Pickup or other amplification for octave mandolin?

[Jim Mullins]

Any suggestions?

For my mandolin, I have a K&K, which works well. They offer the Twin Spot for a variety of instruments, including a bouzouki, but OM is not mentioned specifically.

Does anyone else use a pickup for OM, and if so, what brand/type, and how do you like it?

Thanks,

Jim

[Ray(T)]

What type of OM are we talking about? i.e. Flat top or carved top?

I have a K&K in my Clark GBOM which works fine - plenty of bass into a Acoustic Image Coda. Not sure exactly which model. It's supposed to be one (twin spot) produced for jazz guitar but, at the time, that particular model had disappeared from their catalogue.

[foldedpath]

I'm a huge fan of clip-on mics and hate the sound of pickups, so that's what I use on my Weber Yellowstone F OM (see photo below). The DPA 4099 is easy on and off, and it sounds great. An ATM Pro 35 would work too, but it would be a little trickier to mount, depending on your OM body style. A setup like this works either wired or wireless, but you'll need phantom power if wired.

[fiddleround]

[QUOTE=Jim Mullins;1521959]Any suggestions?

For my mandolin, I have a K&K, which works well. They offer the Twin Spot for a variety of instruments, including a bouzouki, but OM is not mentioned specifically.

Does anyone else use a pickup for OM, and if so, what brand/type, and how do you like it?



I did not love the K&K Twin Spot in my Old Wave OM (flat top, teardrop shaped) so I installed a Lyric in my Rozawood OM (flat top, guitar body). I am much happier with the Lyric, which I also use in my Bourgeois Vintage OM guitar. To be fair I did not glue the K&K in, which I understand improves the sound. YMMV...

[Mandobart]

I use JJB PPS-200 on violin, viola, octave violin, octave viola, mandolin, mandola, octave mandolin, banjo, mandocello, 6 and 12 string guitars. Very similar to the K&K twin, which I installed in my first mandolin. The JJB installs easier than the K&K in fiddles or mandolins with tonebars, especially if you order the smaller 15 mm size heads. Works well on all. When playing thru my acoustic amp (Carvin AG300) I use no preamp or DI and the sound is great. I use my Redeye when playing thru a standard run of the mill house PA.

[Daniel Nestlerode]

I've got a Paul Hathaway octave mandolin (19" scale so I can cheat the technique and use my left hand fingers in the same way as I do on the mandolin) with headway pick up in it. Absolutely brilliant.
http://www.headwaymusicaudio.com/
http://www.paulhathway.com/

My Mix F5 mandolin has a Schertler in it. Not sure of the exact model, but I get compliments about its tone all the time.
Using both tonight at the Cambridge Folk Club!

Good luck!
Daniel

[derbex]

FWIW I use an ancient European Music Company piezo pickup on my OM, which I attach with blu-tack behind the bridge more or less centrally. It sounds reasonable on the OM, lacks top end on the mandolin.

[UsuallyPickin]

I prefer to play into a stand mounted mic, nothing sounds better than the right mic for the situation, and have a transducer, K&K twin, running through a preamp for those times when a mic just wont work. You can't really control the space you wind up playing in so having both options makes sense to me. Tonally transducers have come a looooong way in the past decade and with modeling available in preamps now you can achieve an acceptably good tone from a transducer. R/

[Shelagh Moore]

I usually use K&K's but my OM has a Schertler which sounds very warm.

[Charlieshafer]

I'm a microphone fan as well, either clip-on, or stand in front of. The bigger mandolin family instruments have great sustain and a great sense of air about them that a pickup just doesn't get.

[mandroid]

Yea A Pickup will hear mostly what it is attached to.. but the projected sound is so Much More .

[jonny250]

I have a K&K in my current octave and also had in my previous one. sounds good to me.