Dean Markley Pro Mag Gold

Features: Humbucking, passive.

Guitar: Yamaha L6
Modifications: None.
Pickup replaced: None.
Other Pickups: None.
Artists using this pickup: Unknown.
Reason for changing the pickup: Didn't have one.

Output level is rather low. I built an external preamp into an old wah - wah pedal, using the pedal as a volume control as well. I run this into our band's PA system and I get plenty of level. The tone is well balanced and uncolored. The L6 is a handmade guitar with wonderful sound un - amplified and I wanted to get as much of that as possible when I play with the band, and still be able to remove the pickup when I play at a coffeehouse. I am using Elixir Polyweb extra light strings and the pickup works well with them. I shove the pickup flush with the top, and push it as far towards the neck as it will go.

I woould definitely buy another one, in fact I intend to buy one for my Alvarez 12 string.
I have been playing for 45 years.
I compared this pickup to a Lace pickup that fit in the sound hole and the lace didn't sound as good.
The Pro Mag Gold makes my guitar sound like an amplified acoustic guitar. Same tone, just loud, with none of the quacking, nasally sound that most people get with a pickup in an acoustic. It is pretty feedback resistant and I never pick up any hum with it at all. I have heard other musicians with amplified acoustics using much more expensive pickup systems and they didn't sound as good.

This is a passive humbucking pickup. Comes with a 15ft cord and gold plated tip plug. Easy to use - just pop it in and go.

I'm using this pickup with my Martin D-28. There was no way in hell I was going to drill holes or screw in any type of pickup in this guitar so the pro-mag pickup is perfect and can easily be removed. No mods were necessary - I just had to fiddle a bit with the placement. I actually have it on a slight angle - higher on the bass strings and lower on the treble strings. This seems to have a nice balanced tone to it. Easy to use straight into the amp. If I want - I could use an equalizer pedal to further sculpt the sound. No feedback and good output.

Good output level. I'm using it with a Carvin amp head and full stack configuration. Lots of volume and great chimey tone. Very balanced tone - not colored. I'm using Martin 80/20 strings 12-53. Folk rock is the style I play and I bought this pickup for when I play live for easy set up.

Yes - I'd buy it again. I find guitars with built in electronics and pickups to be too bright sounding. I also don't really like acoustics with cutaways - so I guess I'm a bit of a purist. I want to hear the natural sound of the guitar and this pickup does that just fine. Works great with my Martin. I've been playing 19 years. I'm satisfied with this pickup. I looked into it when I saw Eric Clapton use one on his Martin D-41 and that was the single coil version - this humbucker version is silent and brings out the warmth in the guitar.

humbucking,Passive

Yamaha FG-412S
No mods required
No current pickup

Good output level
Traynor acoustic amp
Balanced sound
Moderate Rock

I would buy again.
Playing for 2 years
Satisfied with pickup

Humbucking. Gold output jack attached to a long cable.

Used it in my Yamaha F-35 acoustic. You just stick it in the soundhole, play away, and take it out. I used it to pick up my acoustic guitar. The guitar didnt have one before.

If you put the pickup really close you can get a decent output level, but nothing too loud. Its really soft, you'll have to rely on the amp for loudness. You can adjust the position its in to get bass, treble, ect. I didnt notice much of a difference though. Doesnt sound very good at all. I plugged it into an acoustic simulator pedal and got some pretty neat sounds out of it, but by itself its pretty lame. Bought it and used it maybe 3 times, then I just went for a real electric acoustic. It's not noisey though.

If it were lost or stolen, good riddance. I only keep it around for my friends so they can use it sometimes at church. We used it to pick up my friend's cello once, didnt work out so well. I'm giving it a higher rating than its sound just because it would be convienient to have in a tight situation where your electric acoustic's electronics stopped working for some reason and you needed a backup, or you want to jam with a friend who only has a steel-string acoustic.

Pickup features: Humbucking Passive
Impedence or other specs:

Model of guitar or bass: Seagull S6
Position: neck
Pickup being replaced: First pickup on guitar
Other pickups on guitar: none
Artists using this pickup: I think I saw Sheryl Crowe using one once
You musical style(s): Fingerstyle, altered tunings
Reason for pickup change:

Perceived output level: OK for first and second strings, progressively worse on the others
Tone: As I mentioned above, the only way I was able to achieve any sort of balance was to use nickel-wound strings and this resulted in an alarmingly electric-sounding tone.
Sonic evaluation: I currently use a Peavey Ecoustic 112. I've seen this pick-up used faithfully by a guitarist in a local band with good effect for a number of years. For that reason, as well as relative cost, I decided to give it a try. I am sad to say that, try as I might I was unable to duplicate similar results. Positives were its' ease of installation and remarkable resistance to feedback. Unfortunately, it was remarkably resistant to other things like output (I had to Fully Crank my amp to get small-room volume.)and string balance. I tried the usual fixes like adjusting its' position in the soundhole, different pre-amp/EQ configurations even changing to nickle-wound strings. Nothing really worked.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: It is likely best suited to strummers with a tendency to lay into the bass strings.

Comments: I'm currently hanging on to this for use as a back-up, but I have my doubts regarding its' viability for even that purpose. If it were lost or stolen I would buy something different. I was surprised that this pick-up didn't work out for me as I've seen so many good reviews and heard it being used by a player who has it hard wired into his Taylor x10! I have been playing for longer than I care to admit to. I have four acoustic guitars, one with a piezo system, one with a Baggs M1, one with a Fishman Rare Earth. I was prepared to do a little tweaking with this pick-up, but I was optimistic that it would satisfy my needs for my remaining guitar. I'm sad to report it did not. The good thing about it is that it caused me to continue my search which led me to the discovery of the DiMarzio DP139; a smokin' pick-up

Pickup features: Passive humbucking, soundhole-mounted, gold 1/4" connector
Impedence or other specs: Don't know

Model of guitar or bass: Taylor 414
Position: middle
Pickup being replaced: None
Other pickups on guitar: None
Artists using this pickup: Don't know
You musical style(s): Contemporary fingerstyle
Reason for pickup change: No existing pick-up

Perceived output level: Much louder than I expected from a passive device. Actually a little louder than my Fender acoustic with factory-installed Fishman electronics.
Tone: Pretty much a pure (acoustic) tone. No mud, absolutely no noise or hum, surprisingly clean.
Sonic evaluation: Bought it for a Taylor 414. My old guitar is a Fender GA45SCE with factory-installed Fishman preamp/transducer. I wanted a better guitar but at the same time I despise having that beautiful wood cut up to install those cheap electronics. I convinced myself that if I just bought the guitar that way I wanted it (untampered with!), I'd find a reasonable, temporary, and inexpensive way to get the sound I needed the few times a year I plugged in (church, talent show at work, etc.). Actually, I had doubts that this was possible, but I really wanted that 414 in its virgin state. So an exhaustive search and review narrowed my choice down to the Pro Mag Gold and Seymour-Duncan's Woody XL. I chose the PMG based on reviews of others. I couldn't find one locally or online for a while, so I figured for 90 bucks I'd take a chance. Well, I was prety much blown away by the volume, tone, and "shapability" of this device. Way exceeded my expectations. Sounds like the guitar amplified, as if through a mic, but you'd need a $500 mic to get this kind of volume. It actually makes the Fender sound better than with the original Fishman setup, which just blew me away. Folks, don't let the factory ruin your guitar with cheap junk -- try one of these babies in a "virgin" instrument.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: Contemporary fingerstyle, which has roots in blues, rag, folk, jazz. Mostly Travis picking, but chord melody as well. This pickup may not be as clean with heavy strumming, but I'm not a strummer so it doesn't matter to me. I need it to reproduce the distinct tonal clarity of individual bass and treble notes that my Taylor brings to the show, and it does a very good job of this. It fits snugly right in the center of the soundhole, and I don't move it around looking for different sounds because it sounds so good just sticking it in there. The EQ and reverb on my acoustic amp are more than enough to shape the sound coming from the PMG.

Comments: If it broke down tomorrow, I'd buy a new one. The device is so good I'd assume I just got a lemon and try again. I've been playing 25 years and have the Fender and an old Ovation, my first guitar. I wonder how it would sound with the PMG? hmmmmm .... As for my Taylor, my search is over. I'm not even going to sink $200 into a Boss acoustic signal processor now. No need. It might improve the tone, but not $200 worth! The reverb didn't even seem to work on my amp until I plugged the PMG into it! Definitely try this product before buying an aftermarket pick-up for your acoustic guitar.

Pickup features: Passive humbucker
Impedence or other specs: Jeez. . .dunno, man

Model of guitar or bass: Alvarez AD-60K
Position: neck
Pickup being replaced: none
Other pickups on guitar: none
Artists using this pickup: Hm. . .good question
You musical style(s): I'm hardly an experienced player; just enjoy fooling around with it.
Reason for pickup change: I've noodled around with my guitar for a good while without making [ahem] tremendous progress, and I've been looking for something to re-spark the initial interest I had in learning to play well. This may be it.

Perceived output level: As a passive pickup, it doesn't have overwhelming output; however, it's quiet. I'm not sure I could make it feed back if I wanted to.
Tone: Very accurate, non-colored reproduction of my guitar's sound.
Sonic evaluation: Okay, you hotshots & purists go ahead & laugh: I don't (yet) own a dedicated guitar amp. I play this (somewhat gingerly) through the microphone jack on an old (circa 1976) Pioneer SX-950 receiver set to mono, with JBL 2800 speakers. But it sounds pretty good (even some of my friends who are accomplished musicians agree), so I look forward to getting a real guitar amp. . .but tubes or solid-state? That is the question. I'm leaning toward tubes.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: This is strictly a soundhole pickup. I couldn't stand to drill any holes in my Alvy. It's gonna be an adjustment to finger-pick with this (as opposed to strumming).

Comments: In truth I bought this thing from MARS (where many people are jerks, so I don't feel bad about playing hardball) with the intention of getting a slicker pickup via mail-order and returning the Pro-Mag. But I think I may actually keep it. I'm really a novice player (people say I'm better than I think I am, but perhaps they're just being nice); I'm shy about playing around anybody, because I cannot do many of the things I want to--yet. For my first pickup, this is decent; I'm not emotionally wedded to it, but for 80 bucks I'm relatively satisfied. As far as *that* sound--I may never achieve it.