Schatten HFN (New Design)

[GuitarLuva]

Originally Posted by DownUpDave

All this talk about Schatten pick ups has me jonesing for one. I live just a few hours away from them so supporting local is always nice. I have an Eastman E100-LTD, Which is a 00 12 fret that needs a pick up.

I am not adverse to having a battery and wiring in my instrument. I also like the idea of a volume and tone wheel so I am thinking of the active pick up. GuitarLuva, I know you have gone with the passive version, any BIG reason why, better sound or you just prefer the simplicity of the passive

I went passive as I wanted the least amount of components inside the guitar as possible.

[rb1591]

Originally Posted by GuitarLuva

Guys my Schatten story just keeps getting better. Had the pickup installed for a few days now with the putty and it's actually a few dB louder than my Anthem SL equipped Gibson now. I never touched anything since so I'm wondering if the putty cured or something of that nature.

GuitarLuva, thanks for your great report. Sounds like the Schatten has great potential, but have you gigged with it. If there is one thing I’ve learned, it is that there can be a big difference in auditioning a pickup system in my music room at home compared to how it performs through a sound system at a gig.

There seems to be little if any good HFN video or audio files. I think we would all appreciate hearing the excellent results you report, if you have that capability.

Again, thanks for your work. We all benefit.

[Marshall]

Originally Posted by DownUpDave

All this talk about Schatten pick ups has me jonesing for one. I live just a few hours away from them so supporting local is always nice. I have an Eastman E100-LTD, Which is a 00 12 fret that needs a pick up.

I am not adverse to having a battery and wiring in my instrument. I also like the idea of a volume and tone wheel so I am thinking of the active pick up. GuitarLuva, I know you have gone with the passive version, any BIG reason why, better sound or you just prefer the simplicity of the passive

I have the VT model. I like having the ability to tweak the sound on stage. The internal battery and wiring and such is a minor pain. But that's the same for any comparable system.

I have another guitar with the passive in it. That works fine. The ToneDexter picks up the signal with a 10 ft cable quite nicely. But I do like being able to control volume and tone on the guitar.

[philjs]

Originally Posted by Marshall

I have another guitar with the passive in it. That works fine. The ToneDexter picks up the signal with a 10 ft cable quite nicely. But I do like being able to control volume and tone on the guitar.

This ^^ is, I think, yet another plus point for passive pickups.

With a passive pickup, once the input trim/gain is set on the ToneDexter you're good to go. If you need more volume then use the TDs boost. With an active pickup you're controlling an onboard preamp output BUT you're also potentially overloading the input gain stage of the outboard preamp (eg., the TD). Running an onboard preamp into yet another preamp (and then into a third if you're using an amp) is more than a tad redundant...

Phil

[GuitarLuva]

Originally Posted by rb1591

GuitarLuva, thanks for your great report. Sounds like the Schatten has great potential, but have you gigged with it. If there is one thing I’ve learned, it is that there can be a big difference in auditioning a pickup system in my music room at home compared to how it performs through a sound system at a gig.

There seems to be little if any good HFN video or audio files. I think we would all appreciate hearing the excellent results you report, if you have that capability.

Again, thanks for your work. We all benefit.

Yeah I totally agree with everything you said here. I have not gigged with the pickup yet and probably won't be anytime soon as my 3 young kiddos take up nearly all my spare time these days. I think it will be totally fine in most scenarios the only one I would worry about is the loud band with a drummer scene and who knows maybe it will be totally fine there as well. Those little Fishman amps can pump out the volume and the only way I got feedback so far was when I put the guitar right next to the amp, though the Anthem did feedback as well.

I'm certainly no youtuber and the best thing I have to do a video is my phone (Samsung Galaxy S7). I'll try to do a quick video when the opportunity arises just for you guys here basically doing the same thing I mentioned in the thread so you can hear the difference. Though I think Baggs might send some assassins to get me afterwards.

[Marshall]

Originally Posted by philjs

This ^^ is, I think, yet another plus point for passive pickups.

With a passive pickup, once the input trim/gain is set on the ToneDexter you're good to go. If you need more volume then use the TDs boost. With an active pickup you're controlling an onboard preamp output BUT you're also potentially overloading the input gain stage of the outboard preamp (eg., the TD). Running an onboard preamp into yet another preamp (and then into a third if you're using an amp) is more than a tad redundant...

Phil

Yeahbut, the pedal is on the floor. And I don't like kneeling down every time (sometimes in the middle of a song) to tweak the volume. Yes there's a boost button, but that's not normally for subtle changes.

Plus I like the tone control too. Sometimes, even with the best equipment, you're still at the mercy of the sound guy's controls. Some guys like to mix it bright and harsh. That's when i cut back on the tone wheel.

[DownUpDave]

Originally Posted by Marshall

I have the VT model. I like having the ability to tweak the sound on stage. The internal battery and wiring and such is a minor pain. But that's the same for any comparable system.

I have another guitar with the passive in it. That works fine. The ToneDexter picks up the signal with a 10 ft cable quite nicely. But I do like being able to control volume and tone on the guitar.

Thanks Marshall. I have other instruments, guitars and ukuleles that have active pick ups and I love the convenience of tone wheels and the easy plug and play for open mics.

[GuitarLuva]

Originally Posted by DownUpDave

Thanks Marshall. I have other instruments, guitars and ukuleles that have active pick ups and I love the convenience of tone wheels and the easy plug and play for open mics.

Can't argue the convenience of onboard volume and tone controls but having that stuff on an external preamp is not too bad either.

[Marshall]

Originally Posted by GuitarLuva

Can't argue the convenience of onboard volume and tone controls but having that stuff on an external preamp is not too bad either.

Yes. Schatten makes a nice belt clip mini-preamp. But it only has volume control. But it works well with the HFN. I used that with my first HFNs. Back then there was no onboard preamp option.

[stevecuss]

Originally Posted by GuitarLuva

Go ahead...consider it a late Christmas gift for yourself!

I ended up ordering this - the price was too good to pass up. It will arrive in a week or so and I'll get some putty from Schatten.

I have a K&K in my Martin 000-18, so I'll need to decide whether to switch it out, potentially ruining the K&K, or wait for a free guitar down the road to use the Schatten. But I'm very intrigued by it

[guitaniac]

Originally Posted by stevecuss

I ended up ordering this - the price was too good to pass up. It will arrive in a week or so and I'll get some putty from Schatten.

I have a K&K in my Martin 000-18, so I'll need to decide whether to switch it out, potentially ruining the K&K, or wait for a free guitar down the road to use the Schatten. But I'm very intrigued by it

Thank you. I was tempted to buy it for the stereo preamp alone, just because it was a crazy bargain.

The pickup is intriguing too, but I'm waiting to snag a mini-flex style GHS soundhole mic at a bargain price. My OTSS USTs blend very well with an internal mic, but the iRig Stage Mic is too awkward to set up and use for gigs, and my MiniFlex 2Mic has more weight than I want in the guitar. (I also suspect that a single mic will blend better.)

[stevecuss]

Originally Posted by guitaniac

Thank you. I was tempted to buy it for the stereo preamp alone, just because it was a crazy bargain.

The pickup is intriguing too, but I'm waiting to snag a mini-flex style GHS soundhole mic at a bargain price. My OTSS USTs blend very well with an internal mic, but the iRig Stage Mic is too awkward to set up and use for gigs, and my MiniFlex 2Mic has more weight than I want in the guitar. (I also suspect that a single mic will blend better.)

I'll keep us up to date. Yeah, it was a bargain. I am moving away from 2 source systems now that IR is viable, but still, the flexibility of this thing is incredible.

A friend is having problems with his pickup, so we'll put it in his guitar first and I'll report back.

[Monsum]

Originally Posted by GuitarLuva

I'm certainly no youtuber and the best thing I have to do a video is my phone (Samsung Galaxy S7). I'll try to do a quick video when the opportunity arises just for you guys here basically doing the same thing I mentioned in the thread so you can hear the difference. Though I think Baggs might send some assassins to get me afterwards.

This thread got me interested in the Schatten passive pickup so I also second the request for some audio samples (ideally a direct recording into an audio interface), if possible.

[guitaniac]

Originally Posted by stevecuss

I'll keep us up to date. Yeah, it was a bargain. I am moving away from 2 source systems now that IR is viable, but still, the flexibility of this thing is incredible.

A friend is having problems with his pickup, so we'll put it in his guitar first and I'll report back.

I hear you on the IR thing. An updated ToneDexter (for blend capability and better high end) and a first rate training mic might serve me better than installing mics in multiple guitars. Unfortunately, I'm still waiting on Sweetwater to get in more Slate ML-2 mics.

[GuitarLuva]

Originally Posted by Monsum

This thread got me interested in the Schatten passive pickup so I also second the request for some audio samples (ideally a direct recording into an audio interface), if possible.

I am going to do a vid when I get the chance. It'll be plugged into a Fishman amp though not an audio interface. I can also do just audio samples into reaper if that's what you want. The only problem with audio samples is I could get accused of tampering with EQ or something since nobody here knows me. Ultimately I want to backup what I said previously about the pickup especially when it's up against the popular Baggs Anthem and a vid would be the best way to do it. I think you will be quite surprised with the results as I was. All I ask is for a little patience (I got a lot going on right now) and I'll get to it eventually. The world needs to see that the "little guys" like Schatten might just have a better product and for cheaper!