Taking VSTs out on the road

[Rainer Straschill <moinsound@googlemail.com>]

> is there a little box I can use without a screen and whatnot where i can 
>chuck in a nice VSTi synth, some samples and possibly a good drunm kit

Others have already mentioned the two hardware solutions I'm aware of
(being the SMPro V series and the Muse Receptor), so I'd like to take
one step backwards:

Basically, while the idea behind those devices is nice, it's worth
mentioning that some plugins may not run on those systems or only run
with some limitations. Both manufacturers have lists of plugins which
are known to run well, so it may make sense to check those. Still, you
got the issue of licenses - the way I understand it, to use e.g.
Reaktor on your VPedal and edit things on your computer will require
you to obtain two licenses.

So my suggestion: why don't you look for something in hardware that
gives you flexible synth and sampler (and possibly FX) structures and
access to a big drum library? I would suggest something like a
Kurzweil K2500R or K2600R in combination with e.g. an Akai MPD24 as a
controller - or integrate it all and get an Akai MPC.

One word of caution: the older instruments (and this includes the
Kurzweils and at least all but the latest MPCs) use SCSI for sample
data transfer. This may be a limitation with regard to integrating it
into your production environment.

Yours,

           Rainer