Fishman Piezo

[mbrown3]

I had the Fishman Piezo installed on my Hollow Drop Top Classic, which is an amazing guitar. But I just can't get the Fishman to sound good. I've tried it through acoustic amps, electric amps, direct to sound system, and messed with all kinds of EQ. I just can't seem to get it to sound very good. Am I missing something with it? Is there some secret I need to try? Thanks for any help!

[tom]

what is it running through when it leaves your guitar. i have used it through a variety of amps and pa's with the powerblend pedal with great results. keep in mind that you have smaller than acoustic strings, so you have to be careful to not overplay the strings.

[John Price]

I just got the fishman powerblend pedal and it does wonders for the piezo system in my hdt.....
what cable are you using?
Are you able to split the piezo?
I remember first trying it out and didn't realize that I was getting both the piezo and magnetics togehter and thought it sounded blahhh!!! but once you seperate the 2 it makes a big difference!
try the pedal !!
$$$$ It's not cheap but its worth it! $$$$
:D

[tom]

the cable they supply with the pedal is fine. i did try a rapco that i thought had a bit more high end for the electric. it did not have individule shields, so theere may be a bit more cross talk. when i use mine, i use the fishman cable. you must run the piezo through a full range system, i run mine straight to the house via the xlr out on the pedal. you wouldn't play a fine acoustic through a marshall would you? if you were running them together unbuffered, they were loading each other badley, and i wouldn't expect either to sound good. considering all that the pedal is doing, i think it's a good value. you could buy a volume pedal, preamp, and dorect box and spend more. it's acompact solid product, and the eq is voiced very nicely for the bridge.

[mbrown3]

Hey guys, thanks for the replies. I'm running the fishman stereo cable into the PowerBlend, and I've run both a split signal piezo into acoustic amp (Fender Acoustasonic) or PA system, magnetic into electric amp, and I've run the blended signal into all three. At first I couldn't get any piezo sound running and figured out that I have to have the gain control on the PowerBlend set ALL the way up in order to hear the piezo at any usable volume. After that, it's been fine. It sounds best through the PA (I've used it at church a few times), but it just doesn't sound as "warm" as other acoustic pickups (like the onboard Parker or an RMC).

I'm not looking for an exact acoustic tone (or even for the tone of those other piezos), because that would be impossible, but just something that has some usable "vibe" to it. This sounds OK, but not great, and I'm wondering what else I can try. The guitar is inherently amazing and resonates well - I'm looking for the piezo to pick up that resonance. I don't think it's equipment because I've tried it through multiple setups. But maybe particular eq settings, other suggestions, etc.?

Thanks for your help!

[Roy (maybe)]

Oh Wow Mr. Brown,

I absolutely love my Powerbridge on my Anderson. The tone is great and it works fantastically well live as a double tracking effect to add gorgeous fullness to almost any track.

May I suggest that you give the real Roy at Anderson a call? He can probably walk you through your set-up to see if something is not functioning as intended.

Have fun and Happy Playing,
Roy (maybe)