D-TAR Timbreline

Active 18 volt pickup system

Installed in a very fine Larrivee D-10 acoustic guitar. Replacing a Baggs I-MIX. REason for changing is I found myself always dialing in only the Baggs Active Element while though clearer and crisper than the I-Beam, has all of the limitations (piezo quack, compressed sound and brittlness of piezos

Strong output, fabulous tone. I use a signal chain including: analogman Bi-chorus, Aphex Acoustic Exciter pedal, DTAR Equinox to BBE DI1000 direct box. also a second output to a Ultrasound AG50DS3 acoustic amp.

I play worship music in church. The sound is near studio perfect. Round, warm, woody with clear and balanced mids and highs. I get rave reviews of my sound from many people. It is the only guitar out of 12 guitarists that play in our 6 groups that sounds truly acoustic. The 18 volt headroom is awesome and the pickup is the state of the art. I ahve had 7 different pickup system over the past 25 years- and Rick Turner at DTAR got it right. They make the best stuff- period. No marketing hype, just pure sound, nothing more.

10
I have been playing for 27 years, mostly in churches. This is the best pickup you can buy, EXCEPT the special version they now have as an EXCLUSIVE Guild factory install (and limited luthiers) . That version has a volume / tone control and a special battery loading system- neat stuff. It is tweaky to install and must be done by a luthier level guitar tech (routing / rounding o fthe saddle slot etc). If you can't stomach that kind of permenaent guitar surgery, go for the Wavelength, same thing essentially (same great sound!) but with not invasive routing. $111 via shorlinemusic.com. Almost half what I paid for the IMIX system!

Of everything I have ever heard, this is the audiphile guitarists dream come true! Go DTAR! www.dtar.com

Pickup features: under saddle peizo w/ active 18 volt preamp
Impedence or other specs:

Model of guitar or bass: installed in a custom Jeff Traugott acoustic flatop guitar
Position: neck
Pickup being replaced: B-band under saddle
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup: David Crosby
You musical style(s): fingerstyle eclectic
Reason for pickup change: Was not happy with the response of my previous system on my custom guitar. I also play a Renaissance RS-6 that has an 18 volt preamp, that just sounded warmer, cleaner and bigger than my 9 volt b-band system.

Perceived output level: Tis is an under saddle piezo pickup coupled with a very clean 18 volt preamp
Tone: A very clear focused balanced sound with more dynamic range and headroom than a typical active piezo system
Sonic evaluation: I have a very fine custom made acoustic guitar made by Jeff Traugott. This is a very responsive flat top guitar, designed for the fingerstylist and soloist, from the finest woods available. I wanted a pickup worthy of the guitar's acoustic sound, and had been pretty dissapointed my the piezo systems I had used. What sets this system apart is that it has a much better, higher voltage preamp, which gives the pickup better dynamic range, less coloration and distortion in the high frequencies, and an overall cleaner, more natural tone. This system also seems to hols up better to very aggressive playing such as percussive slapping or hard strumming.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: When I play as a soloist, I play an eclectic blend of fingerstyle and flat picking techniques and use digital loop recorders to layer parts. I needed a good sounding pickup with a natural sound that could hold up well when layering a number of parts. The

Comments: I have been a journeyman professional guitarist for 25 years. I have played many different pickup systems fom many different manufacturers over the years, and I think the timbreline is the first acoustic pickup to come along that realy addresses the issue of beefing up the voltage on the preamp to improve performance. I use this system running into another DTAR product, the fabulous Solstice Preamp/blender, which I have also just reviewed. These cool new products, indeed the company itself debuted at the NAMM show in January, and are quitely being discovered by pros and tone afficianados alike. My ideal set up would be to eventually add a Duncan Magmic pickup to create a multi-source pickup system for my guitar. So far, I'm digging the sound of just the Timbreline through the Solstice just fine. I have already bought another system for my partner's Martin D35, to replace the B-Band she had in that guitar. I think the Timbreline pickup is the state of the art piezo pickup system currently available. 18 volts really do make a difference in sound and performance.