Elderly_beginner

Hi Folks -

I would like to ask for advice for what equipment I should acquire.

Please bear in mind that I am probably woefully ignorant of audio equipment compared with all of you.

Objective: To be able to gig at home with a minimum of four input sources: three singers on microphones and one of the following: an electric piano; or an electric-acoustic guitar (or ukulele); or a harmonica (with mic). I want to be able to individually control the volume of each input and record the gigs. It is not important that the setup be portable enough to leave the house.

Proposed solution. What I think I need is a 4-channel keyboard amp plus four microphones. Three of the mics would be for the three vocalists and the fourth would be placed in front of the amp speaker and connected to a PC to record the speaker output.

What I have so far:

+ Windows 10 laptop
+ Windows 11 tower pc with Bose USB speakers
+ harmonica
+ Yamaha PSR-GX76 electric piano that has MIDI and line outputs
+ a Concert ukulele with electric pickup (this is a loaner, and I might replace it with an electric-acoustic guitar)

Investigation I have done so far:

I have spent several hours over the past week researching home studios and keyboard amps.

Initially, I was in love with the idea of buying a home studio and using it both for gigging (using the monitor port/speakers) and mixing. But, after reading sad tales in amazon.com audio interface (6-8 different brands of audio interfaces) reviews reported by obviously experienced home studio users, I don't feel that I am ready for the complexity of choosing home studio components and setting them up and using the setup.

I understand that if I go the route of using an amp, that I need a 'keyboard amp' (vs guitar amp) in order to support the wide frequency range of my electric piano. My current thinking is that a 20 watt amp would be sufficient.

A PA system seems to be overkill for my situation.

A fourth possibility is to connect the input devices (mics, piano, etc) directly to my Windows 11 PC and play the music through my Bose Companion 5 speakers. I'm not sure that this option would easily provide volume control of the individual inputs.

Is there a 5th alternative that I'm overlooking?

In searching for keyboard amps, it appears that most of the amps in the 20 watt range provide only two inputs. I've found amps that provide four or more channels, much higher watts, and cost $500 and up.

So, do I need to pay $500 or more in order to get the functionality that I want?

You are invited to point out where I am making bad assumptions or have overlooked better solutions.

Thanks in advance!

Ralph