Looking for a better pickup...

I've been using a K&K Bassmax and a Pure Preamp for about two years now, and I've got some issues with it:
-The sound is very unnatural and boomy with my bass (a completely stock Engelhardt ES-1 with Correlli 370 Tx Strings) through an iAmp 800 combo, even though the pickup is fitted very well.
-The signal (even with the preamp's internal gain turned all the way down) distort and make farting noises sometimes (infrasonics?).
-The pickup does not handle arco well my bass, unless heavily EQ'ed.
-The pickup feeds back pretty easily, even with string after-lengths muted and a wadded up t-shirt wedged between the tailpiece and top.
-My Engelhardt's bridge is very short, with the heart thing only like less than an inch from the A and D strings

I'm now looking to replace it with something that:
-Sounds natural (even if somewhat electric-sounding. I hate the horrible mushy, pingy, piezo-y tone I've been getting with the Bassmax.)
-Handles both pizz and arco well (I play plenty of both with my jazz septet)
-Isn't mounted in the bridge wing
-Can handle high volumes (like playing with a loud drummer/big band)
-Doesn't require lots of modifications to the bass
-Doesn't require any extra gear
-Has a balanced output for each string
-Costs less than $300

Note, I am very satisfied with the sound of my bass unplugged, and the amp works great for my bass guitar.

Possibilities I've been considering are the Schertler Stat-B, the String Charger, and the Realist. My bass still has the stock Engelhardt crappy bridge, but I'm going to replace that with an adjustable one in the near future.

So, what are your suggestions for a new pickup?

Also, does anyone know if the K&K Pure Preamp (which I really like) completely cuts everything below 20hz?

Thanks

 

Adrian- I read the link you gave me about the Vektor, and did a search and read the two threads about it, and it sounds like a great solution, but here's the thing: I'm planning on taking my bass to the shop and having them replace my current, non-adjustable bridge with an adjustabe one. Once I get that bridge, will I be able to have the Vektor installed in it? If so, can I have a luthier do it? How critical is proper placement of the hole you have to drill? And also, would that pickup sound good on my plywood bass?

fdeck- I don't think the pickup is overloading the preamp, because when I run it straight into the iAmp (adjusting the input level control so as not to overload the input) it still makes those noises. I'm pretty sure it's the just the pickup, although I have heard the Bassmax used by others with great results. I guess it's just not for me. Up until recently, I haven't been playing amplified DB that much, so I've tolerated it, but now that I'm doing more, I need something better. Also, I don't think I want to mess with adding any capacitors or anything.

 

This Vektor pickup is looking very interesting. I seriously think that one day I will get it, although not in the near future. Right now, I'm looking for a pickup that's easy to install, and that I can use on my current bridge and then transfer to the new one when I get it. Then, once I get the new bridge (probably in a few months) I'll start thinking about having the Vektor installed.

As for the Revolution Solo, I've heard many good reviews about it, but the soundclip I heardhere sounded pretty bad to me. It really reminded me of my what my Bassmax sounds like with the low mids at like 180hz completely cut. Are Revolution Solos supposed to sound like this? If so, than it's definately not for me.

Does anyone have anything to say about the String Charger, the Realist, or the Stat-B? The only time I heard a String Charger was on the Oscar Peterson dvd "A Night In Vienna." The sound NHOP got with it was quite electric, but still sounded good. The only time I heard a Realist was on Billy Norris's song on the Talkbass sampler, and the only time I heard a Stat-B was Tbeers's big band recording. I think the sound I liked best was the Realist. Any comments?

 

keykendrick- I don't think I'll go with the Realist (at least for now) because I've heard that it doesn't do well at high volumes or on plywood basses. It sounds great though.

I think I've settled on the K&K Double Big Twin as my final desicion. I already have the Pure Preamp, which it's supposed to work well with. I've been leaning between the DBT and the Fishman BP 100, but it seems like most people find the DBT to be better (more natural sounding, no negative effects on the acoustics of the bass, and it's cheaper). I'm pretty sure that I'll go with it. I'll give a full report when I recieve it sometime next week, hopefully. Does anyone have any thoughts/experience/tips about the Double Big Twin?

 

Well I took the plunge and ordered the Double Big Twin, yesterday. It should get here by Tuesday or Wednesday, and I'll install it and post a review. My bass teacher also uses a BP100 and she sounds like the bass only louder (but slightly thinner) for both pizz and arco, so that's why I was considering it, but she also uses Obligatos on a carved bass. Anyway, the DBT is only $95, so what the hell.

 

Well I finally got my DBT, after the funky Fedex guy delivered it to the wrong appartment, two days late. I've installed it, but won't get to test it out till tomorrow. I can't wait!

Thursday night, I played a gig (Jazz quintet) with my Bassmax. The room (my school's gym) was just horrible, and I had to crank the iAmp unusually high (above 5 on the master volume with full gain). During soundcheck my preamp's battery died, so I had to go without it, and due to the high volumes required to be heard over a loud drummer, miked sax and trumpet, electric guitar, and miked piano, I had to kill everything below like 180hz to eliminate feedback and boost 5dB at 1000hz to get some articulation, which basically left me sounding like Jaco on a bad day. Then to top it all off, I had some monster feedback DURING MY SOLO in the second song, so I reluctantly ditched my realbass and finished the set with my slab. Grrrrrrrr!!!

I hope the Double Big Twin won't have any of those problems. Can anyone tell me what kind of resistance it has to feedback?

Now, I think that if that DBT doesn't solve all my problems, I'm just going to get a gosh-darn String Charger with piezo attachment thing.

But seriously, do the makers of the popular piezo pickups (K&K, Underwood, Fishman, etc) expect them to work at anything besides really low volumes, or is it just my bad luck?

 

After installing it yesterday (a fairly simple procedure) I played my first rehearsal (quartet with un-miked drums, trumpet and tenor sax) with the new pickup, today, and I'm pretty satisfied, so far. Here are some of my thoughts:

-The first thing I noticed was the sound. It seems to have fairly even frequency response, even moreso than the Bassmax, at least on my bass. The tone is bright, airy, and very well defined, with nice tight bass. Surprisingly, it sounds fine without the Pure preamp, although the 3 band EQ does help, but I can still get plenty of gain running the pickup straight into the amp. Playing jazz pizz, the sound can range from very "stringy" and modern, to slightly old school with some simple preamp adjustments. And best of all, I can get a nice sound for both pizz AND arco without touching any controls!
-Second, this pickup resists feedback very very well. I had the DBT plugged straight into the passive input of the iAmp with about 3/4 gain and EQ bypassed (the bass was positioned directly in front of and facing the speaker), and I only got some low end rumbling when I turned the volume up past like 5 or 6. No muting or EQ'ing whatsoever! Then, I turned the bass at 150hz down by 10dB, and was able to crank the volume up to 8 without any feedback. I expect I can go even higher (although I doubt I'll ever need to) if I add some foam muting on the string afterlengths and wedge a shirt between the tailpiece and top.

Well, I'm pretty satisfied with the DBT overall. The only MINOR drawbacks I found is that you have to be careful the little wires from each element aren't touching the bridge, because it'll pick up the rattling, it picks up any noise from tapping the bass or bridge, or moving the bass, and it loudly amplifies the noise of turning the tuning gears. For now, I think I've found my perfect pickup. Once I've gotten a chance to really test it out, I'll post a full review.

Thank you guys, for all of your helpful info.