Quote:
Originally Posted by TOCS
In general, if you want the actual characteristics of your instrument reproduced, stay away from undersaddle transducers. They only really amplify the sound of the saddle and the strings which means it negates the idea of having a great sounding acoustic guitar in the first place.
Go with a soundboard transducer. Take your pick, I currently use a couple of JJB pickups which is basically just a piezo disc with a piece of wire soldered to it. K&K uses the same technology. If you have the money though, go with one of the systems by Trance Audio. Their Acoustic Lens pickups are triaxial which means they sense vibrations three-dimensionally. Probably the best sounding system I've heard.
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Although I agree with you, it's not really that simple. There's a reason why such a large number of touring musicians still use UST's and magnetic pickups. They need to cut through the mix, have a fairly feedback resistant pickup and have something that sounds okay to good with strumming. The K&K pure mini is probably the most recommended pickup on this forum, which is fine but let's be honest; it won't work for everyone.
I have the K&K pure mini and it is nice. I understand the praise and why people like the simplicity. However, I honestly would never use it on a loud stage and it would never be my first choice for strumming. If I am playing with one or two other musicians in an acoustic setting then the K&K would most likely be fine. I just find that it's a warm sounding pickup that doesn't cut through enough and it never sounds all that great when aggressively strummed. I characterize the Martin tone as warm and full so it makes sense to match the K&K with it. The thing is, I would be more inclined to try a more hi-fi system like the Anthem to combat some of that warmth. It's the same reason why I am thinking of changing the pickup in my Taylor. I currently have the Anthem but my Taylor is bright. The two together are just a bit too much.
I would love to try the Trance Amulet M though. It seems to add a good amount of high end that's missing from the K&K or other SBT's systems.