Is your favorite plugged-in guitar also your favorite unplugged guitar?

Rmz76 · #1 03-20-2018, 12:22 PM

For those who play with a pickup system, I'm curious if your favorite plugged-in guitar is also your favorite unplugged guitar. If not, do you think there are some compromises that have to be made so that a guitar either sounds best plugged in or unplugged?

Fred · #2 03-20-2018, 02:54 PM

Yes. I had a K&K installed in my Goodall. Sounds good either way.

Nymuso · #3 03-20-2018, 02:57 PM

Absolutely not. My plugged in favorite is m Godin A6 Ultra. It is a gigging instrument from the ground up. My favorite unplugged guitar is my HD-35, which works best for jams, studio or other unplugged applications.

To completely answer the OP, yes there are compromises to be made when you plug in. In another thread the need for notch filters was discussed. There's a compromise right there. I know many here swear by this, that or the other pick up system that is a faithful reproduction of their unplugged sound, but I've heard most of them and I've yet to hear one that actually is. You're going to get a sound you can work with, but it will not be the unplugged sound. Rather than tolerate my HD-35 sounding like something else, I opted to go in a different direction.

Sonics · #4 03-20-2018, 03:09 PM

I have the 'Aura' imaging system built into one of my Martins. So I guess it's 'cheating' since the unplugged and plugged sounds are, in theory, identical.

Pitar · #5 03-20-2018, 04:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rmz76

For those who play with a pickup system, I'm curious if your favorite plugged-in guitar is also your favorite unplugged guitar. If not, do you think there are some compromises that have to be made so that a guitar either sounds best plugged in or unplugged?

I'm a firm believer in getting the sound I need from a plugged guitar only. Otherwise, I've run the unplugged gauntlet from low to high (psychic) expectations and have never been able to honestly claim one or several guitars satisfied what I was looking for. That's because what I'm looking for is never the same and no single or several unplugged guitars can keep up with that. So, I divested and focused on one plugged (only) guitar. Because I'm not expecting an unplugged guitar to measure up to my changing demands (they all fall short in one or more aspects) I won't consider them in that regard. These days I dial in what I want and get the best tones only from nylon strings. Steel string guitars tend to grate on me.

BluesKing777 · #6 03-20-2018, 04:34 PM

The truth is that it is a great example of “Never the twain shall meet”.

The best pickup that I personally own is my Maton AP5-Pro system in my Maton SRS808. But the guitar is new and I prefer vintage acoustics....and my best guitars ARE vintage. But the vintage guitars are never getting a barn door system like the Maton. Never.

BluesKing777.

BoneDigger · #7 03-20-2018, 06:13 PM

Nope, not at all. My favorite unplugged is my D18. My favorite plugged in is my F50R. The Guild sounds great unplugged too, but it's not my absolute favorite unplugged.

Steve DeRosa · #8 03-20-2018, 06:29 PM

Yes...

YeOldRocker · #9 03-20-2018, 06:34 PM

I think the issue is whatever one has in mind for a plugged-in acoustic guitar sound. If you go on the assumption - which I believe is correct - that no system - short of two (or more) expensive mikes in a sound room - will sound even close to the sound of an unplugged acoustic, and - once you're going through speakers, no matter the pickup system - it just won't sound exactly like something acoustic - at best, an approximation.With that as a given, there are plenty of decent-sounding options out there.

So, for me, my main acoustic guitar is also my main plugged-in guitar, because it is the most comfortable one for me to play and I want to play my best. Soundwise, it's really a slightly different instrument, and should be thought of as such. Both sound good. Of course, the guitar sounds better acoustically; I would expect it to. The question is whether or not I can live with my acoustic guitar not sounding exactly the same amped as when its not amped. The answer's yes - as if I had a choice!

rokdog49 · #10 03-20-2018, 08:25 PM

In my experience, any amplified guitar will never live up to the sound of the acoustic tones it produces to the human ear. That being said, all my guitars have pickups in them and I use a Platinum Pro Pre amp/ DI with EQ and notch filters to try to reproduce that live. I can get reasonably close with each guitar but
compromises are made. At the end of the day, my least favorite amplified is the D18. The others are all pretty good. I like the Eastman OM the best I suppose.

jaybones · #11 03-20-2018, 09:26 PM

For sure! Other players have said my PR7ERS sounds like a guitar should.

It has a unique shape, wider lower bout, proportionally narrower waist and a more forward oval shaped soundhole. It has Epiphone V electronics (UST), and yes it has the dreaded barn door.

RefrigRaider · #12 03-20-2018, 11:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rmz76

For those who play with a pickup system, I'm curious if your favorite plugged-in guitar is also your favorite unplugged guitar. If not, do you think there are some compromises that have to be made so that a guitar either sounds best plugged in or unplugged?

Easy answer for me, since I own only one steel string - yes.

hillin · #13 03-21-2018, 01:03 AM

My favorite plugged... is an electric. The Gibson HRF3.

That being said, the ANCIENT L.R.Baggs Dual Source on my SCGC OM sounds fascinating.

Mbroady · #14 03-21-2018, 01:17 AM

That’s a tough call for me. Right now my Furch D32LM is the only guitar with a pick up. It sounds awesome unplugged and plugged in (K&K mini and mic). My other (Furch) Guitars are all amazing as well for different reasons and will eventually have a pick up installed.

So I guess what I’m saying is I don’t have a favorite.

1Charlie · #15 03-21-2018, 06:49 AM

I host an open mic. As such, I have had the chance to listen to, and mix sound for, hundreds of different guitars plugged in.

While none of them sound as they would acoustically, there are significant differences between all of them as plugged in instruments, so the notion that all acoustic guitars sound the same once they are plugged in is total bunk.

The size, shape, tonewoods, quality of the guitar and quality of the pickup can all be heard in the amplified sound (along with the quality of the player, of course!). What also makes a difference is whether the pickup is passive or active.

Having said that, not all high-dollar, high-quality guitars are meant for amplification, especially those with a deep bass response, which can come across as "boomy" or "muddy", even when mixed properly. IMO, a good stage guitar accentuates the midrange, de-emphasizes the bass, and eliminates the "ice-pick" highs often heard on cheaper plugged in acoustics.