Ha! Seriously. Jk Pete, I’d do the same honestly. Love my guitars, but curiosity always gets me. But when I get scared, I always think “Eddie Van Halen probably would too” lmao probably… 😂
Any job done with leftover parts is a job well done! Congrats! P.S. I know this wasn't an Acoustic Paradisio but it's nice seeing Ben with someone to interact with. Hint, hint. 😉
The farmhouse scene in Inglorious Basterds, the dentist scene in Marathon Man, and Pete and Ben installing a pickup on a D-18. The most tense, stress inducing moments ever put on screen.
I am relieved, did similiar works to my acoustics twice and was ashamed that I was concerned and nervous through the process. Great to see these 2 Pros are stressed too. Thanks for that experience.
as a FOH engineer, I'm a big fan of the Anthem system. They always end up sounding really good in FOH. K&K Pure Mini also are among my preferred pickup systems 👌🏼
Seriously, one of the best videos you've ever done. Watching Ben & Pete together was awesome. More please!! And how good was the playing and sound at the end?
Tip for next time: before you remove the saddle take a pencil and mark the line where it emerges from the slot. This way you have a reference point for sanding it later. Also, ideally, with that sort of pickup you drill a blind hole on the other side of the slot where you "bury" the end of the pickup to make sure you only have the active part of it underneath the saddle. P.S.: For the endpin jack ream the hole already there to size and make it uniform with the appropriate size drill bit (usually 12.5mm). Use tape and a steady hand but don't be afraid, it self centres in the hole.
Nope, no way, not a chance in hell would I give that a go on my acoustic! A longer demo of what the end result sounds like would be great but fair play to you both for getting it done!
I`d die a happy man if I could play guitar like Ben Smith, awesome acoustic player, I wish he`d record a course & sell it online from beginner up please so we could stick to Bens way /style, I`d buy it in a heartbeat!
Always better when you do it yourself and these boys know what they're doing. I was leaning Anthem when I got my D18 but walked out with the K&K upon their recommendation. They both sound amazing.
Always wished LR Baggs would buy K&K or vice versa. Both companies have a mix system but both have compromises. The baggs mic and mix preamp is so much better than the k&k - but the pure contact knocks any piezo out the park. Combine both and then….
The Maton AP5mic is the only pickup system I've heard that truly retains the character of the guitar. I've never heard a Martin that I like the sound of plugged in - would love to hear what one sounds like with an AP5 in it.
If you use a tapered hand reamer, you won't be so nervous. They sell them at Stew Mac or any other luthier supply place. They get gradually larger so the deeper you go, the larger the hole gets- which may sound odd, but it works really, really well. I would assume that's what that guide hole was for- to guide a reamer. The way they work, if you have a little guide hole like this- they stay centered without any effort from you, it's just how they work- you really can't get off center with one. Which makes them perfect for enlarging smaller holes- I use them primarily for installing new tuning keys that require a larger hole than what's already in the head stock. If it's a thicker piece of wood, like a head stock- you have to come in from one side, then flip it and come in from the other. Otherwise, you'll have a tapered hole. But if it's thin, like the face or back of the guitar- you can just come in from one side- it's still tapered but generally speaking that doesn't matter- the wood is so thin that the taper is tiny.
I've modified acoustic saddles many times (for action, intonation, etc). I learned a long time ago that, for the price of a new saddle, the peace of mind is well worth the cost. Mod the new saddle to achieve your goal. If you mess up you still have the original.
Great job guys for your first installation nice and neat inside that real important for any trouble shooting if something should ever fall later. I must say I have never had and LA Bags or the Infinity Matrx by Fishman go bad.
Another great video, Next week the new series Ben & Pete try Dentistry & the following week Bomb Disposal "HOW HARD CAN IT BE " !!!!!!!!🤐🤣. PEACE and LOVE to EVERYONE.
😲I got an Ambertone D41 last year and will never install a pickup. It would be like installing a clown nose on the Mona Lisa IMO. I'd never do anything to affect that tone and no matter what people think you can't put objects into a speaker without it affecting the tone. I have a Cloudvocal wireless mic I use in the sound hole blended with a Sennheiser E906 mic. Gets compliments live every time I play live. The folks in the Martin factory are absolute artists.
That D18 is SO beautiful! it is subtle, but just so good looking. I played a D16 special, and a D18, and the 16 was set up better, and I liked the rosewood more, so I bought that one, but I know a good D18 would just be great!
That was a fun video guys!! Still not a fan of the piezo sound, but if you're a professional musician and need to be heard on stage, sometimes you have to plug in. I put the Fishman Presys Plus in my 000-15M and regret it now. My new custom shop Martin build coming up (thank you Down Home Guitars!) will forgo the pickup system. I realized I only plugged in 3 times in 2 1/2 years. I love the tone of the guitar, but find myself not wanting to look down and see the pickup control box especially every time I look down. I think this pickup is much nicer in that it's hidden from view most of the time, but the Presys seems like it can generate more natural tones...
Thanks for sharing, I am toiling with the idea to add amplification to my Larrivee C-03 TE . Just want to pick the best most natural sounding system available. Tx Ben C
What fun to watch this pickup installation. Very brave of them to nervously do this on camera. But I have to say, the brief demo of the pickup itself was underwhelming. That Martin sounded terrible with that pickup. The usual tinny piezo sound. I would have liked a bit longer playing portion, with adjustments made to get it to sound better. More mic, less peizo. Thanks for yet another enjoyable episode. You folks rock.
I don't know if I can watch til the end. You drilled through a Martin? To install a pickup? What the hell were you thinking, man? That's what Ibanez's are for.
If there was one vid on RUclips that screamed take your guitar to a technician this is it ....from slipping the pliers on the saddle that obviously marked the material to not having a clue what they were doing, the whole sequence was like watching a three year old cross a busy road ....the dark side of me really wanted him to mess it up as a warning to others not to piddle around with stuff you have no clue about...now all you 2 have done is empower the diy guitar numpty who will now call himself a guitar tech because he saw these 2 bash there way through roughly fitting a pick up...could you not even borrow a socket off the tech for the end pin?...it really was painfull to watch...🤦🏻♂️
I don't think he ruined it, the room size that people play acoustics in now days are way larger than the body sizes were designed to fill, so its good that people see how you can make any guitar work for any room size. The Parlor size guitar was designed for playing in small rooms the size of.. well your living room. Now days, you can put a pickup in a Parlor and play a stadium with it, and it would work just fine. There really is no need for a large body on a acoustic anymore, as pickups have done the job that increasing the body size did, when it was first created. So if a pickup will do the job, it seems to me you are better off getting a Parlor that ether has a pickup in it, or put on in it yourself..
Pete Ruins ______ would be a series i'd watch
Yes! 😅
"Danish Pete: Ruins Everything!" ?
definetly petes aging shop would also be a funny video😂
Yes! "If it ain't broke... Give it to Pete!"
Ha! Seriously. Jk Pete, I’d do the same honestly. Love my guitars, but curiosity always gets me. But when I get scared, I always think “Eddie Van Halen probably would too” lmao probably… 😂
Loved this show!
Use the right tool for the job, spanner not pliers. I was that soldier :)
XXXL Shirts available at Andertons
Any job done with leftover parts is a job well done!
Congrats!
P.S. I know this wasn't an Acoustic Paradisio but it's nice seeing Ben with someone to interact with. Hint, hint. 😉
The farmhouse scene in Inglorious Basterds, the dentist scene in Marathon Man, and Pete and Ben installing a pickup on a D-18. The most tense, stress inducing moments ever put on screen.
Hahahaaa! I love that Pete was so nervous he didn't even pick up on, "just offer it up to the hole and see if it goes in."
Brilliant!
I am relieved, did similiar works to my acoustics twice and was ashamed that I was concerned and nervous through the process. Great to see these 2 Pros are stressed too. Thanks for that experience.
Welcome back Ben, its been a too long time. Please more acoustic playing of you, shootouts and presentations.
More of this type of content! Plus awesome to hear Ben on the acoustic again. Guy is a savage on the wooden box
Clickbait! 😆 I was hoping Pete would drill holes in his guitar like Bernth did in one of his latest videos..
😞 No piezo pickup ever sounds good. I understand that they're convenient, but for such a beautiful guitar a mic sounds 1,000,000 times better.
Couldn't agree more. When Clapton gets his Martin out, he just makes everyone shut the fuck up to hear it. That's the real compromise
as a FOH engineer, I'm a big fan of the Anthem system. They always end up sounding really good in FOH. K&K Pure Mini also are among my preferred pickup systems 👌🏼
I could listen to Ben play acoustic all day.
Seriously, one of the best videos you've ever done. Watching Ben & Pete together was awesome. More please!!
And how good was the playing and sound at the end?
Just did this to my 3000 pound Japanese headway.
Safe to say my butthole was well and truely clenched
Tip for next time: before you remove the saddle take a pencil and mark the line where it emerges from the slot. This way you have a reference point for sanding it later. Also, ideally, with that sort of pickup you drill a blind hole on the other side of the slot where you "bury" the end of the pickup to make sure you only have the active part of it underneath the saddle.
P.S.: For the endpin jack ream the hole already there to size and make it uniform with the appropriate size drill bit (usually 12.5mm). Use tape and a steady hand but don't be afraid, it self centres in the hole.
I'd shit myself. I have the Anthem in my D-28. Glad I didn't have to do it myself.
Nope, no way, not a chance in hell would I give that a go on my acoustic! A longer demo of what the end result sounds like would be great but fair play to you both for getting it done!
After about twenty of these installations, they become a little less nerve-wracking ( unfortunately, by then you feel like you've aged years! ).
Good lord mates! Ya gotta have better tool than a pair of needle nose pliers!! Lol🇨🇦
I'd give this job to my luthier, to be honest, LOL
Very timely. Just what I am considering for my D35.
removing that much tone wood with a drill? 😮🤣
I`d die a happy man if I could play guitar like Ben Smith, awesome acoustic player, I wish he`d record a course & sell it online from beginner up please so we could stick to Bens way /style, I`d buy it in a heartbeat!
This was one of the most unnerving things I've ever tried to watch,
Hey Ben, please send me tabs of your outro!!
work it out! half speed the video, simples! its a good lesson to learn
Always better when you do it yourself and these boys know what they're doing. I was leaning Anthem when I got my D18 but walked out with the K&K upon their recommendation. They both sound amazing.
that is some incredible acoustic playing
I held my breath for 26 minutes.
WD 40 is not a contact cleaner .It's a lubricant
Always wished LR Baggs would buy K&K or vice versa. Both companies have a mix system but both have compromises. The baggs mic and mix preamp is so much better than the k&k - but the pure contact knocks any piezo out the park. Combine both and then….
Good to see Ben back, one hell of a guitar player
20:38: Ben looks like veterinarian James Herriot is examining a cow, so great!
The Maton AP5mic is the only pickup system I've heard that truly retains the character of the guitar. I've never heard a Martin that I like the sound of plugged in - would love to hear what one sounds like with an AP5 in it.
Agree.
Agreed. Was blown away when I heard a Maton amplified.
With absolutely zero intention of being rude, why do I see guitar players with painted fingernails?
Painted fingernails give better toan
😂😂🤣🤣🤣😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣😂😂😂😂😂I never thought of that!
This is making my bumhole clench
fuck me that was nerve wracking
Two grown men achieve basic DIY capabilities. Well done lads! ;P
My acoustic has a stock onboard system, but this did remind me to recharge my humidifier. 👍
Just sounded like the piezo at the end.
If you use a tapered hand reamer, you won't be so nervous. They sell them at Stew Mac or any other luthier supply place. They get gradually larger so the deeper you go, the larger the hole gets- which may sound odd, but it works really, really well. I would assume that's what that guide hole was for- to guide a reamer. The way they work, if you have a little guide hole like this- they stay centered without any effort from you, it's just how they work- you really can't get off center with one. Which makes them perfect for enlarging smaller holes- I use them primarily for installing new tuning keys that require a larger hole than what's already in the head stock. If it's a thicker piece of wood, like a head stock- you have to come in from one side, then flip it and come in from the other. Otherwise, you'll have a tapered hole. But if it's thin, like the face or back of the guitar- you can just come in from one side- it's still tapered but generally speaking that doesn't matter- the wood is so thin that the taper is tiny.
I've modified acoustic saddles many times (for action, intonation, etc). I learned a long time ago that, for the price of a new saddle, the peace of mind is well worth the cost. Mod the new saddle to achieve your goal. If you mess up you still have the original.
Sounds plastic, as all piezos do.
Spoiler: he didn't ruin it
Cheeky Pete @ 18:24
Well done, men. Great outro Ben.
How do u tell a D-18 from a 00-18?
But does it djent?
Great job guys for your first installation nice and neat inside that real important for any trouble shooting if something should ever fall later. I must say I have never had and LA Bags or the Infinity Matrx by Fishman go bad.
LOL. More spin, less push. ;)
wtf? 🤪🤪
I''m SO glad I don't use pick-ups. Since I only play with myself (!!!), fortunately I don't require amplification.
Brave chaps !!
Another great video, Next week the new series Ben & Pete try Dentistry & the following week Bomb Disposal "HOW HARD CAN IT BE " !!!!!!!!🤐🤣. PEACE and LOVE to EVERYONE.
I drilled right through my brace installing the same pickup. Hasn't affected anything. Also, wasn't a Martin.
😲I got an Ambertone D41 last year and will never install a pickup. It would be like installing a clown nose on the Mona Lisa IMO. I'd never do anything to affect that tone and no matter what people think you can't put objects into a speaker without it affecting the tone. I have a Cloudvocal wireless mic I use in the sound hole blended with a Sennheiser E906 mic. Gets compliments live every time I play live. The folks in the Martin factory are absolute artists.
That D18 is SO beautiful! it is subtle, but just so good looking. I played a D16 special, and a D18, and the 16 was set up better, and I liked the rosewood more, so I bought that one, but I know a good D18 would just be great!
That was a fun video guys!! Still not a fan of the piezo sound, but if you're a professional musician and need to be heard on stage, sometimes you have to plug in. I put the Fishman Presys Plus in my 000-15M and regret it now. My new custom shop Martin build coming up (thank you Down Home Guitars!) will forgo the pickup system. I realized I only plugged in 3 times in 2 1/2 years. I love the tone of the guitar, but find myself not wanting to look down and see the pickup control box especially every time I look down. I think this pickup is much nicer in that it's hidden from view most of the time, but the Presys seems like it can generate more natural tones...
Thanks for sharing, I am toiling with the idea to add amplification to my Larrivee C-03 TE . Just want to pick the best most natural sounding system available. Tx Ben C
Certainly ruined the sound. That baggs sounds awful. Surely it can sound better than that.
Jeez for an acoustic guitar geek this was too good ! Can you two do something similar every month ? Thinking about fitting my HD-35 with a pick up !
What fun to watch this pickup installation. Very brave of them to nervously do this on camera. But I have to say, the brief demo of the pickup itself was underwhelming. That Martin sounded terrible with that pickup. The usual tinny piezo sound. I would have liked a bit longer playing portion, with adjustments made to get it to sound better. More mic, less peizo. Thanks for yet another enjoyable episode. You folks rock.
Guide me in Pete! I’m in there!😂🎉
I have a Martin d-35 with the anthem and a Gibson j-45 with the vtc. Not particularly fond of the vtc but love the anthem.
I don't know why...but some of that footage reminded me of a couple gents assisting the delivery of a newborn calf.
I see you guys had fun doing the work yourselves. Doesn't Martin guitars build guitars with the pick up already installed??
That was fun and nerve racking, the title had me scared. Lots of fun watching you goof balls. Great video!! 🤣🤣
Dang dude why didn’t you play out the demo with way less piezo and more mic? You have eggplant slices on your mind or somethin..???
Don't like acoustic thru the amps. Sounds "plastic ". Fully acoustic is best.
If you think mahogany does it for you, please try the d28 with rosewood, I have a 1941 which has the best acoustic sound ever!!
A+++ Video. A video from Andertons always makes the day better!
I don't know if I can watch til the end. You drilled through a Martin? To install a pickup? What the hell were you thinking, man? That's what Ibanez's are for.
Okay, here's where I probably become very "attacked". Am I the only one who thinks it sounds horrible?
more videos with ben please
Ah,,,,my teeth were on edge when you started drilling...kinda synonymous with a trip to the dentist....Nooooooooooo!
Such good fun!
If there was one vid on RUclips that screamed take your guitar to a technician this is it ....from slipping the pliers on the saddle that obviously marked the material to not having a clue what they were doing, the whole sequence was like watching a three year old cross a busy road ....the dark side of me really wanted him to mess it up as a warning to others not to piddle around with stuff you have no clue about...now all you 2 have done is empower the diy guitar numpty who will now call himself a guitar tech because he saw these 2 bash there way through roughly fitting a pick up...could you not even borrow a socket off the tech for the end pin?...it really was painfull to watch...🤦🏻♂️
Literally terrified for Pete watching this
I don't think he ruined it, the room size that people play acoustics in now days are way larger than the body sizes were designed to fill, so its good that people see how you can make any guitar work for any room size. The Parlor size guitar was designed for playing in small rooms the size of.. well your living room. Now days, you can put a pickup in a Parlor and play a stadium with it, and it would work just fine. There really is no need for a large body on a acoustic anymore, as pickups have done the job that increasing the body size did, when it was first created. So if a pickup will do the job, it seems to me you are better off getting a Parlor that ether has a pickup in it, or put on in it yourself..
My Lakewood came with the anthem, really nice system! Played a musical with that and it worked great!
Made me look. Made me nervous. I'd have somebody who does that do it instead of risking my Martin guitar.
This is worse than watching a horror film! I'm on the edge of my seat, clenching my teeth and repeating Pete, be careful, as you're drilling into it!
Actually it’s kind of fun watching Pete sweat.
19:51 was unnecessarily nerve racking. Get the socket Pete!
LR Baggs - Lyric Acoustic Microphone
I'd vacuum inside of the guitar during the drilling...
I've got a 000-18. I'm not drilling any holes in it ffs.😂😂
Wd-40 is oil!!! Lol. Not Degreaser!! Wth boys?!
12.30, so close to scratching the top with the drill bit.
Only ten minutes in and I am so stressed right now!!!!
I love the anthem. Have it in my Collings. Did I ruin it?
When pressing the bridge down seeing the top bend in made my ass clench up like nothing else
0:00 sounds like the start to These Days by Bon Jovi
The absolute joy on Pete's face as each step gets done...hahaha
That was nerve wracking, and very satisfying
No no no - ruined a classic & real men don't read instruction's Ha ha
For 500$ I can relic that guitar for you
I don’t think you are going to hit the brace. Yikes.
Could that be made to work on a nylon stringer?
I came for a re-enactment of the hateful eight. Well,…