Any experience with the Headway "The Band" Pickup?

[Bassfingers]

Just wondered if anyone has used the Headway "The Band" pickup. 

 

I have a ply Double Bass which I'm looking to amplify for small venue gigs. No adjustable bridge, so I'm shying away from the Full Circle at this point. It would be good to hear how others have got on with the Band and whether they felt the need for a preamp with this particular pickup. 

 

[Beedster]

I'll be interested in the answer to this question as well. My concerns around the band centre on the fact I don't think I've ever seen anyone using one, but that might just be luck.....

 

Re pre-amp, that will depend to a degree on what amp you're using but I've yet to find a DB PUP that didn't sound better with a preamp, even those that reportedly don't need one 👍

[keeponehandloose]

The Band was pretty useless in my experience. Output gain was abysmal to the pount where I thought the pickup was broken...it wasnt. The only sounds it picked up was my body movement against the bass.

 

[Bassfingers]

36 minutes ago, keeponehandloose said:

The Band was pretty useless in my experience. Output gain was abysmal to the pount where I thought the pickup was broken...it wasnt. The only sounds it picked up was my body movement against the bass.

 

Thanks - that is really useful to hear - before I shell out £200+ 🙃

 

Appreciate the response 

[Paddy Morris]

It's a bit of a feedback hazard in my experience.

[keeponehandloose]

On 24/06/2022 at 10:48, Bassfingers said:

Thanks - that is really useful to hear - before I shell out £200+ 🙃

 

Appreciate the response 

If you want a recomendation, the Revolution Solo from Upton Bass.

[Bassfingers]

3 hours ago, keeponehandloose said:

If you want a recomendation, the Revolution Solo from Upton Bass.

Thank You 👍

[Beer of the Bass]

I played with a fiddle player using the violin version. It could sound good, but was really variable in tone and output level as the band shifted around or got loose. And I'd imagine making it big enough for a bass wouldn't help with that.

[Beedster]

Not exactly a vote of confidence this thread is it. Explains why I’ve never seen anyone using one 🤔

[Bassfingers]

3 hours ago, Beedster said:

Not exactly a vote of confidence this thread is it. Explains why I’ve never seen anyone using one 🤔

You're quite right there - I'm glad I asked the question though. 😏

[gapiro]

I was looking at one just now too - I met some army musicians and they all swore by them but I haven't ever tried

[Bloopdad1]

I tried one... Complete disaster! 

Avoid! (IMO) 

If you want the best, fit a Yamahiko pickup. They've been around for +25yrs,completely bomb proof, superior tone, great arco sound and if you buy the one sensor version its only just a little more expensive than the Realist and Full Circle (that is based on the much better yamahiko) 

[Bassfingers]

2 hours ago, Bloopdad1 said:

If you want the best, fit a Yamahiko pickup. They've been around for +25yrs,completely bomb proof, superior tone, great arco sound and if you buy the one sensor version its only just a little more expensive than the Realist and Full Circle (that is based on the much better yamahiko) 

I did have a look at these - they sound great but I couldn't find a UK supplier. Have to admit I didn't look particularly hard. 

[Owen]

My experience of piezo pickups is that unless it is under quite a lot of pressure, you are not going to get the result you are hoping for. 

[tinyd]

I have a Realist copper which is the best of the various piezo pickups I've tried. Not perfect, but with careful EQ it can sound pretty natural at high volumes and doesn't require an adjustable bridge.

[Bassfingers]

4 hours ago, tinyd said:

I have a Realist copper which is the best of the various piezo pickups I've tried. Not perfect, but with careful EQ it can sound pretty natural at high volumes and doesn't require an adjustable bridge.

I ended up going with a K&K Bass Max  - had to file and shim the bridge for a good fit but the results are pretty good. Sounds a little too percussive at times - I'm going to try the Realist Copper at some point. 

[tinyd]

13 hours ago, Bassfingers said:

I ended up going with a K&K Bass Max  - had to file and shim the bridge for a good fit but the results are pretty good. Sounds a little too percussive at times - I'm going to try the Realist Copper at some point. 

Bass Max isn't bad but on my bass it sounded a bit too "nasal" (which is common for all piezo pickups). The J-Tone pickups are good as well, and cheap.

The search for the best pickup is neverending, I think it's more a case of finding something that's usable in a gig situation and that isn't too fussy in terms of setup and EQ.

Anyway, happy hunting!

[Lodekka]

On 22/07/2022 at 19:33, Bloopdad1 said:

I tried one... Complete disaster! 

Avoid! (IMO) 

If you want the best, fit a Yamahiko pickup. They've been around for +25yrs,completely bomb proof, superior tone, great arco sound and if you buy the one sensor version its only just a little more expensive than the Realist and Full Circle (that is based on the much better yamahiko) 

I would second this wholeheartedly. The Full Circle sounds good, but that fixed wire coming out of the adjuster is very vulnerable. The Yamahiko has a screw-in removable wire and outputs on each of the knurls on the adjuster wheel. You adjust the height, then screw in the cable at the appropriate output socket. The unused sockets all have covers on them. It's a superb design that's beautifully thought through. If playing acoustically or into a microphone, my preference is to have no electronics showing on the instrument. The cable can be removed and the pickup just looks like a height adjuster. On a mic only gig, there's no problem fending off over-keen sound engineers who'd like to take a feed off the pick-up, "just in case the mic isn't enough". 

The bicycle inner tube pick-up mentioned was next to useless on any of my basses, so I returned it.

 

This is an aside, but a colleague insists on using the violin version, which although more successful than the bass version, is still pretty ropey-sounding to my ears. Kind of 'boxy' with an overly pronounced treble range. Feedback resistance seems poor as well. A preamp definitely helps, but a DPA mic takes longer to feedback and has a vastly superior sound (of course the source has to be good in the first place). Violins are super easy to amplify compared to double basses, so I see no excuse for using one of these horrible looking things. 

[guyl]

On 06/08/2022 at 12:54, Lodekka said:

I would second this wholeheartedly. The Full Circle sounds good, but that fixed wire coming out of the adjuster is very vulnerable. The Yamahiko has a screw-in removable wire and outputs on each of the knurls on the adjuster wheel. You adjust the height, then screw in the cable at the appropriate output socket. The unused sockets all have covers on them. It's a superb design that's beautifully thought through. If playing acoustically or into a microphone, my preference is to have no electronics showing on the instrument. The cable can be removed and the pickup just looks like a height adjuster. On a mic only gig, there's no problem fending off over-keen sound engineers who'd like to take a feed off the pick-up, "just in case the mic isn't enough". 

The bicycle inner tube pick-up mentioned was next to useless on any of my basses, so I returned it.

 

This is an aside, but a colleague insists on using the violin version, which although more successful than the bass version, is still pretty ropey-sounding to my ears. Kind of 'boxy' with an overly pronounced treble range. Feedback resistance seems poor as well. A preamp definitely helps, but a DPA mic takes longer to feedback and has a vastly superior sound (of course the source has to be good in the first place). Violins are super easy to amplify compared to double basses, so I see no excuse for using one of these horrible looking things. 

 

Does anyone sell the Yamahiko here in the UK, or does it need to be bought from their website direct? (And as a follow-up - if anyone bought direct, what did the import taxes etc cost?)

[Paddy Morris]

I bought a Yamahiko. Single transducer version. It's ¥35,000 which is £220 at today's exchange rate. The duty payment was another £60.

 

So, not by any means a cheap option.  But cheaper than a DPA say.

[Royaly T]

The Headway gets lots of good reviews,  I've no problem with it no feedback, just has to be positioned properly. 

[Staggering on]

2 hours ago, Royaly T said:

The Headway gets lots of good reviews,  I've no problem with it no feedback, just has to be positioned properly. 

 

My teacher uses one on his lovely carved bass and once it has been adjusted and in the right position with the right pressure it sounds great. He also used it on another carved bass with good results. He tried my Acoustic Image Coda amp and it sounded amazing but also sounded good through my Traynor SB112 and that combo was used in a concert.

I think it is like a lot of pickups, some work better on certain basses than others and most piezo pickups need adjusting to get the best sound. The Band probably sounds best with a carved or hybrid bass.

[NickA]

9 hours ago, Staggering on said:

some work better on certain basses than others and most piezo pickups need adjusting to get the best sound

This.  But it gets really expensive to try them all!  The best all round bet seems to be the realist copperhead.  Works fine, high output, £169 from Thomann.

 

Personally I found it a bit dark and there's little or nothing you can do to change the sound.  I have a realist sound clip which is super adjustable & tweakable for pressure and position on the bridge, also has a volume control on it and I remove it for orchestra. sometimes I get it just right and it sounds sublime ... but fitting it in a hurry with no time to tweak...sometimes not.

 

Like the headway, I've never seen anyone else use one, but that's not because it's rubbish, it's just not caught on.