Keyboard stands are a bit like coat hangers or car batteries: you must have them, but you don't want to spend your life researching or even particularly caring about them as long as they work. At least that's what I thought until one happy lunchtime when EM editor Steve O. asked me to evaluate a representative collection of stands.

What a revelation! Having required the services of keyboard stands since (gasp) the '60s, and having used every form of keyboard stand from Mom's ironing board to multilayered scaffolding, I was amazed at the range and variety of the models and designs available today. One company alone offers almost 80 different models. What is this, a secret branch of the Inventors Guild? Patents seem to fly about like UPC stickers, and over the past few weeks I've probably seen more variations on locking devices than your average prison inspector. It doesn't just seem crazy-it is crazy.

To keep this project manageable, I focused on keyboard stands from four companies: Yamaha, K&M, Quik Lok, and Ultimate Support Systems. Because the latter two companies offer an extraordinary number of models, I checked out several stands from both.

THE SIMPLE CHALLENGE The purpose of a keyboard stand is to take the weight of one or more keyboards being played on stage or in the studio. In itself that's not an earth-shattering accomplishment, but there are considerations that include assembly speed, adjustment potential, the wobble factor (particularly if you're the Jerry Lee Lewis of electronic keyboards), the look, the size, the extras, and the cost.

If you play a lot of one-night stands, you're occasionally going to arrive late. When that happens, having to spend 15 minutes assembling your keyboard stand could bring on a heart attack. If you play an 88-note weighted-action piano, choosing a $20 X-frame from Kmart is a false economy. If you play supper clubs, a structure that makes the stage look like a remodeling project isn't going to cut it.

If you're up for the Mariah Carey gig, on the other hand, a slim-Jim one-tier stand will make you look as though you're playing with a toy on the World Enormadome stage.

Appropriateness is the keyword when looking at keyboard stands. Consider the type of keyboards you already have or are likely to have within the year, what type and size of venue you'll be playing, and your own lifestyle. Are you punctiliously early for every gig, or do you tend to skid in at the last minute? Are you "handy" or a klutz? Do you care how you and your rig look on stage? If so, what appeals to you: a busy, techie look; a clean and empty look; or down-home clutter?

The range of models I tested, while not exhaustive, nonetheless embraces most of the current thinking on the design of keyboard stands. Factors discussed and identified here should enable you to assess any similar model "direct from the Czech Republic" that you might find at your local music store. Let's take a look at our representative sample.

YAMAHA YKA 7000 X-FRAME This simple X-frame stand ($99.95) is beautifully made (see Fig. 1). It has no rough edges, its oversize rubber feet keep it in place on even the most raked of stages, and you can set it up more or less instantly.

All X-frame stands look alike from a distance. The differences lie in the particular mechanism that locks the frame in place and in the relative sturdiness of each model. Not only is the YKA 7000's Quick Action locking device very rugged, but the simple spring-loaded pin that sets the stand's height is both immediately obvious and easy to adjust quickly: just grip the lever underneath one of the support bars and then fold or unfold the frame to the height you desire.

The support bars themselves have thick rubber gripping rings to keep your keyboard nice and steady. Retractable extensions support deeper instruments. I tried the extensions with my fattest synthesizer, a Roland JD-800. It fit, but just barely. The extensions' flip-up, locking safety clips must be carefully angled to stop them from jamming a key at the front or obscuring an output at the back, but it's a snug and safe fit.

Without going overboard, the YKA 7000 is a good-looking, pro-level stand. In my estimation, it's a high- quality interpretation of a tried-and-tested design.

QUIK LOK QL-623 X-FRAME What if you have a load of keyboards but your gig doesn't pay you loads of money? Then you're looking for a triple-tier X-frame stand like the Quik Lok QL-623 ($199.95), which sprouts a series of extensions that let you rig three keyboards or instruments on top of one another (see Fig. 2a).

The QL-623 has a solid metal construction that doesn't seem "industrial." You adjust the basic stand height with a spring-loaded lever that inserts a metal tongue into a series of holes on a circular metal plate. Although the stand was perfectly sturdy in the studio, I was concerned that after a couple of tours, the relationship between tongue and hole could possibly get realigned to the point of danger. (Of course, I was unable to confirm that long-term prognosis in the short time I had to test the stand.)

The bars for tiers 2 and 3 slip onto the end of the main supports. You adjust their angles using a pair of toothed metal "cookie-cutter" cups aligned around a central plastic bushing. I like the fact that both width and rake of the tiers are adjustable. You can, for instance, have an arrangement whereby tier 2 is angled very steeply and tier 3 is completely flat-or vice versa.

When the QL-623 is fully loaded with three instruments, the wobble factor is potentially dangerous; you'll need to play around with angles as well as keyboard size and placement until the wobble is minimized. Setup and teardown is fairly quick, as long as you can transport the stand without having to remove the tiers every time. But if you don't dismantle the stand, it is, understandably, bulky.

Overall, the QL-623 is a good choice for budding Rick Wakemans on tight budgets. Quik Lok also offers a single-tier stand, the QL-746 ($99.95), and the fully adjustable double-tier QL-641 ($169.95).

QUIK LOK IS Z-726L Z-FRAME Weighted keyboards, digital pianos, organs, and the like will not be terribly safe on an X-frame stand. A stand's specs might say it can withstand the weight of 100 pounds or more, but your instrument will not only be precarious as it dangles over the ends of even a fully extended pair of support bars-it's going to look inappropriate as well. In this scenario, a Z-frame stand would be a better choice.

I liked Quik Lok's double-tier IS Z-726L ($279.95) for its sturdiness and all-around professional look (see Fig. 2b). Setting up this fairly substantial stand took 10 to 15 minutes the first time around-and believe me, I'm no handyman. You'll learn to do it more quickly with a bit of practice. Assembly of the high-grade steel stand follows a screw-fit bolt-and-hole design (the documentation trumpets that the Z-726L is all "computer-controlled welded"). The Z-frame is built to take up to a 250-pound load.

You should consider this model only if you have an 88-note instrument (or its equivalent in length) because the main frame's 44-inch width cannot be altered and won't fit most 61-note keyboards. For smaller instruments, check out the regular Quik Lok Z-726 ($269.95), which is 34 inches wide and well suited to 61-note keyboards.

The Z-726L's second tier is fully width-adjustable. Two arms bolt (literally) onto the backplate and can be angled any which way. Gripping supports prevent a steeply angled keyboard from sliding back down onto your fingers. It's a sensible arrangement, and there is no wobble at all. Unlike most X-frame stands, this Quik Lok Z-frame provides unlimited space for pedals. Numerous options include a mic boom, a two-page sheet-music holder, and shelves that can accommodate small speakers, mixers, and the like.

Setup is not as speedy as with an X-frame stand, of course, and this model wouldn't be the thing to take to a blues jam. But for a smart residency, a supper club, or certainly a pro tour with a keyboard tech in tow, Quik Lok's IS Z-726L Z-frame is just the ticket.

QUIK LOK QL-609 X-FRAME Quik Lok's name does suggest speedy setups, and no stand sets up more quickly than the QL-609 X-frame ($69.95) (see Fig. 3a). You simply open the stand to its widest position and then slowly adjust inward until the arms reach your desired height. There's really nothing else to set. A design like this doesn't seem as if it would hold much weight, but in fact the unit is recommended for instruments up to 180 pounds.

Accessories fit easily onto this stand. Options include the QLX-4 adjustable microphone boom ($39.95) and the QLX-5BK music stand ($44.95). I checked out the mic boom but did not receive a music stand with the test unit. Mic stands are the bane of the singing keyboardist's life: they root you to one spot while the microphone sways and droops this way and that over the course of a set. I can't imagine why, in some 30 years of playing onstage, I've never used an attached mic stand like the QLX-4. Although this device may not always help the droop factor, it keeps the fundamental relationship between mouth and mic somewhat stable. The QLX-4 clamps onto the end of one of the keyboard supports and has a nifty locking mechanism; height, angle, and boom length are all adjustable. You can further expand the QL-609 X-frame's utility with a variety of optional add-on tiers.

As with other X-frame designs, the QL-609 suffers from some wobble-despite the nicely designed adjustable cam-due to the height and depth of the stand's feet. But I love its setup speed and range of accessories.

QUIK LOK T-10 X-FRAME This very basic X-frame stand ($44.95) is suitable for players with minimal instrumentation and a minimal budget (see Fig. 3b). The unit can be set up quickly, and you adjust its height using little gripper plates that screw together to lock. It didn't exactly inspire my trust, though, especially when my first attempt to tighten the plates resulted in a quarter-inch area of paint flecking off around the mechanism. (According to the manufacturer, the problem has been fixed.)

To minimize wobble, Quik Lok uses generous rubber sleeves on both the top and the bottom of the stand for keyboard rests and feet. However, the overall quality of construction suggests that this stand is best restricted to light home or studio use. The company makes a double-braced version, the T-20 ($59.95), as well as TL versions of the same accessories offered for the QL-609.

ULTIMATE SUPPORT SYSTEMS APEX The Apex ($270) has to be the most stylish and cunningly original keyboard stand ever (see Fig. 4a). The legs sprout from the base of a triangular column and unfold and click into place to form a stable platform from which the column rises at an angle of about 70 degrees. In a small compartment at the top lie four support arms, which slot into a pair of movable housings that determine keyboard height. Construction is of anodized aluminum, and Ultimate Support guarantees the Apex for life.

The first time you set up the stand, you will need a few extra minutes to set the position of the arm housings, cable clip, and so on. After that, it sets up in seconds, packs up in seconds, looks great, and is extremely well balanced-but only to a point (I'll explain in a moment).

Keyboards, even 88-note weighted ones, sit very snugly on either tier of the stand. For larger instruments, you can use 18-inch arms, called tribars, rather than the standard 13-inch arms. My wide-body Roland JD- 800 is a little cramped on the Apex, and leaning too heavily on one end of a longish instrument will make it flip up.

I've owned and used Apex stands since 1989. I've taken them all over the United States a dozen times, as well as to South America and Japan and all around Europe. They were even thrown about in some madman's van on a particularly hairy gig in Transylvania (I kid you not). And I've never had a problem with them.

Nevertheless, the Apex does have some limitations that I've had to work around. The first involves pedal space: the Apex's feet splay out at an angle of approximately 80 degrees to the column, thus providing an impediment (literally) to footpedals. The answer? Buy a slab of 1-inch particle board, cut out slots for the legs, and glue Velcro-type fastener strips on the surface to keep your pedals in place. This is a good thing to do with any type of stand, but with the Apex it is crucial.

Second, although the longer tribars handle the shape and weight of an 88-note keyboard, the Apex will wobble significantly if you try to lean into a large keyboard-say, to play hard-driving rock 'n' roll licks- especially in the lower and upper few octaves of an 88-key instrument. This stand is best suited to musicians who play with a light to moderate touch.

ULTIMATE SUPPORT SYSTEMS DELTEX On the face of it, the less expensive Deltex ($180) looks just like the Apex (see Fig. 4b). But don't be fooled: where the Apex is a dream, the Deltex is a pain; where the Apex is rock solid, the Deltex feels insubstantial; where the Apex is simple, the Deltex is complicated.

Instead of legs that unfold-the real beauty of the Apex's design-the Deltex's legs must be attached and detached separately for every use and stored in an included tote bag. Rather than slipping snugly into their housings, the arms (which appear to be made from vastly inferior-grade metal) hang loosely-and indeed, their recommended load capacity is less than half that of the Apex.

Given that the Deltex requires you to use special keys for setup (which you'll lose in no time) and provides considerably less weight capacity and security than the Apex, I can honestly see no reason to purchase it.

ULTIMATE SUPPORT SYSTEMS IQ-3000 X-FRAME The IQ-3000 ($130) is a very sturdy stand that uses double struts, high-grade rubber sleeves to grip and protect, and a canny "memory" locking mechanism for maintaining setup height (see Fig. 4c). In fact, the locking mechanism's chunky pair of spinning plates resembles nothing so much as a Transformer; twirl it and you'll expect it to change into a Martian Support Vehicle or some such thing. Luckily, instructions for the 7-position memory lock are explicit, and although grabbing and twisting the two plates without the whole stand falling on top of you is a little tricky, once the stand's been adjusted it opens to the correct height every time.

Optional extra tiers (the IQT-100 and IQT-200; $60 each) for the IQ-3000 fasten onto the back of the stand. I found the method of attachment a bit confusing at first, but the whole arrangement is impressively strong once you've set it all up. Tiers 2 and 3 can be angled this way and that (in 7.5-degree increments) to suit your keyboard size and desired playing position.

Although I find any triple-tier design on an X-frame stand a little worrisome, the IQ-3000's double-strutted frame and exceptionally high-grade metalwork and fittings make it as trustworthy a stand as I've come across. Ultimate Support recommends that tier 2 hold nothing heavier than a 100-pound instrument, and 75 pounds is the maximum for tier 3-fair enough. (To put these numbers in perspective, a Korg M1 weighs less than 50 pounds.) The bottom tier can hold up to 300 pounds, which should be more than adequate, unless your keyboard weighs more than a Saint Bernard.

Even when loaded, the IQ-3000 is nice and steady. The extra-thick rubber end caps, which can be twist- adjusted to different thicknesses on one side if you need to adjust relative height, certainly contribute to the stand's sturdiness. So does the generous 22-inch span of the bottom legs. The IQ-3000 looks cool, too: the top and bottom of the unit have a sculpted molding that smooths out the typical shaped-edge look of an X- frame.

ULTIMATE SUPPORT SYSTEMS IQ-2000 X-FRAME This double-strutted X-frame stand ($80) strikes a good compromise between the heavy-duty design of the IQ-3000 and that of many simple X-frames on the market (see Fig. 5a). The double struts reduce some of the potential for movement, and as with the IQ-3000, the rubber end caps can be twist-adjusted to balance out an uneven floor. (The IQ-2000's end caps are not in the same league of thickness as the IQ-3000's, however.)

The locking mechanism is a straightforward tongue-and-plate system. Its 4-stop "memory" is based on Ultimate Support's original memory-lock design. Because there's not much tongue protrusion (as it were), I fear that a bash or two could severely impair the stand's reliability. The bottom legs' 20-inch span is generous, and the 17-inch width of the keyboard arms accommodates wider instruments very satisfactorily.

Even though the IQ-2000 does not offer the top-quality features of the IQ-3000, it is still a major cut above the standard X-frame design.

ULTIMATE SUPPORT SYSTEMS APACHE A-FRAME Some keyboard players want to be seen, whereas others like hiding behind racks of instruments. If you're among the latter, Ultimate Support's A-frame design may be for you (see Fig. 5b).

Named to reflect its angled (as in the letter A) design, the triple-tier Apache is, not surprisingly, somewhat bulky. Once you've set up the basic frame, you can slide each tier's angled brackets along the support bar to customize width or angle for almost anything: keyboards, music stand, drum machine, computer-you name it. Each tier can hold up to 150 pounds.

The primary limitation of the Apache design is its overall width-60 inches on the AP-26BPT version ($310), 48 inches on the AP-22BPT model ($280)-which may restrict the stand's utility for 88-note keyboard users. Size is also an issue: these imposing stands are bulky to store, and they occupy a lot of space onstage. True, you can use the stand at a 90-degree angle in the studio, but don't even think about doing this while performing live. A significant amount of setup time is required, too.

With the A-frame design, there is no wobble at all, which is especially important if you're an energetic player. On the other hand, A-frame stands can make your rig look like the keyboard department in a music store. This design has been around for a while; although classic in its functionality, it harks back somewhat to the days of stages cluttered with stacks of keyboards.

A similar but double-tier Dakota model is also available in two widths, the 60-inch DK-18BPT ($264) and the 48-inch DK-16BPT ($218). As with the Apache, each tier can hold 150 pounds.

K&M MODEL 18962 X-FRAME Germany's Konig & Meyer is a very experienced builder of stands for keyboards, harmonicas, brass instruments, speakers, and more. The two K&M stands I examined are distributed by two unrelated companies-Ultimate Support Systems and Gorg International-and the two distributors list different prices for the same stands. Certain accessories are offered only by Gorg, and in these cases, I list Gorg's price. In addition to the two X-frame stands I tested, K&M makes the Model 18950 A-frame ($210), the double-strut aluminum Model 18980 ($159.90), and the double-braced steel Model 18990 ($85.90). These were not available for review, however.

The lightweight (7-pound) Model 18962 ($46 from Ultimate Support; $35.90 from Gorg) is a classic single-strut X-frame featuring a pair of flop-down metal strips that lock together at eight different height points with a locking screw (see Fig. 6). The design is simple and very secure, although it is rated for only up to 90-pound loads.

The Model 18962-apparently K&M is not big on product names-comes with no frills. Its single- thickness rubber end caps mean it's going to be only as sturdy as the floor and your playing style permit. You can add a second tier (Model 18968, $57), which is composed of two L-shaped brackets that lock into the back of the main keyboard frame. The brackets are strong, but you can't adjust their fixed 90-degree angle.

Single-strut X-frames will do their job onstage, of course. But at this level, you shouldn't expect much in the looks department. And if your fellow band members include run-about guitarists or dancers, you might want to consider something a little sturdier.

K&M MODEL 18940 X-FRAME An X-frame stand with a tongue-and-plate locking mechanism, the Model 18940 ($63 from Ultimate Support; $59.90 from Gorg) is another example of a very simple design and has a load recommendation of up to 165 pounds (see Fig. 7). The 18940 can be used with several of K&M's accessories, principally a music stand (Model 18949, $41.70 from Gorg); an adjustable mic boom (Model 18946, $46.50 from Gorg); and adjustable, tilt-style tier arms (Model 18941, $27 from Gorg).

The 18940 is a single-strut stand with adjustable rubberized end caps on the feet and the keyboard rest. To open and close the stand quickly, you pull a patented quick-release lever on the upper right-hand side beneath the keyboard rest; this action inserts or retracts the metal tongue from its plate. It's a nice feature.

TAKE A STAND More choices and variables seem to abound among keyboard stands than among keyboards themselves. And although your choice of stand is not as crucial as your choice of instrument, it will have far-reaching effects on your comfort, performance, and possibly even your job as a keyboard player.

After basic functionality, I'd say that the overall look of a stand and the space it occupies are the most important things to consider when choosing a keyboard stand. Z-frames and A-frames, of course, offer lots of leg and pedal space. X-frames are ergonomically ideal but tend to look a little dorky in any venue beyond a small stage-and they can, depending on your stature, interfere with your access to footpedals. My suggestion of a custom-cut piece of particle board (as described in the Apex entry) really makes sense no matter what type of stand you go for.

Your choice of stand helps define how your equipment looks on stage. To the untrained eye, all instruments look the same, but a stand can make you and your rig look professional, amateurish, techie, sloppy, or important. So spend some time making the right choice.

Julian Colbeck, besides playing in Transylvania, has toured everywhere from Trenton to Tokyo and from San Jose to Sao Paulo, with artists as varied as ABWH/Yes, Steve Hackett, John Miles, and Charlie.