K&K Pure Mini - a review and a journey

[Rudy4]

Originally Posted by daverenick

I have the K&K mini in a martin 000-18 md and the feedback is bad news with the Fishman Loudbox Artist amp. Using a Fishman Aura doesn't help and the feedback control on the amp is useless with anything louder then speaking tones. I like the Fishman EQ/DI products and am thinking maybe I should get the platinum pro. I'm not an electrical engineer and there are so many products, wildly divergent subjective opinions, that I feel like just forgetting the whole acoustic pickup thing. Before I do, is there any way to get a good sounding combination using the K&K mini? Should I rip those out and put in a Fishman or Baggs etc. where feedback will be more controllable? Is the hype about K&K being the most "true" sounding pickup credible? It sure doesn't sound special to me. The Loudbox Artist amp is good enough, I guess, but I just want the simplest basic system that does not require genius to operate. And if I can't get the feedback under control, I'll have to install a more complex pickup. Will the Fishman Platinum Pro work as an effective EQ/DI/preamp as well as the touted Headway EDB-2, for one example among the zillions out there, specifically in negating the ugly and very pronounced tendency of the K&K to feedback?

For some it is.

I've installed around a dozen K&K Pure Mini pickups and have always been highly pleased with the result. I will add the disclaimer that I've never owned a Martin, so there may be brand-specific issues that I'm unaware of.

I've never had any feedback problems at the levels of amplification I use, but I did play an extremely loud gig and used a D'Addario Screeching Halt sound hole cover as a preemptive strike against feedback. I had no problems, even at loud volume so it worked for me.

I wouldn't place any bets on a different transducer / pickup making a lot of difference in your particular situation. It sounds like you have a guitar that's just reactive to having the soundboard couple back to the PA's output. The best solution might be a good notch filter.

[Marty C]

Originally Posted by daverenick

I have the K&K mini in a martin 000-18 md and the feedback is bad news with the Fishman Loudbox Artist amp. Using a Fishman Aura doesn't help and the feedback control on the amp is useless with anything louder then speaking tones. I like the Fishman EQ/DI products and am thinking maybe I should get the platinum pro. I'm not an electrical engineer and there are so many products, wildly divergent subjective opinions, that I feel like just forgetting the whole acoustic pickup thing. Before I do, is there any way to get a good sounding combination using the K&K mini? Should I rip those out and put in a Fishman or Baggs etc. where feedback will be more controllable? Is the hype about K&K being the most "true" sounding pickup credible? It sure doesn't sound special to me. The Loudbox Artist amp is good enough, I guess, but I just want the simplest basic system that does not require genius to operate. And if I can't get the feedback under control, I'll have to install a more complex pickup. Will the Fishman Platinum Pro work as an effective EQ/DI/preamp as well as the touted Headway EDB-2, for one example among the zillions out there, specifically in negating the ugly and very pronounced tendency of the K&K to feedback?

Have you tried a sound hole plug? That helps me. I also cut the bass a long way. That helps too. Depends on the guitar.

[Medford Guitar]

When you use an K&K direct into an amp like a Loudbox Mini, I believe there is a preamp built in with Gain, Bass, Mid and Treble control. So, what is the need for an external preamp if one i built into the amp. Unless the preamp has a sweepable mid control, how much does a signal need to be processed?
For example, let's say your guitar runs on a battery and it has bass/mid/treble control and you send that signal to an external preamp with bass/mid/treble control, then you send that signal into an amp with a built in preamp with bass/mid/treble control.
To me, that is one over processed signal, and furthermore, which preamp controls, the last in the chain?

Lately, I've been running my guitar direct into a Loudbox Mini as a monitor and then DI out to mixer. Seems to give me the cleanest signal.

[Marty C]

Originally Posted by aschroeder

I have a love/hate relationship with the K&K. When you get it dialed in the sounds is incredible. But it is nearly unusable without major EQing. It has a hot enough signal to run without a preamp, but I always use an external preamp with EQ to deal with the excessively boomy low end and lacking high end.

I finally found the secret weapon when I started using IRs (impulse response). I recorded my own IRs with the EQ flat on the K&K and then the IR gets rendered to cut the low end. With the IR turned on I can finally run my EQ in a more traditional mid sweep and it sounds amazing. I use a Boss GE-7 pedal as a preamp and EQ adjustment that works well with the K&K (with a preamp boost/cut of up to +/- 15dB). The nice thing is the Boss GE-7 runs on a 9V battery or a 9v plugin adapter which makes it versatile when you can't plug it in.

If you're willing to put in the work the K&K is a great pickup. With that said, there are other soundboard transducer pickups that are easier to work with and sound great without major EQ.

Are you running the EQ pedal before the IR or after?