Rich Cohen
Senior Member
Can anyone tell me if I can install a K&K Pure Mini in my JV-72 that has a bridge doctor installed?
K&K Pure Mini in Guitar With Bridge Doctor
- Thread starter Rich Cohen
- Start date
wileypickett
Senior Member
I never use pickups in acoustic guitars so I haven't had any first-hand experience with the K&K -- but I've had lots of experience with Bridge Doctors! In fact I believe I installed the one that's in your (fomerly my) JV-72.
I see that the K&K has three pickup "dots" that attach under the bridgeplate. Part of the BD may cover the area where the center dot should go. If that's a problem (it may not be), the piece of the BD that goes under the bridge plate can be moved -- the BD comes with three locating positions pre-drilled.
Depending on how close the dowel-stick that extends from the BD is to the end-pin opening, you may need to deflect the angle of the dowel slightly so it hits the endblock to the right or the left of the endpin jack. This is easy to do as well, and changing the angle slightly won't affect how efficiently the BD works.
So, IMO, you (or your luthier) should have no problem.
(Hope you're loving that guitar Rich! And BTW, I just took the F312 I got from you in for its neck reset.)
I see that the K&K has three pickup "dots" that attach under the bridgeplate. Part of the BD may cover the area where the center dot should go. If that's a problem (it may not be), the piece of the BD that goes under the bridge plate can be moved -- the BD comes with three locating positions pre-drilled.
Depending on how close the dowel-stick that extends from the BD is to the end-pin opening, you may need to deflect the angle of the dowel slightly so it hits the endblock to the right or the left of the endpin jack. This is easy to do as well, and changing the angle slightly won't affect how efficiently the BD works.
So, IMO, you (or your luthier) should have no problem.
(Hope you're loving that guitar Rich! And BTW, I just took the F312 I got from you in for its neck reset.)
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Rich Cohen
Senior Member
Glenn, I'm considering a 1964 F-312. It's definitely a player guitar, with plenty of cleated cracks on top and one long one on the back, plus a repaired headstock break, done by someone who knows what he's doing. He wants 1900 for it, but is flexible. Here is the link:
Guild F-312 1964 w/ demo | Reverb
An early example of a Guild 12 string with stunning Brazilian rosewood back and sides, spruce top, ebony fingerboard, Brazilian rosewood bridge, and a 3 piece mahogany neck with a maple center strip. It's a stunning guitar to look at and quite a joy to play as well. I bought it "as is" with ...
reverb.com
wileypickett
Senior Member
That Brazilian rosewood is gorgeous alright!
I'm pretty sure we've seen this one for sale a few times over the last 10 years or so -- I remember the MOP piece added to the soundhole rosette. (Possibly it came with a pickup originally, which was removed?)
I'm looking forward to getting mine (formerly yours) back. I've been playing it as-is, and man it sounds fantastic -- but it's just been too hard to play above the 7th fret. I'd been procrastinating on the neck reset but I FINALLY got my butt in gear and took it in!
I'm pretty sure we've seen this one for sale a few times over the last 10 years or so -- I remember the MOP piece added to the soundhole rosette. (Possibly it came with a pickup originally, which was removed?)
I'm looking forward to getting mine (formerly yours) back. I've been playing it as-is, and man it sounds fantastic -- but it's just been too hard to play above the 7th fret. I'd been procrastinating on the neck reset but I FINALLY got my butt in gear and took it in!
Rich Cohen
Senior Member
Hans recommended I stay away from that guitar it’s been remade and in very little and original condition.
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Tom O
Member
The bridge Dr. would set where the center pickup would set on a 3 puck K & K as Wiley said. Just bought a JJB Prestige-430c for my GAD-N5. It has four pickups since nylon string guitars have fan bracing with a brace under the center of the saddle (same place as the bridge Dr. sits), Not sure you can remove part of the Bridge Dr. I put one on my Yamaha 12. Some say the JJBs are as good as the K &K pickups.
Rich Cohen
Senior Member
Assuming it may be problematic to try to install the K&K Pure Mini on my bridge doctored JV-72, is there an under saddle transducer pup that sounds like the K&K Pure Mini, or, at least close to it?
wileypickett
Senior Member
You definitely can. As mentioned above the BD comes with three holes pre-drilled so you can position the forward part of the "fulcrum" of the BD to best suit the kind of guitar you're installing it in.
You'd position it in a different spot under a 12-string bridge (larger) than you would under a six-string bridge (smaller) for instance. That flexibility means you can easily relocate that forward piece if you need to in order to accomodate the center dot pickup.
But like I say, you may not need to. That forward piece has a very small footprint and the center dot pickup may go in fine without moving anything.
Your luthier can best advise you once she / he gets in there.
Tom O
Member
The JJB Electronics pickups are a lot cheaper than K & K (http://www.jjb-electronics.com/). You could ask them about the BD as well. I have no connection to them. Some say they sound as good on other forums. You could try a two disk or four disk model. You can experiment with double sided tape to find the best locations. You could even try sticking the center K&K on the Bridge Doctor block since it is bolted or screwed to the bridge. While the tape does sound like the glued pickups, it is the suggested way of checking the desired locations.
Nuuska
Enlightened Member
Now that the discussion has entered the option of other piezo pups - a slight veer - do we have a piezo comparison thread on this forum? Or does anyone know of one in other forums ? i mean just comparing the actual piezo - without the possibly associated preamp that some have. I am biased in this matter . . will reveal later.
Rich Cohen
Senior Member
FYI, I have just bought from Amazon the Pure Mini and the associated pre-amp. they arrive on Sunday. I'll show the guitar to my luthier on Monday morning. I've spoken with him about it, and it appears he's able to install the pup. I'm interested in hearing what Nuuska has to say.
chazmo
Super Moderator
Nuuska, Rich, in case you haven't seen this thread... Worth a read through. https://letstalkguild.com/ltg/index.php?threads/my-f-512-gets-a-new-pickup-for-christmas.195028/
Rich Cohen
Senior Member
Thanks, Chazmo.
Rich Cohen
Senior Member
Nuuska, many thanks. As usual, LTGers are well informed and well schooled in the basis for their opinions.
Nuuska
Enlightened Member
I just reread that thred - but I was thinking more of situation, where multiple transducers are tried on same guitar. Naturally that would be a huge task.
The only pietzo pup I ever opened is the pair in my B30 - they both had intermittent short - after fixing the bass sounds just as great w pups as acoustically - and w help of EQ the electrified sound can be brought to fantastic levels. And I think I know by now why that is so.
As we all know. the undersaddle pup is usually a long thin strip that lies under the saddle. So it is purely matter of good luck, that all strings produce same pressure on it - because the cavity underneath is wood - and saddle is bone or plastic - plus the usp itself - none of these are manufactured with extremely tight tolerances - so there might well be minuscule gaps here and there.
The Guild B30 however has split saddle - and the pups underneath each saddle have only two quite small crystals in them - and they are about where the strings are. So the pressure of the strings goes right down tho the actual crystal. All four of them have maximum pressure.
With guitar pup this could be easily achieved by making the pup in similar construction - two stripes of metal with 6 crystals between - instead of one long slab - AND - this is VERY IMPORTANT - the saddle should be cut in three pieces - each pair pressing only two crystals.
Perhaps with some of these newer pups, that are flexible - it would be beneficial to try just cut the saddle in three pairs. Or even six individual saddles. Latter option would make fine tuning of intonation much simpler, too.
Included two pics of my B30 pups - blue is before - clear is after repair.
Rich Cohen
Senior Member
I brought the JV-72 to my luthier today. He declined to install the K&K Pure Mini. He feels that it's impossible to adjust the position of the BD to accommodate the center pickup.