k & k preamp controls

[HighAndDry]

I was looking at the belt pack version of the k & k preamp on their website. I noticed that to adjust the eq controls you have to use a mini screwdriver. Are the controls accessible without taking the unit apart. And isn't it kind of a bummer that they dont have knobs?

[tochiro]

You have to unscrew 2 screws to access the controls. This is far from convenient and I just don't understand why manufacturers put controls inside the box.

[RustyAxe]

Originally Posted by HighAndDry

I was looking at the belt pack version of the k & k preamp on their website. I noticed that to adjust the eq controls you have to use a mini screwdriver. Are the controls accessible without taking the unit apart. And isn't it kind of a bummer that they dont have knobs?

Which unit (model number, please) are you referring to? On the Pure preamp the only internal control is the gain trim pot, which is usually just fine left as it comes from the factory. It is adjustable to account for particularly hot or weak signals from the pickup ... but is shipped set correctly for the K&K passive pickups (and most others, even most active pickups). Bass, Mid, Treble and output volume all have knobs as one would expect.

[tochiro]

As for me I was talking about the Trinity preamp.

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by HighAndDry

I was looking at the belt pack version of the k & k preamp on their website. I noticed that to adjust the eq controls you have to use a mini screwdriver. Are the controls accessible without taking the unit apart. And isn't it kind of a bummer that they dont have knobs?

Hi H&D...
I own the Trinity belt pack, and have modified it with blue painter's tape so I can get inside without removing any screws. It's actually a nice job of engineering to fit so good a preamp in so little space. As to why, where on earth would one put 8 more control knobs (3 tone and one gain per channel)?

And no, it's not a bummer that they don't have knobs. K&K are very predictable pickups. Once my guitar preamp tone is set where I want it, I rarely change it. If it had knobs, someone might be tempted to mess with them.

The little supplied screwdriver tool comes velcro-ed to the inside of the box, and has stayed in place for 7 years now. And the blue painter's tape solved the rare need to tweak without carrying a screwdriver.





Hope this contributes...

[HighAndDry]

Thanks Lj!! Those photos are awesome. I think I might try that mod with duct tape if I get that belt pack. Hope it doesn't effect the tone. LOL
Once you get it set you dont worry about it. I have been using a K & K in my tak. But no pre. So when I plug directly into my mackie board I use the low and sweepable mid on the channel to roll off some of the lows and low mids. however when I go into my yamaha powered mixer which only has low mid and high one each channel I actually have to go the main graphic equalizer. I am hoping the pre will solve that.
thanks again for the great photos!

[HighAndDry]

Does that preamp (the trinity) blend the mic and pickup out into one output? If I am reading the info on the website correctly (the manual) it appears that it does or gives the option of separate outs.

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by HighAndDry

Does that preamp (the trinity) blend the mic and pickup out into one output? If I am reading the info on the website correctly (the manual) it appears that it does or gives the option of separate outs.

Hi H&D...

It defaults to a single output, but can be separated.

[dwstout]

lj - I installed the Trinity in my OM-28V a few weeks ago and LOVE the sound. But of course now I want to "tweek" it. The mic seems a bit muddy to me but does add nice low end to the transducers. Any ideas others that just plugging into as clean and flat a system as possible and listening? I have a Trace Acoustic TA100R and sometimes plug into the the FX return to stay away from the processing circuits. I could also put it into the Fostex MR-80HD and use the head phones.

[Doug Young]

Originally Posted by dwstout

l The mic seems a bit muddy to me but does add nice low end to the transducers.

Experiment with the mic placement. That mic usually sounds rather thin to me - it's not a bassy mic, but its easy to find boomy spots inside a guitar, and each guitar is different. The usual approach with an internal mic is for the mic to add some air (high end), not bass. A bass-heavy internal mic is likely to be a feedback nightmare on stage.

[dwstout]

Doug, Thanks for the suggestion. I'll play around with the mic and see what happens. The controls inside the Trinity Pre-amp are the way the came out of the box.

[dwstout]

Doug, From your website's Pick-up tests #16: "The recording was made thru a K&K Quantum Blender. The mic channel tones controls were set flat (completely counterclockwise) and all pickup tone controls were set at the 9 o'clock position"
Do you think completely counterclockwise is flat in the Trinity Pre-amp?