K&K + Breedlove + Pinless Bridge + JDL?

[midwinter]

Hi all.

I'm considering replacing the Baggs Lyric in my Breedlove (C25) with a K&K system (probably the trinity) or a JJB but I'm concerned about how it might work with the Breedlove JLD engineering inside and the pinless system which, IIRC, means that it doesn't have a soundboard under the bridge.

Has anyone installed a K&K or JJB on a Breedlove with this setup?


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PS: for anyone interested in why, it's about the missing low end on the Lyric and the sound when strummed. I love the lyric for fingerpicked stuff, but it just sounds a little too thin for what I'm doing these days.

[stevecuss]

I have a Breedlove atlas with this exact situation. I installed a BMG Elevation pickup which is a 3 transducer SBT like the K&k. (I highly recommend the pickup and company, BTW. Ken was fantastic helping me navigate the unique Breedlove challenges.

I installed the middle transducer just in front of the bridge doctor and the outer two transducers in their correct position. It's tricky without pins to help with a template, but I stuck string ends through the pinless area and that helped a lot when I was positioning them.

Btw, I have the same opinion as you on the Lyric - it's a pretty phenomenal pickup in many respects but the low cut is too drastic for me

Best wishes on the endeavor

[c70man]

Originally Posted by midwinter

Hi all.

I'm considering replacing the Baggs Lyric in my Breedlove (C25) with a K&K system (probably the trinity) or a JJB but I'm concerned about how it might work with the Breedlove JLD engineering inside and the pinless system which, IIRC, means that it doesn't have a soundboard under the bridge.

Has anyone installed a K&K or JJB on a Breedlove with this setup?


--

PS: for anyone interested in why, it's about the missing low end on the Lyric and the sound when strummed. I love the lyric for fingerpicked stuff, but it just sounds a little too thin for what I'm doing these days.

I own a 90's C20MH(steve hendersen model). The first JLD system...I used the JJB prestige 330 (3-piezio's with endjack). They allowed me to place the 15mm(smaller dia.) right under the saddle position to the left and right of the support block..equivalent of being under both "e" strings...sounds great, but very sensitive to touch. I have installed K&K on other guitars, but for the price of the JJB ($49.99) and discussing it with their in house engineer, figured it was worth a try.....I'm very happy with it. In fact I probably could have opted for the 2-piezio($29.95), but I wanted to compare apples to apples with my K&K 3 piezio.....they are identical. JJB IS the manufacture of the piezio (hence the great price).

I'm using Martin Lifespan SP's 12-54, which I like, but I noticed they are sqeekier than D'Addario's, so I'll probably change them out.

The passive pickup system does sound better with a preamp and I'm using either a ToneWoodAmp(check them out) or my LRBaggs Gigpro($99) that I use with the K&K I installed.....really adds the punch I'm looking for with controlled gain.


http://s1064.photobucket.com/user/c7.../library/C20MH

One last thing......I have a Anthem SL in my Martin.....great pickup, but for the money.....if I had to do it over again, I'd install the Piezio's.

[midwinter]

Thanks, Steve. I'll take a look at BMG.

Originally Posted by stevecuss

I have a Breedlove atlas with this exact situation. I installed a BMG Elevation pickup which is a 3 transducer SBT like the K&k. (I highly recommend the pickup and company, BTW. Ken was fantastic helping me navigate the unique Breedlove challenges.

I installed the middle transducer just in front of the bridge doctor and the outer two transducers in their correct position. It's tricky without pins to help with a template, but I stuck string ends through the pinless area and that helped a lot when I was positioning them.

Btw, I have the same opinion as you on the Lyric - it's a pretty phenomenal pickup in many respects but the low cut is too drastic for me

Best wishes on the endeavor

[midwinter]

Thanks! I've got JJBs in two banjos and two mandolins; I'm a big fan of them.

The only reason I'm considering a K&K is that I *think* I want the mic option.

Originally Posted by c70man

I own a 90's C20MH(steve hendersen model). The first JLD system...I used the JJB prestige 330 (3-piezio's with endjack). They allowed me to place the 15mm(smaller dia.) right under the saddle position to the left and right of the support block..equivalent of being under both "e" strings...sounds great, but very sensitive to touch. I have installed K&K on other guitars, but for the price of the JJB ($49.99) and discussing it with their in house engineer, figured it was worth a try.....I'm very happy with it. In fact I probably could have opted for the 2-piezio($29.95), but I wanted to compare apples to apples with my K&K 3 piezio.....they are identical. JJB IS the manufacture of the piezio (hence the great price).

I'm using Martin Lifespan SP's 12-54, which I like, but I noticed they are sqeekier than D'Addario's, so I'll probably change them out.

The passive pickup system does sound better with a preamp and I'm using either a ToneWoodAmp(check them out) or my LRBaggs Gigpro($99) that I use with the K&K I installed.....really adds the punch I'm looking for with controlled gain.


http://s1064.photobucket.com/user/c7.../library/C20MH

One last thing......I have a Anthem SL in my Martin.....great pickup, but for the money.....if I had to do it over again, I'd install the Piezio's.

[jomaynor]

Originally Posted by midwinter

Thanks! I've got JJBs in two banjos and two mandolins; I'm a big fan of them.

The only reason I'm considering a K&K is that I *think* I want the mic option.

Perhaps you could blend the piezos with the Lyric mic that you already have installed.

[midwinter]

It's an option, but I really want to try to keep my rig as simple as I can so long as I'm happy with the sound. I'd also like to not have to worry about a battery in there, if I can help it (I say that, and my current Lyric battery has many, many hours of gigs on it and is going just fine). But I would like to be able to leave the guitar plugged in without worrying about running down the battery.

[jseth]

Well, I DO know that it has been done, but I'm not a tech-guy so I don't know all the in's and out's of the install... but yes, a K&K PW will work with that pinless bridge/JLD bridge truss on a Breedlove...