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Piezo pickup source

W

Worshiper

Aug 13, 2004
846
0
39
New York
#1
I'm planning a new project and I simply can't find the right pickups. I'm making a semihollow adn I want to give it the warmest tone possible. A similar sound to a carvin ac40 or 50 or a rob allen. I just don't know what kind of pickups to use. I don't really want to see any either. I was thinking maybe a peizo pickup would do the trick, but I don't have much experience with them.

Can anyone tell me where to get them and would a single piezo pickup be sufficient amplification?
 
#3
Carvin uses a Fishman F-40 acoustic transducer in their AC 40 and AC 50. I have owned a few acoustic guitars and basses with piezos and found them to be quite natural and warm. I have always had good luck with Fishman, too. I would suggest the Fishman Prefix Plus or Prefix Pro if you want a preamp in the side. These systems sound great IMO and are quite versatile. Also, the Fishman Acoustic Matrix is nice if you just want to plug in and play. These don't have any controls, but I believe they are making a soundhole mounted mic and preamp that works with the Matrix. These are just a few suggestions, but there are tons on the market. My advice is to try out a few ABGs and see what comes close to your ideal tone. Once it is in your bass it will sound different, but all of the systems I recommended are quite transparent, so the tone of your bass will come through. Good luck.
 
#10
It really depends on what model you're looking at. Most common is a thin strip of vibration sensing material that is sensitive across it's entire length. These should fit almost any guitar. Some designs use piezo crystals that sit directly under the saddles, so each string is independent from the others. Some of these may work as well, but you will probably need to know the exact saddle size and spacing you are dealing with. Calling Fishman or L.R. Baggs would probably be my first step. Hope this helps. Good luck.
 
#11
Hello,

I have a very nice acoustic bass. This bass was handmade by Wickstrom Guitars in Olympia, WA. The Under saddle system we put it is was the Highliner IP2. This system has the undersaddle element and provisions for an internal microphone. This is a stereo system, but will run Mono from the undersaddle element as well. It is an active system so it does have a battery and bracket. Here is their website and spec's:
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This system is amazing. I run just the undersaddle element most of the time. It picks up the string and the wood vibrations for a very full and dynamic sound. With the mic, you can really get deep, rich and full sound that is very much like listening to a double bass. It's not a cheep system, but man, you get what you pay for. It's worth a look.

Hope I have been of some help here.

Thanks,

Steve
 

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