Going to try Dazzo's

[jklotz]

I had some time this afternoon to play with the mic/dazzo setup. I'm really liking having a little mic in there. Just adds a bit of "air" to the sound. Now to figure out the 2nd guitar. I could plug it in ch 2, but I'd need to configure it to both ch on/off instead of the ch 1 or ch2 mode I'm currently using. That's no big deal, but when switching guitars on stage, I'd have to remember a) turn "mic power" off b) plug guitar cable into ch 2 c) turn volume of ch 1 off d) adjust the level of 2nd guitar. That's assuming the eq for both was the same, which it probably could be as I don't think either the baggs anthem or the mic in the dazzo/mic combo would really need a lot other than the HPF to avoid feedback. It still seems like a lot to do when I'm on stage at a gig.

I'm going to keep playing with it, I'm sure there is a solution to be had, and adding the mic does sound really great. I don't use a pickup for recording, but I still have to find some time to play with the mid/side part of the preamp.

BTW - a shoutout to Sunny at Sunnaudio. He really helped me put this thing together, sent his mic pre-soldered to the endpin jack with the Dazzo's, gave me a lot of advice and got Teddy from Dazzo involved for that end of it. He even upgraded it to expedited shipping and didn't charge me. That's pretty darn good customer service in my book.

[jklotz]

Here is a quick clip of the Dazzo olny, then the same thing with the Sunnaudio "experimenters mic" added in, direct through an Apollo Twin into Logic. Preamp is the Sunnaudio MS-2, which was set to flat, no eq. No post processing - what you hear is what you get. Guitar is an Eastman E20-OM. Let me know what you think.

[Cuki79]

Originally Posted by jklotz

Here is a quick clip of the Dazzo olny, then the same thing with the Sunnaudio "experimenters mic" added in, direct through an Apollo Twin into Logic. Preamp is the Sunnaudio MS-2, which was set to flat, no eq. No post processing - what you hear is what you get. Guitar is an Eastman E20-OM.

It sounds great!

How is the HighPass Filter set on the mic channel? I guess in a LIVE context, you would probably need to set it up…. Could you please demo that also?

[Vancebo]

I am glad it’s working out for you so far. You can easily hear a difference with the mic. When I am playing live, I never think the mic was needed. Recording direct, the mic seems necessary.

[jklotz]

Originally Posted by Vancebo

I am glad it’s working out for you so far. You can easily hear a difference with the mic. When I am playing live, I never think the mic was needed. Recording direct, the mic seems necessary.

You are probably right. I think the Dazzo's sound really good by themselves. I play solo fingerstyle, so the difference would probably be more noticeable doing what I do as opposed to, say, a strummer? I also doubt I'd be able to have as much of the mic blended in as the clip live because of feedback. Like I said, still more experimentation is necessary. Even if I don't use the mic altogether, I'm still really happy with the sound.

[jklotz]

Originally Posted by Cuki79

It sounds great!

How is the HighPass Filter set on the mic channel? I guess in a LIVE context, you would probably need to set it up…. Could you please demo that also?

Hi Cuki. The HPF was on for that clip. I pretty much always have it on, as I figure there's not much below 80 Hz in an normal acoustic guitar except feedback, at least for what I do. Here is how the preamp was set for the clip. Ch1 is the pickup, ch 2 is the mic. The boost was not engaged:

[Mbroady]

Originally Posted by Petty1818

How would you compare the Anthem and Dazzo?

Ditto on this question. ???

[Cuki79]

Originally Posted by jklotz

Hi Cuki. The HPF was on for that clip. I pretty much always have it on, as I figure there's not much below 80 Hz in an normal acoustic guitar except feedback, at least for what I do. Here is how the preamp was set for the clip. Ch1 is the pickup, ch 2 is the mic. The boost was not engaged:

Thanks jklotz

[jklotz]

Originally Posted by Mbroady

Ditto on this question. ???

I saw that question and intentionally avoided it. I still need more time to experiment and play a few more gigs with both before I can give you my honest thoughts. Part of the problem is the dazzo's are in a short scale, OOO style guitar with an addy top and the anthem is in a fan fret long scale GA style guitar with an Engelmann top that I use for drop tunings. Both pickups sound really good, but they are in very different type guitars.

I will say I think the dazzo/mic combo sounds more like "my guitar only louder", which I prefer, but I'm not unhappy with the Anthem by any means. I do like having an external preamp with separate eq for the mic and the pickup, and I like not having a lot of "stuff" inside the guitar and no battery to worry about. But the preamp (I got mine used) and the Dazzo's are expensive. It's all about trade off's I suppose. My initial thoughts are yes, I'd prefer to have Dazzos, mic and preamp instead of the Anthem. Would I remove and Anthem to replace it with Dazzo/mic? Probably not because I'd feel that I was getting in too deep money-wise. This may change, who knows, still too new to me to know for sure.

[nightchef]

Originally Posted by jklotz

Here is a quick clip of the Dazzo olny, then the same thing with the Sunnaudio "experimenters mic" added in, direct through an Apollo Twin into Logic. Preamp is the Sunnaudio MS-2, which was set to flat, no eq. No post processing - what you hear is what you get. Guitar is an Eastman E20-OM. Let me know what you think.

I actually preferred the first, Dazzo-only clip, though they’re both viable sounds. My first thought when the +mic clip started was “wait, now there’s reverb?” because the mic seems to add a bit of an ambient “tail” to the sound. The Dazzo-only clip seemed clearer, which I liked.

[martingitdave]

I like the clip with the mic better. You may find that a different position with the mic may counter some of the reverb quality. Some of the artists using the dual source systems will point the mic perpendicular to the strings, somewhere in the center of the sound hole. Others use it at the back of the sound hole near the x brace cross.

[jklotz]

Originally Posted by nightchef

I actually preferred the first, Dazzo-only clip, though they’re both viable sounds. My first thought when the +mic clip started was “wait, now there’s reverb?” because the mic seems to add a bit of an ambient “tail” to the sound. The Dazzo-only clip seemed clearer, which I liked.

Guys, I discovered a problem with the last clip. I had headphones on and didn't realize I had the speakers on and turned up and pointing directly at the guitar from 2 feet away. Ooops. That's where the "reverb/echo" thing was coming from. Try this clip instead, makes a difference when I remember to mute the speakers

[nightchef]

Originally Posted by jklotz

Guys, I discovered a problem with the last clip. I had headphones on and didn't realize I had the speakers on and turned up and pointing directly at the guitar from 2 feet away. Ooops. That's where the "reverb/echo" thing was coming from. Try this clip instead, makes a difference when I remember to mute the speakers

Wow, yeah, that’s different.

Now the mic version definitely sounds better — has the clarity of the first one plus a healthy serving of midrange richness. You can really hear the harmonics blooming. That’s a very nice sound.

[Br1ck]

It seems to me finger style players always want that mic airiness blended in with whichever pickup they choose. My friend's Cole Clark three way sounds really good. Crank the volume with a band? Turn off the mic and the SBT.

[SpruceTop]

Both with and without the mic sound good!