The Realist Copperhead Double Bass pickup

Description

The Realist Copperhead Double Bass pickup has rapidly become a popular option with Bass players. It was designed by Ned Steinberger in collaboration with David Gage

David Gage comments: “Recognizing the limitations of microphones and traditional piezo transducers, Ned and I decided that for the working musician things could and should be better. We felt a transducer should be equal in it’s ability to recreate an acoustic pizzicato and arco sound through commonly used amplifiers.

Furthermore, this pick-up had to be simple, dependable, and affordable. After years of consideration and tests, we have come up with a system that achieves all of these goals

Three elements combine to give The Realist Copperhead Double Bass pickup the exciting tone that has so many players raving:

• The first is finding the right structure within and around the piezo crystal to respond optimally to the acoustic resonance of the instrument itself. This involved endless comparisons of various options.
• Second, placing the transducer under the foot of the bridge puts it exactly where the sound is transferred from the strings to the sound board. This is definitely where the action is, and the rich, powerful response, both pizzicato and bowed, testifies to this simple fact. The output level directly from the pickup is unusually high, and as a result the signal to noise ratio is also very high, so no pre-amp or other active, battery powered gear is necessary. Just plug it in!
• The copper foil sandwich construction is the third key element in the system. It provides total shielding to eliminate hum from light fixtures and other electrical or radio interference. It is flexible enough to conform to the curve of the top of the instrument, so that the full pressure of the bridge is concentrated evenly onto the piezo surface