Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

[Artie]

If I'm understanding the description properly, it nulls the input voice, and replaces it with a "modeled" acoustic output. Is this correct? Seems too simple.

Artie

Mama-Bear-acoustic-modeler

 

[frankfalbo]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

The nulling part is just that it has to be told what the input signal is; what pickup type you have. None of the settings are for electric guitar pickups. It doesn't make an electric sound like an acoustic unless you have the piezo bridge. One of the settings is for an electric with the piezo saddles and that sounds very good. It is very convincing.

At this point it's 10 year old tech, which in DSP/modeling gear can be significant. If you have the piezo saddles, there are some Aura pedals that allow you to load from hundreds of different images, instead of 16 presets.

 

[Artie]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

Thanks Frank. Good to hear from you again.

I figured it was too good to be true. Of course, that's not what the MB was designed for, so no knock intended there. I was just hoping.

P.S. I've still never installed those Livewire singles I got from you. They're in the "tomorrow" box.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

It won't do that, but it does wonders on the piezo output of an electric. I wrote a blog on the Mama Bear a few years ago.

 

[Kamanda~SD]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

I can only see this working with piezo's well.

But for that price you can get a decent solid top Seagull or A&L Acoustic

 

[Artie]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

Those Seagull's look sweet. Although, I've already got a nice Alvarez Artist series acoustic/electric. (Maybe circa 1997.) But I'm more comfortable playing my electrics. Late night, with headphones, etc. So, trying to do the age-old fantasy of making an electric sound like an acoustic. Probably ain't gonna happen.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

Well, if you add some piezos, it can. I have yet to hear any device make an electric guitar sound like an acoustic, except maybe a Variax, but it only really works if you send the Variax acoustic signal to a PA, and the electric signal to an amp.

 

[Funkfingers]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

I am yet to find any purely electronic solution convincing.

Apart from anything else, an acoustic guitar will tend to have heavier strings and a higher action than most solid body electrics. This influences the way that a player attacks the strings and, hence, the eventual sound.

 

[aleclee]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

Not using a Mama Bear but using IRs can get decent results with magnetic pickups. Here's a clip made using an acoustic IR in my Atomic Amplifire with a non-piezo EBMM Axis.

 

[Artie]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

I'll have to wait 'til I get home to listen to that. (Dang work computer.) I'm just starting to read up on Impulse Responses and how they're used in music and recording/modeling. Can't wait to hear your clip.

 

[Artie]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

Dang aleclee! That was nice. If I heard that in a mix, I'd swear it was an acoustic. I need to check out IR technology a bit more. Thanks for the clip.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

There are a lot of devices out there that will load IRs into a pedal (or software for a DAW).

 

[vinta9e]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

If I heard that in a mix, I'd swear it was an acoustic.

Indeed?

 

[tone4days]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

yeah, mama bear works awesomely with piezo output from an otherwise electric guitar

not so much with the mag pickup output

 

[aleclee]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

yeah, mama bear works awesomely with piezo output from an otherwise electric guitar

not so much with the mag pickup output

My clip used mags, not piezos.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Will the Mama Bear make my electric emulate an acoustic?

I did a clip on my blog with a piezo and the Mama Bear. Also, many people are uploading their IRs of actual acoustics for use with magnetic pickups. With devices such as the Electro Harmonix boxes able to emulate electric pianos and Mellotrons, I can't see how a simple device for magnetic pickups could be far behind.