Replacing the NanoFlex on my Epi EJ-200SCE with a K&K?

Nate74 · #1 02-08-2016, 03:33 PM

I've been using an Epiphone EJ-200SCE for a few gigs a month now for the past 6 or 7 months. I really like the way it plays and I won't lie, I really love the way it looks. The acoustic sound is passable and I sometimes use just the magnetic pickup for a more "jazz box" tone on some songs.

Like I said, the acoustic sound, relying mostly on the nano-flex under saddle is OK, but no where near as good as the sound I get plugged in with my Blueridge BR-160 with a K&K Pure Mini on it.

So I'm wondering if I could remove the NanoFlex and wire a K&K Pure Mini into the Epi's preamp. No idea if there would be impedance matching issues though.

I could just wire it straight to the 1/4" jack, but then I'd lose the use of the magnetic pickup, the EQ controls and the onboard tuner.

I guess I could pull the preamp unit out of the Epi and come up with a way to wire it to the output of my Blueridge? I think...

Any thoughts on this? Feasible or Foolish?

wayne8 · #2 02-09-2016, 02:24 PM

I know this doesn't really answer your question but if the answer to your question is 'no', maybe you could take this route. What I did with mine was have my guy just add the K&K Trinity system to the guitar and left the NanoMag/NanoFlex intact. He had to drill an extra hole in the end block to do it but it worked out just fine. Now I have the option of 4 different pickups and the ability to blend.

Nate74 · #3 02-09-2016, 05:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wayne8

I know this doesn't really answer your question but if the answer to your question is 'no', maybe you could take this route. What I did with mine was have my guy just add the K&K Trinity system to the guitar and left the NanoMag/NanoFlex intact. He had to drill an extra hole in the end block to do it but it worked out just fine. Now I have the option of 4 different pickups and the ability to blend.

That thought has certainly occurred to me as well. In fact, my model has a separate NanoMag only output that I have never used so I could just run a K&K directly to that 1/4" jack.

I ordered a 2.5mm plug today and am going to make a cable that is 1/4" to 2.5mm. Then I can plug my Blueridge with the K&K into the NanoFlex input on the Epi's preamp and then play the EP into my amp. If I pan the Epi's preamp all the way to the NanoFlex side, I'll only get signal from the Blueridge. Not a perfect test but it will at least tell me if the Epi's preamp can handle the K&K's impedance.

Time to dust off the soldering iron I guess...

Thanks for the input and advice. It may come to that

wayne8 · #4 02-10-2016, 01:48 PM

I think I read that the pickups on the Epi plug into the preamp via a screw in jack.

Nate74 · #5 02-11-2016, 12:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wayne8

I think I read that the pickups on the Epi plug into the preamp via a screw in jack.

I got in there and on mine they plug into a 2.5mm plug. I picked one up at the local electronics shop so now I need to make a 2.5mm to 1/4" cable for my test. I'll report back when I do it.

TOCS · #6 02-13-2016, 03:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate74

I got in there and on mine they plug into a 2.5mm plug. I picked one up at the local electronics shop so now I need to make a 2.5mm to 1/4" cable for my test. I'll report back when I do it.

In case you're interested, I made a thread some time ago pretty similar to this: http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=412460

Personally, I'm going to try and order the STANDARD SERIES PPS-200p from JJB Electronics and see if it works with the eSonic2 preamp. It's not a very expensive experiment, so even if it doesn't produce the result I'm after, it's not doomsday.

On a side note, I'd recommend you to use a cable for each pickup on your guitar and blend the signal. This will provide a better produced frequency spectrum of your instrument. If you think the magnetic pickup is too electric sounding, you can roll off the highs using the on-board EQ (I use a parametric EQ down the chain because it makes it easier to narrow down unwanted frequencies). =)

Nate74 · #7 02-13-2016, 05:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TOCS

In case you're interested, I made a thread some time ago pretty similar to this: http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=412460

Personally, I'm going to try and order the STANDARD SERIES PPS-200p from JJB Electronics and see if it works with the eSonic2 preamp. It's not a very expensive experiment, so even if it doesn't produce the result I'm after, it's not doomsday.

On a side note, I'd recommend you to use a cable for each pickup on your guitar and blend the signal. This will provide a better produced frequency spectrum of your instrument. If you think the magnetic pickup is too electric sounding, you can roll off the highs using the on-board EQ (I use a parametric EQ down the chain because it makes it easier to narrow down unwanted frequencies). =)

Yeah, hard to beat JJB stuff for the price. Thanks for the link to the previous thread. I'll take a good look at that.

I made my 2.5mm to 1/4" cable and plugged my Blueridge with the K&K into the NanoFlex input on the Epi's preamp. It sounded pretty good, especially with some EQ on the amp, but when I tried messing with the blend on the Epi's preamp, even with it all the way over towards the NanoMag side, there was still a lot of signal from the NanoFlex input coming through. I'm guessing what ever resistance rating that potentiometer is, isn't enough to control the output from the K&K. So if I were to replace the NanoFlex with a K&K or JJB, I wouldn't be able to completely eliminate it from my signal when I wanted just the NanoMag; which I do sometimes...

Not sure I'm gonna go much past this at this point. Maybe easier to rethink the Epi all together...

TOCS · #8 02-14-2016, 07:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate74

Yeah, hard to beat JJB stuff for the price. Thanks for the link to the previous thread. I'll take a good look at that.

I made my 2.5mm to 1/4" cable and plugged my Blueridge with the K&K into the NanoFlex input on the Epi's preamp. It sounded pretty good, especially with some EQ on the amp, but when I tried messing with the blend on the Epi's preamp, even with it all the way over towards the NanoMag side, there was still a lot of signal from the NanoFlex input coming through. I'm guessing what ever resistance rating that potentiometer is, isn't enough to control the output from the K&K. So if I were to replace the NanoFlex with a K&K or JJB, I wouldn't be able to completely eliminate it from my signal when I wanted just the NanoMag; which I do sometimes...

Not sure I'm gonna go much past this at this point. Maybe easier to rethink the Epi all together...

Pretty cool that it works, I wasn't expecting that, to be honest. Too bad it doesn't cooperate properly with the preamp though. I'll probably try experimenting and tinker around with the preamp anyway to see what I can come up with. I'll make sure to post my results here.

Nate74 · #9 02-14-2016, 05:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TOCS

Pretty cool that it works, I wasn't expecting that, to be honest. Too bad it doesn't cooperate properly with the preamp though. I'll probably try experimenting and tinker around with the preamp anyway to see what I can come up with. I'll make sure to post my results here.

Please do. I'm thinking I may just work harder to try to get the right tone out of the nanoflex. Since I play the Epi mostly in an Irish pub rock band, a perfect acoustic tone isn't an absolute, but it'd be nice...