K&k + M1?

jhchang · #1 01-03-2009, 02:26 AM

Has anyone tried this combo? I have both but no blender so can't try it myself. I know K&K w/ mic would give a wonderful stereo tone; and am curious how the K&K + mag dual would sound like.

open-road-matt · #2 01-03-2009, 05:13 PM

I can't speak about the M1/K&K but I have a Sunrise Mag/K&K Pure Western Mini in one of my guitars and I like it a lot. I think a mag and an SBT is a good combo. At least it is for my playing style.

Matt

TomK · #3 01-05-2009, 10:28 AM

I'm interested in this as well. I have the K&K Trinity system in my Lowden F25 but removed the microphone as I could not get it dialed in. I'm thinking of adding and M1 active and getting a DTAR Solstice.

jhchang · #4 01-05-2009, 01:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by open-road-matt

I can't speak about the M1/K&K but I have a Sunrise Mag/K&K Pure Western Mini in one of my guitars and I like it a lot. I think a mag and an SBT is a good combo. At least it is for my playing style.

Matt

Could you please share how you do it? Do you wire both sources to the same endpin jack to become dual channel or they are separate signals?

open-road-matt · #5 01-05-2009, 02:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jhchang

Could you please share how you do it? Do you wire both sources to the same endpin jack to become dual channel or they are separate signals?

I have my Sunrise/K&K wired to a stereo 1/4" end pin jack. The Sunrise is soldered to the tip and the ground and the K&K is soldered to the ring and the ground.

Matt

thedict8or · #6 01-05-2009, 05:58 PM

i have a k&K pwm wired to the tip, and an M1 passive wired to the ring of a stereo jack, and love the sound. i split it to two baggs PADIs and eq each input separately. i get the lows from the m1 and the highs from the k&K and love the sound. if you spend a little time on it, it can sound very natural. also, everything is passive, so NO BATTERIES!!!! hooray!

jaskofall · #7 01-06-2009, 12:48 PM

Hi Guys,
i have a Pure Western and an m1 in my 12 string Taylor and it is the best sound i have ever heard, I have 2 outputs from the guitar and blend them at the desk.
one thing i did notice is that these 2 pickups are out of phase with each other so i invert the phase of the M1 with a Baggs para Di
I also use Ernie Ball Nickel coated 11-52 electric guitar strings and it sounds awesome.
Anyone using a mag on a 12 string owes it to themselves to try electric strings for great plugged in tone.

derek2400 · #8 01-14-2009, 03:44 AM

"M1 out of phase with the K&K...." Hmmmm,,,thanx for the tip! I have a Raven Labs PMB on the way and plan to mix these two pickups in my Lowden O10. I`ll let ya`ll know how I make out. Cheers...Derek

derek2400 · #9 01-19-2009, 06:23 PM

A couple of questions. How much difference in the m1 passive and active? Also, when combined with the K&K, is there too much soundboard signal? Meaning- is it too "in your face"?

jhchang · #10 01-20-2009, 12:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by derek2400

A couple of questions. How much difference in the m1 passive and active? Also, when combined with the K&K, is there too much soundboard signal? Meaning- is it too "in your face"?

I just paired my M1A and K&K with separate outputs. You got to have a blender to adjust the level of each channel. M1A has its own preamp so the signal is hot enough, but wouldn't hurt to go through another boost. In fact M1A's signal is more powerful than K&K even preamp'ed so it's non-issue as you described. I'm quite happy with the result.

guitaniac · #11 01-20-2009, 02:35 PM

I'm currently using a Boss GE7 and a Fishman Platinum Pro EQ preamp to blend an active Shadow SH-145 mag pickup with a passive K&K mini-Pure SBT. Since both devices have a 1Kohm output impedance, I can actually combine the outputs directly with a Y connector, if desired. I suppose one could even use a pair of GE7s the same way, except that the GE7 doesn't have a phase inversion switch (as the Platinum does) and its sometimes necessary to invert the phase of one of the signals for an optimum blend.

The GE7 does have 15dbs of available cut and 15dbs of available gain, so it would be possible to obtain the desired levels for a good blend. Furthermore, its input impedance of 1Mohm works well with the passive mini-Pure. It would also work well with a passive mag pickup, if need be. (You could always try using two GE7s. You'll know that you need a phase inversion if the blended signal sounds hollow and worse than either pickup's signal by itself.)

By the way, the SH-145 sounds darn good for a mag pickup, especially when EQed with the GE7. Its my far-and-away favorite of all the mags I've tried. Its even more articulate than the M1, and it doesn't complain noisily (as the M1 did) when I inadvertantly strike it with a pick or thumbnail.

Gary

jhchang · #12 01-20-2009, 05:47 PM

Gary, the SH-145 is new to me and just learned it's an edge to M1. I did some research on it but couldn't find technical specs of it, even on the official Shadow website. Just curious about its width and what size of soundhole it can fit? I know the soundholes are typically of 4" in diameter; but many guitars like my Guild and Goodall are just a bit shy of it, maybe around 3 7/8" or so. Thus fitting my M1 to them would be tricky and very tight; just barely make. Not to mention about my Kinnaird of 3.75"ish, even impossible. So I wonder if the sh-145 would fit those slightly smaller soundholes?

guitaniac · #13 01-20-2009, 06:10 PM

Here's how the SH145 looks in the soundhole of my "hippie" guitar. That guitar's soundhole is 4" in diameter, so I don't think there'd be any problem with a 3.75" diameter soundhole. The underside clamps on the pickup can be turned completely sideways to make insertion easier.

Gary

lppier · #14 01-21-2009, 01:12 AM

Is it possible to run the K&K Trinity dual source (SBT + Mic) into 1 Channel of the Solstice, and the M1 into the other channel for 3 sounds mixed?
Has anyone tried this?
Thanks.

jaskofall · #15 01-21-2009, 06:11 AM

In my experience the M1 sounds great when mixed with other sources.
I have an M1 in all my stage guitars for louder volumes. I have an M1 and the K&K powermix pure in my 12 string and they sound great together.
Dont be afraid to try some different pickups blended together in the same guitar, the results are pretty good if you choose 2 that compliment each other.
I have 2 sources in all my guitars
Regards
Jask