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Double Bass Planet Wing pickup

#61
Into a Peavey TNT 115? Hm, dunno Joe. You might need a preamp even to make the Planet Wing sound good.

I am trying to look up the input impedance for the TNT on Peavey's web site but it is slow, and I can't seem to open up the owner's manual on their site. With my Planet Wing, 1 meg ohm sounds okay, but 10 meg ohm is better (to me). If the input impedance on the Peavey is less than 1 meg ohm, I'd really suggest a preamp w/ just about any piezo pickup. I like the HPF-Pre in terms of value for your money and its feature set.
 
#62
Joe Ergle said:
Thanks. Actually this thread is what got me thinking about using a mic as opposed to a pickup. My question is would a pickup like the Shure SM-57 sound acceptable without using a preamp? Its price sure makes it look appealing.
Click to expand...

IMO

1. If you want to use a mic you will need an amp that accepts an XLR input.

2. Your volume will be limited by your ability to avoid feedback.

If you can get past those two above I don't see a problem otherwise, using a piezo like the PW will be a much more simple plug and play situation.
 
#63
bolo said:
Into a Peavey TNT 115? Hm, dunno Joe. You might need a preamp even to make the Planet Wing sound good.

I am trying to look up the input impedance for the TNT on Peavey's web site but it is slow, and I can't seem to open up the owner's manual on their site. With my Planet Wing, 1 meg ohm sounds okay, but 10 meg ohm is better (to me). If the input impedance on the Peavey is less than 1 meg ohm, I'd really suggest a preamp w/ just about any piezo pickup. I like the HPF-Pre in terms of value for your money and its feature set.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I have come to terms with the fact that I will most likely have to buy a preamp somewhere down the road, but right now I can't afford it. I have gigs coming up which will require the use of amplification, so I'll have to deal with playing live without a preamp for a while. At this point I'll probably just order the Planet and hope for the best... thanks for the advice! I won't place my order until tonight to allow some time for more words of wisdom. :D

Sorry for the ignorant questions, I probably seem like a complete n00b. My instructor is a 95% orchestral player and hasn't experimented with pickups/preamps in 20 years, so he didn't have any advice to offer me. I'm just a humble orchetra player myself so I'm not too knowledgeable on all of this fangled electronics stuff. :spit:
 
#64
peterpalmieri said:
IMO

1. If you want to use a mic you will need an amp that accepts an XLR input.

2. Your volume will be limited by your ability to avoid feedback.

If you can get past those two above I don't see a problem otherwise, using a piezo like the PW will be a much more simple plug and play situation.
Click to expand...
Agree with all that except #1. Just need a simple 1/4" to XLR adapter / converter dealy.
 
#65
Joe Ergle said:
Yeah, I have come to terms with the fact that I will most likely have to buy a preamp somewhere down the road, but right now I can't afford it. I have gigs coming up which will require the use of amplification, so I'll have to deal with playing live without a preamp for a while. At this point I'll probably just order the Planet and hope for the best... thanks for the advice! I won't place my order until tonight to allow some time for more words of wisdom. :D

Sorry for the ignorant questions, I probably seem like a complete n00b. My instructor is a 95% orchestral player and hasn't experimented with pickups/preamps in 20 years, so he didn't have any advice to offer me. I'm just a humble orchetra player myself so I'm not too knowledgeable on all of this fangled electronics stuff. :spit:
Click to expand...
No need to apologzie chief. As someone once told me, better to have you with us than not.
 
#66
Joe Ergle said:
Yeah, I have come to terms with the fact that I will most likely have to buy a preamp somewhere down the road, but right now I can't afford it. I have gigs coming up which will require the use of amplification, so I'll have to deal with playing live without a preamp for a while. At this point I'll probably just order the Planet and hope for the best... thanks for the advice! I won't place my order until tonight to allow some time for more words of wisdom. :D
Click to expand...

Joe, the Peavy TNT 115 has been a decent amp IMHO. It's a rock solid amp, with ample headroom for a clean sound. If you can't afford a pre amp right away, no problem. Just don't be shy about experimenting with the EQ and finding which input on the amp sounds best for you with the PU.

I'm about to purchase PW pickup myself and will be reporting here shortly!:)
 
#72
Peck_Time said:
Joe: You don't need a new bridge, grab a file and some sandpaper and get that pickup fitted!
Click to expand...
Of course... I feel silly now for not realizing this. I asked my instructor about it today and he told me exactly what you did. I guess I'm too used to relying on other people for my bass-related needs instead of figuring them out for myself. Well... I guess it wasn't THAT stupid of a question. I'm sure you guys can sympathize with me hesitating to start sanding away at an instrument that I'm still getting familiar with.
 
#73
im going to have to recommend this pickup as well. i had it on a bass that ive had trouble amplifying for the last several years. ive tried pretty much every pickup out there , and this is the one that makes it work. warm, and punchy. by punchy i mean there is a slight thump at the beginning of the note that sounds like what you would get acoustically. the other pickups ive tried usually just transmit finger noise during that phase of the note.
so anyway, after strumbling across this thread a few days ago i realized that the pickup could be easily removed, so i decided to try it on my other basses as well. i liked the sound so much i just ordered another one. all together i have 3 basses, and this pickup has been on my main bass for the last year or so, and now it will replace a barbera pickup on one bass and a full circle on another bass. on each of those basses, this pickup sounds better.
 
#74
I just got a Planet Wing pickup and thought I'd give some
preliminary impressions.

Fitting it right makes a big difference in tone. Mine needed to
be on the snug side and evenly shimmed.

The output is just a little lower than my Underwood and Full
Circle. The tone is pretty much right between the two. Its a
little thicker and warmer than the Underwood, while not as
thumpy and bassy as the Full Circle.

The Planet Wing and Underwood were used with a 10 meg ohm
buffer pre. The Full Circle needed no pre. Markbass 121P
combo set flat.
 
#75
B-string, have you tried the Underwood "one-side-only" style?

It sounds much better IMO this way. It's a pretty common way to use the Underwood. You just see which side of the bridge sounds best. My bass sounds best with one of the transducers on the G side. Let the other transducer hang or rubber band it from flopping around.

Install just one side of the Underwood and see what you think. (unless you tried this already)

I really want to try a Planet Wing, but am low on scratch at the mo.
 
#76
Gearhead43 said:
B-string, have you tried the Underwood "one-side-only" style?

It sounds much better IMO this way. It's a pretty common way to use the Underwood. You just see which side of the bridge sounds best. My bass sounds best with one of the transducers on the G side. Let the other transducer hang or rubber band it from flopping around.

Install just one side of the Underwood and see what you think. (unless you tried this already)

I really want to try a Planet Wing, but am low on scratch at the mo.
Click to expand...

First... Please don't confuse me with B-string. (happens all the
time) I'm B String.
Over the years I've experimented with using one side of the
Underwood. It was ok, not great. It was more like a K&K Bass
Max. A bit big and boomy. Just ok for me, but it really depends
on your bass. I have a friend who uses a Fishman BP100 with
no buffer pre and STILL has a dark sound. Go figure.
For me the Underwood really evens out nicely with a good 10
meg ohm buffer. The Planet Wing (so far) is a little more warm
and sweet but has less point on the note than the Underwood.
 
#77
Gotcha, didn't notice the major difference in your screen name there. How could I miss that? :D

I personally can't stand the Underwood with both elements in, but go figure. All nasal, no booty.

My one-sided Underwood sounds nothing like a Bass Max on my bass, no where near as boomy.

Still want to get a Planet Wing.
 
#78
I really like the Planet Wing. I would say it's sort of in between a one-sided underwood and a Bassmax. A little fatter and thicker sounding than the Underwood but not as boomy as the bassmax, and I think a little more even note to note than either of the others. The highs seem to be a little less piezo-ish than the others which is nice for slap.

To be honest though, with a little eq one way or the other, all three pickups sound pretty similar to me. That being said, I like the Planet the best and would love to get a second one for my back up bass.
 
#79
Wallyphonic said:
I really like the Planet Wing. I would say it's sort of in between a one-sided underwood and a Bassmax. A little fatter and thicker sounding than the Underwood but not as boomy as the bassmax, and I think a little more even note to note than either of the others. The highs seem to be a little less piezo-ish than the others which is nice for slap.

To be honest though, with a little eq one way or the other, all three pickups sound pretty similar to me. That being said, I like the Planet the best and would love to get a second one for my back up bass.
Click to expand...

All three pickups are in the same basic tone family, with the
Bass Max being on the boomy end and the Underwood being
on the less boomy end of the spectrum.
I've found its easier to add a little low end on the Underwood
than to try to make the Bass Max less boomy and more
articulate. BUT!! IT ALL DEPENDS ON THE BASS!!! What works
on one bass may sound like snot on another. So far, I'm liking
the Planet Wing.
 
#80
too slim is much better than too wide! I had the same problem with my old Underwood, if you really love that bridge and the feet are fitted nicely and the strings are sitting snug as a bug I wouldn't get a new bridge!!!! I actually fixed mine to accommodate the Underwood but if you dont feel confident take it to a luthier he'll know what to do. It is tricky cos you'd be sanding the top part that hangs down and it's easy to sand it uneven!! When I did mine one was perfect the other was a tiny bit wonky by few microns and I ended up shimming it! In you case you only have to do one side (E) so up to you, but dont get new bridge.

Joe Ergle said:
Thanks, but the space is actually too slim for the pickup.
Click to expand...
 

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