Acoustic Pickup Advice.

Col Mustard said:
Right ee-oh...

one thing I forgot to say in my tirade above is this: When we play a venue that has sound crew
who understand how to mix the signal of a mic'd Martin D-35... My partner's Martin sounds
awesome. Because it is awesome, and it always sounds awesome, until he loses his concentration
and moves his arse out of the proper cone of influence for the mic he uses. Then it's a train wreck.

I persuaded him to buy a pair of good condenser microphones. I forget which kind he got, maybe
Audio Technica... now he can set both of those up in a stereo rig that seems almost like what we
do in the studio. The two mikes make his signal easier for sound guys to handle, and it still gives
a really nice indication of the acoustic sound of the D-35.

But me, I prefer my Baggs Lyric and my paddle board, and the hassle free system gets my
signal out to the audience to great effect. That's all I want.
Click to expand...
 
I've had quite a few acoustics with built in piezo pickups. I was always satisfied with the sound. Recently I acquired a Larrivee with a Fishman passive sound hole pickup, not sure of the model. It sounds infinitely better than any of my other acoustics plugged in. Don't know of it's the pickup or the guitar but put me down for a good sound hole pickup over a piezo under the saddle. This pickup captures the actual sound of the guitar better than any piezo I've tried.
 
I've played through a Fishman Loudbox and really liked it. I believe it has a
lot to offer. I can't use an amp like that because my job is to play my acoustic
with as much presence as possible without drowning out my partner's D-35
(which is handicapped by the mic setup).

So I'm always telling the sound guys to make him as loud as they can, and then
to bring my signal into the mix. That works because my setup has plenty of headroom.
If I had an amp onstage behind me, he would not be able to hear his guitar even with
a good monitor. I play bass with my little Roland CB60XT, and sometimes he complains
that he can't hear his guitar because of that. And I keep the stage volume low for this
reason, and let the sound man mix it by means of the XLR out... *shrugs
Acorn Theatre 09-14-12@100.jpg
So I don't really need an Acoustic amp. But I'm fascinated by them. If I played my
acoustic in a band with drums and keys, bass, and another guitarist, I might feel
differently and get one of those. But right now, I don't need one and since I play
acoustic, electric, bass guitar and djembe, I'm happy not to drag in another amp.

I used to play my bass through a Fender Bassman Compact 1/15, I think it was about 120 Watts.
But I sold it because Fender amps aren't happy running at 3... And the Roland sounds just
fine at low levels. For me, that's really important.
 
Kerry Brown said:
I've had quite a few acoustics with built in piezo pickups. I was always satisfied with the sound. Recently I acquired a Larrivee with a Fishman passive sound hole pickup, not sure of the model. It sounds infinitely better than any of my other acoustics plugged in. Don't know of it's the pickup or the guitar but put me down for a good sound hole pickup over a piezo under the saddle. This pickup captures the actual sound of the guitar better than any piezo I've tried.
Click to expand...

I agree... there has been a lot of progress in the technology of amplifying acoustic guitars IMHO.
The two systems I use are the Fishman Elipse Blend, which has a little microphone on a goose neck inside the instrument PLUS the piezo. This was factory stock on my 2006 Martin XC1T in the
picture above. The blend between the piezo and the mike works great for me.

The other system I use is what I discussed above... The Baggs Lyric ... just a microphone inside
the box.

L'Arrivee makes great guitars IMHO.
 
Last edited:
I have had this Baggs pickup on my D28 Martin for some time and I can say that it is great. I have been doing a lot of Pink Floyd for Tia's band. The slide for their work is not fun but I get to sit down.
 
Acoustic Amps are an old story...
They are certainly not new. IMHO it's always been a good name. Even if the name is
owned by Chinese gangstas, and the amps are made in Vietnam.

Anyway, you have my sympathy... I've never been a recording studio nut...
except where my own music is concerned. Who ever runs Line 6 might say the same.
 
Going with a Shure 57 mic is the most natural sound you can get from an amplified acoustic guitar.
For me it is difficult to keep the guitar at the sweet place of this process. My attention span is just below that of a collie dog. I get very good results from a Lace Sensor on my Fender resonator. It is the only pup that picks up the rattle loose junk tone that we all want from a tin guitar. Now recording Tia will stand right behind me and smack my head when I drift off and forget about the mic. I can recommend getting a Chinese girl with an Irish accent to keep you alert.
 
Shure 57 mics have been used for this purpose for how many years? Fifty?
Maybe more than that. Fifty years ago I wasn't very aware of microphone technology.
(I was trying to keep my mind on my studies in the midst of the Sexual Revolution).
Fifty years ago, many bands had one or more of these:
Shure Vocal Master.JPG I don't actually know if the sonic qualities of the Shure SM57 mic have been improved over all that time.
It's always been "industry standard..." for miking drums as well as guitars, horns, reeds, etc... So maybe it was
always good enough that it didn't need improving.

But I don't think that. I think there are a lot of newer mics that might sound better. And for miking an acoustic
guitar in a studio setting, it's hard to go wrong with a pair of them. My partner uses a pair of condenser mics on
a spreader rig, so that one mikes the front of his guitar and one mikes the rear of it, avoiding the sound hole and
all of the problems with miking that. If the sound crew knows how to handle the signal from the pair of condensers,
his tone is excellent. If not, ...feedback city.

That's why I depend on my Baggs Lyric and pedal board. I just plug in and get a sound I recognize very quickly.
 

Attachments

kevinpaul said:
I really don't play acoustic guitar very often. Lately I have had the need to use my one real acoustic more often. I have an Ovation that is not a real acoustic guitar, I have a Fender Resonator that in the classic sense not an acoustic guitar. I have a Sea Gull original 6 that is a true wooden acoustic guitar. I am not wild about it and only play it when I need to. I am not your camp fire kinda guy.
I have things coming up that I will be playing one of them Stone Age jobs a lot. I hate cutaways and electronics on an acoustic guitar. Just don't dig it. Now the adventure of buying an acoustic guitar.
I called up the guy I know at Pittsburgh Guitars and after some words I bought a Martin D28. Like I said to my buddy at the guitar shop, no electronics and no electronics. I need to make this thing loud, and the pickup thing takes way the acoustic charm. I looked and pups and no dice. Baggs seems to do the best job as far as I can tell. I came close to getting on but that little voice said go on a wild killing spree. Enough of these little voices, gets real crazy fast. So I bought another Shure 57 and the stuff that you should have to mic a guitar. It still sounds like an acoustic guitar. That is the way I am going and I hope no one laughs, I'm hanging but a thread now.
Click to expand...



Hey Kev I'm a campfire guy and I only play Electric BABY!
 
I have decided I will never own or play Acoustic. If I did own one I wouldn't want any wires or gadgets hanging from it.
 
IMG_5734.JPG
Session 5 said:
Hey Kev I'm a campfire guy and I only play Electric BABY!
Click to expand...
In case you ever play acoustic guitar down the long winding road you will love a LR Baggs pick up.
Very neat and non obtrusive install. I never thought I IMG_6048.JPG would own a Martin D28 and love. The workmen ship is amazing. I had a 1976 a guy had me work on and left it with me for two years. Odd thing is they got better. My son was in for a visit and could not believe that my favorite guitar has a hole in the middle. It was a wild party and I can't believe he doesn't bark. Baggs pickups are fantastic. I got into this because a couple priests are I are writing our second Requiem Mass in D minor.
 
IMG_3443.JPG Session 5 you can light a fire? I'm not allowed to in a few states. I was pretty good at the fire thing, do you know how to start a flood?
 
Mr Grumpy said:
A friend who's an excellent player and gigs a couple of times a week, reckons his old Bill Lawrence acoustic pickup (I think it's 20+ years old) isn't really picking up the nuances of his sounds well, and asked me what I'd recommend. I said, I don't know but I know some fellas that do!

Thus, he probably wants to spend between $50 and $150 just to put something in the soundhole or similar.

Any advice/suggestions?

Thank you.
Click to expand...

The preamp equalizer will help eliminate feedback and fine tune the sound.
It's almost that the existing PU is really OK, he just needs to add a good EQ more than a different PU.
 
wow, talk about raising a thread from the dead...
This thread is from 2017 and 18... there are the ghostly voices
of at least three dead guys on here. I enjoy seeing Biddlin's
signature. I was a friend of his.

rest in peace me droogies... I still maintain that new developments in amplifying acoustic guitars
have made some excellent music possible.

But I like the idea of a Chinese girl with an Irish accent so whup the back of my head if I
careen off mic. *grins. Prolly like it until she does it, and then not so much.
 
Col Mustard said:
wow, talk about raising a thread from the dead...
This thread is from 2017 and 18... there are the ghostly voices
of at least three dead guys on here. I enjoy seeing Biddlin's
signature. I was a friend of his.

rest in peace me droogies... I still maintain that new developments in amplifying acoustic guitars
have made some excellent music possible.

But I like the idea of a Chinese girl with an Irish accent so whup the back of my head if I
careen off mic. *grins. Prolly like it until she does it, and then not so much.
Click to expand...
I miss Biddlin.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top