Quote:
Originally Posted by Petty1818
I know you were asking Gibby but I used the Matrix for many years with the spectrum DI. I never noticed any tonal change with it. I did notice a change with the Anthem though. I am a firm believer that the harder the UST is, the less tonal degradation will occur.
I often think about getting the Matrix Infinity and going back to pairing it with the spectrum. I just found it so difficult to find an image that worked well. However, I also did not experiment a ton with the images available online.
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Thanks for the reply. This seems to be the consensus among us. If the Matrix does degrade tone, it's a small amount. We also are in agreement that the harder UST is better for acoustic tone. But, I think the harder material makes it worse for amplified tone, as compared to the LR Baggs braided pickup. But, with the Aura, or Tondexter per Ken, I think it's a winner.
Moreover, if you are working on a dedicated stage guitar, I think a small trade off is acceptable, and the feedback rejection of the UST makes the Aura imaging a worthwhile combination.
That said, for my guitars that are on primarily acoustic duty, I think SBT is a better option. Custom IR convolution like Tondexter, or Cuki's process, will work with those too. Just not as well.
For instance, I went with a passive K&K for my 12 string because I don't fancy the idea of a UST under 250 lbs of tension. Quack City! The K&K worked very well, was cheap, and required no batteries. I also don't fancy restringing a 12 string to change a battery that might die prematurely. For my GE Dread, I am considering a PUTW system with MiSi preamp. I emailed them to inquire. I mostly liked the Trance in that guitar, but I could not get it dialed in properly because the bridge plate is so small there isn't any real estate to work with.
I think that each guitar requires some thought to decide on the best pickup for it. And, there will be trade offs with each decision and application.