This year we filed our income tax return, and wonder of wonders, we’re getting a substantial refund. The reasons for this refund are pretty clear: we paid cash for Christy’s schooling last year, refinanced our home to take advantage of relatively low interest rates, and had a number of non-reimbursed business expenses. But it’s still not something we try to plan on in our budget.
Anyway, we had decided beforehand to split the refund the same way we’d done in previous years: 50% for family funds (pay down debt, add to our budget buffer, emergency fund, whatever), then the remaining 50% is split between the two of us. This means I got a bit more than in previous years, and more than enough to finally afford the replacement synthesizer that I’ve wanted to get for the past month.
So here’s the tally:
- Alesis Fusion 8HD, “Sweetwater Edition”, 88-key synthesizer. I got it from http://sweetwater.com/. As much as I love to support local businesses, nobody could touch this deal. $999.99, includes the maximum memory upgrade ($200 value), all of the Hollow Sun sound packs pre-installed, and the latest Hollow Sun “Nebulae” house/trance patch set ($50 value) included free. This puts Sweetwater very close to or better than eBay sellers for this 88-key synth, so I went with the company that could give me the full manufacturer’s warranty on the instrument. You gotta realize, I’ve never actually owned my own synthesizer. The closest I’ve come is computer-based soundfonts and some VST plugins for Cakewalk. I’ve wanted a synthesizer since I used to play on Quince Orchard High School’s old Yamaha DX7 and Ensoniq SQ-80. Now I’m finally getting my own seventeen years later, and I’m thrilled.
- Alesis Sumo 300 amp. Originally retailing for $500, this budget amp puts out around 150 watts RMS, has some decent built in effects and stereo pass-through, and a 15-inch woofer for resonant lows. And I picked it up for $200 with free shipping. There are some complaints about it online, and they boil down into two categories: if you drive the amp too hard for too long in a warm place, it will shut down, and it isn’t as loud as a 300-watt amplifier should be. Yep, the problem here is they rated it by its max wattage, not RMS. I figure it will be fine for a stage monitor as long as I don’t turn it to 11 and leave it there, and will pump out plenty of volume for rehearsals and solo venues where it can serve triple-duty for a mic, guitar, and keyboard.
- A couple of extra MIDI cables. I already own two 20′ MIDI cables that I bought years ago, but I figured it was time to buy some new ones.
- Four 10 foot balanced cables. Now that I finally understand the difference between a TRS balanced 1/4″ cable and an unbalanced cable, I’ll be paying more attention to my wiring to keep noise out.
Now, I also picked up a Proteus module a few weeks ago. I thought it was a good deal at $90. Well, unfortunately rather than the pop/rock Proteus/1, I ended up picking up the Proteus/2 due to not knowing the difference. The /2 only has orchestral sounds. I’m pretty sure I can figure out a way to use it, but I’m also pretty sure I can pick up that whole 4MB sample set for cheap and put it into my Fusion, then re-sell the Proteus to someone else. That’s what I get for not doing my research!
I also have a 49-key MIDI controller keyboard, and I just installed “Ubuntu Studio” on a spare laptop in hopes I can find a good replacement for my aging Cakewalk Sonar recording setup. I want to get off the upgrade treadmill a bit and stabilize for a few years with a setup that won’t need to change.
Things I still need: * A good 4-place mobile rack. 1U will be the slide-tray for my laptop, 1U will be the surge suppressor, and the other 2 slots are for future expansion (synths, reverbs, whatever). I think I found a good deal on one locally for $75 when new it’s $240 for this SKB rack. * A DLS Rotosim. This is the reason I want to be in stereo on stage, for a wailing Leslie effect. I don’t want to haul around a heavy real rotary cabinet, and this little pedal has to be heard to be believed. I previewed it at a local music store, and if I had an extra $300 I would have picked it up.
I’m like a kid at Christmas.
Substantial?
Substantial is pretty subjective. I’m getting $21 dollars back from the feds. And I didn’t cheat. If I cheated, maybe I would get $30.
Kids
The government seems to think it’s a good idea to reward people for having more children than they can afford. I feel so rewarded!
Not that I’d return any of the kids for a refund, but 4 kids on a single income is a stretch. If I could return them, though, I wonder how much I could get?
—
Matthew P. Barnson
Precisely true
Yes, the government does not reward peple who can afford kids–that credit then phasses out!
The amp on the porch
The amp is sitting in a box. On the porch. In the snow. Dropped there by UPS.
I sure hope someone at my house will be listening for the bell tomorrow, because the FedEx guy has instructions not to leave the packages unless he gets a signature.
—
Matthew P. Barnson
Fud FeckEx.
Seriously.. I’d rather get stuff left on the porch.. they come, knock once, and hi-tail it away. Of course, they come in the middle of the weekday. After three times, they hold it in a warehouse an hour away, seven days later, they ship it back.
They leave the note they should about half of the time. They can’t tell you what time of day they’ll be there, they won’t waive the signing thing, they won’t point their driver to a new time.. they won’t drop it at your local fedexkinkos.. their customer service is rude and their local branches are incompetent.. I actually had someone tell me “Dont call the 1800 number, they’re idiots.”
This is 80% of the time with them.
Visit the Official Justin Timpane Website Music, Acting, and More! http://www.timpane.com
On the porch or not…
If you want it left on the wrong person’s doorstep, choose UPS. No lie, had them drop off a package in the wrong town, once. They said it was left “on the back doorstep”… we didn’t HAVE a back doorstep at the time.
Face it. 90% of everything is crap. This includes everything I buy, everything I write, and most of my work. That 10%, though… that 10% can really be something. Rare and precious.
Anyway, I need to post a picture of my setup. It’s not exactly sweet, but it’s functional and fun.
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Matthew P. Barnson