What is my Busking Setup?

I remember when I started busking, the first thing I did I went on internet and spent at least 3h looking for the perfect setup. It's not that hard if you play an acoustic instrument or sing, but when it comes down to powering up your digital piano, I could hardly find any straightforward and useful information. I won't discuss much about all the possible options (there are plenty of ways to do it), but I'll focus on what works for me and why. I hope this post will give you some useful ideas and information of how to set up a piano outside. Down we go:

1. The Piano

The digital piano I use for my own busking is YAMAHA P-95. It's an old version of the P series and the newest model would be YAMAHA P-115. 

The key feature for this choice was 88-fully-weighted keys which is an absolute standard for me as a classically trained pianist. There might be cheaper pianos and keyboards out there, but if it doesn't feel like a real piano - that's a no deal for me. The downside of having 88-fully-weighted keys is an actual weight of the piano. Perhaps new Yamaha Piaggero series is a good compromise if you plan to move around a lot, but to me it still lacks some touch quality and low end on the speakers.

Built-in speakers is another very important feature. Let me tell you why! Depending on busking regulations in different towns and cities  you might be allowed to use an amp, but there are many busking spots out there where amplification is not allowed. Having built-in speakers allows you to take advantage of those spots. Even though the speakers are practically a built-in-amp, you can still say: "There is no amplification, it's just a piano on its own" and get away with it. Another advantage of having speakers is a backup in case your amp runs out of batteries or breaks down. At the same time speakers are not facing the audience and for that reason they can't really replace the amp. 

Various sound options is another feature I use a lot when I busk. I don't need a choice of 100 presets, but having 3-4 that are used a lot definitely helps. For instance Vibrophone is something I use a lot, especially when playing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". 

2. The Amp

The Amp I use is an absolute favorite among the buskers and I've seen so many of these around - there must be a reason why. You can't go wrong with ROLAND CUBE STREET. 

The sound quality of this amp is immaculate and deserves a praise. EQ controls (for one of the inputs) gives you further options to improve the sound to its best. To me YAMAHA pianos sound very bright and I always preferred more settle, deep sound of Roland or KORG pianos; with this amp - tone control is not a problem, set EQs as you want and off you go. 

Another really great thing about this amp - it doesn't eat your batteries. My choice of batteries is Kodak Extralife from Poundland (believe me you don't need Duracell) and it lasts me for about 10-15h. That's around 3-5 days of busking - in my opinion can't get any better than that. 

It's portable and has a good shape slightly facing upwards. Some buskers turn it on the side and actually use it as a chair. 

3. A Car Jump Starter

Believe me I read so many articles online on how to power up a piano, but not a single one recommended a Car Jump Starter as an option. Instead people suggested complicated set-ups with deep cycle batteries and inverters, some suggested noisy generators. Another man I watched on YouTube suggested using external battery, it's the size of the hard drive and is used as a power bank for electronic devices. At first it seemed like the best option to me because of its size, but it's not designed to last in various weather conditions and mine broke down after few weeks. I tried another make, but it didn't work with my piano and I gave up on this idea... They not really designed to power up equipment, but to charge it. 

What I like about my jump starter, it's not extremely heavy, very portable device. It's easy to charge and lasts enough to do more than one day of busking. It also has an air compressor, which I use for pumping up the tires of my busking trolley.  

One decent website has mentioned jump starters in their complete guide, but referred to them as unreliable long term solution. Mine has lasted me for over one and half years before it stopped working and I was happy enough to buy another one exactly the same. 

4. The Wires

Obviously to connect the equipment above I need particular cables. Simple Jack to Jack lead to connect the piano to the amp and DC cigarette adapter to power up the piano from the jump starter. Simple. 

5. Piano Accesories 

Pretty basic - adjustable piano stool and a stand - mine are fold-able, so I can put them along the piano on the trolley - very compact. Obviously can't play without a sustain pedal - that goes into the bag. 

6. A Carry Bag

This is where I put amp, jump starter, wires, all my busking signs, zebra stuff and other little things. Very handy to have it all in one big bag. When on the go, I simply secure it on the top of the piano, nothing's hanging on my shoulders or back.

5. Heavy Duty Industrial Trolley

All my equipment goes on this trolley. And considering the weight of all the equipment I carry around - its absolutely essential for the sake of my back. 

Let me say - I didn't come up with this beast straight away. I began with a simple folding shopping trolley. Realized the wheels are too small for bumpy roads and upgraded to 2-wheel industrial trolley. I used that one for quite a while, but ended up with a very sore back. I thought if only it had another set of wheels at the back, it wouldn't be that hard, but I couldn't find a particular trolley with 4 big wheels like mine has. I ended up assembling my own trolley from this one and additional set of wheels. Since then my back has been fine. It's very comfortable to wheel around and feels pretty much like a shopping trolley.

Another great feature of this trolley - it's ideal for hanging my busking signs on it and it also matches the color with my amp. 

6. Zebra Stuff

All the black and white things come into this category except the piano itself: the mask, T-shirts, trousers, gloves, blanket, little foam mask and busking signs. It all contributes to what is Mellow Zebra and creates a rather unique busking character. 

How It All Looks Together?

That's pretty much it.

Let me know if you found this information useful! ;)

And feel free to comment for any additional questions or suggestions! 

Thank you!