Best pickup for a Cargo guitar (new forum member)

[dougalanwilcox]

For everyone who has been following this thread and may be interested in knowing if/how things shake out, I may have reached an acceptable conclusion.
Based on a good deal of Internet research (although previous no hands-on experience), I ordered a McIntyre Feather to try in my Cargo. It arrived yesterday and I installed it today.
First, I have to say that it was one of the easiest pickup installation I've ever done (and I've done A LOT over the years - SBTs and USTs of all flavors). After reading about how crucial placement is with the Feather, I was cautious and maybe I was lucky but it went right in with absolutely no trouble and has none of the hum that some say is prevalent with this type of pickup.
I was reasonably happy with the D-tar Wavelength I had previously settled on but that pickup was a little bright, not entirely natural, and I ended up having second thoughts about carrying the two AA batteries it requires onboard as well as the 9 volt in my outboard preamp.
Everyone says the Feather has very low gain (it's passive - no battery) but again, I'm not really seeing that. The pickup is a lot smoother than the Wavelength (at least in this Cargo) and if I had to adjust volumes at all, it was very minimal.
I'm running this into a new version of the Fishman Platinum preamp with sweepable mids and the sound is about all I could hope for - very natural with very little "fiddling".
The one thing I can't say is whether this is actually a better option that a K&K.
Unfortunately, when I earlier tried a K&K in this guitar, it was with the matching K&K preamp and I just couldn't get the sound I wanted (having loved K&K in numerous wood guitars in the past). I never had a chance to use that pickup with this pre so don't know if it would have made a difference to me. What I do know is that the Fishman pre seems to mate well with the Feather and I now can't imagine finding a tone I like better by trying a different product.
I'm finally a very happy player!
As always though - YMMV....

I am not as technically versed as a lot of you aficionados, but I have been really happy with the K&N in my Cargo. I've run it through a Roland AC33 it has been clean, responsive, and maintenance-free. I like it!

[Bluside]

Not to hijack this thread, but how in the world do you install a K&K pickup in a Cargo through the small sound hole?

I struggled to put one in a Little Martin, but at least the sound hole was closer to the bridge plate.

[dougalanwilcox]

Bluside - It's takes a tiny bit more effort than on a traditional full-size guitar but it's certainly do-able. I've installed SBT-type pickups on two different Cargos using the method shown here (http://www.cavalierpickups.com/frettech/kk/index.html).

[Bluside]

Originally Posted by dougalanwilcox

Bluside - It's takes a tiny bit more effort than on a traditional full-size guitar but it's certainly do-able. I've installed SBT-type pickups on two different Cargos using the method shown here (http://www.cavalierpickups.com/frettech/kk/index.html).

Thanks, Doug- I have installed 7 K&K pickups in my guitars, most recently in my Emerald X-20.

I guess my arm is just way too big to get inside the Cargo.

[dougalanwilcox]

Guess it does help to have skinny forearms.
Even at that, my "installing" arm stays marked up for a couple of days....