I am looking for something battery powered. Something just to have fun with when traveling or a low key back yard jam. Budget is around $500.
Any ideas?

Montunoman,
One option is a Yamaha PSR-EW410 which can take aC aadapter or D size batteries and also rechargeabel batteries too.
It is about 18lb plus . It is also a 76 key keyboard for the players out there who want a little more room.
758 (237 Panel Voices + 24 Drum/SFX kits + 40 Arpeggio + 457 XGlite voices)
Featured Voices 1 Live! Voice, 8 Sweet! Voices, 3 Cool! Voices, 3 Dynamic Voices
Also it has a USB connector for storage too.


Allan

Thanks Allan, I see Yamaha makes a similar 61 key version too, the psr e 463.

None of the battery-powered Yamahas allow you to play altered chords like C/F, etc. so I wouldn't consider those. The Casio CT-X3000 has an amazing feature set and sound quality for $299 (i think) and you can sometimes find it for less on eBay. Unfortunately the keybed is spongy and not very durable.

You could also get a used Roland BK-5 and a 12V "power bank" of the type used to recharge a laptop computer:
https://www.amazon.com/XTPower-MP-10000-...02289&psc=1

No battery-powered portable KB is going to be very loud, so you also have to budget for some kind of battery-powered amp. I mess around with the Suzuki Omnichord. For a campfire circle I hooked it up to a JBL Charge 3 portable speaker (the big one that's shaped like a football.) It was loud enough, and the external speaker really helped with the lows:
https://www.amazon.com/JBL-Charge-Waterp...68-d89d95c82244

I love your idea and many times I've thought about doing the same. Because some of my friends sing, I want to build a "left handed keytar" that plays LH accomp, with some pads on the neck to trigger drum fills, chord-matched arps, etc. The BK-7m doesn't have multipads but I might be able to make the arps as intros or fills.

Yeah, I thought you might like the 73 keys, but also there is other keyboards like casio that can run on batteries but I prefer the Yamaha. You could also get the 61 key Roland VR-09 that can run on batteries but the dollars need to stretch a little more.

Let us know what you get please.

Allan

budget of $500! All kinds of choices, from $59 to $450. Look at the Korg EK50 at $449 from Sweetwater. This is one you could possibly not only use as a potable fun unit but add to your setup for some additional sounds and flexibility.

vArranger + Korg MicroKey

why not just buy a jackery 300 or 500 powerstation and play your normal keyboard and amp into it and play anything anywhere for from $300 to $500 dallars for a pure sine wave setup. I can get 10 hours with my korg pa1000 plus a bose l1 compact amd have power left over.

MEL

Thank you for the great tip.
I was looking for a powerstation
This one has 5 stars on Amazon. Exactly what I was looking for.
I might get the 1000 as a back up for power outages ...
Eric

I was playing with the idea as well and did some research.
Even though I am a Yammi fan I did not like the lower models at all. Sound wise and styles.
Sounded like toys to me. Casio ish.
However, I really liked the Korg EK50.
Much more professional sound and styles in a very affordable package.
But I also really like MEL's idea about a very affordable and small powerstation. Problem solved ...
Good luck either way.
Eric

Hi Mel

Seeing what you can do with the Jackery, I wonder if my Flashfish would handle the Pa4x and one Bose L1 compact. I will see how the numbers stack up.

Bernie

I have the 500 and I love it 13 pounds and small

the jackery is also approved by bose at least that what was said on their forum. It comes with a charger for wall outlet or car or you can buy solar panels. my kn1000 pulls 16 watts playing loud and the bose compact pulls 30 watts playing loud. The Jackery 500 has 518 watt hours and a 1000 watt peak surge cap. I can tell because the jackery tells you how much power you are using. how this helps.

MEL

I have a smaller unit that is 200w(250 peak) with 151 amp hrs. At 12 volts it equates to 4.1 amps for both, as mine is the same load as yours(16 and 30). If I am not mistaken, mine should work, but for a shorter time.

Thanks Mel, I just didn't want to damage anything.

Probably enough with a 500 to run a couple of LED stage lights too...

but all of these, as good as they are, are not going to be as hassle free as a straight ahead battery powered keyboard.

You said exactly what I was trying to say. I got a power station and I love it! But I'm just looking for something very portable and as you say, "hassle free"

Casio CTX 700

Nice little keyboard.

Works with batteries but not as loud as when plugged in.

I guess, for me, the thing would be that you have created all of these set ups and know your arranger intimately, and then for the sake of not karting around a power supply, you have to go through the process of learning an entirely new arranger! That seems like a hell of a sight more work to get a sound that’s going to be noticeably inferior to your main arranger. Not to mention, probably at least as much money as a power station (which you can use for other things as well).

Maybe it’s just me, but I never could understand how easily some of you guys bounce from one arranger to the next! It takes me forever to get an arranger where I’m happy with it... The less moving from one piece of gear to the next, the better, IMHO 🎹😎

I am with you Diki.
It takes me at least 2 month before I will take a new arranger out to play.
Not like Donny or Uncle Dave etc who get it in the morning
and take it out in the evening. ...
However, as mentioned above, I did look at battery powered arrangers too for various reasons and liked the Korg the best.
The game changed for me however when I heard about the power station. ...
Eric

Best deal is Korg new i3 599$.

Better than ek 50 because more control ( you can individually mute acc tracks, not just “ all acc tracks” like Ek. More live control. 16 tr seq, etc)

Pa80 board (Triton classic 32 Mb ROM )even though 20 years old, samples are still relevant for live play)better sounds than any sub 800$ arrangers.

Thanks everybody for the great suggestions. I listened on YouTube to all these keyboards and I was not really motivated. I kinda felt like I was trapped in an elevator in 1980. Of course, for this price point, my expectations are probably too high? But more than anything, another need came up for what appears to be the last few outdoor events of the season. I ended up getting a EV 12' sub. It will be prefect for adding some low end for the last few backyard parities that we have booked.

That sounds like a winner. You, more than most, need that beat.

As the "old' song says "It's all about that bass"

When the bass is added the sound becomes warm.
John C.

I’ve been very impressed with the ’Deep Mode’ on QSC K series speakers. I have a pair of K10’s, and on several occasions I’ve had people come up to me and ask where my sub was hidden!

The K12’s are even better, but not so easy to lug around!