Roland Sound Canvas
1999 - Roland JV1010
2000 - Roland XV3080, A-37
2002 - Roland XV5050
2006 - Korg Micro-X

2007 = turned to guitar - way cheaper...

 

[mikeh]

2007 = turned to guitar - way cheaper...

I wouln't be so sure When I went from keys to guitar it started innocent, an electric and then an acoustic, then an amp and then a better electric, etc. etc. I now have 21 guitars and 7 amps (vs. maybe 12 keyboards/modules).

However, I will concede that a decent guitar can be had for maybe $400-$600 vs. a new keyboard at $1,500 plus.

 

[dnkygirl]

Whoa this brings back memories... i was 9-10 when i first started playing piano. I took lessons in elementary school... back then they actually offered musical instrument classes... We were poor and there was never a chance i could get any instrument on my own or from my single parent mom.

When i was 15-16 my uncle, whom had just started driving trucks took me to a music store and told me to pick out a keyboard. I was in shock... this was back in 1984-85 and all i can remeber seeing was the Juno 88 key... and the small casio cz-101. I never read any of the keyboard mags or advertisements before that time.


I don't know why i picked the Casio.. but i did... the keys were really too small to play, but the ability to create sounds using the wave editor was too kewl. I joined a band of guys and we played around town for 4 years. We all sorta grew up and beyond the band thing and parted ways. When i was in my early 20's I starting working full time for the city. My attention turned away from music and more into computers. I still loved music....so i bought a Roland W30... and man... the idea of workstation has been with me since. More time passed and i lost my love for the W30 and music. Man back then... the idea of travelling and playing was not what i wanted. Nothing like all the opportunities that are available in music now.

I sold my W30 and more time passed. I started to miss playing... this was 4 years ago. So i bought a Korg Triton.. the days of workstation were back again... I was rusty... and couldn't form a chord for a buck. I took lessons from a local school... and did that for a year. It didn't take long to have that feeling back again... but music is sooo different now. I find myself still listening to the hits from the past and playing them. My songwritting has changed some.. i'm having problems with structure... something that i never had a problem with before. Anywho... that's another story....)

then in 2006 i started tinkering with the idea of doing music with my other love... the computer. Now... my Korg Triton is getting less use and I've really grown into Reason, Pro-tools, and my new buddy the Motif Es... )

 

[livitup]

Casio ct-360
Casio ct-420
Casio cz1000
Roland jx1
Ensqiniq TS-10
Korg n364
General Music (cant remember the name)
Yamaha EX5
Nord Electro 73

In that order.. I've owned the same N-364 twice. It's loaned out again now. I'll never forget stepping up from the Casios to the Roland JX1. I am currently using the EX5 and Nord for gigs. All three Casios are in my parents attic. The TS-10 spent some hard time in hock.