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#1
08-05-2008, 01:19 AM
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Highlander iP-1.. seems great, but..
Hey guys
My friend has a Santa Cruz OM with a Highlander iP-1 installed on it and it sounded fantastic. I didn't know it was a piezo until he told me. I loved the organic and accurate tone it produced. I currently have a K&K pure western mini and I'm somewhat satisfied by it. I actually prefer the Highlander's tone to mine. Plus, the highlander has a preamp and has much more powerful output, while the K&K requires an external preamp if i want the same or similar results. One major drawback for me is the invasive installation process. I really do NOT want to route a groove in my bridge. Is there a pickup out there that is really similar to iP-1 in terms of tone, output, accuracy, etc.. that doesn't require me to modify/alter my guitar? [one thing i liked about the K&K was that I didn't have to drill holes or modify my guitar in anyway] note: I'm not looking for soundhole pickups or majorly expensive pickups. My target price range can be estimated by the K&K and Highlander. 
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#3
08-08-2008, 09:01 AM
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Well, the closest thing out there to a Highlander is a D-TAR Timber-Line. (They were both designed by Rick Turner.) The Timber-Line requires routing like the Highlander for the best results, but will also work well keeping the bottom of the saddle slot and saddle straight. But then why bother... you'll notice that the Timber-Line is still available, but is pretty much only marketed towards builders who are willing to do the routing. D-TAR's Wave-Length is a similar choice sonically. It's a UST like the others, but is designed to work with a flat saddle slot bottom. It has a good preamp. The preamp has a second channel that can accept a K&K; this fall D-TAR will be introducing an internal mic that's designed to go in the second channel. Hope that helps.
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#4
08-08-2008, 04:52 PM
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I have the Highlander pickup in 2 of my guitars. Yes it is a risk to rout the saddle slot, but I love the pickup so it's worth it to me.
I would say if you don't want to rout a channel in the saddle slot, go with the D-tart wavelength or the L.R. baggs Element. They are both excellent pickups and will give you a sound very very close to the highlander. I have a wavelength in one of my guitars and it wounds quite good.
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#5
08-08-2008, 06:42 PM
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I honestly havent heard anything as true to the actual unplugged tone of the guitar (in the low $100 range) as a B-band A1.2N-AST 1470. The bad news is that in loud situations it can be feedback prone. The UST version of this pickup (A1.2) sounds fairly natural too (and is very feedback resistant), but I honestly dont know how well it would compare to the IP-1 as I havent heard 1 for myself........
 . To my ears the B-band products sound better than the K&K's and require much less EQ'ing to get good natural sound (from my experiences with both).
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#6
08-08-2008, 09:25 PM
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mm i see i see, but i heard that only B-band pickups can only be used with B-band preamps. is this true?
however, im really interested in the B-Band A1.2N-1470. Anybody have any feedback on this pick-up? Last edited by mikemike; 08-08-2008 at 09:44 PM.
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#7
08-08-2008, 10:19 PM
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Quote:
The pickup and preamp are an all-in-one Mike, so you dont need to get a different preamp (besides the B-band 1 that comes with it). However these pickups will work fine with an external preamp such as the LR Baggs Para DI and the like. What they mean is that you cant plug a B-band pickup into say a Fishman preamp that is already built into your guitar. Most built-in preamps and pickups of different namebrands are incompatible with each other. The plug-ins and components generally dont match up, making them incompatible. On the AST-1470, What situations do you play in? Do you need to play loud in noisy situations? If so you will need to use a feedback buster (rubber soundhole plug) to combat feedback with an AST-style pickup. Many use these FB Busters even with UST pickups in noisy situations. I have the AST-1470 A1.2N in a couple of my guitars and am very impressed with how they sound.
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#8
08-08-2008, 11:06 PM
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Quote:
Have you compared the AST 1470 A1.2N to the K&K PWM? With my PWM, i tend to get a bit of a thick mid-heavy tone that sounds a bit artificial and plasticky. And also, I don't understand the powering of the A1.2N. They say "the 9-volt battery powered electronics are mounted in a small tube that is directly coupled with a high quality endpin jack making an all-in-one structure. As an option, the A1.2 or A1.2N can be phantom powered with the B-Band external battery box." How is the 9-volt battery in the endpin tube? And how does the external battery box work? Does it attach to the inside of the guitar? Thats what I am assuming. Thanks for any help, guys.
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#9
08-08-2008, 11:53 PM
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Quote:
Haha....Understand your confusion on that jargon they use Mike. It confused me the 1st time I was reading about the B-band products. It's pretty simple actually. The preamp is mounted in a tube that has your 1/4" input (for the signal chord plug-in). On the inside of the guitar, 3 wire groups come out of the tube. One for volume control, one for the transducer (AST), and one for the 9-volt battery. The battery will mount in a small holder with velcro against the inside neck block and the volume control mounts just inside the soundhole. http://www.guitarsaddles.com/bband.asp. Scroll down on this page. As far as comparing the PWM to the AST-1470, I find the 1470 to sound more lively and rich with a minimum of EQing. Perhaps in all fairness if I had purchased the K&K external preamp it would have improved the sound of the K&Ks I tried. I tried my LR Baggs Padi and had to do a lot of adjusting to find any settings that I liked. A lot of people like the K&K pickups. Everyone has their preferences.
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#10
08-09-2008, 03:45 PM
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Quote:
thanks so much for your input, greatly appreciated : D
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#11
08-09-2008, 04:20 PM
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No prob.....Let me know how you make out
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#13
08-13-2008, 08:24 AM
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Well, I will add to discussion again: Keep in mind that I don't have a ton of experience with B-Band, but a friend of mine had a B-Band UST and AST in one of his Lowdens at one point, and I while I wouldn't say it as a bad pickup, it doesn't sound like the highlander to me. The combo was quite feedback prone due to the AST, and the UST alone was good, but not the same as the Highlander. So if you are wanting to find a plugged in tone close to the highlander you heard, go with the D-tar wavelength or Baggs Element Active.
I am not saying that B-Band is a bad option, only that it is not the closest thing to the highlander. I personally can't do SBT's (PUTW/ K&K/ B-Band AST) due to the feedback I have got from every single one. I play in a band at venues that get quite loud and there is no way it would work. I also get compliments all the time from my acoustic tone plugged in.
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