Acoustic guitar pickups... help!

M

makien01

New member
Hi fellow softies:)

I've always wanted to get an acoustic/electric guitar for some flexibility, but here in the US, a Guitar Centre saleman told me its more worthwhile to get a plainly acoustic guitar, then buy a pickup (that can be installed and removed as and when i like - "quick mount"). He said its better because i dont have to remove a chunk of wood off the guitar. The pickups look like this and they sit across the soundhole.


deanmarkley3015a-qy.jpg
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I'm really unfamiliar with this and i need some help!

Firstly, do humbucking pickups (like the Fishman NeoD, Dean Markley Pro Mag Grand) pick up taps on the guitar wood, or must I get a transducer under-the-saddle pickup for that kinda thing?

Secondly, will using such pickups make a mid-range guitar (abt $900) sound
no different from a cheaper guitar? Afterall, it mostly just detects string vibration, and not sound.

Thanks loads for your views :) I hope it'll make my soon-to-be-bought Seagull 25th Anniversary Spruce and Mahogany sound good plugged in!

Chase
 
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good post, i also wanted to do the same thing to my acoustic. so someone please enlighten us :D
 
If i am not wrong, going by how these pick ups work, tapping of the guitar and any other forms of its percussion will not be picked up by the soundhole pick up, that was what deterred me from getting them placed on my guitar because i kinda do quite a few tapping songs. Besides those under $100 generally degrade the sound of your guitar while those that are good will cost u a bomb. Get an electric- acoustic's better in my opinion, sure it wont sound as good as a full acoustic, but the preamp, the undersaddle plus certain pickups that come with mics can pick up the tapping of the guitar yup. And i still think the best way to amplify an acoustic is through a mic, any pickup will take away that woody sound that makes an acoustic and acoustic =)
 
Hey bros,

I've had quite alot of experience with pickups seeing i've tried quite alot of them around..

but just to summarize the main quesions you guys are asking...

normal magnetic soundhole pickups like fishman,seymour duncan etc will not pick up body taps cos they only sense the string vibration.
The LR Baggs M1 sound hole pickup on the other hand will pick up taps cos there's a "floating" 2nd coil in it that picks up body vibrations too so you'll get good results with that. it's 280 at Davis though I think.

the Martin goldline is a undersaddle transducer.. USTs are installed under the saddle of the guitar and pick up directly from the strings, not so much the body.. so tapping wont be heard unless u tap the strings itself or something around there.

the most versatile pickup for you guys who want something affordable and yet pick up percussive stuff well would be soundboard transducers. these are attached inside the body of your guitar and they sense the whole body. So not only do they pick up taps and stuff.. but they sound more natural than soundhole mags and USTs as well.
The best i've tried to be able to do that would be pickups from K&K sound systems in the US.

for those of you here, that'd be your best bet.

makien, i'm assuming it's 900usd u're talking about? I've heard K&K pickups on $200 guitars and stuff like the big baby taylor.. and they sound great. Good enough to be played live even.

I've PMed all of you with more info since this is gettin long! haha
 
Better to get an electro-acoustic. When you're not using the pickup for a long period of time, remove the battery and you don't have to worry about the pickup getting degraded or faulty over time. I've performed with soundhole pickups (still do) and although I like the tone, there are inconveniences.

But if you stick with your current guitar, soundhole pickups are fine. I still like the overall tone though you sacrifice some resonance in the tone.
 
i was just wondering, do the pickups in the electric- acoustic guitars pick up tapping sounds? i think they do rite? not very sure actually.
 
EugeneSmasher said:
Better to get an electro-acoustic. When you're not using the pickup for a long period of time, remove the battery and you don't have to worry about the pickup getting degraded or faulty over time. I've performed with soundhole pickups (still do) and although I like the tone, there are inconveniences.

But if you stick with your current guitar, soundhole pickups are fine. I still like the overall tone though you sacrifice some resonance in the tone.
Click to expand...

A passive K&K wouldn't require a battery. Moreover, pickups won't degrade unless you store your guitar in extreme humidity or heat, in which case your guitar would rot too :p
 
most electro acoustics come with stock electronics which aren't exactly top of the line.. most are simple USTs that have a lot of quack and the preamps are nothing to shout about... Moreover, nowadays few ppl like such big holes there, valuation could go down. Also, the more things in the guitar, the more chances of spoiling.. and gettin outdated!! At least with external preamps you can upgrade in the future..

the K&K pwm has no battery but the signal is very hot for a passive.. u can drive it thru an amp with no problems. =)
depends on what pickups are in your guitar.. most stock electroacoustics come with USTs which like i said above don't pick up much of those.mostly just strings.. and u can't drive it too hard or u get that harsh quack!
 
Tubescreamer: I was actually referring to in-built transducer pickups because they're 9V battery powered. But I heard that if batteries are left inside for too long, they slowly lose battery life and battery leakages are more likely to happen and spoil the pickup... Which reminds me of an advantage soundhole pickups have - they're passive, so no worries about batteries. Only thing is that the output level is lower.

Slowth: Agreed. You can easily replace a soundhole pickup, and furthermore you can always sell the guitar with or without the pickup, or you could switch pickups easily. Quite convenient in that sense.

I've used two types though. One was made by Stagg and is tightened into the soundhole using screws, and the quarter-inch jack fixed onto the strap button at the base of the guitar. The other one I use is a Seymour Duncan woody which is simply squeezed into the soundhole. The latter is more convenient though, you can use it with multiple guitars easily. The former has to be loosened, removed, and the quarter-inch jack detached.
 
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but the woody is in a poor league honestly compared to the Baggs M1, Duncan Magmic, or the sunrise pickup.. those are pretty much industry leading pickups...
 
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