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  #1  
Old 02-17-2017, 09:53 AM
PistolPete PistolPete is offline
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Default Removable Soundhole Pickups?

I'm toying with the idea of getting a soundhole pickup as a catch-all should I want to play out my non-gigging guitars from time to time. I'm just wondering what's around at the minute & how does it sound?

I played with a Seymour Duncan Woody around 7-8 years back & I just wondered if any subsequent new products had surpassed it?

I'd not want to wire it to an endpin as it would be swapped between instruments.
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Old 02-17-2017, 10:23 AM
buzzardwhiskey buzzardwhiskey is offline
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I played with a DiMarzio Black Angel all last summer by running it into a Zoom A3 preamp and combining it with a Shure Beta 57a. After lowering the B and high E poles, the sound is pretty acceptable, especially in a band setting where the sound has an electric "cutting" quality.

I now wish that I has installed K&K's earlier. They're closer to "real" sounding. Although they're quite a bit more feedback prone.
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Old 02-17-2017, 10:58 AM
Bill Yellow Bill Yellow is offline
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I have a Schertler M-AG6 soundhole magnetic pickup, combined with the S-MIC-M little microphone that plugs into it. Not cheap - Swiss made - but readily available from Thomann. The cable can route externally if not fitting via an endpin jack.

It is a fantastically realistic pickup to my ears. Certainly a good alternative to the Fishman Rare Earth Blend and the LR Baggs M1. Also check out the various DiMarzio 'Angel' models.
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Old 02-17-2017, 11:14 AM
chitz chitz is offline
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I keep a Lawrence A245C soundhole pickup in my gig bag in case of a built in pickup failure. $50 or less.

It used to be my go/to pickup until I switched to SBTs.
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Old 02-17-2017, 01:11 PM
jseth jseth is offline
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I checked out a bunch of soundhole pickups when I first received my Goodall Grand Concert... what I found was that the better sounding ones aren't all that easy or quick to remove/install.

The style that has a pressure clip to hold it in place, those have all been basically electric guitar pickups which don't sound much like an acoustic guitar. A useful sound, certainly, especially as described above - in a band setting where you might want the acoustic to "cut' through the mix like an electric guitar would...

I haven't heard of anything that swaps out easily that also sounds very much like an acoustic guitar... sure, you could get some other outboard gear to make a pickup sound "more acoustic", but by the time you do that, you may as well have installed JJB pickups in each guitar! (So you know, the type of pickup that mounts on the bridgeplate as a thin film or small, thin dot aren't going to alter your guitars' sound nor broach their value; even wiring an output jack wouldn't be very invasive, should you go the "vintage" jack (1/8") route...
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Old 02-17-2017, 03:15 PM
RustyAxe RustyAxe is offline
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I use a Baggs M1A ... and use the end pin jacks. I installed an end pin jack with the cable in each guitar I want to use it in. When I remove the pickup the short cable hangs loose inside the guitar. Convenient.

Last edited by RustyAxe; 02-17-2017 at 09:32 PM.
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Old 02-17-2017, 09:34 PM
TheShadowKnows TheShadowKnows is offline
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I have 2 Seymour Duncan Woody's. The blonde & the mahogany. No, the wood doesn't make it sound different. Just looks cool! These are the humbucker types which makes all the difference in the world when playing under lights & bad AC power. They will cancel out about 95% of the hum & buzz unless you're right next to the source & angle your guitar in a specific way.

I've used them in 2 Parkwood spruce dred's & a Carvin cedar top dred. They all sound good, clean & not overly midrange-ish, at least in these guitars. With some outboard EQ, (parametric) I was able to get them to really shine. I think new they're around 60 clams. I got both of mine used for much less.

The thing the Woody's have over other pickups is that the cable is very thick & the end plug is sturdy. My biggest complaint about Baggs sound hole pickups is the cable is very thin. That make for easy moving it around but not much for durability. I don't intend to mount the pickup internally with an end pin jack so it just hangs off the end. You can tape it to the bottom of your guitar & run the rest between your guitar & strap, which will be plenty to secure it for a stand up gig, or even a sit down one.

I have an OM/GA Parkwood with the smallest soundhole I've ever measured. It's 93mm with or about 3.66 inches. The above mentioned pickups will NOT fit something that small. I went with a Bill Lawrence A245C soundhole pickup. It has a spring on the bottom that looks like a sideways U. I knew because of its adjustability it would work... and it did. The A245C also has a volume control where the Woody's do not. Not sure if that matters to you but it is convenient whereas you don't have to go to your mixer or anything to reduce the volume a bit. The Lawrence is about 50 clams new so they're all within an affordable ballpark.

I'd really like to install the higher end pickups but being a non-working musician (at this time) with so many mouths (guitars) to feed, I try my best to get the best with what money I have to distribute amongst buying gear needed to gig with.

Hope that helps.
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