Acoustic Guitar Magazine (Doug Young) reviews the Trance Amulet M Phantom

[Gorquin]

The Trance Amulet M Phantom in Doug's video sounds good but when I listen to the vid's on Maury's Music the Trance Amulet M sounds compressed and not as open or full sounding as the mic recording which is understandable given the different technologies.

The same goes for the K&K VS Mic recording although I thought the K&K was much more compressed than the Trance system.

I've used both the K&K Trinity system w/the mic and the K&K Western and was not impressed enough to keep them. The mic did add some ambiance to the overall sound but needed to be dialed in slowly to avoid feedback.

I'm trying to avoid a sound hole pickup because of ascetics but to my ears the Braggs M1 Passive sounded better than the K&K overall, both being tweaked.

Anyone more impressed with something else? So far the Trance Amulet M Phantom sounds better (on line) than most other non-sound hole pickups I've either used myself or listened to on line.

[Petty1818]

Originally Posted by Gorquin

The Trance Amulet M Phantom in Doug's video sounds good but when I listen to the vid's on Maury's Music the Trance Amulet M sounds compressed and not as open or full sounding as the mic recording which is understandable given the different technologies.

The same goes for the K&K VS Mic recording although I thought the K&K was much more compressed than the Trance system.

I've used both the K&K Trinity system w/the mic and the K&K Western and was not impressed enough to keep them. The mic did add some ambiance to the overall sound but needed to be dialed in slowly to avoid feedback.

I'm trying to avoid a sound hole pickup because of ascetics but to my ears the Braggs M1 Passive sounded better than the K&K overall, both being tweaked.

Anyone more impressed with something else? So far the Trance Amulet M Phantom sounds better (on line) than most other non-sound hole pickups I've either used myself or listened to on line.

That could be a result of YouTube compressing the signal a bit. It's always difficult to assess the tone online. Through a PA, the Trance would probably sound even more natural.

[Johnny.guitar]

I like this idea.
Only issue for me is I run a few pedals on my acoustic and I don't see how you could put anything between the guitar and the PA?


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[martingitdave]

Originally Posted by Johnny.guitar

I like this idea.
Only issue for me is I run a few pedals on my acoustic and I don't see how you could put anything between the guitar and the PA?


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You need an effects loop on the mixer, or a phantom box in front of your pedals.


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[Doug Young]

Hi Guys, It's been a busy week and I haven't been online. Glad to hear they fixed the "outtakes". I never got around to seeing the original before they took it down, so I don't know (probably for the best :-) what the problem there was, but I'm glad to hear they got it edited better and back up. It was a little bit of a complex video shoot for some reason, so the editing may have been tougher than usual. A fair bit of me messing up, I think :-)

Someone asked about bleed in the sound, and unfortunately, I'm not sure, since I wasn't involved in mixing it. They had mics for voice and a direct line out of the Bud amp, so I don't know how much of each was in there, or how much acoustic sound would have picked up vs the amp.

On the question of pedals, I tried to demo that in the video and also discussed in the article - it's pretty easy to put a phantom box in front of pedals. It feels odd, since we're not used to doing that, but it's not really much different from needing a DI for a "regular" pickup setup - just a different box, and the cheapy phantom box I got works great. All in all, it's a pretty cool option, but the sound's the same with the phantom vs the battery-powered.

I hear no compression with the Trance at all, and tons of headroom, works great for strumming. So I'm not sure what you hear on Maury's video, but I don't think it's the pickup. I've also had good luck with the Trance thru a ToneDexter - the TD maybe adds less in this case than with some pickups, but it definitely brings in even a bit more realism.

[Gorquin]

Here are a few clips for comparison:

Trance Amulet M vs. unplugged
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URodwB6y7MY

PUTW - Dynamic Duo SBT/UST

This sounds more open but I'm waiting to hear if it was recorded in Stereo (two separate preamps) and then blended or the available Mono (two into one mono jack). It also doesn't say if it's been processed in any way.

https://www.pickup.world/product/dyn...string-guitar/

Here's the PUTW Dual Element SBT - which from listening to Doug's recordings sounds like him or very good clone. LOL There's a noticeable difference between the two PUTW recordings. Obviously not the same combo of pickups guitars, preamps etc.

https://www.pickup.world/product/54-...l-element-sbt/

[SpruceTop]

Originally Posted by Doug Young

Hi Guys, It's been a busy week and I haven't been online. Glad to hear they fixed the "outtakes". I never got around to seeing the original before they took it down, so I don't know (probably for the best :-) what the problem there was, but I'm glad to hear they got it edited better and back up. It was a little bit of a complex video shoot for some reason, so the editing may have been tougher than usual. A fair bit of me messing up, I think :-)

Someone asked about bleed in the sound, and unfortunately, I'm not sure, since I wasn't involved in mixing it. They had mics for voice and a direct line out of the Bud amp, so I don't know how much of each was in there, or how much acoustic sound would have picked up vs the amp.

On the question of pedals, I tried to demo that in the video and also discussed in the article - it's pretty easy to put a phantom box in front of pedals. It feels odd, since we're not used to doing that, but it's not really much different from needing a DI for a "regular" pickup setup - just a different box, and the cheapy phantom box I got works great. All in all, it's a pretty cool option, but the sound's the same with the phantom vs the battery-powered.

I hear no compression with the Trance at all, and tons of headroom, works great for strumming. So I'm not sure what you hear on Maury's video, but I don't think it's the pickup. I've also had good luck with the Trance thru a ToneDexter - the TD maybe adds less in this case than with some pickups, but it definitely brings in even a bit more realism.

Doug, I'm curious as to why a Henriksen Bud amp was used for this test? I mean as good a small amp as I assume it to be, wouldn't using an AER, Schertler or other larger, quality acoustic amp with fuller resonance have been a better choice with which to have demonstrated the Trance system or any other pickup/preamp system? Having never played through a Henriksen Bud, I'm ignorant of first-hand experience as to what this amp can do for amplified acoustic tone, and so my question. Thanks!

[Doug Young]

Originally Posted by SpruceTop

Doug, I'm curious as to why a Henriksen Bud amp was used for this test? I mean as good a small amp as I assume it to be, wouldn't using an AER, Schertler or other larger, quality acoustic amp with fuller resonance have been a better choice with which to have demonstrated the Trance system or any other pickup/preamp system? Having never played through a Henriksen Bud, I'm ignorant of first-hand experience as to what this amp can do for amplified acoustic tone, and so my question. Thanks!

It's what they had at AG. I would have much preferred to use a PA, but they didn't have one, and didn't want to take the time for me to bring one in - they were all set up for their usual videos with the Bud. I also tried to just use a mixer direct, which would have made more sense to demo for this pickup, but they had some electrical issue in the room and the board had a terrible hum that we weren't able to fix quickly. So, yeah, not ideal, but sometimes you just have to deal with practicalities.

I thought the Bud sounded nice, quite impressive for it's size, tho a bit boxy compared to a full-range PA. One of these days, I'll shoot my own demo - I have some ideas of different things to explore.

[SpruceTop]

Originally Posted by Doug Young

It's what they had at AG. I would have much preferred to use a PA, but they didn't have one, and didn't want to take the time for me to bring one in - they were all set up for their usual videos with the Bud. I also tried to just use a mixer direct, which would have made more sense to demo for this pickup, but they had some electrical issue in the room and the board had a terrible hum that we weren't able to fix quickly. So, yeah, not ideal, but sometimes you just have to deal with practicalities.

I thought the Bud sounded nice, quite impressive for it's size, tho a bit boxy compared to a full-range PA. One of these days, I'll shoot my own demo - I have some ideas of different things to explore.

Thanks, Doug!

[Neon Soul]

Originally Posted by Doug Young

I'll have to check with the guys at the Magazine about those outtakes. Hmm...

Maybe have a word with the videographer the magazine uses about the whole video being out of focus.

Sure, a bit of focal change is artistic, but this whole vid is just fuzzy.

[Doug Young]

Originally Posted by Neon Soul

Maybe have a word with the videographer the magazine uses about the whole video being out of focus.

Sure, a bit of focal change is artistic, but this whole vid is just fuzzy.

I think this is because AG always uploads to You Tube in low res. I haven't been able to get them to change that. They have very good video gear, it just doesn't translate to You Tube unless its uploaded in HD.