Fiddle pickup
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fel bautista
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Fiddle pickup
I need to electrify my fiddle for an upcoming to-do. Anyone have any suggestions? Bridge transducer, contact mic?? I did a quick search on the forum and there was a lot of mandolin discussion awhile back. P< works as well if you don't want to waste bandwidth.
Re: Fiddle pickup
Hi Fel,
There are a bewildering number of choices for fiddles. Piezoelectric bridges with the pickup embedded in a special bridge, clip-on piezo elements that fit on the existing bridge, soundboard transducers that attach to the top of the instrument, tiny condenser microphones that mount near the sound holes, contact dynamic mics that pickup the vibration of the whole instrument, and of course, external microphones of a great many varieties.
To better help you wind your way through the confusion, tell us a little more. What will you be playing through (what kind of amplification)? How large a venue? Will it be a noisy bar or a quiet wedding ceremony? What other instruments will be with you? Do you have any experience with amplification or will there be others there that know the subject well? Will this be something you'll do often or is it a one-time event? And of course, what kind of budget do you have to spend?
There are a bewildering number of choices for fiddles. Piezoelectric bridges with the pickup embedded in a special bridge, clip-on piezo elements that fit on the existing bridge, soundboard transducers that attach to the top of the instrument, tiny condenser microphones that mount near the sound holes, contact dynamic mics that pickup the vibration of the whole instrument, and of course, external microphones of a great many varieties.
To better help you wind your way through the confusion, tell us a little more. What will you be playing through (what kind of amplification)? How large a venue? Will it be a noisy bar or a quiet wedding ceremony? What other instruments will be with you? Do you have any experience with amplification or will there be others there that know the subject well? Will this be something you'll do often or is it a one-time event? And of course, what kind of budget do you have to spend?
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kkrell
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Re: Fiddle pickup
Fel, why don't you ask Bella, Kira or Melanie? They're all equipped with what look like similar pickup jack setups, and are no strangers to performing.
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highland-piper
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Re: Fiddle pickup
No matter what kind of pickup you use you'll want a good pre-amp (tube) for it.
Re: Fiddle pickup
A mic on a stand, pointed right at your fiddle?
Chad Wilson
Some whistles, an old fiddle, an old banjo, a bass, a guitar and a bodhran
Some whistles, an old fiddle, an old banjo, a bass, a guitar and a bodhran
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David Kilpatrick
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Re: Fiddle pickup
I've made a very successful mic for my viola. I simply took a £29 ($45) passive headset vocal mic, and cut off the flexible arm from the headbit. I then hot melt glued this in place behind the chinrest so that it snakes out of the rest, and can be aimed as needed at the instrument. A mini jack socket is connected to it, and this is also glued the same way into the back of the chinrest so that it's concealed, between the rest and the instrument. I just plug in as needed.
This was done instead of a bridge pickup because the total cost is very low, the sound is stunningly good and can be varied by moving the mic head - contact with the top produces a solid body sound, very loud; lifting it clear by an inch and directing it away from top allows me to sing into the mic while playing, which works very well.
Players who have seen this so far are wanting to know whether they can buy a chinrest with snake mic and socket just like my conversion.
David
This was done instead of a bridge pickup because the total cost is very low, the sound is stunningly good and can be varied by moving the mic head - contact with the top produces a solid body sound, very loud; lifting it clear by an inch and directing it away from top allows me to sing into the mic while playing, which works very well.
Players who have seen this so far are wanting to know whether they can buy a chinrest with snake mic and socket just like my conversion.
David
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kkrell
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Re: Fiddle pickup
If there's still a need for a recommendation for a fiddle/violn pickup:
http://www.kksound.com/violinissimo.html
Kevin Krell
http://www.kksound.com/violinissimo.html
Kevin Krell
International Traditional Music Society, Inc.
A non-profit 501c3 charity/educational public benefit corporation
Wooden Flute Obsession CDs (3 volumes, 6 discs, 7 hours, 120 players/tracks)
https://www.worldtrad.org
A non-profit 501c3 charity/educational public benefit corporation
Wooden Flute Obsession CDs (3 volumes, 6 discs, 7 hours, 120 players/tracks)
https://www.worldtrad.org
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hpinson
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Re: Fiddle pickup
The violinissimo sample in the previous link:
http://www.kksound.com/mp3/rudiberger.mp3
...sounds like the piezoelectric pickup that it is. They have a very characteristic, and to my ear, unnatural (but not necessarily displeasing), sound. That's not to say bad-- it sounds very good for a piezo. You also won't have huge feedback problems with that one, especially if in a high-volume amplified situation. The cable jack fixture is also non-destructive. Also keep in mind that piezo pickups really benefit from preamplification (through a dedicated preamp like available from Fishman and Baggs, or through the mixing board preamp).
A good condenser microphone is going to give a more accurate 'acoustic' sound. Even an inexpensive one like the Oktava MK012A is probably going to more accurately reproduce the violin tone than will a piezo pickup. At the high end are mics like the Neumann KM 84 (which are desirable for your pipes too) are just stunning on a violin (as they are on Uilleann piles).
Some like to combine a mic and a piezo pickup. I think Fishman has a system like that.
Here's a very good overview of the many options:
http://www.fiddleforum.com/fiddleforum/ ... ic=19135.0
It would be interesting to hear what you choose.
http://www.kksound.com/mp3/rudiberger.mp3
...sounds like the piezoelectric pickup that it is. They have a very characteristic, and to my ear, unnatural (but not necessarily displeasing), sound. That's not to say bad-- it sounds very good for a piezo. You also won't have huge feedback problems with that one, especially if in a high-volume amplified situation. The cable jack fixture is also non-destructive. Also keep in mind that piezo pickups really benefit from preamplification (through a dedicated preamp like available from Fishman and Baggs, or through the mixing board preamp).
A good condenser microphone is going to give a more accurate 'acoustic' sound. Even an inexpensive one like the Oktava MK012A is probably going to more accurately reproduce the violin tone than will a piezo pickup. At the high end are mics like the Neumann KM 84 (which are desirable for your pipes too) are just stunning on a violin (as they are on Uilleann piles).
Some like to combine a mic and a piezo pickup. I think Fishman has a system like that.
Here's a very good overview of the many options:
http://www.fiddleforum.com/fiddleforum/ ... ic=19135.0
It would be interesting to hear what you choose.
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fel bautista
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Re: Fiddle pickup
Sorry guys, Haven't looked here in a while. I did buy a fishman pickup that slips into the crevice in the bridge. Its a bit on the hot side so you need to run it into an equalizer. Other than that it does what I needed it to do, make my fiddle loud against a rock and roll strat. I did look at the voice mic solution, but it was too expensive. I shall, when I have some time, look into David's suggestion. Alasdair Frasier used something like that in a concert I went to.