Any Collings CJ guys have pickup recs?

[T268]

Hi AGF. First post in a looooong time. I’m looking to put a pickup in my Collings CJ(Sitka/EIR). I don’t perform enough to need a top flight rig. I just want to be able to plug in a sound decent when I help with worship at church. Was thinking K and K Pure Mini, but I just want to make sure there are no others that would suit this particular guitar better. Thanks in advance!

[troggg]

Originally Posted by T268

Hi AGF. First post in a looooong time. I’m looking to put a pickup in my Collings CJ(Sitka/EIR). I don’t perform enough to need a top flight rig. I just want to be able to plug in a sound decent when I help with worship at church. Was thinking K and K Pure Mini, but I just want to make sure there are no others that would suit this particular guitar better. Thanks in advance!

Anything possibly better would be more expensive, less simple, and more invasive to install (I"m a CJ35 owner with a K&K Pure Mini). So going with the Pure Mini is both a safe and wise decision.

You will need to cut some low mids and possibly add a few highs, but there are unlimited ways to accomplish that at very reasonable price points (and you may already own one of them).

If you play your parts well, a simple K&K setup with your Collings dread will most certainly sound "decent" at the very worst and is sure to satisfy 99.99999999% of your audience.

You could overcomplicate your decision -- and this forum is a great place to do it -- but your initial instinct is good. There's a reason so many Collings dread players choose K&K; it's the best bang for the buck and they go well together.

[BT55]

You can’t go wrong With K&K! You will need a preamp to get the sound right or you can go with an UltraPure Mini.

[T268]

Thanks Gents. From reading AGF enough he K and K was the default choice, but I just wanted make sure mine would play nice with it. I’d be playing into a basic eq board, so it could be tweaked there I suppose.

[troggg]

Originally Posted by T268

Thanks Gents. From reading AGF enough he K and K was the default choice, but I just wanted make sure mine would play nice with it. I’d be playing into a basic eq board, so it could be tweaked there I suppose.

Like I said you could overcomplicate things, but that's all you need. BT55 was pretty close; he was trying to get you some EQ from a "preamp" (preamps sometimes have EQ but sometimes don't) but to be more specific, you'll need either:

1) A direct box (DI) in between the pickup and the mixing board (the mixing board will be providing EQ, so no need to buy anything else to provide that). Chances are your church may already have one lying around.

2) A preamp which acts as direct box; once again, you said you want to keep things simple and I imagine cost effective, so #1 is even simpler.

Direct boxes are simpler than preamps cause their sole purpose to is to smooth out impedances rather than boosting signals (and sometimes boosting signals along with providing EQ to sculpt them).

A certain percentage of K&K owners feel that Pure Minis sound even better with something like a Redeye preamp; that may or may not be true ... but you won't need one to sound decent or better than decent. You'd only explore this option if you suddenly want to compete with really experienced performers.

[Marshall]

Originally Posted by T268

Thanks Gents. From reading AGF enough he K and K was the default choice, but I just wanted make sure mine would play nice with it. I’d be playing into a basic eq board, so it could be tweaked there I suppose.

There are other Soundboard Transducers (SBTs) that are easier to install (and less permanent) than the K&K. Not better. But pretty equal. I like the Schatten HFN series. But that's me. The install is very easy and NOT permanent.

But more importantly, all piezo pickups need the benefit of the ToneDexter to make your guitar sound like your guitar when amplified. I don't have a Collings CJ myself. But I've lusted after them.

(If you're going to have a pro install a K&K, then I cant fault that choice. It will be permanent. But with the right pedal and/or effects you'll do quite fine).

[Vancebo]

K&K with a Red Eye DI is a real nice and simple combo that will run $350 plus installation for the K&K. This would be a real popular option here on the forum and for good reason.

I have been preaching here on the forum lately about another simple set-up that I like better because it is more mic-like. Very few here on the forum have tried it. A handmade Dazzo pickup with a Sunnaudio on board Tone Driver, or you can get the Stage DI version that does the same thing. These were literal made to go together. I am a picky audio freak and I will gladly recommend this combo. It will run you $215 for the Dazzo and $200 for the on board version of the preamp. If you like the sound of your guitar, you will love the sound of this combo. It makes my average sounding Taylor GS Mini and 310 sound better than they were meant to sound. Makes my Collings D2 Traditional sound fantastic. It’s a “Your guitar on steroids” kind of experience. When I plug mine in at Church, I set the EQ flat, turn the volume to 1/4 and the sound guy is happy and I am happy. He applies a high pass filter and that’s it. Since it is a full band the low end is not needed.

Otherwise there are many other good plug and play choices that would do a good job for you and really be simple to use. Good luck.

[troggg]

Originally Posted by Marshall

There are other Soundboard Transducers (SBTs) that are easier to install (and less permanent) than the K&K. Not better. But pretty equal. I like the Schatten HFN series. But that's me. The install is very easy and NOT permanent.

But more importantly, all piezo pickups need the benefit of the ToneDexter to make your guitar sound like your guitar when amplified. I don't have a Collings CJ myself. But I've lusted after them.

(If you're going to have a pro install a K&K, then I cant fault that choice. It will be permanent. But with the right pedal and/or effects you'll do quite fine).

Agree that a pro should install the K&K ... especially someone who's installed plenty of K&Ks, because the placement of those 3 transducers is crucial to whether or not you will get any "quack."

Disagree on the Shatten for this particular application, because it's just not as "tried and true" paired with Collings guitars. That's not a knock on the Shatten or me trying to say just because there are way less Shattens paired with Collings than K&K that they're somehow not as good. The odds are just more favorable for the K&K, especially since the op wants to sound decent as opposed to searching for holy grail tone.

[troggg]

Originally Posted by Vancebo

K&K with a Red Eye DI is a real nice and simple combo that will run $350 plus installation for the K&K. This would be a real popular option here on the forum and for good reason.

I have been preaching here on the forum lately about another simple set-up that I like better because it is more mic-like. Very few here on the forum have tried it. A handmade Dazzo pickup with a Sunnaudio on board Tone Driver, or you can get the Stage DI version that does the same thing. These were literal made to go together. I am a picky audio freak and I will gladly recommend this combo. It will run you $215 for the Dazzo and $200 for the on board version of the preamp. If you like the sound of your guitar, you will love the sound of this combo. It makes my average sounding Taylor GS Mini and 310 sound better than they were meant to sound. Makes my Collings D2 Traditional sound fantastic. It’s a “Your guitar on steroids” kind of experience. When I plug mine in at Church, I set the EQ flat, turn the volume to 1/4 and the sound guy is happy and I am happy. He applies a high pass filter and that’s it. Since it is a full band the low end is not needed.

Otherwise there are many other good plug and play choices that would do a good job for you and really be simple to use. Good luck.

You have made your love for Dazzo quite clear on other threads; I hope your honeymoon lasts. However, the op is not seeking to sound "fantastic" or like"your guitar on steroids," he is looking to sound decent. Can you honestly say you don't think he'll sound at least decent with a K&K Pure Mini in a Collings dread?

[Vancebo]

Originally Posted by troggg

You have made your love for Dazzo quite clear on other threads; I hope your honeymoon lasts. However, the op is not seeking to sound "fantastic" or like"your guitar on steroids," he is looking to sound decent. Can you honestly say you don't think he'll sound at least decent with a K&K Pure Mini in a Collings dread?

See my opening paragraph. Thanks.

[Vancebo]

Originally Posted by troggg

You have made your love for Dazzo quite clear on other threads; I hope your honeymoon lasts. However, the op is not seeking to sound "fantastic" or like"your guitar on steroids," he is looking to sound decent. Can you honestly say you don't think he'll sound at least decent with a K&K Pure Mini in a Collings dread?

Actually, I didn’t see where he said he wanted to sound “decent.” Must have missed that. I am just trying to help. On every thread here that people ask for Pickup advice, there are going to be a boatload if people that will mention K&K, heck, I was one of the first on this forum to start boasting about K&K when nobody knew about them. They are located 2 hours away from on the coast of Oregon. There are only three of us that bring up Dazzos on a regular basis.

Since I have way over spent most people on the forum on gear, I feel I have something to share because of the experiences I have had with many pickup combos. You have mentioned the “honeymoon” phase of pickups. It might seem like that. The longest I have owned and regularly used a pickup in a guitar was 7 years. It was a K&K Powerblend Trinity I had in a Goodall guitar. It was a good system. It combined three sources (mic, pure minis, and a UST) all in one onboard preamp with 3 band EQ on each source and individual volume wheels at the sound hole. It was a great system. But every system has its pros and cons. With each system I just learned to accentuate the pros and minimize the cons. Some of the systems I had became tiresome to continually deal with to make it sound it’s best. As guitars were sold off I was always open to trying new pickup types. And EASY started becoming more attractive to me. A K&K/Red Eye is a great option to have. But if someone was looking for something that had more of a mic like, balanced, less of the piezoelectric sound then I am willing to give free advice and mention that IMHO, the Dazzo/Sunnaudio combo is something worth taking a chance on.

Teddy only makes probably less than three hundred a year and many of those are going to Asian countries. Sunnaudio is a brand new 2 man operation. Sunny knows what he is doing. He is the engineer behind it. They don’t advertise. I am just performing my civic duty on this forum. It’s just one man’s opinion and I am sticking to it and I hope the OP gets something useful from it.

[martingitdave]

I’d go with the K&K if you’re plugging in at church. (I don’t usually recommend them for open mic players unless they are comfortable with a belt pack preamp). K&K usually needs a little help, but that’s not an issue when you’re in the church setting. If you want a better mic like tone later, you can buy a ToneDexter.

[troggg]

Originally Posted by Vancebo

Actually, I didn’t see where he said he wanted to sound “decent.” Must have missed that. I am just trying to help. On every thread here that people ask for Pickup advice, there are going to be a boatload if people that will mention K&K, heck, I was one of the first on this forum to start boasting about K&K when nobody knew about them. They are located 2 hours away from on the coast of Oregon. There are only three of us that bring up Dazzos on a regular basis.

Since I have way over spent most people on the forum on gear, I feel I have something to share because of the experiences I have had with many pickup combos. You have mentioned the “honeymoon” phase of pickups. It might seem like that. The longest I have owned and regularly used a pickup in a guitar was 7 years. It was a K&K Powerblend Trinity I had in a Goodall guitar. It was a good system. It combined three sources (mic, pure minis, and a UST) all in one onboard preamp with 3 band EQ on each source and individual volume wheels at the sound hole. It was a great system. But every system has its pros and cons. With each system I just learned to accentuate the pros and minimize the cons. Some of the systems I had became tiresome to continually deal with to make it sound it’s best. As guitars were sold off I was always open to trying new pickup types. And EASY started becoming more attractive to me. A K&K/Red Eye is a great option to have. But if someone was looking for something that had more of a mic like, balanced, less of the piezoelectric sound then I am willing to give free advice and mention that IMHO, the Dazzo/Sunnaudio combo is something worth taking a chance on.

Teddy only makes probably less than three hundred a year and many of those are going to Asian countries. Sunnaudio is a brand new 2 man operation. Sunny knows what he is doing. He is the engineer behind it. They don’t advertise. I am just performing my civic duty on this forum. It’s just one man’s opinion and I am sticking to it and I hope the OP gets something useful from it.

First paragraph of Post #1 in this thread:
"Hi AGF. First post in a looooong time. I’m looking to put a pickup in my Collings CJ(Sitka/EIR). I don’t perform enough to need a top flight rig. I just want to be able to plug in a sound decent when I help with worship at church."

I certainly never suggested you don't have valuable knowledge to share. To the contrary, I'm sure you do: that is, if someone is looking to sound as optimum as you're looking to sound, which the originator of this thread is not looking to do