Choosing a pickup for a Kay upright

levonrocks · #1 02-27-2013, 05:47 PM

I have an old blonde Kay upright, which I occassionally use for gigs. For gigs, I have been mic'ing it with an AKG bass mic, but the notes aren't coming through clear enough for my taste. Its a bit too muddy, and it doesn't really cut through the band. I would like to buy a pickup for the bass for under $200.00. Depending on how it sounds, I may use the pickup in conjunction with the microphone. Any recomendations for upright bass pickups in the $100.00 - $200.00 range? My budget is tight, so I will probably buy one used.

RenanDias · #2 02-27-2013, 08:48 PM

In this price range you get some good options, but only piezos(I think so).
The main options are: Revolution Solo II, Realist, K&K Bass Max, Underwood and Fishman BP-100.

If you will always mix/blend with a mic, so basically what you need is a strong low end coming from the pickup.
So, for the price the best option would be K&K Bass Max (cheapest, $100 new) or a used Underwood. Both have plenty of low-end and are quite well resistant to feedback. Fishman BP-100 also works like that.
You could use your mic just for clarity, air (highs / high-mids) and the pickup for the lows.

The other options are more mic-like woody sound, but or doesn't have a very strong low-end or are easy to feedback.

KUNGfuSHERIFF · #3 02-27-2013, 09:58 PM

Good advice. My '51 loved the Rev Solo, which can be a little thin, but worked well on a nice fat Kay with gut strings.

The Bass Max I tried and sold because it was all low mids and no lows, and sounded like a P-Bass. The Realist was muddy and fragile. The Underwood had phase problems.

Another option to consider is the Taco Man piezo, which is distributed by Superior Bassworks in Florida and is similar in design to the K&K but more balanced and cleaner.

BHBassman · #4 02-28-2013, 03:46 AM

I have a 1940's Blonde Kay with an Underwood. Also use a Fishman Platinum Pro EQ ?
Great sound.
Use the same combo on my other 2 Basses as well.
Lemur Music has the Underwood .

drurb · #5 02-28-2013, 07:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KUNGfuSHERIFF

...The Bass Max I tried and sold because it was all low mids and no lows, and sounded like a P-Bass.

Indeed, that's my experience as well. The BassMax is the quickest way to turn your DB into a vertical BG, in terms of sound.

RenanDias · #6 02-28-2013, 12:22 PM

Yeah, some basses seems to sound too much "frontal" with K&K Bass Max, almost like an eletric bass. That's not the rule, I believe the amount of pressure on the pickup (like any piezo) can cause that effect.

But if he is going to mix with a good mic, maybe some punch is exactly what he needs.

My bass sounded thinner with BassMax than with my current Revolution Solo II, wich has some fame of sounding thin. I have the opposite "problem" with RevII, it's too fat and I have to cut lows on EQ.

kscbass · #7 02-28-2013, 01:47 PM

I know it's out of your budget but the Fishman Full Circle if installed correctly works great on plywood basses. It did on a Kay I had. Maybe you can wait until one shows up used on the classifieds.

levonrocks · #8 03-01-2013, 06:28 PM

Thanks a lot for all of the suggestions. I am also considering buying an electric upright just to use with the 5 piece band, but I figure I should try a pick up first.

BobKay · #9 03-04-2013, 07:58 AM

This may be one of those YMMV experiences for me and my '51 Kay, but I have a recently installed K&K Bass Max running to a new AI Coda amp. With the caveat that I don't have much experience amplifying my bass (or anything else), I'm very pleased. The previous set up was a Fishman BP100 through a Baggs Paracoustic DI, to a G&K MB112.

The new setup is superior in every way - quality, clarity, adequate volume, no distortion.

I wonder if I should try a different pickup, but without buying several it's hard to know what might be better?

abaguer · #10 03-18-2013, 04:44 AM

I own a 66 blonde Kay along with two other basses. I've had a Realist on the Kay since about 1995-96. Because a trad country band I play with plays louder than I like and because the realist wasn't doing so great at moderate-loud levels, I switched it out for a K&K bass max that I had on an EUB. It works really well at louder levels and definitely gets louder than realist before feeding back. This may work nicely for you and you can mix with a mike for more "air" in the sound. Hope this helps.

Doug R · #11 03-19-2013, 08:29 PM

I'm surprised we all have those blond Kays. Mine is a '64 blond Kay S-9.
I agree with the K&K pickups, very nice sounding. I went just a bit more (about $250.) for the K&K dual-pickup Rockabilly system, and really love it. You get the high quality bridge pickup, plus a second one for under the fingerboard overhang.
It comes with a nice mixer/preamp which is small enough to strap behind the tailpiece, and you can use the second volume control to bring in some brightness and slap from the neck p-up when you need it. There are also mini-EQs inside the preamp so you can dial-in just about any sound you may be looking for from each pickup.
I'm happy I spent a bit more. I get lots of good comments on the sound of this bass, which is pretty cool since Kay's aren't noted for their sound so much as their durability and cheapness.