Hi friends,
What's the best way to "dress up" an arranger keyboard or two to make them look acceptable in the living room?

If money were no object, I would buy a Clavinova CVP (Tyros disguised as piano), or a Kohler digital (piano version of Korg PA.) I could also fork over big bucks for a Roland Atelier or a grey-market Electone STAGEA.

I've seen photos of custom cabinets folks have built for their PA3X and even adding a 2nd keyboard to Tyros. But I have a multi-tier stand that I would like to use for two different arrangers and maybe a laptop to display the score. Adding foot controllers and/or bass pedals will amount to a lot of wires; not very attractive!

Putting the stand against the wall solves some of these problems. But the best wall is shared with my neighbor and I'm concerned about transmitting noise. I also want to face my guests when I play, rather than the wall.

Do any of you have your arranger(s) in your living room? What do you do to "dress them up" so it doesn't look like a music studio? I could move the whole setup to my study, but then my guests will never get to enjoy the music, and I'll be less likely to practice. Suggestions please!!

Why not attach roller-balls to the bottom of your stand legs? That will allow you to place it against the wall when not in use, and roll it out when entertaining. If it's not practical to attach the rollers directly to the legs, you could make a platform from 1/2-inch plywood, place casters on each corner, than spray it flat-black to make it less obtrusive and more decorative. The platform would also be a great place for a small amp and surge protector.

As for the wires, I suggest customizing them to the exact length needed, then harnessing them into a single wire. You can use cable wrap, which is available at Radio Shack. It resembles a flat, telephone cord and does a great job of transforming a messy bunch of cables into a neat, single cable. DNJ and I have both done this on several occasions. CABLE WRAP

The entire package can be wrapped in black velvet material, which is readily available at most fabric shops. I did this several years ago when I used a 3-tier stand and 2 keyboards. The vocal processor and mixer were on the top tier. I used a burgundy velvet and sewed yellow satin letters on it that spelled "Travlin' Easy" - it looks pretty darned good when in place. In a living room situation I would stick with the black and no letting. The velvet was held in place with Industrial Strength Velcro.

Hope this helps,

Gary