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Opinions of LR Baggs Gigpro Vs. Fishman G-II Acoustic Instrument Preamp?

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edspyhill01

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Jun 12, 2011, 1:16:46 AM6/12/11
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I need a preamp for a guitar with a piezo pickup. Anyone have
experience and opinions for either or both of these preamps?

LR Baggs Gigpro
Fishman G-II Acoustic Instrument Preamp

Regards, Ed S.

Steve Hawkins

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Jun 12, 2011, 10:41:57 AM6/12/11
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edspyhill01 <edspy...@gmail.com> wrote in news:744df633-2605-4729-9e7a-
a1bed0...@n11g2000yqf.googlegroups.com:

What model and brand is the pickup?

Steve Hawkins

hank alrich

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Jun 12, 2011, 11:25:11 AM6/12/11
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edspyhill01 <edspy...@gmail.com> wrote:

Is the pickup system active or passive?

--
shut up and play your guitar * http://hankalrich.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpqXcV9DYAc
http://www.sonicbids.com/HankandShaidri

edspyhill01

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Jun 12, 2011, 12:27:27 PM6/12/11
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On Jun 12, 10:41 am, Steve Hawkins
<stephen.hawki...@frontier.comREMOVETHIS> wrote:
> edspyhill01 <edspyhil...@gmail.com> wrote in news:744df633-2605-4729-9e7a-
> a1bed0a32...@n11g2000yqf.googlegroups.com:

>
> > I need a preamp for a guitar with a piezo pickup.  Anyone have
> > experience and opinions for either or both of these preamps?
>
> > LR Baggs Gigpro
> > Fishman G-II Acoustic Instrument Preamp
>
> > Regards, Ed S.
>
> What model and brand is the pickup?
>
> Steve Hawkins

Don't know. It is an under saddle piezo pickup in the steel string
Ultra travel guitar. I'll see if I can find out.

edspyhill01

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Jun 12, 2011, 12:28:33 PM6/12/11
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On Jun 12, 11:25 am, walki...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote:

The pickup is a passive under saddle piezo pickup in the steel string
UltraLight travel guitar.

edspyhill01

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Jun 12, 2011, 12:30:47 PM6/12/11
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It's a Shadow acoustic piezo under saddle pickup. (Traveler Ultra-
light guitar.)

hank alrich

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Jun 12, 2011, 12:41:08 PM6/12/11
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edspyhill01 <edspy...@gmail.com> wrote:

> On Jun 12, 11:25 am, walki...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote:
> > edspyhill01 <edspyhil...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > > I need a preamp for a guitar with a piezo pickup. Anyone have
> > > experience and opinions for either or both of these preamps?
> >
> > > LR Baggs Gigpro
> > > Fishman G-II Acoustic Instrument Preamp
> >
> > > Regards, Ed S.
> >
> > Is the pickup system active or passive?

> The pickup is a passive under saddle piezo pickup in the steel string
> UltraLight travel guitar.

Then, personally, I'd get a Red Eye preamp for it.

(And yeah, I'm a vendor of those, but so are others. I use a Red Eye
Twin now at almost every show.)

--

Steve Hawkins

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Jun 12, 2011, 1:05:57 PM6/12/11
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edspyhill01 <edspy...@gmail.com> wrote in
news:d364dadd-7401-40fa...@a10g2000vbz.googlegroups.com:

Just make sure the input impedence is around 10 megohms, the rest will be
up to your ears and the features you want. I'm sure both will do a good
job.

Steve Hawkins

Steve Hawkins

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Jun 12, 2011, 1:07:13 PM6/12/11
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walk...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote in news:1k2qz17.17fd5aa1nzzu74N%
walk...@nv.net:

> edspyhill01 <edspy...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> On Jun 12, 11:25 am, walki...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote:
>> > edspyhill01 <edspyhil...@gmail.com> wrote:
>> > > I need a preamp for a guitar with a piezo pickup. Anyone have
>> > > experience and opinions for either or both of these preamps?
>> >
>> > > LR Baggs Gigpro
>> > > Fishman G-II Acoustic Instrument Preamp
>> >
>> > > Regards, Ed S.
>> >
>> > Is the pickup system active or passive?
>
>> The pickup is a passive under saddle piezo pickup in the steel string
>> UltraLight travel guitar.
>
> Then, personally, I'd get a Red Eye preamp for it.
>
> (And yeah, I'm a vendor of those, but so are others. I use a Red Eye
> Twin now at almost every show.)
>

Shameless!!! Say, have I mentioned I have a CD for sale? :-)

Steve Hawkins

hank alrich

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Jun 12, 2011, 2:43:20 PM6/12/11
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Steve Hawkins <stephen....@frontier.comREMOVETHIS> wrote:

I'd like to take this opportunity to praise Mr. Hawkin's CD, even though
I am not a vendor of that fine product.

Meanwhile, others will happily sell you a Red Eye, too, but do be aware
that very many of them also use the product.

edspyhill01

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Jun 12, 2011, 2:48:01 PM6/12/11
to

Thank you. Just last week I found some discussions about the Red Eye
preamp. Seems to be the gold standard. Time to part with some money.

Ed S.

edspyhill01

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Jun 12, 2011, 2:49:11 PM6/12/11
to
On Jun 12, 1:05 pm, Steve Hawkins
<stephen.hawki...@frontier.comREMOVETHIS> wrote:
> Steve Hawkins- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

Thank you. Ed S.

Tony Done

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Jun 12, 2011, 4:10:28 PM6/12/11
to
On Jun 13, 12:41 am, Steve Hawkins

<stephen.hawki...@frontier.comREMOVETHIS> wrote:
> edspyhill01 <edspyhil...@gmail.com> wrote in news:744df633-2605-4729-9e7a-
> a1bed0a32...@n11g2000yqf.googlegroups.com:
>
> > I need a preamp for a guitar with a piezo pickup.  Anyone have
> > experience and opinions for either or both of these preamps?
>
> > LR Baggs Gigpro
> > Fishman G-II Acoustic Instrument Preamp
>
> > Regards, Ed S.
>
> What model and brand is the pickup?
>
> Steve Hawkin

I had a Mixpro, the same size as the Gigpro, and the precursor to that
Fishman preamp at different times. I play seated, and my only real
argument with either of them was that they were too small. Fine if you
want to hang them off your belt or guitar strap, but now I would go
for something big and chunky that sits on the floor where my failing
eyesight can see it. - Something like the Baggs PADI.

Tony D

Jenn

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Jun 12, 2011, 5:15:54 PM6/12/11
to
In article <1k2r4q3.1p6bvcf1yuxd26N%walk...@nv.net>,
walk...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote:

> Steve Hawkins <stephen....@frontier.comREMOVETHIS> wrote:
>
> > walk...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote in news:1k2qz17.17fd5aa1nzzu74N%
> > walk...@nv.net:
> >
> > > edspyhill01 <edspy...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > >
> > >> On Jun 12, 11:25 am, walki...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote:
> > >> > edspyhill01 <edspyhil...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > >> > > I need a preamp for a guitar with a piezo pickup. Anyone have
> > >> > > experience and opinions for either or both of these preamps?
> > >> >
> > >> > > LR Baggs Gigpro
> > >> > > Fishman G-II Acoustic Instrument Preamp
> > >> >
> > >> > > Regards, Ed S.
> > >> >
> > >> > Is the pickup system active or passive?
> > >
> > >> The pickup is a passive under saddle piezo pickup in the steel string
> > >> UltraLight travel guitar.
> > >
> > > Then, personally, I'd get a Red Eye preamp for it.
> > >
> > > (And yeah, I'm a vendor of those, but so are others. I use a Red Eye
> > > Twin now at almost every show.)
> > >
> >
> > Shameless!!! Say, have I mentioned I have a CD for sale? :-)
> >
> > Steve Hawkins
>
> I'd like to take this opportunity to praise Mr. Hawkin's CD, even though
> I am not a vendor of that fine product.
>
> Meanwhile, others will happily sell you a Red Eye, too, but do be aware
> that very many of them also use the product.

I'd like to take this opportunity to praise Mr. Hawkins' CD, and Mr.
Alrich's integrity. I bought Steve's CD from some guy on ebay for $40.
He said that he bought it, make a copy, and is now selling for what it
is worth, because he's so intimidated by the excellence. I think that
he said that his name is Sidney.

--
www.jennifermartinmusic.com

hank alrich

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Jun 12, 2011, 6:42:10 PM6/12/11
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Tony Done <tony...@bigpond.com> wrote:

I had a PADI. Thought it was okay while I had it. Sold immediately when
I got to use a Red Eye. No comparison, sound quality wise - the Red Eye
bats in a different league.

--

Tony Done

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Jun 12, 2011, 6:51:13 PM6/12/11
to
On Jun 13, 8:42 am, walki...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote:

If I was in that market I would quite possibly get the Red Eye, the
PADI was the first thing that came to mind that is widely used. As it
is, the last set up I used was either a built-in preamp (Maton 225) or
magnetics (the rest). However, in the very unlikely event that I ever
do a gig with my reso uke, which is now piezo- equipped...............

Tony D

Mike Brown

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Jun 12, 2011, 7:22:06 PM6/12/11
to
In article
<83c3dc08-c2fc-4bc5...@r33g2000prh.googlegroups.com>,
Tony Done <tony...@bigpond.com> wrote:

When I use a preamp (which isn't very often with the K&K) I use a Baggs
PADI.

MJRB

LA

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Jun 13, 2011, 9:13:01 AM6/13/11
to
On Jun 12, 1:48 pm, edspyhill01 <edspyhil...@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Jun 12, 12:41 pm, walki...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> > edspyhill01 <edspyhil...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > > On Jun 12, 11:25 am, walki...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote:
> > > > edspyhill01 <edspyhil...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > > > > I need a preamp for a guitar with a piezo pickup.  Anyone have
> > > > > experience and opinions for either or both of these preamps?
>
> > > > > LR Baggs Gigpro
> > > > > Fishman G-II Acoustic Instrument Preamp
>
> > > > > Regards, Ed S.
>
> > > > Is the pickup system active or passive?
> > > The pickup is a passive under saddle piezo pickup in the steel string
> > > UltraLight travel guitar.
>
> > Then, personally, I'd get a Red Eye preamp for it.
>
> > (And yeah, I'm a vendor of those, but so are others. I use a Red Eye
> > Twin now at almost every show.)
>
> > --
> > shut up and play your guitar *http://hankalrich.com/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpqXcV9DYAchttp:...

>
> Thank you.  Just last week I found some discussions about the Red Eye
> preamp.  Seems to be the gold standard.  Time to part with some money.

I might be way off base but, I'm not sure that the highly regarded Red
Eye would be the best choice for your use. From what I understand,
it's a preamp for high quality instruments that require little or no
EQ tweeking.

LA

Carl

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Jun 13, 2011, 5:29:25 PM6/13/11
to
I can't speak from direct experience, only indirect, but my son, who has a
pretty critical ear, sent back his LR Baggs (I don't know if it was the
Gigpro- it was the standard one that a lot of people use)) and swapped it
for the Fishman Aura (which he loves and which I also don't know how that
compares to the G-II you're looking at).

So, taking all that into consideration, perhaps I haven't helped you at
all... :-)


hank alrich

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Jun 13, 2011, 7:51:38 PM6/13/11
to
LA <sunsid...@gmail.com> wrote:

> On Jun 12, 1:48 pm, edspyhill01 <edspyhil...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > On Jun 12, 12:41 pm, walki...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote:
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > > edspyhill01 <edspyhil...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > > > On Jun 12, 11:25 am, walki...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote:
> > > > > edspyhill01 <edspyhil...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > > > > > I need a preamp for a guitar with a piezo pickup. Anyone have
> > > > > > experience and opinions for either or both of these preamps?
> >
> > > > > > LR Baggs Gigpro
> > > > > > Fishman G-II Acoustic Instrument Preamp
> >

> > > > > > Regards, Ed S.s


> >
> > > > > Is the pickup system active or passive?
> > > > The pickup is a passive under saddle piezo pickup in the steel string
> > > > UltraLight travel guitar.
> >
> > > Then, personally, I'd get a Red Eye preamp for it.
> >
> > > (And yeah, I'm a vendor of those, but so are others. I use a Red Eye
> > > Twin now at almost every show.)

> > Thank you. Just last week I found some discussions about the Red Eye


> > preamp. Seems to be the gold standard. Time to part with some money.
>
> I might be way off base but, I'm not sure that the highly regarded Red
> Eye would be the best choice for your use. From what I understand,
> it's a preamp for high quality instruments that require little or no
> EQ tweeking.
>
> LA

I've heard it with expensive custom made guitars, cheap Asian guitars, a
wide variety of mandolins from pricey to crap, violins, carved and
plywood upright basses, Fender basses and guitars, a Les Paul, and a
electromagnetic soundhole pickup. From what I can tell, much need for
the "features" of most other acoustic instrument preamps disappears when
the preamp itself works this well.

EQ in preamps is mostly cheap stuff, easily surpassed by dedicated
units. I really like the Speck ASC if I need EQ, but since I started
with the Red Eye, EQ hasn't even entered my mind when performing. There
is generally a four-band EQ with sweepable mids for every channel of the
console and the sound operators so have have mostly done a good job of
tweaking things to suit the room. I can't really hear the room while on
stage so this can work well for me.

The main thing to remember about the Red Eye is that it is intended for
use with passive pickups, where the output of the pickup is fed directly
to the Red Eye.

--

edspyhill01

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Jun 13, 2011, 10:37:26 PM6/13/11
to

You have. I've seen a lot of luke warm to ambivalent reviews of the
LR Baggs PADI. Fishman seems to have more solid reviews. For my
current needs I went with the Fishman G11 because that's all I need
right now. If I was going to be playing through sound systems, etc, I
would have definitely bought a Red Eye unit.

Ed S.

edspyhill01

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Jun 13, 2011, 10:41:45 PM6/13/11
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On Jun 13, 7:51 pm, walki...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote:
> shut up and play your guitar *http://hankalrich.com/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpqXcV9DYAchttp://www.sonicbids.com/HankandShaidri- Hide quoted text -

>
> - Show quoted text -

Hank,

I checked out the Red Eye preamp and it is the perfect preamp but for
my current needs. I went with the Fishman G11. All I need right now
is a good jfet preamp to do impedance matching close to the pickup.


If I was going to be playing through sound systems, etc, I would have
definitely bought a Red Eye unit.

Thank you for your advice and guidance.

Ed S.

Ed S.

edspyhill01

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Jun 13, 2011, 10:45:15 PM6/13/11
to

Steve, Tony, Hank, Mike, Jenn, LA, Carl,

I went with the Fishman G11. All I need right now is a good jfet

preamp to do impedance matching close to the piezo pickup. The Red
Eye unit would be my first choice if I ever play out.

Thank you all for your advice and guidance and for taking the time to
post responses. It is greatly appreciated.

Ed S.

LA

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Jun 14, 2011, 4:48:20 AM6/14/11
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On Jun 13, 6:51 pm, walki...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote:

LA

unread,
Jun 14, 2011, 5:00:24 AM6/14/11
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On Jun 13, 6:51 pm, walki...@nv.net (hank alrich) wrote:


You're right of course. If you have a bunch of other stuff and/or a
sound man to EQ your cheapo plywood guitar, then a plain ol' $200
preamp is all you need.

LA

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