Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

[jonsick]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

I'm not sure if I've missed the point, but I fail to see what these in-guitar circuits will do for you that a regular old clean boost won't?

I have a few clean boosts with my go-to being the EP Boost or for the budget conscious the TC Spark Mini. It adds a good few notches to any standard passive pickup to give it the fluidity of an active pickup. Different clean boosts react differently to different set ups, but still all good.

What have I missed here?

 

[darthphineas]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

I'm more interested in modern passive tone, but with active controls and still react well, but thank you.

This actually makes total sense. I've considered them as well as artist sets. If I had to choose the regular runs I would choose modern. I'm disputing between buying 3 Fishman sets, a Duality Set, and retroactive super 77. The Fishman Fluence Moderns and some other Fishman sets appeal to me very much though. Just I would like to test some ideas to get a better concept of what I would like as an active later.

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You haven't tried any active sets yet?

What 3 Fishman sets are you interested in buying? Is there something about the Modern set that is more appealing.




Funny side bar from this past week. Someone sends me a message about the Duality product. The discussion ends when he realizes they need a battery. He wanted true passives. I didn't ask what it was about the marketing that he was reading that made him think they were not powered pickups. Anyway, now he's looking at Bare Knuckles.

 

[Darg1911]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

I'm not sure if I've missed the point, but I fail to see what these in-guitar circuits will do for you that a regular old clean boost won't?

I have a few clean boosts with my go-to being the EP Boost or for the budget conscious the TC Spark Mini. It adds a good few notches to any standard passive pickup to give it the fluidity of an active pickup. Different clean boosts react differently to different set ups, but still all good.

What have I missed here?

Cant speak to the specific units linked in this thread but Godin does something similar with some of their guitars. They call it HDR (High Definition Revoicer). It's activated by a small push button next to one of the pots. The pickups are standard, passive pickups. The pots are located on a circuit board with the HDR components. It's run's off a 9V battery located in the control cavity. The controls are simple, it is just the standard volume and tone controls. But it's not a simple clean boost from what my ears tell me. Godin claims that it is not a boost circuit but there definitely appears to be some boost. But mainly, it seems to act as a fixed EQ. I only have it in one Godin "strat" SSS. It definitely boosts the treble and adds some clarity but there appears to be some mid and maybe some low end EQ going on as well. The Godin stock single coils are very warm. The HDR brightens them and adds some clarity and some gain. I replaced the pickups and the HDR works with the aftermarkets but it acts a little differently with them. Doesn't brighten them to the degree that it does with the stock pickups. It's more of an advantage for the stock pickups because the tone difference between the stock pickups with and without HDR is more diverse than it is with the aftermarkets with versus without HDR. But still, I don't think it is designed specifically to the pickups. And I don't know if the circuit is any different in their humbucker or P90 equipped guitars than it is in their single coil guitars. It may be designed different for different pickup types, but I highly doubt it is designed around specific pickups. They also have the HDR in some of their guitars that come stock with Seymour Duncan pickups so obviously it was not designed as a bandaid, so that they could use cheaper pickups.

Anyway, I'm off track now. My point was that I don't think all of these circuits are simple clean boosts. Some of them may be and even those that are, some players like the idea of being able to not have to use a pedal. And if they add controls to the guitar, then adjustments can be made on the fly, from the guitar. A pedal isn't nearly as versatile in that regard. With others, like the Godin HDR, like I mentioned, it seems more like a switchable eq than a boost.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

Godin's HDR really does sound good. It doesn't sound like a simple boost to me, but I also have never taken it apart. It is stealthy, and really changes the sound of the guitar.

 

[RandomToneGuy]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

You haven't tried any active sets yet?

What 3 Fishman sets are you interested in buying? Is there something about the Modern set that is more appealing.




Funny side bar from this past week. Someone sends me a message about the Duality product. The discussion ends when he realizes they need a battery. He wanted true passives. I didn't ask what it was about the marketing that he was reading that made him think they were not powered pickups. Anyway, now he's looking at Bare Knuckles.

I was considering, the Modern, Killswith engage, and maybe, an Alder set.

I haven't personally tried an active sets yet, been wanting to really bad, but I couldn't really decide which set to start with. I started listening to Emg demos and few really appealed, but I liked the Seymour Duncan Blackouts(just iwantthis tone from something meant to be black outs) and Fishman Fluence from their demos.

I like the 81/85 in certain guitars, not usually...from the demos overheard they sound better in Wylde Audio and BC Rich, but that's Really subjective.

I should explain I've been eBay watching a lot. Trying to find a bargain.

Regarding classics, I can use them, I've got no problem from, just I would like to play around with the Modern set because it's a closer starting point from the demos I've heard. It's my personal bias.

I planned on adding a Fishman Battery Pack to whichever brand I bought, if not I don't mind routing for Battery box.

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[LtKojak]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

I haven't personally tried an active sets yet

C'mon Lee, we all know this is simply not true.

 

[jonsick]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

...snip...

I hear you. I mean the only active EQ type unit I ever actually liked was the EMG SPC. It just added a really nice character to my EMG 81 loaded Jackson. It wasn't a boost, more some sort of EQ shift. However it really was more a nice to have rather than a must have. Put it this way, when I ordered custom guitars in the past, it never even entered my head. Just my mileage varies I suppose.

 

[RandomToneGuy]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

I've heard them in person, by people more skilled at playing than myself. And they sound great, just I haven't had the opportunity to do any I depth testing that I would like. The one thing I notice is although they sound great they don't react the same way, but I plan on getting an open box set or a few so I can really do some testing. I think I'll go on eBay and make a few offers with in the next month.

C'mon Lee, we all know this is simply not true.

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[darthphineas]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

I've heard them in person, by people more skilled at playing than myself. And they sound great, just I haven't had the opportunity to do any I depth testing that I would like. The one thing I notice is although they sound great they don't react the same way, but I plan on getting an open box set or a few so I can really do some testing. I think I'll go on eBay and make a few offers with in the next month.



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Which part of the country are you in? Maybe we can find someone nearby with a set you can try?

 

[RandomToneGuy]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

Which part of the country are you in? Maybe we can find someone nearby with a set you can try?

I live in Southern California, within a suburb of LA County. Not too close to LA not to far either, depending on traffic that is. Maybe someone who lives close enough can have them shipped though. I can get some type of agreement ready if they're not shipped back by a certain time after recieving.

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[RandomToneGuy]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

I'm not sure if I've missed the point, but I fail to see what these in-guitar circuits will do for you that a regular old clean boost won't?

I have a few clean boosts with my go-to being the EP Boost or for the budget conscious the TC Spark Mini. It adds a good few notches to any standard passive pickup to give it the fluidity of an active pickup. Different clean boosts react differently to different set ups, but still all good.

What have I missed here?

Just tone controllers can be added. Active circuitry has little treble bleed in theory, but having active tone control with little treble bleed will allow more precise dialing in of Tone. Making existing actives passive without a booster circuit means that one can use active 25k pots and active volume without having to leave the only active circuitry at the end of the wiring Chain. I would still like to add clean boost, but after attaching the preamp. This also means I could theoretically use any passive below 22k and not being the Blackouts Preamp means that it will be mostly the tone of the passives, but with virtually no significant treble bleed.

However just because there is a way to do indolent mean it's reasonable. I'm mainly trying to do it for my own personal taste until I can find out if it's practical. It's probably not.

If there was a way to use clean boost as a tone control and not with o would totally buy that, but it would have first-generation draw backs, like a y prototype.

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[RandomToneGuy]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

Well I think, this won't last long. I think I've found what I wanted, but my mod isn't practical. Still hope to try some active sets.

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[Jacew]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

I have to ask this too, despite some good answers given already: If you want passive sound, why would you want active circuitry in your guitar? There's nothing that can be done with it, that can't be done with pedals. But pedals are much easier to try out, you can tweak your tone much further, go backwards, and completely reshape what you already have. They're even much easier to use while playing.

With circuitry in your guitar, you're pretty much stuck with couple of choices. And the amount soldering while you're searching that tone...

 

[Myaccount876]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

If you ever need another electronics shop and you don't mind driving ~30-40 min south of South LA, there's Torrance Electronics. Its right by the 110 Fwy, just take the Carson St. exit, head west, and after just a few blocks it'll be on the right.

You could make a very simple transistor boost circuit on veroboard and install it in the guitar control cavity. It can be a clean boost, or a boost that colors certain frequencies, or even pick a boost circuit with its own B/M/T tone controls and use a toggle switch to switch between active (circuit engaged) and passive (circuit disengaged).

 

[RandomToneGuy]

Re: Pickup Preamp(passives pickups' tone presereved in an active preamp)

If you ever need another electronics shop and you don't mind driving ~30-40 min south of South LA, there's Torrance Electronics. Its right by the 110 Fwy, just take the Carson St. exit, head west, and after just a few blocks it'll be on the right.

You could make a very simple transistor boost circuit on veroboard and install it in the guitar control cavity. It can be a clean boost, or a boost that colors certain frequencies, or even pick a boost circuit with its own B/M/T tone controls and use a toggle switch to switch between active (circuit engaged) and passive (circuit disengaged).

This is probably the closest to what I want. Yes a transistor boost circuit that can still have active tone control without interefeingwoth passive qualities. Passive reaction and passive sounding, but also active sounding, not either or.

Thank you. I appreciate it. What are your thoughts on using and audio relay circuit? I tested it out recently, but haven't set it up yet. I don't have a guitar to try it in yet, most of mine already have pickups and Im molding one other to take a set-thru neck, but I'm still stripping paint.

But regarding the Audio I only did a screw driver Tap test and it seems to work, but is it theoretically do able in a guitar?

I imagine a transistor booster circuit would be slightly different or at least slightly more complex.

Sorry for the late reply.

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