Acoustic Gig Setup

Jalapeno

re:Looper - I'd get something that takes SDHC cards and has some library software.

re:Acoustic - soundhole p/u to PA (with foldback, which ought to be part of PA tbh) is a easy start.  I think Piezo pickups can sound really tinny if unprocessed.  Boss AD pedals are good for pre-amp & DI in one.

Money no object - get a 4 channel AER, or 2 channel AER60, with extension speaker - these things are superb !!!!!!!!

Bidley

I use a piezo pickup, through a Radial PZ-PRE (which I bought purely because you can run two instruments through it), into the PA.

I only use piezo because it sounds ok, and is a permanent fixture without looking like an eyesore, which soundhole p'ups do IMO. The choice of preamp is key to getting a good sound out of a pickup, IMO. If I were in your position, I would definitely go soundhole, like most have said.

One thing to remember when gigging acoustically live, is that it's always going to be a compromise. Only in a studio with ideal conditions will you get an exact replica of your acoustic sound, amplified. So, in my experience, it's not worth chasing that tone (if you were planning on it).

IanSavage

Sudden thought Tigger - got one of these which I'd let go for a ton if it might be easier than fitting a pickup for you?

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jul07/articles/guitartech_0707.htm

Bought it to use live with my resonator, but bagged a piezo pickup for that last month as the clamp won't quite go small enough for a Tricone; partner that with a little mic preamp like the ART Tube or something and you'd have a really good-sounding setup that you could plug into anything.   

thomasross20

Appreciate that @IanSavage but I'll probably be moving and bouncing around! Cheers, though!

IanSavage

thomasross20 said:

Appreciate that @IanSavage but I'll probably be moving and bouncing around! Cheers, though!

Good to hear

thomasross20

Regards getting M1A as it's less prone to feedback. I quite like the M80 in that it can be active or passive plus crucially, it has a battery meter. I'd hate to find my battery running out at a gig and I wouldn't want to buy a new one for every gig.

steamabacus

thomasross20 said:

Regards getting M1A as it's less prone to feedback. I quite like the M80 in that it can be active or passive plus crucially, it has a battery meter. I'd hate to find my battery running out at a gig and I wouldn't want to buy a new one for every gig.

If that's the only reason, wouldn't it be cheaper just to buy a battery test meter?

thomasross20

Still a pain to pull the thing out just to test?

Anyway what about my strap pin question - best way to get those fitted = tech??

IanSavage

thomasross20 said:

Still a pain to pull the thing out just to test?

Anyway what about my strap pin question - best way to get those fitted = tech??

Best way to get those fitted = drill + 3/8" / 9mm bit + common sense. You're an engineer, if you can't fit a strap pin jack you need shooting (I put one into the aforementioned Tricone last night, drilling through brass is a fucking nightmare but it's in there now )...

thomasross20

I'm certain I could do it ... but I realise I'm not a guitar tech and there might be things I need to watch out for that somebody who's done it for years would know straight off the bat.

ICBM

thomasross20 said:

Still a pain to pull the thing out just to test?

Batteries last ages in these things if you don't leave the cable plugged in.

thomasross20 said:

Anyway what about my strap pin question - best way to get those fitted = tech??

If you haven't done one before it might be a good idea. I can do it for you if you're worried, but you should be able to manage yourself.

The hole is 12mm (1/2") not 9mm… that's quite a big hole to put in a guitar if you don't know how best to do it without splitting anything.

I would do it by drilling right through with about a 3mm drill, making sure you keep it exactly at right angles to the sides, then open out to just below the surface with a hand countersink - to make sure you don't chip the finish - then bore all the way through with increasing sizes of drills until you're up to 12mm.

Getting the right position of the internal nut on the endpin jack is a bit of an art, to make sure the outer one comes up fully tight but not *too* tight, at just the right point before it runs out of thread, or you won't get the strap ring on properly.

thomasross20

Yeah I read the batteries last 1000 hours. I'll be honest, I'm veering toward the M80; I can get it for under £230 at thomann. 

I have a Makita drill at home... might just attempt this myself.......

Moe_Zambeek

Here's how I look at these things: how much will it cost to fix if I f*ck it up? How much does it cost to have done properly? Do I know an ICBM?

Answer = get ICBM to do it

Saving money has cost me fortunes in the past.

thomasross20

I'll be honest - I'm going to check out some YouTube videos on the matter!

thomasross20

In this vid they're placing the strap button in the heel (turns out I have one on the bottom already). She makes a good point about knowing the construction of the heel (christ, I'd end up bursting some water main in a parallel universe when drilling through lol). Jesus, when that drill fires up.... lol...

ICBM

That's the easy one . The hard one is replacing the pin at the bottom with an endpin jack... without splitting the body.

Although not common, I have seen this done more than once. Be careful!

thomasross20

WTF lol!!! That's exactly what I'm bricking it about. 

I'm pretty sure I can do it as I have the drill and the drill bits etc... but it's just in case I make a mistake. I'm an electronics engineer, not a woodworker lol! @Moe_Zambeek might have it right... You're free to come up here and do it, I'll give you your tea and a fee lol.

Must admit I prefer the ones that sit on the underside of the soundhole, out of sight etc. 

thomasross20

Ugh, M1A isn't sounding too good here:

Might just buy a stool and a mic

Decent M1 vs M1A vs M80 vid:

thomasross20

Another good vid comparing different Baggs systems:

M80 sounds best to me (by a country mile) - still a bit magnetic when hitting the treble strings but I don't think you can get away from that when using a magnetic pickup.

thomasross20

What do you guys think of Taylor and Martin electros? 

Must admit I prefer Martin. The OMCP series looks good, electronics built in, and the battery compartment can be accessed easily. Going to check it out on YouTube but don't think it will sound as good as my Larrivee (just checking out the Fishman pickup system, it doesn't sound very natural compared to the M80).