Jump to content
Gibson Brands Forums

Contact Pickup Experiment


BluesKing777

Recommended Posts

I bought a Dimarzio contact piezo pickup to see if it works with my guitars with no pickups, and run it to my Tonedexter.

 

 

Hey, they don't sound too bad! [biggrin] Just as good as any undersaddle, I suppose...but we need technology and I have it! So they say the (removable) putty that you stick the pickup to the guitar with won't mark the guitar. It does!

 

And then I tried the old Gibson L-0...and if it has a mark after, I can't tell for all the others [unsure]

 

 

Quick recording - made Tonedexter file with mic and pickup, then removed mic, so this is playing through the TD file, no mic:

 

 

 

 

https://soundcloud.com/bk7-3/l-0-td77

 

 

 

 

Photos:

 

 

QMcXorUh.jpg

 

 

 

5gdd2yeh.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

BluesKing777.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks BBG and FB....

 

 

The DiMarzio contact AND the iRig and preamp are fair sounding ways to amplify guitars I don’t want to alter with pickups and stuff....

 

 

But the truth of it is both puppies are going to scream like the Banshee with that added ingredient I don’t use at home - VOLUME! Face a monitor speaker of any kind and both these are staring straight at it.....

 

I will try it later, maybe in the middle of the night and get revenge on the guy across the road who went fishing at 4am with guests parking and boat and trailer noises.

 

And tomorrow, I will put the contact setup through my amp at a nice, little restaurant type level. I think it would be nice straight to a little amp for thst. IRig too!

 

In the recording above, I wanted to see how Tonedexter reacted to the contact piezo and it did well. Made a fairly nice file, a bit twoiky... The iRig, it hated.

 

Done my dough probably.

 

 

 

BluesKing777.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That's not at all bad sounding Bluesking.

 

I was interested to hear the difference in recording my two contact pickups as well. So I attached my old Dean Markley Artist Transducer and my newer iRig Acoustic contact pickup to my SJ200. The first bit of this VERY short test is the iRig and the second is the Dean Markley.

 

You are right Bluesking, that the sticky contact material on the Artist (which I assume is the same stuff as on your Dimarzio) leaves a residue. But that stuff comes off with an easy wipe of a tissue soaked with naphtha (Ronsonol). The Artist contact pickup is noticeably harsh and brassy where the iRig is warmer and more acoustic sounding. The cool thing about the Artist is you can stick it on about any musical instrument that vibrates.

 

 

IMG4344.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks Doug!

 

The track certainly was quick! Yes, very different results from them.....have you tried plugging the Artist into the iRig preamp. It has a mix control.

 

I had my DiMarzio running to my Tonedexter - it must have a piezo to make the wavemap file. The iRig didn’t work, internal mics don’t work, Lyrics don’t work....but plain old undersaddles like Gibson give us are perfect. No more quack with a Tonedexter.

 

 

BluesKing777.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks Doug!

 

The track certainly was quick! Yes, very different results from them.....have you tried plugging the Artist into the iRig preamp. It has a mix control.

 

I had my DiMarzio running to my Tonedexter - it must have a piezo to make the wavemap file. The iRig didn’t work, internal mics don’t work, Lyrics don’t work....but plain old undersaddles like Gibson give us are perfect. No more quack with a Tonedexter.

 

 

BluesKing777.

 

That's what I was doing in the test. I just ran the mix all the way to the iRig and then all the way to the Artist.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

eusa_think.gif hmmm...

I wouldn't stick nothing to my guitar tops.

I have this iRig Acoustic Stage and this thing works great for me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1NgeCrpnMc

 

That is the pickup I used for the first part of the test Krasi. The problem with my iRig Acoustic Stage is that it is too narrow for the SJ200 as the Gibson has the pickguard all the way up to the soundhole and it is too thick. So I actually use a little of that sticky material on the underside of the iRig to press it into the pickguard to keep it from moving. When I'm done, I just wipe it with a little naphtha (Ronsonol) and it is clean as a whistle.

 

The sticky material on the Artist is just "Stick Tack" anyway.

sticktack.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The iRig doesn’t fit on the reinforced soundhole of Lowdens - I use a little strip of gaffa tape - doesn’t leave a mark. You can’t buy Naptha in Australia.

 

I was playing some other guitar with both the iRig and the contact pickup mixed together in the iRig preamp, very good - the contact piezo has the ‘fullness’ and the iRig gives it the ‘acoustic air’. (This was into my mixer and headphones. I doubt if even the 10 levels of feedback killer in the big red button could stop those squealing in a PA or amp! [mellow] )

 

The Tonedexter with a Fishman undersaddle is a another level of fantastic altogether! I am going to get more pickups! [tongue]

 

 

BluesKing777.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

How do you fill your Zippo lighters?

 

Don't you have either of these?

 

hqdefault.jpg

 

 

 

No, we have to use a ‘similar’ thing called Shellite. Could you try the Shellite on YOUR guitar first, let me know if all the paint comes off?

 

Glad I gave up smoking, pack of fags is about $35 each! And no Zippo, just those plastiqes. [cursing] Or a box of matches?

 

A spot of Virtuoso cleaner would probably get the residue off...

 

 

BluesKing777.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...