Official Luthiers Forum!

We have installed somewhere around 50 of them in the last three years, about half replacing B-Band, I-Beam, passive K&K, and Taylor Expression systems and the others on new guitars or first pickups. The only real complaint we have is the cream color of the soundhole unit, which often forces us to a flush installation and adding some additional stand-offs to allow that style of mounting. A color change to the same tortoid-colored plastic used for the Lyric mic would likely save the customer about $30 on some installations.

We believe the Anthem is the best solution for an acoustic performance (e.g., solo or duet/trio of other acoustic stringed instruments; vocal accompaniment) mic/transducer system under $800 installed (retail cost of system plus install labor). The Anthem uses the mic for mids and highs, and the under-saddle transducer (UST) for low frequency when blending. Running the blend control in the other direction progressively pulls the mic signal out of the mix and adds mids and highs from the UST. Baggs addressed the weakness of most onboard mics - sensitivity to installation location/capsule orientation - by mic capsule design, mounting, and preamp signal processing to eliminate tunnel effect and other issues seen in internal mic systems. Baggs considers the Anthem system primarily a mic system supported by the UST, although we have customers that are happy to use a soundhole cover and the UST alone for play where the stage environment is not handled well, retaining the preamp function of the system (i.e., impedance matching and moderate signal boost (~3 dB).

For those that have used the Baggs i-Beam or other acoustic pickup system, there is little in common with this latest generation of Baggs systems - the Element UST, the Lyric mic, and the Anthem and Anthem SE systems are game changing technology, providing the sort of fidelity seen in the K&K Pure, plus the tone-shaping potential seen in higher end onboard preamp/transducer/mic installations.

Like other transducer (K&K Pure; Fishman Matrix) or transducer/mic systems (K&K Trinity, Fishman Matrix Blend), the Anthem is not the best system for players who generate a lot of movement of guitar against body or who employ a lot of guitar body dynamics (rap/slap/tap) in their performances. We have found that of these systems, the Fishman Matrix is the least sensitive to impulsive noise, but it is also the least accurate of the amplification systems mentioned (although this lack of accuracy may not matter in a given band or venue situation).

The K&K Pure is a great low-cost solution (~$175 installed) for acoustic venues in non-band situations. The issue with the Pure is lower output on some guitars with heavier, less responsive construction and the potential for noisy signal. The K&K is also surprisingly sensitive to installation variances - minor errors in installation make a big difference in how well the system works, and can require some trial placements on non-traditional instrument configurations to ensure the best location to balance output and noise. The K&K UltraPure (~$300 installed) addresses some of the issues with output and balance with an onboard 3-band EQ and phase control, but correct installation of the bridgeplate transducers is still the best way to start with as balanced and clean a signal as possible. With a soundhole cover, the Pure and UltraPure will support performance in higher volume environments, but other systems such as soundhole magnetic pickups or magnetic/mic systems (e.g., Fishman Rare Earth/Blend, Baggs and Infinity Blend; L.R. Baggs M1 and M80 soundhole magnetics) may be a better choice for those players fronting a band with a steel string acoustic.