Thomann Orchestra Music Stand

~ INITIAL REVIEW ~

~ PREAMBLE ~

Please note that the following section: The INITIAL REVIEW is now followed by a SUBSEQUENT REVIEW, intended to provide an update on my views and use of this particular piece of kit.

~ INITIAL REVIEW ~

I bought this stand, primarily because it looked sturdy, solid, reliable, etc. I didn't want my music wobbling about in front of me while I was playing, and this stand looked ideal. More so, when it arrived, my reasoning seemed to be confirmed; it certainly looked like a strong, solid, reliable piece of kit. Happy days!

It's been used twice and on both occasions, it was fine. I mean, it's a stand, right?; what's to go wrong?; and nothing did. Until that was, I returned home with it and began setting the stand up in my living room. Now, I've been using all sorts of stands for decades. I've got lots of them and never have I had a problem with any of them: Until this afternoon, that is.

I was tightening the base tripod i.e., locking the position of the three legs by tightening a fixing screw/bolt against the stand's tubular column. Suddenly, I realised that the locking mechanism had come loose in my hand. A brief inspection revealed that the only part of the stand that was keeping the locking mechanism in place i.e., attaching it to the tripod, not the stand's tubular column, was a thin sheet of plastic, approximately four millimetres thick, in the middle of which was a threaded hole to accommodate the fixing screw/bolt. Apparently, whilst tightening the tripod into position, this small area of plastic had sheared all along its base and down one side, leaving it hanging loose and completely unfit for locking the tripod in position against the stand's tubular column.

As I said, stands are nothing new to me. I know how to tighten their locking mechanisms and this wasn't a case of over-tightening. On the contrary, to my mind, this is a simple design problem. The stand's designers found it acceptable to hold the locking mechanism for the tripod in place using a thin piece of plastic (absolute maximum thickness of 4mm). That doesn't sound like a good idea to me, because I'd hazard a guess that it needs a little more than that e.g., 5mm or more of steel plate, complete with a threaded hole, all held firmly in place so that it does not move, flex or shear. That might suffice to hold the thread of the locking mechanism rigidly in place, as it is required to be.

What's more, there's a real risk that this section of the stand will fail, catastrophically, rendering the stand useless. I mean, that's what happens to thin sections of plastic when subjected to any forces of any significance e.g. as will be found in locking mechanisms on music stands, etc.

And guess what?; that's exactly what has happened here. Why am I not surprised? Or am I missing something?

No matter, my advice: Avoid this product. It looks good but it has a major flaw: A wall of plastic, a few millimetres (4mm max.) thick is not fit for the purpose for mounting and securing a locking mechanism on a stand of this size. So I guess this is a cautionary tale. Systems usually fail at their weakest points and that's the case here. The problem is identifying these issues when you are purchasing such items. I certainly didn't see this one coming. But that's life; you live and learn, right?

However, ...

~ SUBSEQUENT REVIEW ~

Based on the above, I'm not using this stand: It's useless, right? Well, no, and I am; using it, that is. Although I am sure that an appropriate application of Superglue would have dealt with the sheared edges described above (and still might), I stumbled across another solution.

I had ordered a set of standard plastic g-clamps for another project. I then found that, by attaching one clamp immediately above and one immediately below the required locking position on the stand's tubular column, the stand attained a commendable level of stability. Just to make sure, I "threw" and "knocked" the stand about a bit; a test which it passed with flying colours. The result?; a perfectly functioning music stand.

I cannot change my initial findings e.g., this stand has a major design flaw, but this does show what a little ingenuity can do, don't you think?

I purchased this stand several years ago, and it has stood the test of time admirably.

I've used it for home practice, rehearsals, gigs and in the recording studio. It is capable of supporting large heavy music books, or computer tablets/laptops safely and securely.

Important pros for this over a lightweight folding stand are increased stability and weight capacity, the top part of the stand has a substantial lip, so it will easily accomodate small items like pencils in addition to any scores/books which makes life a lot easier when you need to make notes on a score during rehearsals. The range of adjustment in terms of height is also much better than most lightweight folding stands.

In terms of drawbacks, the heavy construcion and single piece platform can make storing and transporting this stand a bit of a chore - there isn't a quick easy way to separate the platform from the tripod, so you really have to leave it fully assembled which makes an awkward shape to pack, I've deducted one star from the handling rating for this reason.

The locking adjustment collars on the stand are made of plastic, which is the reason I have deducted a star from the quality rating - my stand hasn't yet failed, but it is always important to be careful about over tightening or excessively adjusting fittings with plastic screwthreads as they tend to wear easily.

Given the price and overall usefullness I would have no hesitation recomending this product to other musicians.