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RHANK

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Hello Everyone!

 

I am looking for some advice on changing the LR Baggs Element Pickup in my J45 Custom to something with a microphone like the LR Baggs Anthem.

 

Has any one done this?

 

I did have a J 200 that had the Anthem in it and I liked the sound.

 

Thanks

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Depending on what you're going to use it for , venue size etc , anything with a mic can be an issue .

But if it's just small gigs n coffee shops then world's your oyster

 

 

 

I put a k&k in a Martin I had and liked it a lot. , sounded every bit as good as my partners anthem in his mcilroy guitar

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Depending on what you're going to use it for , venue size etc , anything with a mic can be an issue .

But if it's just small gigs n coffee shops then world's your oyster

 

 

 

I put a k&k in a Martin I had and liked it a lot. , sounded every bit as good as my partners anthem in his mcilroy guitar

 

 

Did you use the K&K Western or Mini. I play smaller venues' and I play through my TC Helicon Play Acoustic.

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I've changed pickups in guitars dozens of times-I enjoy experimenting!

 

I second the suggestion of K&K, I have one in my '67 J45 and also had one in my old Martin D18, both of which are/were splendid. The Pure or Pure XLR preamps are a must though, they improve everything by 25%.

 

I don't like the Anthem system, they sound good but I'm not a fan of having that much stuff hanging around in my guitars. The DTAR Wavelength Dual Source does the job better and with less luggage hanging from the top of your guitar...a better pickup in my opinion.

 

But, different strokes and all that...it's worth looking into the DAZZO pickups that are causing ripples of excitement at the moment, they sound wonderful to my ears. Conceptually they're a distant modern relative of the old FRAP pickups that were a game changer in the late '70s-Neil Young used them for quite a while and FRAPs in a D45 and early Taylor 12er are the sound of the first half of the Rust Never Sleeps album.

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I've changed pickups in guitars dozens of times-I enjoy experimenting!

 

I second the suggestion of K&K, I have one in my '67 J45 and also had one in my old Martin D18, both of which are/were splendid. The Pure or Pure XLR preamps are a must though, they improve everything by 25%.

 

I don't like the Anthem system, they sound good but I'm not a fan of having that much stuff hanging around in my guitars. The DTAR Wavelength Dual Source does the job better and with less luggage hanging from the top of your guitar...a better pickup in my opinion.

 

But, different strokes and all that...it's worth looking into the DAZZO pickups that are causing ripples of excitement at the moment, they sound wonderful to my ears. Conceptually they're a distant modern relative of the old FRAP pickups that were a game changer in the late '70s-Neil Young used them for quite a while and FRAPs in a D45 and early Taylor 12er are the sound of the first half of the Rust Never Sleeps album.

 

Thanks again for the response. My J 45 is a custom with Rosewood back and sides. I am not sure if that really matters, but I don't see Gibson putting anything with a mic in the rosewood guitars. I have seen them in the J 200 which is maple so I am wondering if the wood will dictate the pickup?

 

I am able to get rid of most of the quack from the VTC underbridge by running my guitar through the TC Helicon play acoustic, but still would like to change to something better.

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I've always found Rosewood guitars difficult to amplify effectively, I put a K&K in my AJ and that's the only guitar I've found that didn't like the K&K much. Too many overtones that just turn to muddiness when run through a pickup. That's the guitar that I eventually put the DTAR Wavelength Dual Source in, which worked much better. The 18v preamp gets rid of much of the quacky attack transients thanks to the extra headroom, and the mic gives it some air and lets the natural Rosewood overtones pop through more in the top end. That guitar now belongs to the brilliant singer/songwriter Mick Terry-I'm sure there are plenty of live videos about of him playing it.

 

What style do you normally play?

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Those dazzo pickups are interesting jinder !

I'd heard , after researching what Neil young uses , that he had the FRAP systems which are no longer available , but the trance amulet ones were as close as be damned.

But the price , ye gods

 

 

Dazzo will be investigated further.

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I've always found Rosewood guitars difficult to amplify effectively, I put a K&K in my AJ and that's the only guitar I've found that didn't like the K&K much. Too many overtones that just turn to muddiness when run through a pickup. That's the guitar that I eventually put the DTAR Wavelength Dual Source in, which worked much better. The 18v preamp gets rid of much of the quacky attack transients thanks to the extra headroom, and the mic gives it some air and lets the natural Rosewood overtones pop through more in the top end. That guitar now belongs to the brilliant singer/songwriter Mick Terry-I'm sure there are plenty of live videos about of him playing it.

 

What style do you normally play?

 

 

Normally we do Worship music for the Rescue Mission in Nashville. We also do some assistant living and Church once in awhile.

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Jinder I checked out the DTAR Wavelength with multi source and price is a little cheaper than the LR Baggs Anthem. I like the idea of the 18 volt system and I might give it a try.

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Great, you won't regret it-another upside is that it uses the same undersaddle piezo sensor as the Element VTC so it'll slot straight in, no need to change saddle height and no worries about setup changes etc. I've had great results with DTAR stuff and wouldn't hesitate to recommend the Wavelength (Dual or single source) to anyone who wants a straightforward and great sounding pickup with minimal additional top weight/damping added.

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Those dazzo pickups are interesting jinder !

I'd heard , after researching what Neil young uses , that he had the FRAP systems which are no longer available , but the trance amulet ones were as close as be damned.

But the price , ye gods

 

 

Dazzo will be investigated further.

 

BBG, the Dazzo pups are well worth investigating...I'm going to put a set in my Dove once I've got my Reso quest resolved, I reckon they'll suit that guitar down to a tee, and should jive well with my K&K Pure preamp too. The chap who makes the Dazzos doesn't like to talk about any lineage or relation to the FRAP units but they certainly sound like a modern, improved FRAP pickup, musical, sweet, warm and dynamic. If you end up using them before I get a set in my Dove, keep me posted on what you think!

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BBG, the Dazzo pups are well worth investigating...I'm going to put a set in my Dove once I've got my Reso quest resolved, I reckon they'll suit that guitar down to a tee, and should jive well with my K&K Pure preamp too. The chap who makes the Dazzos doesn't like to talk about any lineage or relation to the FRAP units but they certainly sound like a modern, improved FRAP pickup, musical, sweet, warm and dynamic. If you end up using them before I get a set in my Dove, keep me posted on what you think!

 

 

No way !!

You go first !!

 

😂

 

After watching a video or two though I can't help thinking they're just k&k? Albeit with a twist and new name ....

 

You're a man of the world too jinder , would a passive pickup (which these apparently are) ever create a situation where it wasn't enough ?

 

I'm never gonna play auditoriums... bar gigs is my slot ... but I've always been very aware of its better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it .

 

 

Cheers

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  • 2 weeks later...

No way !!

You go first !!

 

😂

 

After watching a video or two though I can't help thinking they're just k&k? Albeit with a twist and new name ....

 

You're a man of the world too jinder , would a passive pickup (which these apparently are) ever create a situation where it wasn't enough ?

 

I'm never gonna play auditoriums... bar gigs is my slot ... but I've always been very aware of its better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it .

 

 

Cheers

 

Sorry for the late reply on this! I've never found a situation where passive pickups weren't sufficient, the second guitarist from my band had no trouble with the K&K in his Guild 12er when we played a support show in a 10,000 seat arena, so I think that's a pretty good waymarker!

 

I think the Dazzo is a bit more 3-dimensional in terms of the way it reads resonance and so forth but I still haven't auditioned one yet so I'm not sure. I think with a good outboard preamp though, either would be capable of any size show.

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