L.R. Baggs RTS II

Undersaddle ribbon transducer with active preamp and on-board volume control.

Installed the pickup in a Guild D50 Bluegrass Special, which, being a high quality rosewood dreadnought guitar, provides for a deep, full tone. I had been using a Baggs M1 soundhole pickup that is easily installed/removed and simply "pops in" whenever I need to amplify the guitar. The M1 sounds good but I also wanted a permanently installed pickup that would just be ready to go. The RTS II preamp is able to accept a second input so that I might solder a cable to allow the M1 to pair with the ribbon transducer, but I haven't done that yet.

Although I've installed a variety of undersaddle and soundboard pickups over the years I'm always a bit nervous about drilling holes in my guitar. My concern was for no reason since it was simple to use a reamer to enlarge the endpin hole to accommodate the jack, and drilling the hole in the saddle slot was not difficult (once I made sure I wouldn't be drilling through a soundboard brace!). The RTS II arrives pre-wired so no soldering is needed, which simplifies the installation.

I lowered the bone saddle by the thickness of the pickup (0.025") to retain the normal action of the guitar. Again, this was not a difficult operation. The battery (9 volt) holder was installed on the neck block, and the volume wheel along the edge of the soundhole so it is barely visible yet easily accessible.

The output level is good. It is certainly not weak but not overly hot, either. The string volume balance is excellent and required no fine tuning (thank goodness).

The tone is a good reproduction of the acoustic tone of the guitar. I've used many other undersaddle pickups in previously owned guitars and the RTS II provides the most natural tone that I've experienced from an undersaddle pickup. I can discern the most slight "undersaddle sound" although I hesitate to call it "quacky" sounding. I know the undersaddle quack sound and the RTS II tone shows very little of that.

When plugged directly to an amp or PA the pickup sounds very good with balanced tone and volume. The pickup provides a good level of feedback resistance, which can be enhanced by using a feedback buster in the soundhole.

If I use a secondary preamp/EQ I can dial in an even better sound or, more accurately, one that suits my ears. In particular the Aphex Acoustic Xciter works extremely well.

The pickup is reasonably priced, contains high quality components, can be installed by anyone with moderate skill (although warranty void if not installed by luthier or authorized Baggs dealer), and provides the most natural tone that I've heard from an undersaddle pickup. I'm pleased with the simple and effective results from the RTS II.