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  #1  
Old 06-09-2018, 10:15 AM
mantal mantal is offline
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Default HELP w/ my BLACKBIRD LUCKY 13

I have owned mine now for about 2 months and I love everything about the guitar itself... comfort, playability, and sound acoustically. My challenge is the plugged in / amplified sound, it's a 2014 and has the MiSi / LR Baggs piezo.

The sound is a little brassy and quacky so I am hoping to get some suggestions on what I might try to eliminate at least some or most of this issue.

Would turning the overall volume on the guitar itself down and utilizing the powered DI's volume work? I know a lot of this is a stab in the dark & subjective... I'm just looking for some advice and suggestions.

Thanks to all who can help,
Mike
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Old 06-09-2018, 10:30 AM
Earl49 Earl49 is offline
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Can't help with the MiSi pickup, since I specifically ordered my Lucky 13 without electronics. But in general you will get a warmer and more natural tone with the output gain of the pickup at about 75% of maximum. Make any tone changes or additional amplification further downstream.

If you have a DI already or can borrow one, this is easy to experiment with. Good luck.
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Old 06-09-2018, 10:31 AM
Long Jon Long Jon is offline
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Hi M. I don’t know much about this stuff although I’m sure others here will chime in.


You could also post your queery over on the amplification section, but change the title to be specific about quacky piezo problem.


Good luck.
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Old 06-09-2018, 10:32 AM
moondoggie999 moondoggie999 is offline
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Don't know if you've tried this but even if your guitar has an onboard pre-amp, I found that going thru something like the Fishman Pro-EQ or the like, can do wonders for a Piezo sound. What amp/PA are you using?
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Old 06-09-2018, 11:29 AM
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I have noticed a bit of quackiness with my L13 when I’ve forgotten to charge the MiSi up for awhile. I often forget to plug it in for a week or so...
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Old 06-09-2018, 11:33 AM
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Mbroady Mbroady is offline
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Sounds like a good candidate for tonedexter.
Have not tried it yet my self but the vids/audio I have heard sound great.
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Old 06-09-2018, 11:43 AM
steelvibe steelvibe is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by moondoggie999 View Post
Don't know if you've tried this but even if your guitar has an onboard pre-amp, I found that going thru something like the Fishman Pro-EQ or the like, can do wonders for a Piezo sound. What amp/PA are you using?
First off, moondog is spot on. I've plugged into the DI boxes that merely converted your signal with mediocre results, but I personally want more from my tone than "gets the job done". A powered DI on the other hand will almost always make a piezo sound better but I'm more familiar using them with passive pups like K&K. Knowing exactly what your signal chain
is including the amp/PA will help others answer more effectively.

Secondly, good seeing you post moondog! Still enjoying the RainSong?
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Old 06-09-2018, 11:47 AM
steelvibe steelvibe is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mbroady View Post
Sounds like a good candidate for tonedexter.
Have not tried it yet my self but the vids/audio I have heard sound great.
Pretty much every pick up system is a good candidate for the Tonedexter, unless of course they are already running through one.
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Old 06-12-2018, 11:27 AM
jojobean39 jojobean39 is offline
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I was going to recommend the ToneDexter. From what I have seen, they do wonders for the quack. I’ve got one on order and I’ll report in on how it effects the sound of my carbon fiber guitar.

It is an expensive fix though. $400 is steep. I was fortunate to get an open box return for $250.

But if you have lots of guitars you play through a PA, that would benefit more than one guitar.
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Old 06-15-2018, 03:09 PM
Llamarebel Llamarebel is offline
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A cheaper option that I use is the "BodyRez" pedal from TC Electronic. I don't use the standalone pedal, but it's included in the TC Helicon Play Acoustic that I run vocals and guitar through when plugged in. It made the MiSi in my El Capitan sound pretty nice. Step up from that would be the Aura system, then the ToneDexter is actually "your guitar" specific, where the Aura is generic "images" from other guitars, and the bodyrez simply minimizes quack and gives a bit more "body" to the sound.
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Old 06-15-2018, 08:48 PM
kramster kramster is offline
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Sure didn't take a certain someone very long to put this in their signature :

Emerald X30 Opus w/Baggs Anthem
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Old 06-16-2018, 06:30 AM
Captain Jim Captain Jim is offline
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Quote:
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Sure didn't take a certain someone very long to put this in their signature :

Emerald X30 Opus w/Baggs Anthem
Is there a respectful waiting period?

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Old 06-16-2018, 06:58 AM
Llamarebel Llamarebel is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Captain Jim View Post
Is there a respectful waiting period?

My only regret is how long it took me.
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