#1
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Favorite Preamp for a K&K ?
I have K&K's in three of my Martins. I've been running them thru a Pure XLR preamp (from K&K) into a Fender Acoustic Pro and just can't seem to capture the sound of my guitar(s) despite fiddling with every dial combination possible.
Any suggestions for a different preamp? |
#2
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Tone Dexter
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#3
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The K&K preamps are great. I think the Redeye is a bit better. Also remember the amp is also part of the equation.
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Gibson J45tv / LG2 AE / Dove Ltd. Trans Ebony / AJ Martin D18 (custom shop) / HD35 / 00-16DBM Taylor DN3 / Baby Guild GAD25 Yamaha FG413S / FG200 / FG800 |
#4
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I agree. The Red Eye is pure magic. The K& K Preamp is fine, but there is a sweeter presence with the Red Eye in my experience.
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Martin DC-18E (Ambertone) Martin HDC-28E Martin D-18 (2015) Collings D1 Traditional Emerald X20 Fender CS '63 Telecaster Custom Collings I-35LCV Collings I-30LC Collings 290 www.heartsoulaz.com |
#5
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__________________
Website: http://www.buzzardwhiskey.com |
#6
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I love the sound through my Redeye though I've never tried the K&K preamps. I would love to try Tone Dexter some day.
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#7
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I was going to recommend the little K&K but see you have already tried it and don't get the tone you want. I have tried many and I keep coming back to the little belt-clip K&K. It works great and gives me 'onboard' volume and tone control that I find invaluable at places like open mics.
I have used the Red Eye as well and that is a wonderful little device. It gives you a great tone and allows you to add some high end if needed but that's about it for tone control. There is also boost but I never use/need boost so it's a feature I don't need. I would have preferred it to be a mute button, personally. I tried the Baggs Venue and Para but didn't find either worked well for my needs. |
#8
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Quote:
For a cheap & easy experiment, buy or borrow a Boss GE-7 graphic equalizer and experiment with cutting various frequency bands. Guitar amps sometimes have their own tonal "personality", as opposed to the more typically flat frequency response of a PA system. If your amp happens to emphasize the low mids, you may get some benefit from cutting the 200Hz and 400Hz frequency bands. Many K&K rigs tend to be too bassy, so you might also want to cut at 100Hz. Some K&K users have reported that a mid cut around 1.5KHz helps, so you might also experiment with cutting the 1.6KHz frequency band. Just play around with the frequency band sliders and note what manipulations seem to get you closer to the tone which you're seeking. In any event, the GE-7 has an available gain of 15db (if needed) and a listed input impedance of 1 Mohm (ideal for the Mini Pure). It certainly can't do what ToneDexter can do, but its inexpensive and its great for EQ experimentation. |
#9
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Ultrasound DI Plus. Great preamp and the notch and phase switch are very handy for a variety of different venue/sound systems.
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#10
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You got many recommendations for the Red-Eye preamp to match with K&K pickup here. From my experience I can confirm that the Red Eye is a very good, clean preamp, to my ears better than others I tried.
That said, it's not like this preamp will solve all your problems to get more natural sound from your K&K pickup equipped guitar. In my case I noticed that putting new strings is an important factor (I know, it's obvious but I'm sharing my experience) to improve the sound. What made a massive difference for me is not the Red-Eye but Zoom MS50G multi-effect pedal. It has 1MOhm input and 172 effects you can choose from. So what I do is engage on the MS50G a few effects and the most important is a graphic EQ and a parametric EQ. The first, lets me shape the overall sound and the second address problems like 'quakiness'. And as others mentioned it needs a cut or two in the middle range - where exactly, it depends on the guitar, strings and PA/amp you run it through. I also add some compression and a bit of ambience (the air effect). Sometimes a like to use an exciter modelled after the BBE effects. The bottom line is it's not as much as a preamp helped me to achieve a better sound but a right amount of EQ. |
#11
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Thanks for all the info! It definitely helps!
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#12
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i have the kk pure xlr and it works well.
i have tried para di and the apparent king of pres the pendulum. and found them lacking and quacking.i have and use more often a felix by grace design. this works very well. but i still occasionally use the pure xlr. just bought a tonedexter and the jury is still out .. i still have to play with this more as i think it has potential. so many pres so little time and money. eq is the key with the pure xlr. for me the mid control is generally off ( fully counter clockwise or just a wee bit ) the bass is about 10:30. and the treble is about 1:30. ymmv |
#13
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__________________
John Brook ‘Lamorna’ OM (European Spruce/EIR) (2019) Lowden F-23 (Red Cedar/Claro Walnut) (2017) Martin D-18 (2012) Martin HD-28V (2010) Fender Standard Strat (2017-MIM) |