What is the BEST Acoustic Pickup? // The Ultimate Shootout
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- Опубликовано: 8 июл 2024
- There is a stupid amount of acoustic pickups out there and picking the right one out can be confusing. I've demo'd a ton of guitar pickups over the last few years - piezo, contact, mics, magnetic, etc. and so this video is a summary of everything I've learned. While undersaddle piezos notoriously sound bad, for the person playing on very loud stages, this is a good option. For those on quiet stages, we have built in instrument mics. For those that need something in the middle but still require a good sound, there are contact piezo mics. For the lead guitarist or someone who needs a very full and rich sound, magnetic.
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Pickups:
Fishman Gold Thinline Plus - amzn.to/3bFMdgC
K&K Pure Mini - amzn.to/3nxfprH
K&K demo - • Best Acoustic Pickup? ...
JourneyTek EP001k - bit.ly/3voGTCR
JourneyTek demo - • Why I'm Switching Out ...
Cling On pickup - amzn.to/3uxcRN4
Cling On demo - • Cling On Pickup - Acou...
Myers Pickup - • The Most Versatile Aco...
Myers demo - amzn.to/3NNhU5c
Cloudvocal iSolo - us.cloudvocal.com/?sl-ref=aprice
Cloudvocal demo - • An all-in-one Solution...
Seymour Duncan Woody - bit.ly/3OZZNKg
Fishman Rare Earth - bit.ly/3a6JjRy
Fishman Rare Earth Mic Blend - bit.ly/39os7H4
Fishman demo - • Why I Switched to the ...
Red Eye Preamp - amzn.to/3nC7KIq
Red Eye demo - • Preamp or Direct Box -...
▶️ Highlights
0:00 - Intro
0:59 - 4 Types of Pickups
1:37 - Undersaddle Piezo
2:57 - Thoughts On External Preamps
3:35 - Martin Gold Thinline Plus
4:08 - Contact Mic / Pickup
5:03 - K&K Pure Mini
5:48 - JourneyTek EP001k
6:51 - Cling On Pickup
8:36 - On-Instrument Mics
9:31 - Myers Pickup
11:00 - Cloudvocal iSolo
12:39 - Magnetic Pickups
14:16 - Fishman Rare Earth
14:51 - My Thoughts
#AcousticGuitar #AcousticPickup #AcousticDemo
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Hi! My name is Alex Price. I’m a professional musician based out of Pittsburgh, USA. I make a living between touring, performing on cruise ships, and while I’m home, teaching. Check out my new uploads every Tuesday and Saturday for gear demos, lessons, and performance clips.
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Видеоклипы
Here are a few links to read more / listen to demos of each of the pickups I've mentioned in this video:
Fishman Gold Thinline Plus - amzn.to/3bFMdgC
K&K Pure Mini - amzn.to/3nxfprH
K&K demo - www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlAom...
JourneyTek EP001k - bit.ly/3voGTCR
JourneyTek demo - www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngt4I...
Cling On pickup - amzn.to/3uxcRN4
Cling On demo - www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQwOs...
Myers Pickup - www.youtube.com/watch?v=T10vE...
Myers demo - amzn.to/3NNhU5c
Cloudvocal iSolo - amzn.to/3sJ5eo1
Cloudvocal demo - www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4f8Q...
Seymour Duncan Woody - bit.ly/3OZZNKg
Fishman Rare Earth - bit.ly/3a6JjRy
Fishman Rare Earth Mic Blend - bit.ly/39os7H4
Fishman demo - www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9ikR...
Red Eye Preamp - amzn.to/3nC7KIq
What are your thoughts of Maton AP5 or AP5 PRO which I always hear so much positive about. have you tried any of them and whats your opinion on them?
After many many years, I've solved my problems keeping some instruments (which I love and record with) pickup free, while on stage I use other instruments built with that purpose.
Nice playing, man. Thanks for sharing your experience. 😊
Dude, fantastic job. Great video, very helpful, well thought out and organized, plus I dig your screen presence/persona. Keep it up!
Fantastic demo ! Thank you!
Alex, thank you so much for this! It’s one of the best pickup comparisons I’ve come across. I’ve rewatched it numerous times now, and finally concluded that I agree about the Fishman rare earth mic blend. I ended up picking one up and couldn’t be happier with it! Sounds great on every guitar I’ve put it on.
Thanks again and take care!
This is an excellent clip. The two that jump out to me are the Journey Tek and the last one the Fishman pick up and mic combo.
Absolutely brilliant presentation!
Glad it was helpful!
Excellent video! I’m gonna come back and watch this over again a few times it’s very helpful. I have several nice solid wood guitars with different types of pick ups that came with them. Probably the most fancy one is the the anthem which sounds pretty good. I have a 98 Taylor 314 CE with the cheaper Fishman prefix pick up which overall in most situation‘s sounds better than any of them and so I’m looking for something that gives me great sound that goes into an acoustic pedalboard. Specifically, recent interest in trying to use a Boss oc-5 but found the doubled pitch had lots of intermittent spikes and drops while it works perfectly on an electric.. so looking at a magnetic option. Heard lots of raves about k&k so was super helpful to see all these in a short video. Looking forward to checking out your other videos and band!
Fantastic video. A lot to digest.
Great video! Thank you so much!!
I bought the ooo-18 with martin thinline already installed as used condition.
I was shocked when I found the piezo is under the suddle.
And this video showed me clearly what I had worried about.
I don't use amp that often and I'm happy with the unplugged sound of my guitar, but start thinking to remove the piezo and buy the product you had recommended on this video....
Awesome video dude, thank you for sharing your knowledge!
Great video man! Super informative and well done. Great playing as well :)
For Nylon String guitar, I've had excellent results getting a very natural sound using a single Piezo Contact Pickup. It is mounted under the soundboard behind the bridge using double sided tape. The problem with it is that the guitar acts like a giant microphone, so it's practical in only quiet environments.
I had an under saddle Piezo on an Acoustic Electric, and it had the typical thin, quacky tone associated with that type of pickup. It died, and I removed it.
I have an LR Baggs iBeam Active pickup in an acoustic guitar. It is a Piezo/body sensing pickup which attaches to the underside of the soundboard with double sided tape. I used to run it through a Baggs Para Acoustic DI, but now I just plug directly into my HX Stomp. The pickup is pretty good, but I don't love it.
Helpful and thoughtful info here, thank you very much!
After gigging for years with undersaddle piezos with & without mic blended in I finally discovered the Taylor ES2 and it’s my system of choice. Highly feedback resistant, very sensitive and much truer sounding than undersaddle alone.
We are lucky to have so many great systems on the market, we each can choose which system sounds best to our ear and serves our purposes best.
Fitted a Fishman Neo D on a 2013 Non Pick-Up Angelus Standard, Which Only Cost £50 in The UK. And it Sounded So Full and Mellow, That i had it Adapted With a Plug In Through The Strap Button. Very Minor Issues With Feedback in The Live Arena . It Is a Minefield To be Sure But Your Video Has Made Me Consider Upgrading to a higher end Fishman, So Thanks For That.. Great Vid By The Way.
The two best solutions I’ve far are a Schertler A6 mag+mic, and a combination of a Schatten HFN with their Artist 2 preamp and a magnetic (Dimarzio Angel in this case). I have a good demo video of the Schatten/Dimarzio combo compared with a studio mic, which also has the Schatten by itself and the Dimarzio by itself. For real-world live performance, I prefer this to the Schertler… the mag/mic sounds great, but it’s easy to turn into nasty, high-pitched mic feedback. The Schatten HFN is a bridge transducer like the K&K, but it’s much easier to attach, and imho sounds noticeably more natural - the K&K can get a little woofy, the Schatten is airier and more mic-like. At any rate, I think dual pickup systems are the way to go! I have yet to hear a single pickup that strikes the right balance between clarity, naturalness, feedback resistance, and cutting through a full band mix.
Double X0 and Double X2. Humbucker/microphone, lithium internal battery dirt cheap, sounds great and I've tried almost all you've mentioned. X2 has effects and a vibrating transducer for unplugged. Even has a phase switch, great to fight feedback. Yes the installation does dampen the top some. Both have 3 band eq.
Great video! I also really enjoyed your playing!
Best pickup I have ever experiences was a Sunrise magnetic sound hole pickup. Hand made, beautifully warm tone,
I really like the sound of your favorite (Fishman Rare Earth Mag / Mic combo). Thanks for the excellent demonstrations, comparisons, and explanations, as usual.
I have to posit my experiences, though: I have a Takamine G-Series. I know many guitarists say they do not like the sound of piezo under saddles; but nearly everywhere I play, whether through my sound equipment or others’ gear, people always say, “Man, that guitar sounds good!” I think it underscores what you said about piezo pickups: They are not the most realistic, but they sound really good in context, and are so easy to accommodate.
I would agree with that - in the context of a full band with a characteristic acoustic guitar fingerpicked or strumming part, it cuts through and is easy to accommodate from the perspective of a sound engineer. On its own or in a very exposed situation, it's pretty brutal.
One cool option if you don't want to modify your guitar is a KNA SG-1 I run mine into a Nux MG30 with a IR, preamp, EQ and Compressor minimally and it's phenomenal. Sadly it doesn't work in my newest guitar, but for most acoustics it's great.
The best solution if you ask me is a blend of as many elements as possible, especially with different EQ for each or a stereo system. Magnetic for lows, Undersaddle and mic for mids and highs, and blend that with a condenser/contact. That's something I did in fact notice about precussive guitar players like Mike Dawes and Marcin for example
Out of the pickups in this video the K&K is my favorite, the magnetic and the cling on are my least favorite. However I've heard so many undersaddles that are better than the one in this video, especially some with preamps that have more controls and on the side of the guitar rather than in the inside of the soundhole.
very interesting - thanks for sharing all that experience. It was interesting between the K & K pure mini and the journey tek, I preferred the warmth of the journey tek overall but it also seemed to bring out the string squeek (finger noise) more. surprised by the cling on, which is less expensive and temporary. But for sound quality the microphones blew all the others away.
Really happy with my LR Baggs anthem SL
Does it impact the acoustic sound? By reducing resonance of the guitar top?
L.R Baggs are really does the job when we do live perfomance.
But in my opinion,its not really satisfying when it comes to studio recording and i prefered journey contacts pickups (1 track) and combine it with natural sound from the guitar and record with any condenser mic (1 track).
Thanks man, just what I needed.
Thank you for your thorough, hard work. :)
Glad it was helpful!
I'm about to install pickups in my Oscar Schmidt acoustic. I got the kind that has both Piezo and a microphone. The neat thing is you can use either on their own or blend them to your desired mix with a slider.
For my Fender Malibu Player, I intend to eventually remove the existing electronics and replace them with the Hyvibe system.
Just wanted to say thanks for putting this together. For what it’s worth, I gigged for years with the baggs anthem using a feedback buster in my Ibanez. We had a loud drummer, but we got by with little feedback issues. Worst case scenario, I could have adjusted the balance to a tad bit less mic and more under saddle, but I never had to. Cheers!
The best video I have ever f..in seen about guitar pickups, thank you a lot, best regards 🤗
I found great success for quieter gigs, was to use an Amazon condenser lapel mic attached just inside the sound hole behind the fretboard. Like all mics it was a bit prone to feedback but had a very genuine and clear sound. For the £7 it cost me I was very impressed.
PS. I found the idea on another pickup review website, really surprised with the results.
great explanation nice one and thanks for the video
Excellent video. I have tried many of the same pickups, and my experiences are very similar to yours. For most gigs I use the K & K because it is so reliable. I have since learned that K & K has something called the Trinity, which combines the Pure pickup with an internal mic and an external preamp. The best sounding pickup I ever had was a Fishman Ellipse Matrix Blend, which uses the same mic you have in your Rare Earth Mic Blend.
Thanks for the suggestion Dan! Maybe I’ll get to try out the Trinity System some day.
I know it is a little out of topic, but what a beautiful play at 10:32... lovely!
I had a cheap SD Soundhole Pup back in 2008 for my cheap Yamaha…and it sounded great live!
Eventually my singer snagged it. I cut the low end of my electric and our band sounded really balanced.
I think the LR Baggs M1A is the best soundhole pickup out there, and it’s my favorite acoustic pickup.
The Anthem is a great system if you take the time to get it dialed in. If not you can end up with something that sounds very boomy or way too bright (and makes lots of noise every time you move). It takes a little initial setup work but it's worth it!
If that Martin is the same as the Fishman Sonitone, then I agree. Best Piezo out there. It sounds as close to the real acoustic tone in the room as it’s gonna get.
Thanks. Really appreciate this review.. Helps decision a lot. Double X0 for my ears and use 😊. Greetings from Denmark
I have installed a K&K pure mini in my Taylor 214DLX and it sounded much more real that Taylor’s ES 1, and the sound was full and bass was so much that I have to add a low cut to make it usable. The trick in this pickup is the used glue and make sure to use it with an impedance of 1Mega ohms (Hi-Z)
IMO This is the most NATURAL/ TRANSPARENT acoustic pickup, but it is a feedback sensitive like you mentioned and this is the only drawback
Do you use it with a K&K external preamp?
Church street blues demo was Very smooth!! Nice!
Thank you!
Thanks for the video. Some great (and timely) information, since I just bought an Alvarez parlor guitar, and want to get it amplified. I'm leaning very strongly toward the K & K mini, which was also recommended by the luthier I'm having install it, but now I'm considering the Journey Tek EP001K.
It sounds a bit warmer in my experience, which some people may like. And it's much cheaper!
Good video, thanks. Good music too.
Great video, great information and I like your playing. I have an Anthem in my D18 and my D35 and they both sound great. I've been impressed by the JourneyTek that you can pair with thier JourneyTek microphone for under $150.
JourneyTek had contacted me to demo their microphone in a video. They sent me it three times and each time the mic would clip inside the guitar and drain the battery, even when the cable was unplugged. Wasted a ton of time installing and removing them, as well as 3 9v batteries. I can’t recommend the internal mic system, but the piezo discs worked fine.
Update: I have an LR Baggs Stagepro Anthem in one stage guitar,(RainSong jumbo)…sounds excellent. Here is the update: I have settled on a 50-50 blend of Tru-Mic microphone to Element piezo, in all circumstances. I used to go the 75% mic, playing solo, but could be a little thin, and subject to feedback. The 50-50 sounds nice and very much like the RainSong.
To my ears, the best, is the proprietary Takamine Palathetic pickup played through their CoolTube3 preamp. The Palathetic has an element for each string, and is mechanically locked through the top of the guitar and the bridge. Playing solo, use more tube. In a band, dial it back a bit to cut. Sounds just like the guitar acoustically… (guitar model is ProSeries P4DC).
I do love the Fishman Rare Earth / mic though! Thanks! I will try one on the RainSong. If it sounds as good as your demo, will permanently install with an additional endpin jack… can use a Y cord to split the Baggs and Fishman. Huge flexibility! Two different mics, humbucker and piezo capabilities… should be able to find a good feedback free tone in any venue!
I know that they are expensive, but I love the Sunrise magnetic pickups, I have several of them, and I run them stereo with a microphone or a K&K transducer...It sounds amazing..Of course you will also need a stereo preamp of sorts like a dtar stereo preamp..
Thanks!
Thanks buddy. God bless.
Why 20k subs only? Why do channels like this have the least subs.... i don't understand.
Great content man.
Thanx so much for sharing experience and knowledge. I’ll try your suggestion on the Fishman rare earth pick up and let you know. I had a custom made guitar long ago when I visited El Salvador and the sound
w/o amplification is awesome but after many years Im trying different tunings with amplification and recording.
Great video- I currently have a k&k mini in a Martin and seagull- I would say if anything they are a bit boomy on the bottom end - and if your playing any leads- the mid and highs don’t quite break through the mix( I run it through a lr Baggs venue to tweak the sound). But the k&k for strumming has the most natural and pleasant sound for $100! I tried a soundhole cover - but this seemed to really eliminate the sustain and fullness of the guitar- so turn down the monitors and crank up the mains’ !
Eric Johnson uses the K&K. I have one in my Alvarez Yairi and it is really good. A friend of mine swears by Barcus Berry pickups. They sound phenomenal.
I really like the k&k pure mini pickup its sounds good and realistic acoustic sound..... 👏👏👏👏Thq
If you're looking for a very simple, non-instrusive pickup - that's the one in my opinion
Pros (James Taylor, Phil Keaggy, Paul McCartney, John Mayer) still go with the LB6, with a DI. The Baggs Session is a good choice.
Love the video!!! The only thing I will say is that it's harder to get an assessment of the different pickups when you switch to different 🎸 s Just felt maybe use 1 guitar & switch to different pickups 🤔🤔 But I do love what you're doing here 🤘🤘🤘👍👍👍
A few of these pickups I don’t have anymore and I wouldn’t have wanted to put the Martin through all that anyway. I realize it’s a bit flawed if you’re looking for a direct comparison
at 50, I finally got an acoustic-electric (and never really had a quality acoustic before)... but as a Turkish Oud; which is nylon 12-string fretless and a pear-shaped body. after a month, the saddle pulled forward until the under-saddle pickup was rattling madly. on an Arabic/Turkish style oud, there is a decorative rose on the holes; which makes ever getting inside basically impossible. at the same time, the 9V got weak enough to get sound drop-out and buzzing, while also the plug nut was loose. Three issues at once. I thought I would destroy it just troubleshooting it.
The undersaddle pickup definitely seems loosely held together. The action is just low enough that I get a bit too much buzz on the (fretless) "fretboard". I may be stuck with the Fishman pickup that it came with. But I learned a lot in troubleshooting it, and fixing it as best I could. I might need to bump the action up somehow. On an Oud, you don't need to do any intonation tricks; as you just tune it to perfect fourths with a straight saddle.
I like the Fishman Rare Earth Mic Blend pick up. no Piezo nastiness. The Fishman Rare Earth Power Tap is very nice too,.
My friend got the Fishman humbucking sound hole pickup. It sounds pretty good
I’ve really been digging it!
I was impressed with the sound of the Cling On pickup. I had not seen those before. I didn't like the sound of any of the others until you got to the Fishman, which is no surprise as it is $320, but I'm considering it. I have one of those Seymore Duncan Woody soundhole pickups, but I have never liked the sound of it very much.
After years of Fishmans in all my guitars, a world-class luthier turned me on to K&K and I've never looked back. The BIG reason is that the K&K performs flawlessly with ALTERNATE tunings. This is a BIG deal...because every pickup just can't do that. Besides alternate tunings, I feel that the K&K perfectly reproduces the guitar as I hear it in my ear when played acoustically.
I used to use KKs on all acoustic guitars but no longer. I found that they work great on some guitars, not on others. For example, I installed a KK on a fabulous-sounding Martin custom shop D45 and it sounded so poor through the PA that I thought that one of the pickup sensors was defective so we installed another KK - sounded the same. I called/talked to a KK rep and he advised that "sometimes that happens." So that guitar now has a Fishman ( don't recall which one). My Gibson Hummingbird sounds best with an LR Baggs Lyric - it used to have a KK. OTOH, my Martin D28 sounds great with the KK. Go figure...
As far as alternate tunings, I can't think why a pickup would respond differently to alternate tunings. But the only alternate tuning I use is Drop D - nobody in the audience wants to watch somebody retuning for 5 minutes to perform a song! :) - so I admit I don't have any experience with "serious" alternate tunings.
The best all rounder that works best in the real world with different quality of PA systems is without a doubt, the Mag Mic. Tape over the mic dial once you find the sweet spot and cut a sound hole cover in half. LR Baggs venue DI for the win. Older gear. Sounds great.
Using a Peavey Cargo with undersaddle piezo. It's a small short scale guitar, fun to take to the park but rather bass heavey, even acousticslly.
Using my Boss GT1000 with the AC Resonance effect and 4 eq blocks as well as compression, I have approached a rather acceptable sound but I am interested in adding a contact pickup to the arsenal.
Also I was really impressed by youtube videos of the shadow nanomag pickups that were installed on a number of epiphones that had "ultra" in their names.
Suggestions: Try a Takamine Pickup system. all though you might not like the guitar. Like you, after years of trying many systems I have my Maton guitar has the best pickup system I've found so far and its a great guitar. Many sound people have raved about it. Really, all you have to do is listen to Tommy Emanuel guitars. I have the MISI pickup system in 2 other guitars and their pretty good. I have a Seymour Duncan Wavelength Solo that I'm getting ready to install in a D-28. It use to be called a different name. It was the go to pickup system that Vince Gill used in some of his guitars. On all my LIVE acoustic shows the all go thru a Preamp and a Body Rez pedal. The Body Rez pedal is amazing when you find the "Sweet Spot" for each guitar you use it with. Play with it turned on for a while then turn it off and you will go WOW, what a difference. You just have to find the spot. I also want to try the Tonedextor unit but its a little pricy. Allthough, in the end, if your a great player you can make any system sound great. Amp selection. Fishman Mini Loudbox. A/B it against my AER and I thought it sounded better. Keep in mind that you can have a great sound on stage but if you have a shitty FOH engineer all your work would have been for nothing. If your ever in Nashville go to Artisan guitars and try out a Maton guitar with the AP Pro system in it. Its what Keith Urban also uses. Thanks for the video. Also, check out Arron Shorts You Tube channel about acoustic pickup systems.
Thanks for your thoughts Jimmy! The Fishman Loudbox is one of the few pieces of gear I own that can gotten a ton of use. I bought it the year it was released and have used it nearly every week since then. I’m heading to Nashville later this month. I’ll have to check it out.
Hello Alex, thank you very much for your very informative review! I just wondered whether there is a specific reason for not covering the L.R. Baggs M1 and/or M80? Did you not like them compared to e.g. the REB or did you not try them out?
The road to good amplified acoustic is long and full of potholes!
I do a lot of gigs, and most of it these days is "lead guitar" in acoustic folky ensembles and bluegrass. Some are quiet, some are rowdy. Once everybody is plugged in, it's surprising how dense the stage sound can become. Solutions that might sound great at home sometimes fall apart once you're on a real stage, and things that sound mediocre at home can be what you need at a certain gig. Because I play a lot of single notes, I need a pickup that lets me goose the gain while still sounding good.
Like Alex (no relations AFAIK) I also have a Martin HD-28 that has had many pickups in it over the past 26 years. Right now it has a James May Ultratonic K&K conversion, which helped to solve the problem of a weak high E and too-boomy bass. It's a good guitar plugged in, but not the best for what I often do.
My main gig rig these days is a custom guitar (Clayton Pledger) with a Baggs M80 magnetic. The guitar itself is terrific, super punchy on single notes. The M80 is certainly not the most "natural" sounding option, but boy oh boy does it cut over the clutter with a shimmering, clear tone. For now, this compromise is the most workable under real-life gig conditions, and it always draws compliments. FWIW, I observed no change in tone when I installed the Baggs in the sound hole.
Have to agree about the Fishman Rare Earth. I have that system on my Vintage Gordon Giltrap Guitar, I have yet to hear a better one.
Hi Alex, I really enjoy your reviews and your playing skills are amazing! I have used many pickups over the years, am usually disappointed, and always come back to the K&K pure mini and run it through a TC play acoustic as the preamp. I don’t play on a large or very loud stage but always want my guitar to sound authentic. My question for you is, I have a Larrivee parlor guitar coming soon and wondered if you thought there are any better options than the K&K? Thanks for you time and keep up the great reviews? John
The Epiphone EJ-200 has a magnetic and piezo pickup. The magnetic one does not cover the soundhole at all. When combined the two of them, the blended tone sounds very good, I like to keep it set with a bias on the piezo because it pickups up the subtitles of the treble... I don't mind Piezo pickups if they are really good quality ones. If I need a studio recording, thats when I'll place a Shure microphone in front of my guitar.
Thx for doing these, Alex. I have the Journey Tek 3 P in my Takemini, I've happy very Happy with it. JT now has a Microphone w preamp unit that accepts the installed 3P units into it to create a system using both through a Blend control along with a Base knob and a Treble knob and volume too. Looks interesting for $100, (+ the 3P already installed.)
I'm tempted.Did you do a Vid on this system?
Another upgraded version of the K and K is the James May Electronics UltraTonic!!...another option if you have a jazz box or full flatop guitar (with no soundhole in front) or or manouche style guitar would be the Krivo Micro-Manouche Universal pickup!!...
Never heard of it. Thanks for the heads up!
The Taylor ES2 is so good it’s worth having a beater 100 series guitar for stage use. Kind of the inverse of your HD28-you’d never play the Taylor around the house or record with it, but you’d also be completely unworried about gigging it mercilessly.
I've heard good things about the ES2 system!
The James May Engineering Ultrasonic pickup takes the K&K style sound up a notch and probably should have been mentioned. Excellent acoustic sound and response.
Never heard of it but thank you for the recommendation!
Hello, thank you for all the information on this video. Just bought a vintage Martin that I would like to use live, we play full band but occasionally I would come out and do an intimate, acoustic number. Wondering what your suggestion would be, was thinking of getting a blend so that I can mix as necessary? just need something that wont need to be drilled into guitar. Appreciate your feedback in advance!
Thought the Myers sounded superb. Would work great for my resonator I think that needs a pickup.
Thanks for the cool vid! I'd like to reiterate, that all metal strings do not work with magnetic pickups, as i found out when I replaced a broken string with one from an acoustic set. Nickel, bronze, copper and certain stainless alloys are not magnetic enough to properly disturb the magnetic field.
Wow, this was the best comparison video on acoustic guitar pickups. I really appreciated the lack of post processing and effects so the sound of the raw pickups could be demo'd. Ur explainations were super clear too. You obviously put a lot of effort into making a high speed low drag vid. No fluff. This'll help me make purchasing decisions.
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for commenting
Hey Alex, I just found the Comparison of the JourneyTek Microphone pickup with the reg Microphone, you did a year ago. Is it limited to just the JT Microphone only - without blending in the 3 under bridge Piezos, for which the unit is designed? Any Plans to compare the Blended levels also?
K&K mini hands down.
Hi Alex, thanks for doing all the grunt work on so many options! I play in a pretty large church band and use the Fishman rare earth blend in a D18. Although acoustically this guitar is a "cannon", but when I'm plugged in the signal is pretty weak to the house PA. Do you have a recommendation for Preamps/DI's to use with this pickup. Again thanks for compiling all of this experience, it saves us all a lot of time and money!
Hey James - my favorite DI is the Red Eye preamp. Warms up the sound a bit, balances the signal, provides a ground lift switch, and can drive super high impedance pickups. Has a treble boost, which can be useful for magnetic pickups, a variable boost, and an effects loop.
amzn.to/3vR7ivL
I used to play my D28 directly into a mic, and never had any feedback problem. That was way back in the 70's, but we played all the rock clubs around the Bay Area (5 piece band) . I guess that was before most clubs liked to have the sound turned up to 11, so that it caused pain & hearing loss, but even then there were clubs where the sound was so loud we had to have some ear protection on stage. Still when I used the acoustic guitar, I played directly into a mic and there was no feedback.
That’s a great point, venues are pretty consistently way too loud anymore.
Hello Alex, thanks for your video! I just wanted to ask you one question: is the Myers system a dynamic mic or is it a condenser? Can I use without plugging it in its preamp?
Thanks for your help
Thanks! Great review, helped me a lot…bought you a (small;-) coffee.
I have an old Martin guitar, and just like you I'm hesitating about installing the Fishman or anything else in the soundhole. And it doesn't have a cutaway, so I was wondering if I should get myself a used Ibanez with that Fishman rare earthe + mic combo installed, for ~900€ (the Fishman costs ~230 here in Europe). Anyway, your video was really appreciated!
Very nice video. Thank you for epic informations. ;) Hype!
A major acoustic guitar pickup manufacturer that unfortunately has been left out here is LR Baggs, who also have a great reputation.
I’ve played LR Baggs before but haven’t been thrilled with any of their options. The Anthem for instance I’ve heard polarizing reviews on. Sometimes it sounds okay, sometimes downright terrible. It also relies on an undersaddle piezo, which I’m really not a fan of because of how it affect the acoustic tone of the instrument.
I have an LR Baggs pickup on my violin though, which is decent as far as piezos go.
Thanks for the video, Could you make a video to compare the fishman earth vs journey ep001k?
Excellent, thanks for sharing. I have A FISHMAN PREFIX ONBOARD BLENDER installed in my K.Yairi classical guitar for recording. The pickup generates a lot of resonance/low frequencies no matter how I adjust the bass and the notch on the pickup. Would you please advise me of a pickup that produces a clean sound free of resonance and low frequencies. Thanks and regards.
The Magnetic Pickup has a nice jazz tone
Great vid mate. Hi, which guitars have piezo and a mic inside? Am looking for big jumbo with cutaway guitar. Can u recommend? Thnx bro❤
A lot of the Epiphone acoustics, like the ej series have both a saddle and neck pickup which you can blend. Probably the best acoustic electrics you can buy for less a grand. I have the jumbo and you can’t be the unplugged sound, but it kills expensive guitars plugged in as well.
Would like to get some thoughts as to what I should use on a ‘78 Heritage by Yamaki . It has a brass top nut and bridge insert. Im loving the Fishman rare earth blend but if I can get a great sound without a sound hole pickup that would be great! Any thoughts, please?
Could you talk about the early magnetic pickups from the 30's and 40's, specifically the DeArmond Rhythm Chief? It looks like they attach to the guitar such that the pickup is nestled against the end of the fretboard. They were frequently used on archtop acoustics, so no sound hole available. Some had volume and tone controls, some look like you need to install an output jack in the side of the guitar. I'm looking to get the Elmore James sound out of my dreadnought, so more electric and raunchy than what you demo'd here. There was another guitar player in the 90's, John Campbell from Louisiana who really exploited the magnetic pickup across the sound hole. At times, you'd swear you were hearing an electric. (some might say what's the point, just play an electric, but there's a very aesthetic vibe with the acoustic amplified up.) Thanks!
The Fishman does sound really good. But for my use, I think my pick would be the Journey Tek EP001K. The one I was originally thinking of, and was recommended to me, was the K&K mini. But I think maybe It sounds just a bit brighter than the Journey, which I think you stated. It would be between those two for me. Thanks, EE.
I've got both, and I prefer the journey
Thanks for that feedback 😊. EE
Hey Alex. Great video! Do you know if it is possible to use the helix stomp as the preamp for the pickups that require a preamp? Thank you and Keep up the good work.
The HX Stomp has a decent preamp but I've found that my standalone Fire Eye pre works even better. It's worth it to bring it along to use with the Stomp.
Check out the Shertler M AG6 with S mic M internal microphone. Not too well known in the US, but amazing sound. I’ve got one installed in my Martin D45 and also in my Santa Cruz Eric Skye signature.
A friend of mine uses a Shertler mic along with the K&K for his mandolin. Sounds incredible.
What nice guitars ! Contrats !
I have a Seagull Grand Parlor set up with huge strings and drop tuned. I want to use it for recording. Just big ambient chords. I want purity of sound. Not worried about feedback. Not putting anything under the saddle.
Props on church street blues! Thanks for doing this man!
Just came across this video.
I've got a semi-hollow electric 12 string that I'd like to add acoustic pickups to. Have you done any testing of pickups in that situation, and if so, which would you recommend?
Thank you for the excellent and very informative review, very helpfu! I just purchased a nice 2015 Martin hd28v and I was going to have a K&K put in it but after watching your video, I think I will either have a JourneyTek put in it or I will purchase a Fishman Rare Earth because I don't want a really bright sound. I already have a Taylor with an ES1 pickup that sounds bright and tinny. I really like the sound of my Taylor unplugged but not a fan of the ES1 system. I will be using the Martin at church for leading worship on Wednesday evenings with just my wife and her 12 string acoustic guitar and I think the JourneyTek or the Fishman will do fine for what I'm going to use the Martin for. So, with that being said, I guess I will be needing to purchase a preamp to run the Journeytek or the Fishman rare earth?
The preamp is needed for the JourneyTek, but not the Fishman. The Fishman is awesome and versatile, especially if you’re running in ears as opposed to live stage monitors as then you can really use the mic without feedback. Just know that the Fishman will heavily affect the acoustic tone of the Martin as it is mounted directly on the top of the guitar. It’ll damped it. The JourneyTek will not affect the acoustic tone in that way.
Very informative...I've been using an L.R. Baggs M-80 in my '53 D-28 played through a high end PA system and it sounds very nice. BUT I've been wondering how much acoustic sound I'm losing by having the device "clamped" to the sound hole and also physically blocking some of the sound (possibly?) from the soundhole... Thinking of trying the K&K Pure Mini.
It's definitely noticeable on my Eastman with the Fishman soundhole mounted pickup, that's why I don't use it on my Martin