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Sound board transducer pickup in the way of JDL Bridge Doctor?


pauly boy

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Hello all. I am going to install a JDL bridge doctor on my git. I have also decided on a sound board transducer for my git. Is anyone using this same setup & if so any tips on getting them to play well together? From the photos I have seen, once the JDL is in place, the SBT would have no room. My understanding is the SBT must go directly under the bridge which is where the Bridge Doctor is.

 

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Hey thanks for your response! I am set on a SBT as it suits the style of playing I do & I prefer the tone it gives. I contacted the manufacturer & he wasn't so responsive. Maybe I''ll call Monday. Just wanted to see if someone already has this setup...

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Hey thanks for your response! I am set on a SBT as it suits the style of playing I do & I prefer the tone it gives. I contacted the manufacturer & he wasn't so responsive. Maybe I''ll call Monday. Just wanted to see if someone already has this setup...

 

Get a pair of JJBs and put one directly beneath each end of the bridge saddle...should be well out of the way and sound great. :idea:

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Get a pair of JJBs and put one directly beneath each end of the bridge saddle...should be well out of the way and sound great.
:idea:

 

This is what I did and they do sound great now that the Bridge Doctor is gone. I had no luck with this thing. It did flatten the belly that the top was developing and as a result lowered the action but it killed the bass. Over a period of about a month I adjusted the doctor many, many times trying to find the right tension - never happened. Thought it might be the break angle with the new pins (I have the model that attaches through a bridge pin). I replaced all the pins but the one secured to the Doctor and went through the adjustment process again. No luck. It's back in its box now waiting to go on ebay.

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Why are you installing the bridge doc? I have experience with them and it was not good. The only case where I think they work is in Breedloves, where they are designed in from the get go. If you have a Breedlove, fine, if not think about it.

 

breedlove1.jpg

 

There are two versions of the doc - one drills a mounting hole thru the bridge. That is irreversable - you might not want to do it to a valuable guitar. The other uses some funky bridge pin thingies with holes in them - that will change the forces on the bridge (string break angle). Remember too, that the whole function of the 'doc is to force the bridge to counter rotate against the pull of the strings, the whole function of the strings is to rotate the bridge.

 

I'll add that the normal reason that someone installs a doc is sever belly, which can be a broken brace (get that fixed) or the result of a bad neck angle (ditto). In my case, I put it in an old D12-28, it killed the tone, took it out and had the neck reset and the problems are all gone. Plus, now you have room for any sort of pup you can imagine. YMMV

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I've installed dozens of JLDs, and can assure one and all that they do work with guitars other than Breedlove. I never use the type that installs with he bridgepins

 

As far as the Schatten transducer--a really good unit, BTW--I don't think that's going to work for you, as it's supposed to attach to the bridgeplate exactly where the front post of the JLD needs to be. 2 SBTs will almost always work in a JLD installed guitar; you can stick the 3rd one in front of the JLD front post, but I find that the outer two are doing most of the work, anyway.

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Pitar, my one and only experience with the JLD was a fairly high end Martin 12 string. The sound from the strings that went to the "pins" with the little holes was weak. After the reset the primary and octave strings are once again balanced and the guitar sounds like the big wonderful Martin that it was when it was new.

 

I have very little experience with PacRim guitars (with the exception of some resonators) - otherwise I fit your description perfectly.

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Hello all thanks for your varied & honest feedback! Even though there's less threads here, you guys are more responsive than over at Acoustic Guitar Forum :eek: !

 

I had a feeling some of you folks would try to convince me on NOT using the JDL BD. I appreciate all of your valuable feedback but I'm pretty set on using one. Contrary to the popular opinion in this thread, I have heard many good things about them. That they DO in fact IMPROVE volume, tone & overall make the git sound "better" (subjective I know!). My understanding is that it CAN adversely affect the volume, tone & overall sound negatively WHEN & IF people tighten it down too much, tighten it down & strum without waiting for it to take affect (day or two?) & that it can vary from guitar to guitar. So the conclusion I have come to is YMMV. That being said I have a Yamaha FG-335 that I LOVE but it has a bulging belly (the saddle was lowered as much as possible with relief cuts in the bridge before I acquired it) & I have heard of numerous people with the same guitar have great results as far as removing the belly & improving the sound "quality' (ONE source of some great reviews of the JDL on my particular guitar). So I was really drawn to the idea of improving the tone of this old git in a simple & cheap way & also fixing the direct problem of belly bulge & not just resetting neck, or shaving down the bridge (indirect solution). Which lead me to create this thread!

 

I am aware of the JJBs but I'd prefer the Schatten as it has included tone & volume wheels (sure I can add this to JJBs but I want a simple plug n play solution) & as it's not attached directly to the top (the posts are), so it should capture more air & be bassier & full. This is of course my guestimate BUT that's what I want :). I just wanted to know if anyone got the JDL & this particular style of pickup to work well together. So it looks like they may not play well together after all. In any case I'm headed to some luthiers next week to get there take on all this (BTW I have met a few luthiers who know of & suggest using a JDL in some cases. They have also mentioned that it "improves" sound "quality" in various ways). Damn I wanted to improve my already improved tone!!! :cry::rawk::idk:

 

PS I am guessing this thread will turn into a debate on why I should or shouldn't use a JDL BD which is fine BUT if anyone knows a way for sure to make my desired setup work, please chime in! :wave:

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You are in the perfect position to answer some of our questions. Record your guitar before you do anything to it. Record it again after you put the doc in. Try to use the same strings, mic, recorder settings, pick, etc. I happen to think that single notes, chord, harmonics are best, but whatever you do, do it the same both times. Post the results here and lets discuss.

 

And before I forget my manners, welcome to HCAG - we like to think that we are a little different than that other forum in a lot of ways.

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Thank Freeman. Will do! Wow I already feel it's different here. Then again I showered last night (in the sink no less). Actually there is a guy on youtube who did a before & after recording on his FG335 with BD but I think because of the sound quality, I couldn't tell much of a difference. There was one but the drastic improvement I have heard people talk about, were not translated well there:

 

 

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At least spend a little extra and get the version of the JLD that does not require drilling a hole through the bridge. They use brasd pins though.

 

 

No, no, no, no, no! Those are half-assed, guarantee you rotten string break angles. They suck, and are, I think, the cause of many one-timers' dismissal of the JLD system

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No, no, no, no, no
! Those are half-assed,
guarantee
you rotten string break angles. They
suck
, and are, I think, the cause of many one-timers' dismissal of the JLD system

 

 

This^^^^!!

 

I used the contraption with the brass pins. Not a good design at all. The through-holes in the brass pins remove most, if not all of the break angle defeating entirely the original design purpose of the truss.

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This^^^^!!


I used the contraption with the brass pins. Not a good design at all. The through-holes in the brass pins remove most, if not all of the break angle defeating entirely the original design purpose of the truss.

 

 

I dunno. I used only the brass pin that holds the contraption to the bridge. Fine plastic pins on the other 5 strings. All the bass strings were deader than little door nails even after countless fiddling sessions trying to find the right balance between fix the belly and still sound good. The B and high E strings otoh were loud and shrill.

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This^^^^!!


I used the contraption with the brass pins. Not a good design at all. The through-holes in the brass pins remove most, if not all of the break angle defeating entirely the original design purpose of the truss.

 

 

This was my whole point above - I didn't want to drill a hole thru the bridge of a nice (and moderately expensive) Martin so I used the one with the brass pins. In my experience (and that is all I know), it killed the sound of the set of strings that went thru those pins (12 string, remember). The one that is bolted on at least maintains the standard pins and break angle (whether that is important or not is subject to discussion). The only downside is that you've drilled a hole through your guitar - if you decide it doesn't work you've got to plug that.

 

That picture that I posted above is a Breedlove with the JLD factory installed and the photo if from Frank Ford's site frets.com I have a very high respect for what Frank says, here is the text that goes with that picture

 

That big thing hanging down is bolted to the bridge, and has a rod that just pushes lightly against the endblock. This unique arrangement completely eliminates the tendency of the bridge to "roll" forward under the string tension. This extra support is how Breedlove can get away with the radical scalloping of the main top braces without structural difficulties.

 

 

My point here is that the JLD is built into the original design, part of which is deep scalloping. Adding the 'doc to a normally braced guitar will, in theory, make it over braced - as you know, the top works by rocking around the axis of the bridge, this will prevent it. Go ahead and try, the worst is that you'll want to take it out, the best is that you'll like it. Report back

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My point here is that the JLD is built into the original design, part of which is deep scalloping. Adding the 'doc to a normally braced guitar will, in theory, make it over braced - as you know, the top works by rocking around the axis of the bridge, this will prevent it. Go ahead and try, the worst is that you'll want to take it out, the best is that you'll like it. Report back.

 

 

Actually, these older Yamahas are lightly braced, probably one of the reasons they react so well to a JLD installation.

 

*I* think they way they work, after installing so many of them, is that by counterbalancing the torque of the strings--as Frank said--the top is less, "domed", and more of a diaphragm, i.e.--bigger. The JLD site speaks of vibrations travelling through the dowel, to the tailblock, but I don't think that's the way it happens; once the top is, in effect, "released", there's just a whole lot more air movement in there.

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A buddy of mine brought his Walden over yesterday and he had installed a bridge doctor in it a couple of months ago. It was the one with the screw fixing, not the modified pins. It sounded exactly as I remembered, including nice strong bass. Very nice sound for a modestly priced guitar no matter what.

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