Wife wants to know what I want for X-mas. What's a good pickup for a D-55 ?

JohnW63

Enlightened Member
Joined
Dec 11, 2012
Messages
6,293
Reaction score
2,217
Location
Southern California
Guild Total
4
I like the idea of the mixed mic+UST or mic+SBT type. If I got my three letter acronyms right. Let's just call then "blend" pickup systems.

What options are there ? Internal battery or no battery ?

DTAR is Seymore Duncan, now, right ?
 

chazmo

Super Moderator
Joined
Nov 7, 2007
Messages
25,465
Reaction score
7,123
Location
Central Massachusetts
Seymour Duncan "Wavelength Duo" John. That's what the DTAR multi-source became. That's the beginning and end of my recommendations for you. That system continues to remain the best-sounding (by far) that I heard at Ski Sundown.

Christopher Cozad had a great thread on most modern systems, but I don't have a link to it... Search around for his posts on the subject.
 

Stuball48

Senior Member
Gold Supporting
Joined
Oct 22, 2017
Messages
4,736
Reaction score
2,534
Location
Dickson, TN
Got the DTAR multi source in 2014 D55 I got from Richard and soooooo good. If the Wavelength Duo is, now, that - latch on to it.
 

JohnW63

Enlightened Member
Joined
Dec 11, 2012
Messages
6,293
Reaction score
2,217
Location
Southern California
Guild Total
4
I read the install doc. Drilling out the end pin jack hole and making a diagonal hole through the bridge is a little scary. I put old cars back together, but two holes in a wooden box makes me pause. Anyone done this themselves ?
 

HeyMikey

Enlightened Member
Joined
Jul 12, 2018
Messages
5,417
Reaction score
4,728
Location
MA
Guild Total
9
Another to look into is the Seymour Mag Mic. I just picked up one to try on my A50 in place of a defective Fishman. It’s a soundhole magnetic pickup, kind of like the Woody XL, along with an omnidirectional mini condenser mic. So essentially it’s a dual source like the Wavelength Duo, but instead of the under saddle transducer you have the pickup as the other source.
 

mavuser

Enlightened Member
Joined
Sep 15, 2010
Messages
8,128
Reaction score
2,636
Location
New York
I'm not a fan of the battery inside the guitar, although i'm sure some/most/all of those pickup systems sound phenomenal.

If it were me I would research external pre-amps, figure out which one is best for u, and ask for that for X-mas. then u can use any pickup(s).
 

JohnW63

Enlightened Member
Joined
Dec 11, 2012
Messages
6,293
Reaction score
2,217
Location
Southern California
Guild Total
4
Yea. My old Ovation has an internal battery that you need to remove or really loosen the strings to get to. The newest one, has a pop out port next to the preamp controls.
 

JohnW63

Enlightened Member
Joined
Dec 11, 2012
Messages
6,293
Reaction score
2,217
Location
Southern California
Guild Total
4
HeyMikey,

I would worry that would wear the edges of the sound hole. Couldn't install a feedback buster either.
 

davismanLV

Venerated Member
Joined
Mar 24, 2011
Messages
19,197
Reaction score
11,815
Location
U.S.A. : Nevada : Las Vegas
Guild Total
2
So car parts and revamp are okay, but a tiny hole for an undersaddle pickup is nerve wracking?? You're funny.

So both my Breedloves have this:

Electronics
Pickup/preamp: Yes
Brand: L.R. Baggs
Configuration: Condensor mic
Preamp EQ: No
Feedback filter: No
Tuner: No

Is there a battery in that? I've looked but i can't find one.... however, I haven't looked that hard. It sounds SUPER good plugged in tho! Does anyone know if there's a battery in there?
 

HeyMikey

Enlightened Member
Joined
Jul 12, 2018
Messages
5,417
Reaction score
4,728
Location
MA
Guild Total
9
Well the big unknown here is how do you intend to use it? Is this for noodling around at home, recording, solo acoustic gigging, playing in a band or in loud (feedback prone) environment ? All of these will have an impact on what type of pickup makes the most sense for you.
 

JohnW63

Enlightened Member
Joined
Dec 11, 2012
Messages
6,293
Reaction score
2,217
Location
Southern California
Guild Total
4
Home ( Practicing ), At lessons, at public recitals, playing with a friend.

The recitals can be sort of loud, since my instructor and his former student are bass players, and the drummer doesn't have volume control.
 

markus

Senior Member
Joined
Aug 12, 2007
Messages
1,501
Reaction score
146
Location
Vienna/Austria
Guild Total
8
I'm not a fan of the battery inside the guitar, although i'm sure some/most/all of those pickup systems sound phenomenal.

If it were me I would research external pre-amps, figure out which one is best for u, and ask for that for X-mas. then u can use any pickup(s).

One day I found the battery in my precious D55 just about starting to leak … !
I don't know if there are systems with mic that don't need batteries, but I'd prefer Systems without battery like the K&K Pure Western. Most of the time I use it with one of my good old Fishman Platinum Pro preamps.

Markus :smile:
 

chazmo

Super Moderator
Joined
Nov 7, 2007
Messages
25,465
Reaction score
7,123
Location
Central Massachusetts
I read the install doc. Drilling out the end pin jack hole and making a diagonal hole through the bridge is a little scary. I put old cars back together, but two holes in a wooden box makes me pause. Anyone done this themselves ?

Yup, you need UST hole through the bridge and you need endpin hole. You'll need to do these for any UST-based system, John. I would leave this to a trusted luthier myself. The K&K that the others mentioned doesn't require a hole through the bridge (the transducers are mounted inside the guitar on the bridge plate). That is a nice system, I have two of them, and you can buy an external pre-amp box so batteries aren't wrequied. However, I wouldn't compare it to the Seymour DUncan.
 

fronobulax

Bassist, GAD and the Hot Mess Mods
Joined
May 3, 2007
Messages
24,708
Reaction score
8,836
Location
Central Virginia, USA
Guild Total
5
You should ask for a check or cash for Christmas so you can make the purchase yourself.

I understand about working on cars but not wood. I built/assembled/repaired computers and related electronic gear yet I open my car hood with great fear and reluctance.

I would avoid anything that is "temporary" but gets placed in the soundhole. My experience is that it becomes permanent and then you deal with a wire and phone jack that is always hanging out of the soundhole or a chewed up rosette.

I like to avoid batteries. They will leak or go dead at the worst possible moment.

I am always a fan of reversible modifications. Can you uninstall your solution so no one would ever know it was there?

Have you considered a good mic instead? If you are being mic'ed maybe that will cause the rest of your "band" to reconsider their volumes and placement and the end result might be better than just "they are loud so I need to be louder".
 

HeyMikey

Enlightened Member
Joined
Jul 12, 2018
Messages
5,417
Reaction score
4,728
Location
MA
Guild Total
9
Home ( Practicing ), At lessons, at public recitals, playing with a friend.

The recitals can be sort of loud, since my instructor and his former student are bass players, and the drummer doesn't have volume control.

If it’s mostly low noise environments the K&K mini or Shatten HFN passives are good and natural sounding. Both will require some external EQ. I’ve installed a K&K and it’s not bad to do. The K&K gets glued in under the bridge, but the schatten can be taped so is easier to remove. Both need the endpin holes drilled out, unless you use a tapastring vintage 1/8 jack. If needed, you can buy a $10 rubber soundhole feedback buster for the occasions where you might need it. If you end up doing more gigs where it’s noisy these passive systems may not be the best choice. If your EQ can also notch out the bad frequencies that will help.

The Seymour Woody XL is a good humbucking soundhole pickup without a battery that can me mounted with an end pin jack or temporarily using its attached cable exiting it out the soundhole. These are good for noisier venues like a Seymour Solo UST but are not as natural sounding. Again, EQ will help.

A complaint by some regarding USTs is that the transducer interferes with the acoustic sound transfer between the saddle and bridge. A complaint by some is that soundhole pickups can mare the soundhole or dampen the soundboard a bit.

Then this is where the dual source units come in. With the mic they are more airy and natural but more feedback prone. With the mic turned down and/or their limited onboard active EQ the feedback is managed but the natural sound is lessened.

There are many others out there but nothing is perfect and everything is a compromise. It WILL drive you nutty and reak havoc on your wallet the more you try to chase it. But ain’t that part of what this hobby is all about? ;-)
 
Last edited:

Guildedagain

Enlightened Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2016
Messages
8,999
Reaction score
7,165
Location
The Evergreen State
D55 is probably a little heavier than some of the other models but I would think a small pickup would probably work just fine, older Toyota, Ford Courier, etc ;)
 

JohnW63

Enlightened Member
Joined
Dec 11, 2012
Messages
6,293
Reaction score
2,217
Location
Southern California
Guild Total
4
Tom, you’re right. I build computers too. I still don’t like making sawdust with a guitar as the source. I think the value to me also plays into it. Like another poster said, I don’t like making alterations I can’t undo. Maybe I should practice on my Walden.




So car parts and revamp are okay, but a tiny hole for an undersaddle pickup is nerve wracking?? You're funny.

So both my Breedloves have this:

Electronics
Pickup/preamp: Yes
Brand: L.R. Baggs
Configuration: Condensor mic
Preamp EQ: No
Feedback filter: No
Tuner: No

Is there a battery in that? I've looked but i can't find one.... however, I haven't looked that hard. It sounds SUPER good plugged in tho! Does anyone know if there's a battery in there?
 
Top