Yes, a sound hole magnetic pickup would be the last and ultimate fix for this ABG. I am of the opinion that ALL ABGs with bridge piezos need a soundhole (neck) magnetic pickup to mix in and that includes my Carvin AC50 (which also has not had that mod yet.)
But other than that, I've got most of the work done on the Harmonia. New gold (dirt cheap from Rondo) tuners, rubbed down with 0000 steel wool and Minwax tung oil and wood grain/binding/neck etc. looks and feels like a million. High action was made better by cranking truss rod to as hard as I dared and lowering the saddle by sanding off bottom. Action still a tad high but playable. Also had to add side dots (it came with none) to neck. Bought set of Carvin nylon wrapped strings for it (5 string set plus a matching C string from online) Those are GREAT strings for this bass. You have to drill out the wood bridge to fit the fatter low strings into it. But I did that. Then to add dots I carefully tuned strings and then using the tuner found the exact spot for the notes in question. I drilled shallow holes in the cream neck binding and filled them with black epoxy. As long as I keep using the same type of strings it will give a more accurate marking than the usual mathematical calculations.
So at this point the bass looks like a million, is reasonably playable and tone is a nice fat acoustic sound. Downside is alike all ABG it is quite prone to feedback. But as I noted that tone is on strings E and above!
I haven't figured out what the B string problem is yet. Candidates are: 1. the wire hole for the under-saddle piezo seem too large and may be keeping the saddle from transferring pressure to the piezo at the B string. So I filled the hole with wood and glue and re-drilled it as close to the edge as possible. B string still not coming through.
2. Could be that the under-saddle pickup is defective with no sensitivity down at the B string end. I think I may have another around somewhere or I can make a new one out of some piezo coax I have. If you scratch on the saddle before strings are tensioned it seems to pickup vibration all along the saddle even at the B string. But once you crank it down volume of B string goes away.
3. Problem MIGHT be electronic. And by this I mean that the piezo EQ and preamp unit built into the bass seems like it MAY be a guitar unit. That may have rolled off lows for a guitar That will have to be tested too.
So the thing is done except for the B string problem (and possibly adding the sound hole magnetic to it). I'm wondering how the B string is on the ones other's have bought. I"m wodnering if it's just mine or are they all that way?
But inspite of the mods and work needed, what choice does anybody have? A 6 string fretless ABG is a very rare bird that will cost a ton of bucks if you order custom. So inspite of the repairs and mods, it gives you some decent raw materials to work with for something quite unique. As I pointed out in another thread, Finish tweaks right in and binding is not nasty or coming loose or anything. Tone is quite nice.
Anyway I'm not ready to declare the project a success yet, but it is starting to shape up and seems like the end getting near. Now it's all about that B string thing. I KNOW that this can work because my carvin AC50 uses the SAME strings, and the SAME under saddle style pickup and while the B string on it isn't to die for, it isn't worthless either.
