Shen Willow pickup/mic suggestions

[Wilbyman]

Hey guys-

I picked up a Shen willow SB200 flatback gamba. I have it strung up with Spiro reds. It is a nice simple jazz axe. It sounds excellent acoustically (punchy, fat growly), but I am not getting a good amplified sound with my Underwood (I know, the Underwood is old tech but I have had better results with it on other basses). I am just wondering how you guys with all-willow Shens are amplifying them. Thanks.

I would rather not do a Realist/bridge foot thing because I hate having my bridge slide around.

W

[peterpalmieri]

Originally Posted by Wilbyman

Hey guys-

I picked up a Shen willow SB200 flatback gamba. I have it strung up with Spiro reds. It is a nice simple jazz axe. It sounds excellent acoustically (punchy, fat growly), but I am not getting a good amplified sound with my Underwood (I know, the Underwood is old tech but I have had better results with it on other basses). I am just wondering how you guys with all-willow Shens are amplifying them. Thanks.

I would rather not do a Realist/bridge foot thing because I hate having my bridge slide around.

W

I was turned on to a Planet Wing pick up by Barry Kolstein, that's what he puts on all the basses going out of his shop. Once I found the perfect rig for amplifying it. EA Doubler/VL208 I found that my AMT mic added very little and was more hassle then it was worth.

Over time I had a bunch of amps including a Focus and Wizzy10. I was constantly A/bing and playing with blending in the AMT and other off the shelf mics. I finally came to the conclusion that the Planet wing on my Kolstein hybrid with Spiros worked the best and was very little hassle.

I haven't shopped around and tried every pickup out there so it's hard for me to compare it to others. But it does seem that this pickup is gaining some steam with other players that seem to like it a lot.

That all being said I don't play a Shen Willow and every bass brings on different results.

Good luck!

[Marc Piane]

I have exactly the same setup. Lately I've been using a SM58 through the afterlengths. That's all. If I need a little more I use a Realist. I like my sound a little more 'old school' I suppose. I love my Shen Willow.

[B String]

First off Lawboy... Are you using a 10 megohm buffer pre with
the Underwood? If not, try that first. Fdeck makes a nice
piece with a phase switch and highpass filter. You probably
need it.
I've found the Willow basses are a little more mellow in sound
than some other woods. You need a pickup with focus. Maybe
you could try a Rev Solo II, for a focused but woody sound.
Orrrrrr A Full Circle, with the pickup facing upwards for a more
up front sound. jmo