Can I wire a k&k pure mini to a stock onboard preamp?

[Markoteoriko]

Hello guys, thanks to admins for accepting me. Hope you all are doing great.

Question: Can I wire a K&K Pure Mini to my Yamaha APX500 onboard preamp? As many of you might already know, the stock UST from this Yamaha is far from professional sound, so I'm planning to upgrade it. Another option is the L.R. Baggs Element but the K&K is what I like the most. Anyway, all I want is to take advantage of this onboard preamp and use it as a tone shaper, hoping it works and not having to spend more on gear and installation. Thanks in advance for your inputs!

[Willie_D]

I'm sure it could be done.

JJB sells what you're looking for right out of the box. The link shows a pickup with two sensors, but you can add a third; and it should just plug right in to your preamp.

[Markoteoriko]

Thanks, Willie. I'll take a look in that JJB. Are they on YouTube?

[pieterh]

If I remember correctly the signal is quite hot straight out of a Pure Mini and as such isn’t ideally suited to the gain level set on an onboard preamp designed for USTs. Nor are the impedance levels ideal. I remember K&K recommending I didn’t connect mine to an existing Fishman Matrix end pin preamp (the under saddle pickup was damaged). In the end I went totally passive in the guitar and use the guitar plugged into a Tonebone Pz-pre.

You might be able to connect an electronic component in the circuit to match up the pickup with the preamp; I would suggest you talk to K&K for advice (they were very good at getting back to me with information).

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by Markoteoriko

Hello guys, thanks to admins for accepting me. Hope you all are doing great.

Question: Can I wire a K&K Pure Mini to my Yamaha APX500 onboard preamp? As many of you might already know, the stock UST from this Yamaha is far from professional sound, so I'm planning to upgrade it. Another option is the L.R. Baggs Element but the K&K is what I like the most. Anyway, all I want is to take advantage of this onboard preamp and use it as a tone shaper, hoping it works and not having to spend more on gear and installation. Thanks in advance for your inputs!

Hi Mark-etc
Someone here in the forum a few years back disconnected the internal under saddle and wired a K&K to the preamp, and it worked just fine.

They didn't worry about impedance, or other potential pitfalls - they just did it as an experiment. He was glad he did…

[YamahaGuy]

Great idea. I like the looks of the JJB unit. Let us know how it goes.

[phcorrigan]

Originally Posted by Markoteoriko

Thanks, Willie. I'll take a look in that JJB. Are they on YouTube?

Send an email to Jessie at JJB as ask him. [email protected]

[Doug Young]

It's one of those things you have to try and see if it works. You don't know the specs of the preamp, so it's anyone's guess whether the input impedance is right, the gain and input levels will be ok, if there's some EQ or compensation in the preamp for the pickup it was made for (which may work well or not with the K&K). But it's worth a try. Odds are that it will work fine. I've in the past used K&Ks with the DTar preamp, which prompted this thread from someone else who tried it:

https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/...d.php?t=222529

[Markoteoriko]

Thanks a lot guys, I'll give it a try and also dig more into that JJB pickups. I'll post the pros and cons when it's done!

[jonfields45]

JJB's SBTs are lower output than K&K and a little closer to what a UST will generate. SBTs are almost always mated to a flat EQ preamp (if there is one at all). Fishman does not use a flat EQ for the Matrix, but most other USTs (Element, Sonitone, various ceramic crystal based) do. Those reporting that a SBT did not work well with a Fishman Matrix preamp might be running into that issue.

The JJB is probably a better choice and cheaper.