Looking for pickup advice

[Mr.November]

So I just purchased a Blueridge BR-260A. I got a great deal on the guitar and am pretty happy with my purchase. I would like to add a pickup to the guitar for playing live and would like a little advice on what to go with. My budget is roughly $250.

The BR-260A is a dreadnaught guitar with an adirondack top with rosewood back and sides. It has a long saddle, so from what I have read, I think that factors out UST's.

I play a couple gigs a year with my sister at a local wine bar. It is a fairly small venue, but can get a little noisy as the night goes on. Two acoustic guitars, two microphones. We play through a Carvin AG200, which I just purchased and it suits our needs perfectly. I play mostly strumming, with the occasional lead lines and fingerpicking. I also recently purchased a PZ Deluxe to use with our setup. We play mostly covers consisting of Avett Brothers, Ryan Adams, and Iron & Wine.

Any advice on the ideal pickup for this scenario is greatly appreciated.

[dcopper]

For the least invasive, I would look to either an M80 or M1 soundhole pickup by LR Baggs. You can review those on the lrbaggs.com website. They both work extremely well for dreadnought guitars. The M1 is passive and requires no battery and the Radial should do tone shaping just fine. The M80 is very versatile and can be used in active or passive mode.

My dos centavos,
davidc

[royd]

The long saddle makes a UST really difficult so for all practical purposes, I'd rule that out. That leaves either a soundboard transducer or a magnetic (or both which IMHO works really well). They sound different and respond to feedback issues differently.

For soundboard transducers check out the K&K, JJB, Dazzo, or McIntyre. Each has serious fans. All are well within your price range except maybe the Dazzo. Your Radial would work well as a preamp for any of them.

I like magnetics... but many folk do not. If you want to look at magnetics, I would check out the Dimarzio Angel, Sunrise, and Fishman Blackstack. Personally, I'm not crazy about the Baggs although I like the M80 better than the M1. Schertler has released a new mag that is very cool as has Mimisis. Both have a microphone attached. Fishman and Duncan also have magentics with attached mics.

A dual source with external blending would require a different preamp which would take you above your budget.

[kydave]

Buy a K&K Pure Mini pickup and a K&K Pure XLR pre-amp and you are set for life.

That is what I use in all my guitars now.

Friends don't let friends use USTs or soundhole pickups.

[lmacmil]

You could buy a used M1 (or other soundhole pickup) on Ebay and try it out for a gig. If you don't like it, you can sell it for about what you paid, assuming you don't pay too much. I have an M1A in my Taylor GA3 and it sounds fine.

If your audience likes the music and your performance, they won't care what your guitar sounds like. Don't lose any sleep over whatever you decide!

[Mr.November]

Thanks for the advice on the pickup. I am probably looking at either the K&K or JJB.

[Kevy Nova]

I have five Dazzos and I HIGHLY recommend them! They are also very affordable, compared to other pickups that don't even sound as good.