Downside to K&K Volume Control?

[ameadows]

I'm getting ready to put a K&K pickup into my J45 and am trying to figure out whether or not to get the passive volume control as well. I play on a stage at church where my board is back behind me and I don't always have easy access to the mute switch so it's nice for me to have a way to mute the guitar without walking back to my board. I don't need varying degrees of volume. The wheel would always either be at 100% or 0%.

I have another K&K equipped guitar that sounds great through my current set up but it does not have the volume wheel installed. Are there any downsides to adding the volume control given the info above?

[HeyMikey]

I had one with the passive volume. For me it was only valuable as an on/off switch. It didn’t have good accuracy to manage the volume and it sometimes produced static noise if not fully on.

[dcopper]

I don’t think there are any downsides. There are options however - Taylor makes a cable with a built in volume control. I use that sometimes for my K&K equipped Taylors and my K&K equipped Collings mandolin. There are also some devices you can plug your regular cable in - one was called a “black Box” that was simply a volume control that plugged into your guitar output and then you plug the cable to the black box input. Of course you could use a volume pedal.
That all said - there really isn’t any downside to onboard volume control.

Good luck,
Davidc

[ameadows]

Thanks for your input, guys. I didn't realize they made cables like that...that's pretty cool!

[martingitdave]

I didn't find the passive volume control very useful except to cut out completely. My current guitars do not have the volume control. If you want that, I would recommend their internal PrePhase active preamp system.

[Mbroady]

As mentioned the passive K&K volume control is not very linear. It goes from off, and at some point, to totally on. There is no gradual increase in volume. I found it did become linear once I added a pre-amp.

[Rudy4]

Originally Posted by Mbroady

As mentioned the passive K&K volume control is not very linear. It goes from off, and at some point, to totally on. There is no gradual increase in volume. I found it did become linear once I added a pre-amp.

That's the problem with a passive volume used with a piezo-based transducer; its functionality is totally dependent upon the impedance of what it is plugged into.

It's simple enough to use a bare-bones-nothing-added K&K pure mini and control what you want to do by plugging it into a floor pre-amp, etc.

I had a Baggs Element that had the sound hole mounted volume control that decided it would fail while I was doing a gig. That forever solidified my feelings about those tiny little cheaply produced "volume / tone controls", as well as any guitar-mounted active electronics.

[PatrickMadsen]

I have several K&K v. controls in my instruments and love them. Great for turning up to do a lead and down for rhythm.

I recently took in a baritone uke with a Misi to have a V/T control installed and the luthier is having a difficult time getting it to work properly. Unlike the K&K which is a plug an play setup, the Misi needs to be soldered in. Seems that's the problem for him getting it to work properly. It's either on or off, no in between.

I don't play professionally but play guitar in a bluegrass oldtimer's group and a baritone uke in a uke group.

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by ameadows

Thanks for your input, guys. I didn't realize they made cables like that...that's pretty cool!

Hi ameadows

For me when I'm a sound tech, there is a tremendous downside to the volume control.

The K&K Pure Mini is a passive pickup, and when you install a volume control, at 'full volume' you are just getting the normal output. When you turn it down you are turning down your output signal.

This increases noise, and the signal passed on to the amp or PA system. As someone mentioned, this makes a fine on/off/mute switch (when you turn it down all the way).

But if you cut the signal in ½ to the board, or to your pedals, you increase the self-noise potential of the pickup.

Most people want a volume output so they can turn themselves UP. A passive volume control can only turn you DOWN.