EBAY B-Bands any good?

[Charmed Life Picks]

There was a discussion a couple months ago. Are these B-Bands for sale on Ebay pretty much the same as the ones here in the U.S? I have a Yairi dread seeking a good p/u and I have B-Bands in several others and like them a lot.

thanks,
scott

[SpruceTop]

Originally Posted by Charmed Life Picks

There was a discussion a couple months ago. Are these B-Bands for sale on Ebay pretty much the same as the ones here in the U.S? I have a Yairi dread seeking a good p/u and I have B-Bands in several others and like them a lot.

thanks,
scott

Scott: Are they cheaper on EBAY? You can order B-Bands from Musician's Friend and get 15% off during a sale (or anytime by calling) and if you're a Backstage Pass member (it's free to join), you'll get 8% in reward money (sometimes 16% depending on the product and promotion) that can be applied to other purchases. There's no worry when ordering from Musician's Friend or any of our AGF dealer sponsors!

[Petty1818]

Off topic but I still have my B-band A2.2 XOM. I really want to give it a try but I don't like how the AST gets ruined if you remove it. I think it's cheap enough to replace though. I am on the fence about going back to the Baggs Anthem or trying to the B-band.

[SpruceTop]

Originally Posted by Petty1818

Off topic but I still have my B-band A2.2 XOM. I really want to give it a try but I don't like how the AST gets ruined if you remove it. I think it's cheap enough to replace though. I am on the fence about going back to the Baggs Anthem or trying to the B-band.

Since the *Trance didn't work out too well, I'd try the B-Band next, and then consider either reinstalling the Baggs Anthem or go with a K&K Pure Mini. You've already got a Grace Design FELIX with which to tame the K&K.

*Sorry about that recommendation. Hopefully, the Trance will work in another guitar or you can sell it.

[Charmed Life Picks]

Ken & Petty:

Ken, here's the link, for $70.00, out of China. It's very possible these are counterfeit, so I'm not sure I want to take the leap. They've been on ebay for many months.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/B-Band-A2-2-...gAAOSwKtlWkmGL

Ken, I looooove the Trance rig in my Eastman dread, but I don't want to spend that much on this guitar. I have a B-Band in one of my other axes and it's pretty decent. Crazy as it sounds, I'm giving very serious consideration to putting a second Trance rig in one my Epiphone Masterbilt AJ-500Ms. The pickup will be worth more than the guitar, but this instrument is truly exceptional.

What other rigs might I want to consider for less than $100? I've heard JJBs are good.

Anything below $100 out there that is NOT a piezo? Clearly, I'm not up to speed on the latest pickups.

thanks,
scott

[SpruceTop]

Originally Posted by Charmed Life Picks

Ken & Petty:

Ken, here's the link, for $70.00, out of China. It's very possible these are counterfeit, so I'm not sure I want to take the leap. They've been on ebay for many months.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/B-Band-A2-2-...gAAOSwKtlWkmGL

Ken, I looooove the Trance rig in my Eastman dread, but I don't want to spend that much on this guitar. I have a B-Band in one of my other axes and it's pretty decent. Crazy as it sounds, I'm giving very serious consideration to putting a second Trance rig in one my Epiphone Masterbilt AJ-500Ms. The pickup will be worth more than the guitar, but this instrument is truly exceptional.

What other rigs might I want to consider for less than $100? I've heard JJBs are good.

Anything below $100 out there that is NOT a piezo? Clearly, I'm not up to speed on the latest pickups.

thanks,
scott

Hi Scott, Glad you're digging that Trance! If you get another Trance, it's nice that you can always relocate it to other guitars, whether they're expensive or not, as they come and go. For about $100 or less, you can get a K&K Pure Mini. JJB, from what I've read on AGF, is good and a bit cheaper than K&K. And to complicate your decision, I've had good results with my B-Band, from Musician's Friend, in my Martin D Junior.

[Charmed Life Picks]

Originally Posted by SpruceTop

Hi Scott, Glad you're digging that Trance! If you get another Trance, it's nice that you can always relocate it to other guitars, whether they're expensive or not, as they come and go. For about $100 or less, you can get a K&K Pure Mini. JJB, from what I've read on AGF, is good and a bit cheaper than K&K. And to complicate your decision, I've had good results with my B-Band, from Musician's Friend, in my Martin D Junior.

Ken, yes, the bass with the Trance unit is the best I've ever heard in a pickup.

I tend to not move into and out of guitars very much, so my decisions are slower than most. I'm leaning toward the B-Band because 1) I've had great luck with it in my main gigger for years; 2) Two of the top luthiers here in L.A. swear by them and can install them very professional (too busy to do my own installs).

Always good to hear from you, Ken. Hope you're well.

Thanks,
Scott

[midwinter]

I've had a bunch of gigs with my B-Band now, so I can speak up.

As I said in another thread, I got burned by one of the ~$70 Ebay B-Bands. Its sensitivity to RF interference made it just unusable. I swapped it out for a JJB.
But the JJB had 200hz and 3.5k humps that drove me and various sound people nuts. So I took a chance and ordered a proper B-Band from MF.

I like it a lot. It's a little more piezo-y than I usually like, but I can work with it. Sounds good. Easy to work with.

is it susceptible to RF interference? Yes. But I have to put my phone or iPad directly on the top of the guitar AND have it checking email to make the thing act up.

[lkingston]

One thing to be aware of is the warranty coverage. For instance, Ibanez guitars and amplifiers have a lifetime warranty against non-abuse failure. Because of this, it is very hard to get parts. Factory seconds are very low priced, but have no warranty. I found this out the hard way when the preamp failed in a factory second acoustic. This one repair would have cost far more than I saved.

Warranty policies vary from company to company. For instance, Bose and Behringer refurbished products come with full factory warranty as if they were new.

[rockabilly69]

If the ebay B-Band is sold from a China seller I would steer clear from it, as I was burned by one, and know of others that have also, also B-Band will not warrant their pickups unless they are sold by authorized sellers.

I LOVE the B-Band XOM 2.2 system and when installed correctly I think it's currently better for my needs than ANY other system that I've bought or demo'ed, and believe me I've bought or used 99% of all the brands and models mentioned here on the AGF. The XOM 2.2 is currently in my J45, Gibson Gospel, Gibson J-100 Xtra, Martin DM17, and I have T65 preamp with an AST and UST in my Parkwood LE061. And on three of these guitars, the B-Band fixed chronic string balance issues that I thought I would never solve. These guitars had K&Ks, LR Baggs (anthem, element, lyric, and M1, ), DiMarzio Angel Systems and DP139, Dtar Lock and Loads, and Fishman Infinity Matrix, Rare Earth Humbucker and Rare Earth Blend, Seymour Duncan Mag-Mic, and Sunrise.

[Charmed Life Picks]

Originally Posted by rockabilly69

If the ebay B-Band is sold from a China seller I would steer clear from it, as I was burned by one, and know of others that have also, also B-Band will not warrant their pickups unless they are sold by authorized sellers.

I LOVE the B-Band XOM 2.2 system and when installed correctly I think it's currently better for my needs than ANY other system that I've bought or demo'ed, and believe me I've bought or used 99% of all the brands and models mentioned here on the AGF. The XOM 2.2 is currently in my J45, Gibson Gospel, Gibson J-100 Xtra, Martin DM17, and I have T65 preamp with an AST and UST in my Parkwood LE061. And on three of these guitars, the B-Band fixed chronic string balance issues that I thought I would never solve. These guitars had K&Ks, LR Baggs (anthem, element, lyric, and M1, ), DiMarzio Angel Systems and DP139, Dtar Lock and Loads, and Fishman Infinity Matrix, Rare Earth Humbucker and Rare Earth Blend, Seymour Duncan Mag-Mic, and Sunrise.

On the last two posters, yes, warranty issue is understood. Believe it or not, someone had a new one, still in the box, on eBay yesterday for $35.00 (!!!!), so I jumped on it. This will go in my gorgeous Yairi DY-85 dread.

I agree that the B-Bands are VERY good pickups. I have a Baggs Anthem SL that is in my HD-28 and is superb, but Trance Audio Amulet is, IMHO, the best of the lot, and that's saying something.

Thanks, Billy,
Scott Memmer

[rockabilly69]

Originally Posted by Charmed Life Picks

On the last two posters, yes, warranty issue is understood. Believe it or not, someone had a new one, still in the box, on eBay yesterday for $35.00 (!!!!), so I jumped on it. This will go in my gorgeous Yairi DY-85 dread.

I agree that the B-Bands are VERY good pickups. I have a Baggs Anthem SL that is in my HD-28 and is superb, but Trance Audio Amulet is, IMHO, the best of the lot, and that's saying something.

Thanks, Billy,
Scott Memmer

It's not just the warranty issue, the Chinese seller B-bands that I bought both failed, and forum member Midwinter's also turned out bad (he's a close friend of mine), and not one issue with the other pickups. Be leary, and buy one from a mfd approved seller. It's worth the extra money for the peace of mind

[Charmed Life Picks]

Originally Posted by rockabilly69

It's not just the warranty issue, the Chinese seller B-bands that I bought both failed, and forum member Midwinter's also turned out bad (he's a close friend of mine), and not one issue with the other pickups. Be leary, and buy one from a mfd approved seller. It's worth the extra money for the peace of mind

Understood. This was from an American seller, not Chinese, with 100% feedback rating over 1000+ reviews. Not worried. I generally would agree with you and, besides, I like to support manufacturers in our industry. This one was too good to pass up, and the guy doing the install is a superb luthier with a long history of B-Band, so he'll spot anything wrong.

Appreciate the advice, nonetheless, which is well taken.

Thanks!
Scott

[rockabilly69]

Originally Posted by Charmed Life Picks

Understood. This was from an American seller, not Chinese, with 100% feedback rating over 1000+ reviews. Not worried. I generally would agree with you and, besides, I like to support manufacturers in our industry. This one was too good to pass up, and the guy doing the install is a superb luthier with a long history of B-Band, so he'll spot anything wrong.

Appreciate the advice, nonetheless, which is well taken.

Thanks!
Scott

Was it from Austin (Texasgearplus)? If so I just bought two pickups from him (Pikka), and he was a B-Band rep!

[Bobboy]

Maybe someone should contact the American B-Band folks and find out for sure if those Chinese Ebay folks are selling "genuine" B-Bands?