Under the saddle pick up

[12Gauge]

I'm thinking about putting an LR Baggs Element pick up in my Larrivee.

 

I have read somewhere not to shim a saddle if it's too low because it takes away from the sound and volume of the guitar. Wouldn't putting a pick up under the saddle kind of do the same thing? How would something like this effect the sound of the guitar when the pick up is not being used?

[min7b5]

I think in theory, putting an extra something in there would diminish some transference of string energy. But I think if it

[DeepEnd]

I think the thing about shims depends on the material used and also on ensuring that the shim contacts both the saddle and bridge along its full length. That said, the shim in my Alvarez beater is only about 1/4" long since only the bass end of the saddle needed to be raised and the guitar sounds just as good or crappy as it did without one.

 

I can't say how the Element is made but my Shadow UST looks like a solid piece of orangeish metal (looks like bronze) fitted into a U-shaped metal (maybe brass?) channel. It's so solid I don't have any qualms about sound transferrence. In fact, I've read (in a guitar mag, don't recall which) that you can put a shim under it since it's rigid. Shadow pickups aren't as common as Baggs but I'm satisfied with mine.

[S~R~O]

About shims and undersaddle transducers

 

Here's a Post from LittleBrother on the subject;

 

http://littlebrother.nlpd.com/Clay-UST/