I have a couple of friends who play guitar and ukelele. I'm envious of the compact size, light weight and portability of their instruments. Sometimes we go on road trips/ camping, and I would love to be able to contribute something musically, perhaps drum tracks, some pad sounds, a bass line, or occasional leads

So what's the most "portable" accompaniment instrument?
-MIDI accordion (love the idea, but not sure I could learn Stradella bass)
-Omnichord or it's successor the Q-Chord
-Korg MicroArranger driven by battery supply?
-Keytar or lightweight controller MIDI'd to my BK-7m (again, both driven by battery)
-A battery-powered Yamaha? (you have to go back to the '90s to find one that allows user styles and on-bass chords)
Yamaha QY-100 portable sequencer?
Roland PMA-5?? What are some other portable "beat boxes" like this?

What auto-accompaniment instruments have you used that are highly portable and usable without house current, at least for a couple of hours? An unusual question, thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts!!

Korg Micro Arranger is really neat. Great sound and good styles. Yes the keys are small, but very playable. Technology is a couple of generations old but still very usable.

vArranger software

i have a korg micro arrnger, its great , but it is not battery powered. casio wk series are battery powered but dont sound as good. they are light.

i have a korg micro arrnger, its great , but it is not battery powered. casio wk series are battery powered but dont sound as good. they are light.

The Yamaha ew-400 has battery power, user styles, USB to device and is light
http://m.usa.yamaha.com/products/pianos-.../psr-ew400.html

Check this fully battery powered setup



ultra light Vivo S1 stage piano
Iphone running X-mure
and some light speakers

Replace the iphone with a windows tablet running Varranger and you have the highest style and sound quallity

For simplicity I use IRealPro App in my Ipad. It takes me 10 to 15 minutes to enter a song chord by chord. There are different styles which use Bass, drum, piano., which are changeable to other instruments. Transpose and tempo controls. It’s simple but because it is simple it’s fun. The styles are not great for rock.
I solo with my Taylor guitar and sing.
When I need more I have the midi files and Mp3 which I recorded on my keyboard-- also in my Ipad.

Ipad and amp. battery and Blue Tooth battery – no wires. It is great for woodshedding a song.

And it’s great when I am playing just for me.

John C.

I have an acoustic guitar, two electric guitars and an acoustic/electric guitar. They very seldom get played! None of them are worth much, but they all play great!

Thanks guys!
I don't play the guitar or anything but keys. And even those not very well, hence the need for auto-accompaniment :-(

Newb, just like every battery-powered Yamaha since the '90s, the PSR-EW400 doesn't allow a player to specify "on bass" or slash chords.

Bachus I haven't seen any Vivo / Dexibell products for sale here in the U.S., and the lightest model I could find on their website checks in at 22 lbs.; more than a Roland EA-7 which is about the lightest arranger currently for sale with built-in speakers.

Thanks for the feedback, but I'm surprised more folks haven't commented on the items in my original list. Keep 'em coming! -Ted

Too late for all that.....I bring all my gear

So what's the most "portable" accompaniment instrument?
-MIDI accordion (love the idea, but not sure I could learn Stradella bass)
Indeed, a great idea. If you already play the keyboard, the bass will come real easy. When it comes to Stradella, you only need to learn one key!

-Omnichord or it's successor the Q-Chord
A couple of times, I thought about getting one, but even the most expensive model feels like a toy....

-Korg MicroArranger driven by battery supply?
I haven't used mine for a long time. I don't think it's battery opperated though you could find a battery pack for it.

-Keytar or lightweight controller MIDI'd to my BK-7m (again, both driven by battery)
I have a USB model by Alesis. You can use a USB-MIDI Din converter to directly connect to the BK-7m. My son said it looks so 80s...

-A battery-powered Yamaha? (you have to go back to the '90s to find one that allows user styles and on-bass chords)
Yamaha QY-100 portable sequencer?

Well, if you are a guitar player and need rhythm backing, the QY-100 would be nice, but I think you are looking for something that you can play yourself. I'd say vArranger with a small midi controller would work well. It has the feature of finger on bass you are talking about.

Roland PMA-5?? What are some other portable "beat boxes" like this? My, that's an old module/sequencer. I still have two units. Once again, aren't you looking for something that you can play live yourself?

Dexibell: I played different models at NAMM. They didn't have a WOW effect on me. As a piano player, I always lean towards 76 or 88 keys. I have my eyes on the Numa Compact 2. No hammer action, but only 15.6 pounds, lots of features, great sounds, and built-in speakers.