iRig Acoustic Stage & PUTW I/O UST Blend

[guitaniac]

https://soundcloud.com/guitaniac/iri...nd-pickup-test

For whatever strange reason, blending the tiny signal from a passive PUTW I/O UST with the iRig Acoustic Stage mic signal (using the Acoustic Stage preamp's Aux In and blend knob) avoids the signal compression which I've noticed when I use the mic alone and play hard. With such a small UST signal, and the blend knob set down at 11 o'clock, I'm guessing that the total blended signal is so small that compression doesn't kick in with even the strongest pick attack. In any event, I'm thrilled with the recorded results. These are the best sounding direct-from-pickup recordings that I've managed to date.

To be honest, I didn't even expect that the Acoustic Stage preamp's Aux In, with its stated 1 Mohm input impedance, would be able to properly handle the passive I/O signal. I was wrong, obviously.

Regarding the Acoustic Stage's compression or limiting of the mic signal, at first I thought perhaps I was overdriving the recorder. An additional round of recordings, plus comparisons with the Baggs Lyric signal from the same guitar, have convinced me that the Acoustic Stage is compressing and/or limiting the signal. The hard strumming wave forms appear very clipped, and even the picking wave forms are a little compressed in comparison to the Lyric wave forms.