Review: K&M 174 Accordion Stand for my Roland FR-8x

[Rodney]

Last week I ordered a K&M 174 accordion stand from Thomann’s UK website for £274 incl VAT and delivery from Germany, At the same time I ordered a pair of bellows straps & fittings on the advice of an experienced forum member, they cost £11.25 incl VAT and since they were in the same order, I got free delivery for them too.

My order arrived today in a huge box (Step 1), so I started a solo game of pass the parcel by opening it to, surprise surprise, find another big box inside it (Step 2). The game was getting exciting now, just how much smaller could the next box be? You guessed it, there was another even smaller box inside which on removal revealed a large flat box (Steps 3 & 4) behind it. Surely, soon I must set my eyes on the holy grail accordion stand or, was it all a hoax? What fun!

Taking a deep breath, I opened the shorter box (Step 3) which revealed the substantial 4-legged base for the stand. Next the taller and flatter box (Step 4) which revealed the substantial top of the stand which fits perfectly into the base and is secured using a pin and hole system fixing. This is where I made my first mistake, mostly due to there being no hints about putting it together other than a numbered document in German & English picturing the parts (small document you can spot in the bottom left of Step 6).

As described in a video I’d seen, I knew that the goal was to have the stronger seam around the edge of the bellows fit into the recess of the rubber-like pads, at least I had a guide to what I was doing wrong! IMHO this is not an easy job for one person, I came to this eureka moment after about an hour of failed attempts, the problem being when the pads on one side were in the right position, it was necessary to view another side to line up some other pads/seams and inevitably the first set moved! Laurel & Hardy would have exclaimed about ‘a fine mess…’

I decided to place my accordion on a bed and attach the upper part of the stand to it while my wife helped by keeping an eye on the pads I couldn’t see and let me know if & when they moved, which they did several times. Eventually, tightening knobs a little at a time we managed to get everything positioned. Finally the swivel part for the top was lined up and tightened. The last part was to insert the accordion/upper part into the base so the holes would be on the correct side for the pin to lock it in place. Steps 7 & 8 show the fully assembled stand and accordion.

Sadly this 77 year old was too exhausted for a practice session, other than a few notes to check the height using a dining chair … the stand stops with the base of the accordion about 6 inches above my thighs so I can’t even see the top of my accordion. Fortunately, because my spine complains when I’m on my feet for just a few minutes, my wife bought a bar stool for me which lives in the kitchen, I’ll try it out tomorrow, but rough measurements suggests it’ll be perfect.

In the light of my experiences today, would I do it again? The answer is without a doubt ‘yes’ because putting on my accordion for each practice session was hard on my spine and I was scared of dropping it, also because the strap over my left shoulder caused residual aches in my shoulder.

Just in case my message didn’t get across, the stand is substantial and well engineered. If I were to advise K&M on how to improve the 174 stand, it would be for a member of K&M staff and a current owners who know the product to work together to (1) find the best process to assemble the stand with a 120 bass accordion in, and (2) to make notes during the assembly with a view to producing a user manual that really works for the customer.

In conclusion, I recommend the K&M 174 but it is let down by the lack of assembly instructions, but I hope this review will help bridge the gap and I’m happy to answer queries from interested forum members. In addition, in a week or so I’ll make a post to let people know how I’m getting on with it.

 

[Tom]

Thanks for this review Rodney! The other recommendation is for them to make the stand so it adjusts lower (for sitting), or to make a version specifically for sitting lower.

 

[Rodney]

I agree totally but I think they might have a reason for how they’ve arranged the way the base interacts with the accordion cradle, perhaps for professionals to perform standing. As it is, if they make the base unit shorter to accommodate sitting on a dining chair for example, then there would be insufficient overlap in the base to accommodate standing, particularly for a tall person. I’m not an engineer soo can only visual three sections telescoping within each other could mean either a top section that is insufficient to keep the accordion stable, I.e. not wobbly. If they increase the top section to a more substantial size then the ripple effect would cause the bottom section to be too substantial for portability. Your proposed solution for two models, one for sitting and one for standing sounds to me like the best option. Having come to that conclusion, I wonder how feasible it would be to have the current model adapted to have shorter sections?

 

[McSqueeze]

I've tried accordion stands similar to yours but found that the accordion body moves too much with bellows movement. However, about 20 years ago I bought a used accordion stand that is designed for sitting, with the seat as an integral part of the stand. It is much more stable than the standing stand as one's body weight holds everything steady.
I bought this stand in anticipation of possibly needing it in the future. Luckily I don't need it, yet, so the stand is dismantled and packed away but I'll get it out, assemble it and post a photo that may be of interest.

 

[Rodney]

I've tried accordion stands similar to yours but found that the accordion body moves too much with bellows movement. However, about 20 years ago I bought a used accordion stand that is designed for sitting, with the seat as an integral part of the stand. It is much more stable than the standing stand as one's body weight holds everything steady.
I bought this stand in anticipation of possibly needing it in the future. Luckily I don't need it, yet, so the stand is dismantled and packed away but I'll get it out, assemble it and post a photo that may be of interest.

Thank you for your post McSqueeze, I’m going to try the bar stool I mentioned, it has a lumbar back rest and should. Be about the right height, but you are more than welcome to make the post to see if it creates any interest. Is the maker well-known?

 

[Tom]

I agree totally but I think they might have a reason for how they’ve arranged the way the base interacts with the accordion cradle, perhaps for professionals to perform standing. As it is, if they make the base unit shorter to accommodate sitting on a dining chair for example, then there would be insufficient overlap in the base to accommodate standing, particularly for a tall person. I’m not an engineer soo can only visual three sections telescoping within each other could mean either a top section that is insufficient to keep the accordion stable, I.e. not wobbly. If they increase the top section to a more substantial size then the ripple effect would cause the bottom section to be too substantial for portability. Your proposed solution for two models, one for sitting and one for standing sounds to me like the best option. Having come to that conclusion, I wonder how feasible it would be to have the current model adapted to have shorter sections?

Yes, my thoughts exactly. If I get (when?) too old to hold the big accordion, the stand could be modified for “sitting only.” By then I will be playing primarily organetto or melodeon though.

 

[Rodney]

Although my bar stool turned out to be a usable height, my accordion (in its cradle) needed to be raised about six inches. After about an hour of practice my right leg went numb. It was just like sciatica but without severe pain. I put it down to the very thin layer of padding on the seat and the very thin layer of padding provided by my backside. The other thing was the new height of my accordion, making me wonder about possible ‘wobble’ issues and reading sheet music at the extended distance.

The seat could be padded more, in fact I have a round disability cushion that is a near fit but it, or a thicker cushion, would require the accordion to be higher still and therefore not the best option. I also have some disability cushions that fit my dining chair and two on top of each other giving about 7 inches of extra height it looks like they might produce the required height with the stand set at its lowest position. I’ll try it tomorrow to see how it works when the cushion material is compressed (by me).

 

[Pipemajor]

You mentioned that you had also bought a set of bellows straps and fittings for the FR8.
I have also just bought a set for mine but they didn't come with screws.
I wonder if you could give me the size and length of the screws please.
Also I would like to know the exact place to install the straps without compromising internal electronics if applicable.
Any info. would be appreciated, thanks

 

[Ventura]

screws into plastic ? i wouldn't do that on a Roland..

appropriately sized bolts with re-inforcing washers and loctite
or t-nuts and machine screws.. in any case you would need
to open it up enough to find the safe places to drill the holes,
just like you would on any other accordion

 

[Rodney]

You mentioned that you had also bought a set of bellows straps and fittings for the FR8.
I have also just bought a set for mine but they didn't come with screws.
I wonder if you could give me the size and length of the screws please.
Also I would like to know the exact place to install the straps without compromising internal electronics if applicable.
Any info. would be appreciated, thanks

Hi Pipemajor and thanks for your question.

I had decided, as Ventura points out, not to install the bellows straps and with some help from a forum member instead disabled the bellows functions and added the new settings to the start-up procedure so my 8x starts up every time with the bellows disabled. Using a locking strap (a tie down) I’ve simply passed it through to top end on the bass strap and through the, now empty, shoulder strap bracket closing the loop by passing the end of the strap through the locking buckle. It seems to be working nicely!

The 6 screws are 10.09 mm long, the outside diameter is 2.22 mm and the inside diameter of the thread is 1.98 mm. The washers cum connection points for the straps are 14.18 mm diameter with a hole diameter 4.22 mm. Please let me know if you need measurements for the ‘pop’ connectors as I think that’s going to be a bit fiddly/hit and miss. Sadly, I don’t know where the points would be positioned. I hope this helps.

 

[Pipemajor]

Thanks for your reply Rodney, that is most helpful

 

[Rodney]

Thanks for your reply Rodney, that is most helpful

Sorry, I forgot to include a catch all for positioning the fittings, ie. to contact Roland support on https://www.roland.com/backstage/ but you’ll need to create an account with the serial number of your accordion and proof of purchase before asking your question. They say that an answer will be within 48 hours.

 

[Rodney]

Today, my musician’s seat arrived from Andertons of Guildford. They had run out of stock, hence the wait and I’m pleased that I did because it is very sturdy and merits my favourite word ‘substantial’ for such items (the shipment weighed in at 15 kg). It’s arrival completes my bedroom based mini-studio, i.e. stand, accordion and Quiklok DX749 adjustable musician’s stool. The ticket price was £159 and I would have been glad to pay that much if I hadn’t the remainder of the loyalty points from the purchase of my Roland FR-8x which reduced the price to pay, including delivery, to £36.77.

The packing was adequate, using a box within a box approach as seen in the first two photos. I’m delighted to report that instructions for assembly (the third photo) were included and made assembly straightforward. The 4th photo, step 1 in the instructions shows how the main assembly emerges from the inner box, it lies against the outer box to prevent it falling over. The 5th photo, step 2 in the instructions, show it free standing due to the back leg being extended.

The third step in the instructions (photos 6 & 7) was to add the seat and move it to my desired position, this was also straightforward. I was a little disappointed with the hardness of the seat, but can be easily remedied with deployment of one of my disability cushions. A pin is tethered to the bottom of the seat to fit a hole in the long spine, I’m not yet sure of its purpose other than possibly a failsafe should the integral pin fail. In my opinion, given the substantial nature of the materials, this isn’t likely but no doubt I’ll deploy the pin when the desired height, with a cushion, is achieved,

Finally, the head rest, the fourth and fifth steps in the instructions was added and moved well down to support my lumbar spine, it really is a good support!

Now for a note of dissent with reviews that criticise the plastic covers on the footrests, i.e. they come off too easily. I would offer two points on the matter: 1. A reviewer talked of glueing them to the footrests which I think is rather too permanent and would utilise PTFE tape on the outside of each footrest. If white spoils the appearance too much, there’s always black electrician’s tape but I’d suggest the former because there is no stickiness to cope with, so it can easily be removed/replaced. 2. They won’t be seen under the user’s feet.

I’m delighted to be able to add that the front feet of the seat can be positioned against the two nearest legs of the stand AND in this position, the stand allows the accordion to be tilted toward the user which is neatly against the user’s chest. I couldn’t have wished for a better outcome.

As with my stand, I’m happy to answer any queries from interested forum members and hope this review is helpful.

 

[Rodney]

After a fortnight’s use of my new Quiklok DX749 adjustable seat and trying out various cushions, I’ve gone ‘commando’ with no extra cushion and can comfortably play for an hour or more. I can thoroughly recommend both the stand and the seat, not to mention my lovely 8x. Just waiting for the release of the new iPad Pro 2024 so I can use facial gestures to turn pages.

 

[JerryPH]

Just waiting for the release of the new iPad Pro 2024 so I can use facial gestures to turn pages.

uhhmm... not suggested. Imagine trying to wink, twitch of the head or smile to get a page turn? Get yourself a BT pedal and concentrate on smiling at the people, not the sheet music.

I have the iPad Pro from 2019 and I push the crap out of it (it controls the registration of my 8X, BK, wireless MIDI and BT foot pedal on top of running my notation software, routs BT signals to and from itself to everything and it's pushing maybe 10% of it's processing power. Want a chuckle? I can run the iPad version of Davinci Resolve on it to edit 4k video AND record ProRes 422HQ to an external 1TB hard drive.

Unless you have the disposable cash (around $2000US or more for the big hard drives), I'd look for the coming deals for the "older" models.

 

[Rodney]

uhhmm... not suggested. Imagine trying to wink, twitch of the head or smile to get a page turn? Get yourself a BT pedal and concentrate on smiling at the people, not the sheet music.

I have the iPad Pro from 2019 and I push the crap out of it (it controls the registration of my 8X, BK, wireless MIDI and BT foot pedal on top of running my notation software, routs BT signals to and from itself to everything and it's pushing maybe 10% of it's processing power. Want a chuckle? I can run the iPad version of Davinci Resolve on it to edit 4k video AND record ProRes 422HQ to an external 1TB hard drive.

Unless you have the disposable cash (around $2000US or more for the big hard drives), I'd look for the coming deals for the "older" models.

I’d agree totally if mine wasn’t a first generation iPad Pro bought in 2016, so it’s 8 years old and showing its age, as well as needing more memory (don’t we all!). Maybe I ought to be ashamed of reading sheet music but I’ve not much of an ear for music, other than I can tell when I play bum notes. So, when I get my new iPad Pro, I’ll be offering my BT200 for sale. I’m curious to know how you use the pedal to control the registration on your 8x.

The attached photo is of me playing my Baile (from sheet music) at a street party to celebrate the Queens Silver Jubilee in 1977.

 

[JerryPH]

I’m curious to know how you use the pedal to control the registration on your 8x.

here you go:

 

[Rodney]

here you go:

Wow Jerry, way to go. Thanks for making and posting the video!

 

[JerryPH]

Wow Jerry, way to go. Thanks for making and posting the video!

Welcome! If you go to my youtube channel there is a very detailed how-to.