Originally Posted by mr dave

do you just mean to use it for controlling some virtual synth software on your laptop? in that case a MIDI controller should work fine and you can get small 2 octave deals.

M-AUDIO - Oxygen 25 - 25-Key USB MIDI Controller

just under 4 pounds and just shy of $200.

@CO - you're definitely right in being wary of pawn shops. it's definitely a buyer beware market, but they're not all bad, especially if you find one that pride's itself on being family friendly, though at that point they usually don't call themselves 'pawn shops' anymore. i've been lucky that my pawn shop of choice is one of those family places, there are some legitimately sketchy spots in this town too. the catch-22 in this situation is that the nicer spots usually have non-crackhead staff that are actually somewhat knowledgeable about the products they deal with so the odds of super deals are non-existent, but fair prices abound.

@Rezz - i haven't been to the store in a while but i doubt it's still there i should try to pop in this weekend just to see what's in stock. actually i get 3 pays this month and therefore really REALLY should not hahaha