Anthem Acoustic Guitar Pickup and Microphone — LR Baggs (2024)

FAQs

Do you need a preamp with LR Baggs Anthem? ›

The Anthem has all of the essential tools in one complete system. The feather-weight preamp and controls include: volume, mix, phase and a battery check.

Drilling the strapjack hole

For proper installation, this jack requires a clean 1/2” hole in the tail block of the instrument.

The preamp, with our famous all-discrete studio quality circuitry, is also equipped with a sound hole mounted volume control. Battery life: 170 hrs.

A high-quality mic is always going to be the "truest" method for amplifying an acoustic stringed instrument, as it's the closest thing to putting your head (ears) in front of the instrument in question and "hearing" the sound out of the air as the instrument produces it.

Preamps are simply small powered circuits designed to make the pickup signal sound better before it leaves the guitar. A preamp adds frequency equalization (EQ) to give the pickup a good tonal character before it gets to your sound system. Most acoustic pickup systems are active.

A preamp can further "improve" those electrical signals from the pickup. It can do this by boosting their gain levels, allowing for changes to the sound (using equalizers, etc.)

LR Baggs warrants to the using purchaser that this product shall be free from defects in workmanship and materials under normal and proper use for a period of one (1) year. If you experience problems with your Baggs product, please contact your dealer.

If you unplug the guitar when you aren't playing, they could last you about a year. I personally swap mine every 6 months just so I keep the sound consistent. If you unplug the guitar when you aren't playing, they could last you about a year. I personally swap mine every 6 months just so I keep the sound consistent.

Most active guitar pickup batteries are made to last for up to six hours of playing time. But, depending on how often the guitar is used, the battery may last for a shorter or longer time.

A transducer or Piezo pickup is a great option if you want to amplify a nylon string acoustic guitar as they work by detecting physical vibrations rather than creating a magnetic field.

What type of mic is best for recording acoustic guitar? ›

Condenser microphones

These mics tend to be super precise and clear. With these mics, you want to avoid dropping or banging it, recording a sound source that's too loud for the diaphragm, or storing it in extreme weather conditions. Generally speaking, condenser mics are better for acoustic guitars.

A microphone picks up sound, while a pickup captures mechanical vibrations. A mic picks up the sound of the strings, body, and air cavity inside the guitar. A magnetic pickup captures the vibrations of the strings on a steel-string guitar. A piezo pickup captures mainly the vibrations of the guitar top.

You aren't crazy, there's no need to record synths through external preamps, since they output line level. The only reason to do so is to impart the character of the preamp onto the synth's signal, which is a very expensive way to achieve very subtle changes in sound character.

A quality stereo receiver may already have a phono-specific input with a preamp ready to go. But if you plan to do some DJ work and you'll send phono signals into different effects processors, you may need a phono-specific preamp like this Rolls Bellari.

If you only have one source of sound, and the only control you need from your amplifier is the volume control, then you don't need a preamp. If, on the other hand, you would like to switch between more than one source of sound, and you need or want some additional controls (like balance, tone controls, etc.)

Most audio interfaces already come with built-in preamps. And usually, they're good enough to get you started. It's worth noting, however, that somewhat more expensive audio interfaces come with much better preamps than entry level audio interfaces.