Pickup advice for dreadnought

[mjarema414]

I've been trying different pickups for a guitar I bought from a friend. I'd like to use it as a second or maybe even a first at gigs. We (duo) play smaller bars and at times need to be pretty loud to cut throught the crowd noise. For about 8 years, I've been gigging with a Guild with a fishman that's been pretty solid. About a year ago, I bought a Morris off a friend. Not too well known but I actually really like the guitar. It's a spruce top, rosewood back/sides. I play mostly leads and rhythm and use an active Radial DI. First, I tried a Baggs M1a with no luck. It didn't sound very good at higher volumes but worked well in an empty room. Currently, I have a fishman rare earth and it sounds a lot better. The only problem is the low end. It doesn't cut through like the higher strings and is boomy without feedback. I put it to a good test last weekend in a bar with a lot of wood and people.

I'm thinking that maybe I just need a good DI or preamp to use with the rare earth. The radial has been great but is just a DI, no tone controls. I was also thinking that I should just keep trying different pickups. Any advice or help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[Michael T]

K&K PWM with a XLR preamp is all you need. Clean, natural and controlable. On my Larri dread I cutthe mids about to about 9:00 and boost the treb just a touch (1:00) and away we go. I have heard of some having problems with feedback but not experienced it myself. Then again I don't use a mic in mine either which could be problematic with a dread being a big box.

[mjarema414]

Originally Posted by Michael T

K&K PWM with a XLR preamp is all you need. Clean, natural and controlable. On my Larri dread I cutthe mids about to about 9:00 and boost the treb just a touch (1:00) and away we go. I have heard of some having problems with feedback but not experienced it myself. Then again I don't use a mic in mine either which could be problematic with a dread being a big box.

Thanks Mike. Appreciate the input. I will definitely try that combination. I've been reading a lot about the K&K PWM. Do you think it'd be worth trying a preamp w/ the Rare Earth? I'm using an active DI at the moment with no tone controls.

[irish_admiral]

Actually, i'm pretty sure you can make the pickup work... plenty of people do.

You just need to work out what settings will normally work for the mixing desk EQ and then you're there. Most acoustics take a cut around 650hz to give some clarity and lose some mud. Adjust treble and bass to boost.

If you're having a woolly bass problem, try an Aphex Acoustic Xciter... read up on them: I think that will help your problem if the mixing desk EQ doesn't.

I DO NOT think you need to change your pickup. The rare earth and the M1 are both good enough.

[mjarema414]

Originally Posted by irish_admiral

Actually, i'm pretty sure you can make the pickup work... plenty of people do.

You just need to work out what settings will normally work for the mixing desk EQ and then you're there. Most acoustics take a cut around 650hz to give some clarity and lose some mud. Adjust treble and bass to boost.

If you're having a woolly bass problem, try an Aphex Acoustic Xciter... read up on them: I think that will help your problem if the mixing desk EQ doesn't.

I DO NOT think you need to change your pickup. The rare earth and the M1 are both good enough.

Hey Joe, I agree that the rare earth should work. I've tried different settings with the mixer and I just can't get the E A D strings to pop like the G B E on a solo. I find myself picking the lower stings much harder than when I travel to the higher strings. This makes me thing that I could benefit from a decent preamp with tone controls rather than the active DI I've been using. I was thinking an Baggs Para DI. Any other recommendations with this pickup?

[tenniso]

i use the rare earth humbucker in my yamaha fg730s, along with a BBE acoustimax and a BBE boosta grande(clean boost) out to the P.A. this is a very nice set-up that has no problem cutting thru the mix.

Dont get rid of your pickup, just get a good pre-amp of some type and spend some time dialing it in for the room you are playing, and then get the P.A. dialed in.

to MY EARS, the Rare Earth sounds better than any piezo set-up i've heard. but like i said MY EARS. i have heard all types of pickups at the bar i play, and i just like magnetic pickups, although i would like an internal mic as well to blend with the magnetic.

[Michael T]

Originally Posted by mjarema414

Thanks Mike. Appreciate the input. I will definitely try that combination. I've been reading a lot about the K&K PWM. Do you think it'd be worth trying a preamp w/ the Rare Earth? I'm using an active DI at the moment with no tone controls.

Yes, a preamp is going to give you better sound and control over just a active DI. I used the active Rare Earth with a Boss GE-7 preamp and really liked it, especially the boost feature, it had a bit of a hiss but only at lower volumes was it noticeable and the 7 band EQ worked wonderfully to dial out boominess etc. But, I gotta tell ya most of the time I didn't have time to mess around with it prior to go time, and adjusting it in between songs was a pain. Simple and clean for me.

The other issue for me was I have a tendency to not leave well enough alone, so if it has a knob or lever I gotta mess with it, real bad habit. That's one of the things I like about the K&K and stayed away from putting a mic in the box too. I've tried one, not all that much better and was back into blending and tweaking knobs and levers. But to each their own.

[mjarema414]

Thanks for your thoughts. About the BBE, the reviews look great. However, I was wondering if the processing is overkill. Does it thin out the sound of the strings at all? I'm just wondering. I've used a few boxes in previous years with other guitars and never liked the sound..I was looking along the lines of the baggs unit or possibly the Boss eq mentioned. I'm sure I can get the Boss on Ebay relatively cheap. I'm just concerned with the hiss or noise of that pedal. Some older bars have old wiring.

[Santucci218]

Just to let you know. I mainly play electric. I bought one of those BOSS EQ pedals to use with my Mesa Single Rec. I usually play a little loud, so the hiss was totally noticable. I sold it because of it. Ended up with this Danelectro Fish n' Chips pedal, which is the same as the boss, just cheap as dirt. No hiss, works fine. I got mine used for 26 dollars shipped to my house.

[irish_admiral]

Yeah, I think most pickups benefit from a good preamp. Certainly a Baggs PADI would be a good starter, as would the BBE Acoustimax, or the Headway EDB1 etc. You can shape your sound a bit before it hits the desk.

But the proper use of normal 3 band EQ at the desk (the mid band is sweepable) should be sufficient to give you a decent working sound with most any pickup.

I've not come across any pickup i've not been able to make 'work' to a greater or lesser extent. You might not hear all the subtle nuances you want to, but neither mostly will the audience... even when you think they should!

[mjarema414]

Originally Posted by irish_admiral

Yeah, I think most pickups benefit from a good preamp. Certainly a Baggs PADI would be a good starter, as would the BBE Acoustimax, or the Headway EDB1 etc. You can shape your sound a bit before it hits the desk.

But the proper use of normal 3 band EQ at the desk (the mid band is sweepable) should be sufficient to give you a decent working sound with most any pickup.

I've not come across any pickup i've not been able to make 'work' to a greater or lesser extent. You might not hear all the subtle nuances you want to, but neither mostly will the audience... even when you think they should!

I hear you and agree. I can definitely make this pickup work and have done so for a few gigs. Like you said, sweeping the mids a bit helps but it just needs something more w/ regard to the lower strings. I ordered a Para DI and will try out the combination this weekend. I have 3 gigs in 3 small bars. It'll be a good test! Thanks for all your input.

[engr_scotty]

Originally Posted by mjarema414

Hey Joe, I agree that the rare earth should work. I've tried different settings with the mixer and I just can't get the E A D strings to pop like the G B E on a solo. I find myself picking the lower stings much harder than when I travel to the higher strings. This makes me thing that I could benefit from a decent preamp with tone controls rather than the active DI I've been using. I was thinking an Baggs Para DI. Any other recommendations with this pickup?

I was reluctant to use a Baggas Para DI on my newly installed K&K mini/CA OX Raw. It turned an okay tone to incredible(!) with a few tweaks of the knobs.... Kudos to the Baggs Para DI! They're hard to find used, but worth every penny, IMO

g'luck!