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in another thread the topic came up about how much each of us has spent on music gear and software. For those intrepid souls who have the nerve to force an awareness of how much this hobby has REALLY cost them... I challenge you to take inventory.
Write down each piece of gear, and what you actually paid for it (to the best of your memory)
I don't want list price.. .I want actual out-of-pocket expenditure.
If you updated software, add up the total cost of getting from version 1 to where you are now
SHOULD_MY_WIFE_SEE_THIS_LIST?_O_METER
NO WAY_\________________________YES
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Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 433
Journeyman
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Journeyman
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 433 |
Never mind my wife! I will start the exercise but fear that once i know i will most probably have to stop squandering the kids' inheritance ...
I'm doing allright for Country Trash ....
I used to care, but things have changed (Bob Dylan)
BIAB 2026W + RB
M-Audio FastTrack C600, Rode NT2-A
Digitech VoiceLive 4
Epiphone Sheraton, Ibanez 12str, Washburn 6str, Cort 6Str Nylon
Yanagisawa Tenor Sax
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I can't remember all the gear in the last 48 years but I can say with certainty that it would actually be a REAL BIG negative number.I've made WAY more $$$$ then I've spent.I bet I've done at least 7K paying gigs in my life time & counting.Then there's the stuff I've sold to buy new etc.
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Three things come into convergence here that help keep the total down.
1. Craigslist and eBay are a great source and I rely on them for deals.
2. I am a REALLY good negotiator. (You could also say I am extremely stubborn, which would be extremely accurate.)
3. I am cheap. I am so tight with money I squeak. I skimp on everything other than care for my dog and music. I don't do ANY unnecessary driving to save on gas money, I haven't been to a movie in 12 years, I don't buy anything I won't use, and have started clearing out stuff that I don't, turning it into cash.
So, given that.... let me try.
Keyboards:
Ensoniq EPS16+ $200
Ensoniq ESQ-1 $150 (plus $100 for a new battery and OS chips)
Ensoniq SQ-1 $100
Ensoniq TS-10 $700 (LONG ago when it was fairly in vogue)
Ensoniq VFX $200
Ensoniq KS-32 $200
3 tier stand $50 on craigslist
2 tier stand $35 on craigslist
Guitars:
Strat $300
Tele $300
Ibanez Gio $80 (used at Guitar Center)
Applause acoustic $129
Ibanez bass $50 (pawn shop find)
Cheap Chinese Double neck lap guitar $100 on eBay (never used it)
Line 6 150 w 2x12 amp $150
Horns:
King Alto $110 on eBay, $28 repair
Bari $850 on craigslist, $300 in repairs
Mixers:
Mackie 16 channel $150
Peavey 12 channel $70
Various stuff:
Wharfedale near field monitors $119 each
2 Shure 58s, about $75 each
1 Shure 57 - bought it in 1984 (STILL like new!) and don't remember
1 MXL 992 condenser mic $39
M-Audio interface $200 (new about 3 years ago)
4 Alesis digital reverbs $125 total from various sources
Digitech rack mount vocoder $39
MX-8 midi patch bay $25
24 point patch bay $10
Behringer Dual 31 band EQ $100
Furman power conditioner $75
Roland TR 707 drum machine $75
44 space rolling server rack $95
Yamaha FB-01 sound module $200 (bought it brand new in the 80s!)
Roland MT-32 sound module $25
Then stands, cables, etc.... whatever that all cost. My 8 guitar stand and all the computer desks and stuff I built.
I also have a live rack with a Korg 6 channel keyboard mixer, a Korg 6 channel rack mount EQ, 1 of the Alesis midiverb units, and a 100w per side amp, in an 8 space rack. The mixer and EQ were purchased in the late 80s and I have no idea what I paid. The amp I paid about $50 for.
For the band's rehearsal hall I have that Peavey mixer, one of the Alesis reverb units, 1 of the 31 band EQs and a 450w per side amp driving Yamaha PA speakers. That stuff fills a 12 space table top rack. Again mostly old stuff and I don't remember the cost. I played through those Yamaha speakers in 1990-94. Then they sat for years as I was dormant. Got to say something about product quality back then that 20 years later they still even work much less still sound good.
I can't even COUNT how much stuff I sold. A Cornet, an alto, a flute, a cheap soprano, 3 lower end electric guitars, one acoustic, various rack pieces (remember the climb up MOTU Mountain?).....
Quite a journey. Also not that almost everything that is eBay or craigslist was procured at 75-80% of what the list price was. Many of the pieces have stories that are another story.
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We're not counting anything that's no longer in your possession. And not subtracting the money the gear earned. I'm just curious to know what number you'd give the insurance adjuster if the house burned down.
well, that might be a bad example, since I want the REAL out of pocket, not an inflated number.
If you can't remember a reasonable ballpark, write down $100. Some will have been more, some will have been less, but if we guess too much, it will offset the price of all the cables that nobody will even try to add in.
Quickly adding up Eddie's gear I get a little over $6,500
next?
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I'm not going to attempt an inventory and cost accounting. Suffice it to say that it constitutes a substantial chunk of my material worth. For insurance purposes I'd probably claim $20,000. (This includes some vintage synths and microphones that I haven't used in decades or at all. I'm afraid to flog them on craigslist and not ready for ebay.) Most of my gear is general purpose and was gotten reasonably in the distant past. The only real money I've spent recently is for my new DAW and music software, somewhere between $2,500 to $3,500.
"My primary musical instrument is the personal computer."
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My stuff on hand is about $6500
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Anonymous
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I have it all in a spreadsheet with serial number, original cost, current market value replacement cost, and a photo of the instrument as well as a photo of the serial number. Also each guitar has a unique identifier somewhere on it, not all the same identifier and not all in the same place, that only I know about. That info is on a CD locked in a fireproof safe as well as stored in a few other places.
I remember a guy telling me about his carefully prepared inventory stored on a CD but his CD was in his home office. I had to ask if your house burns down, do you think it will burn everything but that one CD? He now has other copies elsewhere.
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Expert
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Impossible to say, tho I am sure it is in the over the $30,000 + mark over the last 40+years..
But truthfully, everything that I have bought, sold, or traded has paid for itself numerous times over, so I guess I COULD say $0...
i5 3.20GHz, 32gb RAM, 1tb SSD OS, 12tb HDD, 4gb gForce vid card, 32" monitor, Audient id44, Win10 x64, BiaB/RB 2023, Reaper 6,IK Multimedia Total Studio 3.5 MAX, Waves 10
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In my case, if yer talkin' over a lifetime to date, you don't wanna know.
I don't wanna know either.
--Mac
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Apprentice
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Apprentice
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Posts: 193 |
I keep a list for insurance purposes and it is currently at $16,695.70.
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Like Mac, I don't want to know, even though I had an 'in' at the music store for most of my life and got great deals (parents owned the store) More importantly, I don't want my wife to know either. It may affect future purchases  Not whether I made them, but rather how long I would be reminded of them. Then again, she doesn't complain about having nice monitors in the laundry room .. or the workout room .. but she does complain about the handed down ones in the daughter's room. That's more of an abuse issue though. Which brings me to my (probable) next new post. Need to find surround set for small living room. Nakamichi/JBL combo failing there to the point of not being worth the effort to keep working. Walls wired for 5.1
I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome
Make your sound your own!
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Wow, right now?
I just added it all up, close to 13K including my 1950's era Knabe grand piano I completely rebuilt myself. Paid $500 initially and then about $3,500 for parts and a tech to restring it and adjust the action. I was tempted but I decided to have him do those things. So 4K for the piano and about 9K for my stage and home studio stuff. Too many keyboards, too many stage speakers, I think I need to have a sale...
Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
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another interesting question would be:
"What's the LIST PRICE for all your gear and software?"
That would level the playing field for the wheeler dealers and people who got killer deals for whatever reason. It would be the best REAL approximation of what it costs to have a home music studio and performing gear.
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Anonymous
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Hmmm... in rethinking, I did not included the 61 key midi controller, the 49 key midi controller, the 25 key midi controller, the Alesis "trigger finger", the Akai Synthstation, and my Baldwin upright piano, which I originally did not included because it was freeeeee!! I just in this last month divested myself of a cheap soprano sax, a flute and a student level alto sax. Mics, stands.... probably another grand or so in there from the first list.
This is my first real piano and I love having one. I am not a good piano player, as I have always been more of a multi keyboard guy rather than the classic idea of what the piano player is, but it's great to sit down and plunk on it.
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Joined: Apr 2006
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Expert
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I've had a few accordions over the years. They're NOT as cheap as some people might think. For example one I'd love to get my hands on is a hohner gola. 2nd hand they often cost £15,000 + $20,000 ? ) My first full midi accordion I bought was around 28 years ago THAT was about £3,000, then on top of that, a roland MT32 expander about £100 or so. ( Wonder how many folks on here used one of these babys ? ) Not bumming here but I think I was one of the first in my area to have a midi accordion.
I've also owned a hohner morino IV musette accordion ( my favourite and I want it back LOL ) Excelsior multi musette ( hated it ), crucianelli 35 pns, crucianelli magicvox, elkavoxF3, elkavox'83 and my present one, an excelsior 940. Also Had various expanders. Between those, amplification, must be over £20k
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I thought if you left the boot open it would be full of accordions and bohdrans when you returned. And great pipes. I have a dick contino setti sopranni model in a nice case. 50 bucks guy says 2 keys are busted. I knew better, took 5 mins to fix.
Works perfect. 2000 pounds you pay the shipping. Sterling I mean not penny paper. Lol
John Conley
Musica est vita
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I could tell you how much I have spent in the last 45 years, the number of years I’ve been married, but I’m not going too. I don’t want the wife to find out 
Life is short so make sure you spend as much time as possible on the Internet arguing with strangers.
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
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How To Make a Million Dollars in the Music Business
1) Start with Two Million Dollars.
2) When it gets down to One Million Dollars, STOP.
--Mac
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Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.
ChatPG's knowledge base includes the full Band-in-a-Box User Manual and sales information from the website.
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Introducing XPro Styles PAK 11 – Now Available for Windows Band-in-a-Box 2026 and Higher!
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XPro Styles PAK 11 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box® version 2026 (and higher) is here with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 31 RealTracks/RealDrums!
Guess who’s back again? That’s right! It’s our XPro Styles PAK’s triumphant return with the 11th edition in this series! 100 new styles are coming your way spread across the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres. And this edition's wildcard genre explores the immense and far-reaching catalogue of electronic music! The included 31 RealTracks and RealDrums can be used with any Band-in-a-Box® 2026 (and higher) package.
Special offers available until August 31st, 2026!
All the XPro Styles PAKs 1-11 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of XPro Styles PAKs.
Video: XPro Styles PAK 11 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch now!
XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2026 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
Introducing Xtra Styles PAK 22 – Now Available for Mac Band-in-a-Box 2026 and Higher!
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It’s time to celebrate! Xtra Styles PAK 22 for Band-in-a-Box® is here, and we've got 200 brand-new styles coming your way!
No Xtra Styles PAK is complete without the classic rock & pop, jazz, and country volumes you know and love, and we’ve got plenty to share, with 150 styles spread across too many genres to list! Of course, it also wouldn’t be complete with our special wildcard volume to add a little spice and pizzazz to the mix. This year, because we loved it so much the first time, we’ve decided to make the second iteration of our SynthMaster volume, full of new sounds, interesting genres, and 50 engaging styles, all making use of the diverse SynthMaster plugin! Here you can find genres such as airy yacht rock, sultry electrotango, and even some synth soca funk. Don’t wait, pickup up Xtra Styles PAK 22 today!
In this PAK you can find: dulcet folk ballads, funky gospel country, Brazilian jazz fusion, upbeat 1980s pop, classic Americana, a plethora of breezy bossa novas, indie singer-songwriter, scintillating synthwave, exuberant electronica, and many, many more!
Special offers available until August 31st, 2026!
All the Xtra Styles PAKs 1-22 are on special for only $29 each (reg $49), or get all 22 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of the Xtra Styles PAK 22.
Video: Xtra Styles PAK 22 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch now!
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 22 requires the 2026 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
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