It may seem antithetical to discussions about acoustic guitar, but often at performances I am asked about the pickup I am using. I have used several different systems over the years and most of them with good result. For that reason I've decided to dedicate a few posts to review a handful of my favorites. I am aware that there are many reviews already available elsewhere, but it is my hope that some readers of this blog will find these, slightly more real world insights, useful in some way.
I should start by giving you some frame of reference for where I fall on the tonal quality of any given system. Acoustic instruments in general are probably only given faithful representation by microphones. In fact, the first electric guitars were invented by manufacturers who were simply trying to create instruments loud enough to be heard within the context of an orchestra. Use of those instruments and their obviously untraditional sound were somewhat controversial, at least in the beginning, but,
as their sound grew in popularity, a sort of new standard arose and, along with it, a wide new range of musical acceptance.
So, here we are now with a sort of musical "de'ja' vu all over again." I say that because, in more recent years, a number of new companies have sprung up offering new solutions to the old problem. Each of these new solutions has undergone a certain level of scrutiny from purists and, yet again, some have managed to find a range of acceptance regardless of their tone. So, if you can make good music with it, does it really matter how well it does x, y or z? I won't even attempt to answer that...at least not now.
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