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  #181  
Old 02-24-2021, 06:35 PM
DownUpDave DownUpDave is offline
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I might the the outlier but I have the HFN passive in two guitars and both have good bass. The Eastman 00 12 fret has more bass amplified then acoustically and that is EQed flat. I have the classical guitar version in a Cordoba C10 and that requires a small increase on the bass knob, but not much.
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  #182  
Old 02-24-2021, 11:54 PM
Birdbrain Birdbrain is offline
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Default Thumbs up for Schatten...

Last week I removed the Baggs Lyric from my Tacoma and replaced it with a passive HFN. The switch brought more treble sparkle and percussive heft to the sound. The Lyric had a good sound, a great sound, in fact. Just a little too clear and simple, lacking in complexity and deep bass. One big HFN benefit is an absence of finger squeeks (eek!) when my left hand gets sloppy. Microphones tend to exaggerate that. Both are fine products, delivering a different flavor of goodness. But the HFN delivers more nuances for your amp to work with. A few notches of Acoustic Resonance on my Boss amp rounds out the sound into big, blossoming notes.
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  #183  
Old 02-25-2021, 05:24 AM
Daniel Grenier Daniel Grenier is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Birdbrain View Post
.....One big HFN benefit is an absence of finger squeeks (eek!).....
And I had the exact opposite with an HFN Passive in my 000-28 (dual with SD soundhole p.u). The string noise from the HFN was just horrendous and so bad that I removed it and sold it (not to mention the chronic lack of bass) but I'm glad you're happy with yours.
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  #184  
Old 05-23-2021, 06:39 PM
Dave L Dave L is offline
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I have tried a lot of acoustic pickups and the Schatten HFN is the most natural sounding I have had. It was really easy to install as well.
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  #185  
Old 05-26-2021, 03:06 PM
SGFletch SGFletch is offline
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I've installed a Schatten in my OM twice now. It sounds nice, but it keeps not really picking up the low E very well. When I moved it for the 2nd install, I definitely moved it more toward the bass side, but still no luck.

I have a feeling the underside of my bridge is not level and the 3rd sensor is not getting full signal.

I have other guitars for gigs, so it's not a big deal, but it is one thing to note. I will also say that I would be concerned about gigging with the Schatten. It is really "live" sounding, in a good way, obviously. It really picks up the resonance of the guitar. However, all the caveats that come with that apply. At decent volume in front of a wedge, I can see it being tough to tame.

None of this is to say that I don't think is is a really nice sounding pickup.
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  #186  
Old 05-26-2021, 06:46 PM
Gordon Currie Gordon Currie is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SGFletch View Post
At decent volume in front of a wedge, I can see it being tough to tame.
This is pretty much par for the course with all SBTs. The Ultratonic has an extra sensor to mitigate this.

If you are in front of wedges, you WILL need some EQ.
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  #187  
Old 05-28-2021, 01:20 PM
Rockin'Robin Rockin'Robin is offline
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Default String to string balance

So I installed a HFN in a 3rd guitar. I settled on putty for the install as to my ears it was more relaxed / less harsh.

Each time though I had the same problem : my D and especially G strings sound louder than the others. Often the low E string is lower in volume also.

Did anyone have the same issue? How would you have fixed this? I tried putting less or no putty on the middle foot but it didn"t work. Maybe trying to misalign the pickup relative to the saddle?


Would a tonedexter smooth these differences in volume out?
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  #188  
Old 05-29-2021, 01:03 PM
hiddenmickey hiddenmickey is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rockin'Robin View Post
So I installed a HFN in a 3rd guitar. I settled on putty for the install as to my ears it was more relaxed / less harsh.

Each time though I had the same problem : my D and especially G strings sound louder than the others. Often the low E string is lower in volume also.

Did anyone have the same issue? How would you have fixed this? I tried putting less or no putty on the middle foot but it didn"t work. Maybe trying to misalign the pickup relative to the saddle?


Would a tonedexter smooth these differences in volume out?
I tried my Schatten HFN equipped Hummingbird with a TD and it really didn't do anything for it. The best thing I have used happens to be the simplest - Sunnaudio Stage DI-2.
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  #189  
Old 05-29-2021, 04:31 PM
SpruceTop SpruceTop is offline
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I've posted a couple of Martin D-18 with Schatten HFN Artist Plus 2 sound files so folks can hear what my installation sounds like. Frankly, I'm not all that pleased with the string-to-string balance of my Schatten installation and your comments are welcome! Follow the below link to the demo thread:

https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/...d.php?t=616922
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  #190  
Old 05-05-2022, 10:33 AM
rschultz rschultz is offline
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A lot of people mention the low bass response of the HFN, compared to the K&K being the standard. But my experience (along with others) say the K&K bass response is too much. Most of us have used a HPF as well as a reduction in low end and/or mid-range to achieve a balanced tone.

So that leads me to believe that the HFN might be decent... especially as a dual source. Combining it with a mag or UST might be a great combination. Any lack of bass could be compensated with the other pickup. AND the lack of bass would help with feedback issues.
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  #191  
Old 05-05-2022, 10:57 AM
Petty1818 Petty1818 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rschultz View Post
A lot of people mention the low bass response of the HFN, compared to the K&K being the standard. But my experience (along with others) say the K&K bass response is too much. Most of us have used a HPF as well as a reduction in low end and/or mid-range to achieve a balanced tone.

So that leads me to believe that the HFN might be decent... especially as a dual source. Combining it with a mag or UST might be a great combination. Any lack of bass could be compensated with the other pickup. AND the lack of bass would help with feedback issues.
It's not just a lack of bass, it's that the design often works out to uneven string balance. It's not that the strings are not individually being picked up, it's just that the low E often sounds distant. At least that was my experience.
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