Advice on onboard blender preamps

[JezMusic]

I've decided to change the preamp on my Takamine - it's 20 years old, very basic and crackles a bit. I'm also going to add either a Baggs M1 passive or I-beam to blend with the piezo.

 

Any recommendations for a good onboard blender preamp?

 

Ideally it will have easy access for battery replacement, and a tuner would be a useful luxury but by no means a deal-breaker. Performance and longevity are paramount - if I'm cutting holes in my Tak I want it to last.

 

Thanks.

 

jez

[JezMusic]

bump

[JezMusic]

what nobody has an opinion????

[Melodeous]

I've had several systems in different guitars but I'm not savvy about adding a mag pup to one. Mine have been USTs with condenser mic combos. I'd imagine a system set up for dual sourcing could adapt any type of source. The best thing to do is call the manufacturers. The folks at B-Band were very friendly when I called them about a problem I was having with one of their preamps. Of the systems I've had (B-Band, Fishman) the Baggs dual element (source) has been the best with regard to acoustic sound replication. Otherwise I have a passive K&K Pure Western Mini (PWM) in another guitar with an outboard preamp. I think this is the way to go rather than an onboard system because the PWM's sensitivity seems to surpass even the Baggs. Plus, it's much more maintenance friendly. Should an onboard system fail you're left with a hole in your guitar while waiting to replace it. That happened to me when one system (B-Band) lost the treble channel in the EQ. Just my opinion.