For live gigs, I've always used hardware-based keyboard/synthesizers and that's always worked well. I can only recall having to open a keyboard chassis to fix a loose connector a couple of times, it's a rock solid setup. Hardware-based synths are surely solid and reliable, but are not really upgrade-able... at least for the synthesizers I've owned. I'd have to buy another keyboard to get any substantial upgrade of sample libraries. Over the past 10 or so years, with the advent of VST-based software synthesizers, it's been really hard to leave those sounds home and go to the gig with my less-liked sounds.
A few months ago, I decided I'd go ahead and take the plunge into PC-based VST hosts. I did quite a lot of research and found that the marketplace is fairly limited. I had always wanted a Muse Receptor, but finding that the company wasn't really focused on those anymore (working on MuseBox) and seeing that the Receptor had a lack of support for the latest VSTs, I started looking elsewhere. I stumbled upon the OpenLabs SoundSlate. Sounded like something I wanted... hosted VST plugins, was 1 unit high; however, it was for all intents and purposes, discontinued (more about that later). They did offer a 3 rackunit "music computer", but it had no MIDI or A/D interfaces which would mean I'd need to get a bigger rack... to use that solution, I'd have had to invested in a dolly.
Without options for a lightweight, roadworthy rig, I decided to go ahead and buy the Original SoundSlate. It was an incredibly questionable and costly investment, but I figured having the VSTs with me would be worth the cash and I was anxious to get something working.
I paid full, original price for the SoundSlate ($2000); however, Guitar Center shipped a used model that wasn't even functional (not pertinent to this Blog, but quite a heralding experience that I will not deal with them on again). Had it been operational, I probably would have stuck with it, but since it wasn't.....
I went out on a limb: I decided to spend a ton of time and energy putting together a lower-cost, reliable solution. I spent a ton of time researching and learning and so I thought, I'd document my new setup and create a bit of a how-to.
Hopefully, if you're looking for a similar solution and are willing to put a little effort into it, this will help you to spend less time at it than I did! I hope you enjoy and find it helpful.
