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Old 07-11-2019, 07:25 AM
Wellington Wellington is offline
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Default BBE Acoustimax

I just picked one up, of loved into them a while ago. I don't normally perform but my church is lacking guitar players and so there's one main player that's being stretched pretty thin as a result. I have wicked stage fright but I'm gonna try. Anyway, the church has a Loubox Mini that runs into the p.a. I use a Yamaha LL16 right now, it only has a piezo, so I'm hoping this pedal which give me some nicer quality sounds. The church also has a Behringer Acoustic DI Preamp, I've tried it with my guitar straight into the pa before we got the amp, it's not very good, at least to my ears but it definitely improves the sound rather than going in to the pa straight.

Anyway, has anyone used three Acoustimax? What did you think? Not a whole lot of it on YouTube.
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Old 07-11-2019, 09:10 AM
MrErikJ MrErikJ is offline
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The Acoustimax is nice, assuming you like the sound of the BBE Sonic Maximizer. It enhances the highs and lows and scoops some mids, which will sound nice with some pickups but not all. It's worth giving it a try but I wouldn't run it into the Loudbox, unless you're just using it to monitor. Run the BBE into PA and see if you like the way it sounds.
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Old 07-11-2019, 01:43 PM
fotofantom fotofantom is offline
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d.loseth, I play my Yamaha LL16 (with K&K pups) into my Acoustimax and then into my Loudbox mini. The Acoustimax is a really good preamp, whether or not you use the Sonic Maximizer. It has three-way EQ with sweepable mids and a notch filter, among other features. And it's sturdy. I don't play out, but I jam with my friend, a pro keyboard player who is not shy about cranking the volume. I add a little Sonic Maximizer but not much. I expect it might be more effective in a large venue. I use the Acoustimax in order to have EQ and volume controls at my feet, though I think going straight into the Loudbox Mini's built-in preamp without the Acoustimax sounds just as good. With the Acoustimax, I could go into the Aux on the mini, bypassing the built-in preamp, but then I couldn't use the Mini's fine reverb and chorus.
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Old 07-13-2019, 01:28 PM
Oregon Donor Oregon Donor is offline
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The combination of sweepable mids/sonic maximizer/notch filter has been a godsend for my Taylor 310 with a K&K Pure Mini in it. It’s also a brick. I can’t recommend this preamp enough.
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Old 07-14-2019, 06:57 AM
Wellington Wellington is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by fotofantom View Post
d.loseth, I play my Yamaha LL16 (with K&K pups) into my Acoustimax and then into my Loudbox mini. The Acoustimax is a really good preamp, whether or not you use the Sonic Maximizer. It has three-way EQ with sweepable mids and a notch filter, among other features. And it's sturdy. I don't play out, but I jam with my friend, a pro keyboard player who is not shy about cranking the volume. I add a little Sonic Maximizer but not much. I expect it might be more effective in a large venue. I use the Acoustimax in order to have EQ and volume controls at my feet, though I think going straight into the Loudbox Mini's built-in preamp without the Acoustimax sounds just as good. With the Acoustimax, I could go into the Aux on the mini, bypassing the built-in preamp, but then I couldn't use the Mini's fine reverb and chorus.
Wow, you have the exact system I'm using! Except my LL16 doesn't have the k&k, thanks for the feedback.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Oregon Donor View Post
The combination of sweepable mids/sonic maximizer/notch filter has been a godsend for my Taylor 310 with a K&K Pure Mini in it. It’s also a brick. I can’t recommend this preamp enough.
Awesome thanks, and to everyone else as well

Wondering about these k&k pups, are they really that good, I keep hearing about them, worth it to add to my LL16?
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Old 07-14-2019, 07:45 AM
Wooly Wooly is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by d.loseth View Post
Wondering about these k&k pups, are they really that good, I keep hearing about them, worth it to add to my LL16?
Have a look at Schatten HFN. I have K&K's installed in 3 of my guitars and Schattens in the other 2. Although they may not be quite as hot as the K&K's, I prefer the Schattens. Nothing wrong with K&K but to me, the Schatten sounds better (IMO) with less EQ than a K&K and are easy to install and remove if needed.

I also use a BBE into a Loudbox Mini. I have tried the K&K XLR preamp and Bheringer AD121. BBE works best for me.
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Last edited by Wooly; 07-14-2019 at 08:04 AM.
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Old 07-14-2019, 11:29 AM
MrErikJ MrErikJ is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by d.loseth View Post
Wow, you have the exact system I'm using! Except my LL16 doesn't have the k&k, thanks for the feedback.


Awesome thanks, and to everyone else as well

Wondering about these k&k pups, are they really that good, I keep hearing about them, worth it to add to my LL16?
K&K is really good but it depends on your playing style and preferred sound. They’re warm and woody with a pronounced low midrange, which the BBE would address really well. Their bass is a little unstable, regarding feedback, but everyone’s playing conditions are different and a guy in a loud country rock band may find them unmanageable while a guy doing solo fingerstyle or singer-songwriter stuff may have no problem. If you like your current piezo, I wouldn’t replace it. I love my LL16 but personally, didn’t care for the zero impact piezo and replaced it with a Baggs Dual Source with a LB6 saddle piezo. I like the stability and clarity of a good UST but wanted something less quacky and to have an onboard mic as well. Because of the Sonic Maximizer’s mid-scoop it complements a SBT like the K&K really well but it may not work with another pickup style. Again, it’s all about what your playing requires and it’s worth a try before changing your pickup.
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