Ultimate Guide to
Acoustic Guitar Pickups

Much as with an electric guitar, an acoustic guitar pickup takes the sound of your acoustic guitar and converts it into a signal that can be amplified. However, unlike an electric guitar, an acoustic guitar has a rich and dynamic unplugged tone where the resonance of the guitar itself plays a big role.

Acoustic guitar pickups come in three main types – magnetic, transducer, and microphones. Each has its advantages and disadvantages.

Acoustic guitars are pretty loud by themselves, but if you're going to be playing live in bigger venues, you're going to need to amplify your guitar. You could set up a mic in front of your soundhole, but it's far more convenient to use a pickup, especially if you want to incorporate acoustic guitar effects into your sound.

·        Easy to install

·        Great warm tone

·        Works well with effects

·        Can't reproduce acoustic resonances

·        Prone to feedback

·        Not suitable for nylon-strung guitars

Magnetic soundhole pickups are really easy to install and can be fitted without making any permanent modifications to your guitar. Most models simply fit onto your soundhole and then you just turn a couple of screws to tighten and plug it in. Fitting it this way will result in a cable hanging out of the soundhole, if you want to hide it you may need to make some more significant mods.

Flatpicking (strumming).

Transducer pickups convert physical vibrations into an electrical signal which can then be amplified. They are 'passive' systems, requiring no external power to work. The most common type of transducer is the Piezo system, which sits between the bridge saddle and the bridge itself. They work by sensing vibrations from the strings which cause changes in pressure, which in turn change the voltage of piezoelectric material. Other transducer pickups attach several transducer heads under the body top (soundboard) to pick up vibrations.

If you're using an under-soundboard transducer you might find the installation a bit fiddly and you may need to drill a wider endpin hole to fit a jack. Installing a Piezo pickup is more difficult as it needs to be fitted between the saddle and the bridge. You can try fitting a Piezo system if you're confident working with tools and guitars, otherwise it might be best to take your guitar to a trained luthier. Alternatively, many makers now produce guitars with a Piezo system pre-installed.

As a transducer pickups convert physical vibrations into an electrical signal they won't pick up the body's resonance or any ambient sound. The result is a more direct sound with a strong attack and a distinctive 'quack' tone. A Piezo pickup has quite a bright and articulate sound as it picks up the vibrations of the saddle right under the strings, whereas a transducer that goes under the soundboard will have a warmer tone but with less definition.

Transducer pickups are more reliable than soundhole pickups as their tone is easier to control and they aren't prone to feedback. A transducer or Piezo pickup is a great option if you want to amplify a nylon string acoustic guitar. The sound can be considered a bit brittle or unnatural, especially with that characteristic 'piezo-quack,' but that can be managed.

·        Easy to control

·        Works with nylon-strung guitars

·        No feedback

·        Good for multiple styles of playing

·        Will work on nylon-strung guitars

·        Can be tricky to self-install

·        Piezo systems produce a distinctive 'quack' tone which might not suit all

If you're using an under-soundboard transducer you might find the installation a bit fiddly and you may need to drill a wider endpin hole to fit a jack. Installing a Piezo pickup is more difficult as it needs to be fitted between the saddle and the bridge. You can try fitting a Piezo system if you're confident working with tools and guitars, otherwise it might be best to take your guitar to a trained luthier.

Contact mics attach directly to a guitar's surface via double-sided tape, Velcro, or suitable putty, and pickup vibrations directly from the instrument's surface. They are simple to install and come with the advantage of being easily moved to different parts of a guitar's body, resulting in a range of tones. The majority of contact mics are 'passive,' requiring no external power. They are especially good for percussive techniques which involve tapping different parts of a guitar body to create rhythms. Conversely, contact mics are very sensitive, and will amplify unintentional knocks to the body of your guitar.

·        Easy to install

·        Relatively inexpensive

·        Can be attached to the guitar at different points

·        Reliable

·        Suitable for nylon-strung guitars

·        Can pickup unwanted sounds

Internal microphones frequently come paired with Piezo systems and therefore will require a good level of knowledge for you to fit them yourself.

Many players find that they get the best results by combining different types of pickup, taking advantage of the particular strengths of each. For instance, many players like to use an internal microphone to capture the resonance and sonic depth of the guitar’s body, with a Piezo system used to capture the detail and attack. Or, if the Piezo sound is too up-front for that guitarists’ particular musical goals, a magnetic pickup and a microphone will give you a very full, round, ‘big,’ natural sound with good detail.

It's generally inadvisable to blend Piezo and magnetic pickups, because both methods work by converting string movement into electrical signals, so you risk the possibility of clashing frequencies and all sorts of sonic weirdness. So in short, if you want to blend, you'll be using a microphone pickup blended with something else - the question you need to ask is 'why?'

If your style is more rhythmic, a piezo & mic combination will give you a great representation of your guitar’s attack. If it’s more detail-oriented, a magnetic & mic combination will be more representative of what happens to the string throughout the whole life of the note. These days there are many kits, such as LR Baggs Anthem Acoustic Guitar Pickup, which combine a Piezo system with an onboard microphone.

Preamps act as a buffer between a pickup and an amplifier. The majority of passive pickups produce a strong enough signal not to require a preamp, but a good preamp, such as the EBS Stanley Clarke Acoustic Preamp Pedal, can make a world of difference to your sound. Many acoustic preamps, including the EBS, come with a built in EQ mixer, allowing you to shape the output of different frequency bands to perfectly adjust your tone.

Whether or not you choose to run your system through a preamp, you're going to need an amplifier – the part of your set-up that actually produces your acoustic guitar's boosted sound. There are several different models available, made specifically for acoustic guitars, to suit different needs. Factors to consider when choosing an amplifier including portability, volume, and tone.

Effects (commonly known as FX) units, or 'pedals,' fit in between your pickup and amplifier, providing a range of marvellous dynamics to your sound from reverb and distortion to the abstract and beyond.

(below) Sire's Zebra 7 soundhole pickup and outboard preamp.

Ah feedback, the common enemy of live musicians, public speakers and studio engineers alike. Feedback occurs when a microphone 'hears' itself through a speaker or output source, completing a sort of 'loop' in the sound - this causes the signal to increase in size, generating unattractive frequencies!

The same thing can occur with acoustic guitars - the pickup or mic system hears its own signal feeding back and creates a lot of unwanted noise. There are a few useful ways of preventing acoustic guitar feedback:

• Phase Switching - feedback is made worse by the fact that the phase (shape of the waveform) of the signal (in this case, your acoustic) going into the mic matches the one that's feeding back into it, causing that ugly loop we were talking about. A phase switcher inverts the phase of your acoustic so that it no longer matches the signal coming out of the speaker. This reduces the chance of the signals clashing and causing unwanted noise. Phase switches can be found in some acoustic preamps or acoustic pedals, such as the LR Baggs Para Acoustic DI Box.
• Soundhole Cover - this does exactly what is says on the tin. It's a simple piece of (usually) plastic or wood that sits over your guitar's soundhole, preventing the sound of your strings going into the body of the guitar. This can prevent any sound from looping back into the pickup system, but as you may have already guessed, it can change the way your guitar sounds, particularly if you're using a mic system!
• EQ Adjustment - sometimes the simplest solution is the best! In some cases, you can isolate feedback to a particular frequency - for example, a common issue with acoustics is feedback in the low-mid frequencies. This means a full-bodied, intrusive rumble coming out of your speakers - to combat this, try tweaking the EQ of your guitar. This can either be done on the guitar itself using the built-in preamp (if you have one) or on a mixer / sound-desk / EQ pedal. Reducing these frequencies can reduce the chance of boomy feedback!

Well there we have it, folks! The aim of this guide was to inform you of the different types of acoustic pickups available on the market today, and the advantages and disadvantages of each one!

Will you be performing live? Do you want a DIY project? Are you on a budget? Hopefully this article has answered all of your questions and taken you one step closer to finding the right acoustic pickup system for you!

While you're at it, why not check out the rest of our buyer's guides? You might just find something else you like!