Anthem, dual source?

[rschultz]

Hi,

Is it possible to wire in a 2nd source to the Anthem like you can with the Lyric?

Thanks.

[Petty1818]

I am pretty sure that the only way to wire a 2nd source would be to remove the Element UST and wire in something like the pure mini. Having said that, even though someone in another thread said that their friend did this with great results, I can see it being problematic. I have seen some artists using the Anthem with another source and they always have a second output jack.

Again, replacing the Anthem with something like the K&K sounds promising, I can just see it being a nightmare to eq. I only say this because generally I find the K&K to need more eq than a UST.

[rschultz]

I called Baggs. They said you can't wire to the RING like you can on the Lyric. Bummer. So it's either TruMic+Element or TruMic+K&K. I was hoping for all 3.

[Petty1818]

Originally Posted by rschultz

I called Baggs. They said you can't wire to the RING like you can on the Lyric. Bummer. So it's either TruMic+Element or TruMic+K&K. I was hoping for all 3.

That definitely would have been an interesting set up. I am more interested in removing the Element and trying the K&K instead. I just have to decide if it's worth it to try wiring the K&K to the Anthem and having a mono signal with a control interface or go the stereo route and use a Lyric and K&K.

[rschultz]

Originally Posted by Petty1818

That definitely would have been an interesting set up. I am more interested in removing the Element and trying the K&K instead. I just have to decide if it's worth it to try wiring the K&K to the Anthem and having a mono signal with a control interface or go the stereo route and use a Lyric and K&K.

The Lyric is better than the Anthem Tru-mic. I'd just go Lyric+K&K, I've got 2 guitars like this.

For me, I am intrigued by the Anthem because the Element would give more attack than the K&K for live situations… and the preamp would do the crossover and EQ for me.

[Petty1818]

Originally Posted by rschultz

The Lyric is better than the Anthem Tru-mic. I'd just go Lyric+K&K, I've got 2 guitars like this.

For me, I am intrigued by the Anthem because the Element would give more attack than the K&K for live situations… and the preamp would do the crossover and EQ for me.

That's my worry with the K&K + Lyric set up. I feel as though I would miss the attack of a UST.

[Doug Young]

Unless they've changed it since I tried the Anthem (mine's in a box somewhere, can't find it at the moment), the Anthem comes with a mono endpin jack. BUT, you can easily replace it with a stereo jack of your own, and add a 2nd source to the ring. This isn't true of the SL, the jack there is mono, and integrated with the preamp, so you're stuck with mono. I really wish all manufacturers would just use stereo TRS jacks and allow people to add a 2nd source if they want.

[Doug Young]

Originally Posted by Petty1818

I am pretty sure that the only way to wire a 2nd source would be to remove the Element UST and wire in something like the pure mini. Having said that, even though someone in another thread said that their friend did this with great results, I can see it being problematic. I have seen some artists using the Anthem with another source and they always have a second output jack.

Again, replacing the Anthem with something like the K&K sounds promising, I can just see it being a nightmare to eq. I only say this because generally I find the K&K to need more eq than a UST.

I imagine you could do this. It's similar to my experiment replacing the UST in the Wavelength with a K&K. Possible issues are that the K&K is pretty hot - the K&K into the Wavelength was a *very* high output pickup. The Wavelength preamp works on 18 volts so it had the headroom to handle the increased signal. The Anthem preamp might or might not. I'd also be concerned that the hotter K&K would swamp the mic, tho you do have a gain control on the mic, so it might work out. Worth a try.

[Petty1818]

Originally Posted by Doug Young

I imagine you could do this. It's similar to my experiment replacing the UST in the Wavelength with a K&K. Possible issues are that the K&K is pretty hot - the K&K into the Wavelength was a *very* high output pickup. The Wavelength preamp works on 18 volts so it had the headroom to handle the increased signal. The Anthem preamp might or might not. I'd also be concerned that the hotter K&K would swamp the mic, tho you do have a gain control on the mic, so it might work out. Worth a try.

Thanks Doug! It's definitely something that I need to consider. I wanted to try the Lyric + K&K set up but the downside is that it's stereo (I like keeping things simple) and it sounds like there would be a lot of eq required. With the Anthem + K&K (instead of the Element), I would have the ability to keep it mono, have the tru-mic only handle the higher frequencies and also have a nice onboard control module to do quick blending etc. It's just a bit of a gamble at a high expense.

On a side note, are you still using the K&K + Lyric set up?

[rschultz]

I just saw some pictures of an Anthem SL install. The endpin for the SL looks like the Lyric. 2 questions:

1) Does the SL have a way to add a 2nd source like the Lyric?

2) What does the endpin look like for the Anthem (full)?

[Petty1818]

Originally Posted by rschultz

I just saw some pictures of an Anthem SL install. The endpin for the SL looks like the Lyric. 2 questions:

1) Does the SL have a way to add a 2nd source like the Lyric?

2) What does the endpin look like for the Anthem (full)?

Wasn't this answered already?

[rschultz]

Actually, this WILL work on the Anthem. Since there are no electronics within the endpin of the full Anthem, I can remove that endpin and put on a standard stereo endpin that switches the TIP and allows a passive 2nd source. Baggs tech support verified this to be true.

As for the Anthem SL, the endpin looks like the Lyric. Baggs tech support said he'd look into this and call me back.

Cool, looks like I can add the K&K to at least the Anthem, and maybe the SL. Of course, for tinkerers like me… why would I want to be limited by the SL?

[Petty1818]

Originally Posted by rschultz

Actually, this WILL work on the Anthem. Since there are no electronics within the endpin of the full Anthem, I can remove that endpin and put on a standard stereo endpin that switches the TIP and allows a passive 2nd source. Baggs tech support verified this to be true.

As for the Anthem SL, the endpin looks like the Lyric. Baggs tech support said he'd look into this and call me back.

Cool, looks like I can add the K&K to at least the Anthem, and maybe the SL. Of course, for tinkerers like me… why would I want to be limited by the SL?

I believe Doug had mentioned that in an earlier post. However, let us know what tech support tells you with regards to the Anthem SL endpin. If I was doing this set up though I would probably get the full Anthem so that I could blend in the amount of UST that I want.

With that said, what are you hoping to accomplish by adding the K&K to the Anthem? I wanted to get rid of the Element UST and replace it with the K&K but I am trying to understand how a three source set up would work. I know K&K has something very similar but a lot of people found it to be too many sources.

[rschultz]

Originally Posted by Petty1818

With that said, what are you hoping to accomplish by adding the K&K to the Anthem? I wanted to get rid of the Element UST and replace it with the K&K but I am trying to understand how a three source set up would work. I know K&K has something very similar but a lot of people found it to be too many sources.

The Lyric+K&K is great, I really like how it sounds if it's EQ'd right. However, in a live band situation sometimes it feels like I can't get enough attack or cut through the mix. I've heard a few people with Anthems get a grittier sound that helps in that regard, can make their guitar really growl… no doubt the element has a lot to do with that. So I want to try the Anthem… but what would I do with that K&K that's GLUED in? Sure would be nice to wire it in as a 2nd source. Seems like I could the K&K if I wanted a warmer low end than the element, and roll off the lows of the Anthem to essentially turn off the element.

The one downside is that, from what I read, the TruMic in the Anthem isn't as good as the Lyric. So not sure how much of a hit I'll take there. But it's fun to experiment.

[rschultz]

Baggs tech support said the Anthem SL will also work. The RING only connects to the circuitry in an anchor path to a tab. So in principle we can connect the signal of another pickup to the RING. The tricky part, he said, would be getting 2 more wires in that preamp casing… signal AND ground.

The Anthem only has a TRS jack, the RING is used as the switch. So the jack would have to be replaced, but that seems easy since there is no circuitry in the jack.

The Anthem SL has a TRSS jack (Tip, Ring, Switch, Sleeve), so it is ready to accept a Ring signal. It even has a ring tab to solder to. I haven't seen this, but it seems similar to the Lyric that has both a Ring and Ground tab… seems like the SL only has the RING tab and not a ground tab.