What are considered the best acoustic guitar pickups?

[stevecuss]

For your situation, the 'safest' option is a quality sound hole magnetic pickup. IMO, it is the safest next step because it is the most feedback resistant AND it is easily sellable if it doesn't work for you. You could try a gig or two with the cable running out the sound hole and not do any drill style installation and see what you think.

The 'best' sounding stand alone pickup for your situation, IMO is either the Trance Amulet or K&K. You may need a feedback buster.

Having said that, we run Schatten HFN passive pickups in our acoustics. Band practiced last night in the auditorium. Two electric guitars, live drum kit. Schatten through an Avalon U5 DI sounded great, no feedback and cut through the mix.

All players play with in ears, so stage volume is low, FYI.

[hotroad]

Depends on the end result or tone you want. Using a high end mic on the inside can produce xlnt deep clear tone but can feedback so good eq is essential. Sound hole pu's are great like the M80. Easy to install, use on more than one guitar, have excellent tone and can be eq'd easily from outboard gear. I use one system for small intimate settings and another for larger festival stages etc. Usually with groups of over 50 no one can really hear any of the nice nuances you get from an internal mic so why bother. Just stick a good soundhole pickup in it, like the M80 which is the best in my opinion, and go for it. I agree with the above, keep the cord running out of the soundhole until you are absolutely sure you want to keep the pickup. Don't drill.
There is no right or best pickup. Depends on end use and your ears. Try several. I have a couple dozen pickups lying around as a result of trying many options. I play full time so I get a lot of chances to try stuff in a live setting and that's what I recommend you do. Try a lot of them.

[varmonter]

So I read an article somewhere
That was talking about piezo pickups.
And how they react in conjunction
With increased volume. The article
Mentioned that the louder the volume
the piezo reacts exponentially. So for me
This was a great explanation of why it
(K&k) sounded so good at home yet just was
A nightmare at a loud noisy gig. The top
vibration is what causes the piezo disc
To turn those vibes into electric Impulses. Drums bass guitar loud
Bar noise all cause the top to vibrate.
Which is just unmanageable to me. Yes a sh plug helps with
Feedback. But not the vibrations.
My solution to this was to wire in a
Baggs m80 soundhole. I have two
Cords one of which is wired for the kk.
The other wired for the baggs. Generally
I use the baggs . But for quiet intimate
Performances (usually solo) I use
The kk. I'm a weekend warrior. Never
have a sound tech so the baggs is my
Go to pup. But I like the kk sound better.
Just find it unusable for most gigs.

[Charmed Life Picks]

I really like that there are no strong opinions about this topic. "Can't we all just get along?"

scott memmer

[Charmed Life Picks]

Originally Posted by Murphy Slaw

The best pickup is a mic....

Bingo, buddy. I haven't met a SINGLE pickup in forty years that sounds better than a $100 SM-58.

scott memmer

[slimey]

Here's a vid of me playing with a 6 piece band.
Lowden O35 with a Trance Amulet M through a Radial Tonebone. Even with the bass , drums and fiddle I'm not even using a sound hole cover and I'm sitting right in front of the bass amp!! The Trance gives a pretty good acoustic tone with great feedback resistance in a band situation. Using the boost on the tone bone I can punch through the mix for leads.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcLA...wcttftpm3uB4fk

[larren]

Originally Posted by BluesKing777

And if you insist on an acoustic - the best acoustic guitar pickup system is the Maton AP5-Pro pickup system, but you need to buy a Maton and a soundhole plug!

BluesKing777.

^ ^ ^ ^
This

[Zandit75]

As others have said, it's your own opinion that really matters.

Personally, I love the latest Fishman Matrix Infinity Mic Blend fitted to my custom acoustic.
I've just picked up a Zoom AC3 pedal, so that is also adding to the mix as well. Still working my way through that though.

[SpruceTop]

I like the Trance Audio Amulet products. I've got the Trance Amulet M-VT and Trance Amulet M-VT Phantom and find these systems are the most natural-sounding aftermarket systems I've played. For a factory-installed system, I like the Expression System 2 (ES2) from Taylor.

[hotroad]

Read about the Element here by doing a search. There are a ton of ways to amplify an acoustic guitar, but the Element is regarded as one of the best. If you go with dual source, you have to take the time to get a good position on the mic inside the guitar. If you go with a soundhole pickup, try the M80. Its very articulate, full frequency and picks up some body of the guitar as well as the strings.

[DMZ]

Originally Posted by SpruceTop

I like the Trance Audio Amulet products. I've got the Trance Amulet M-VT and Trance Amulet M-VT Phantom and find these systems are the most natural-sounding aftermarket systems I've played. For a factory-installed system, I like the Expression System 2 (ES2) from Taylor.

Same for me.

[Vancebo]

A lot of really good pickups out there these days. Can’t say I have owned them all but close. I can tell you why my pickup choice is the best for me. I like a natural guitar like sound that is quack free and produces the same character of sound my guitar produces. Problem is, a lot of aftermarket systems need a lot of EQ to get close to sounding good before you even get to the gig and start dealing with the room. The Dazzo comes in various bass responses so before you even install it you can get a Dazzo that will better balance the voice of your guitar and yield a closer to balanced sound before you apply EQ. It may take experimentation. Add a Sunnaudio on board tone driver for volume, bass and treble control. It is a very magical combo. No need for blended systems and it’s easy.

[Charmed Life Picks]

Ditto on the Trance Audio rigs. Jackson Browne has the best amplified acoustic guitars I've ever heard, and this is his chosen setup.

scott memmer

[BluesKing777]

Originally Posted by larren

^ ^ ^ ^
This

FYI - there is now a "Maton Nashville" shop!
(Part of Artisan Guitars).
No excuses for not having one now! (no affiliation here!)
I saw this on Reverb.com when looking up a Maton jumbo Messiah:

https://reverb.com/shop/maton-guitars-nashville


BluesKing777.