Using a turntable cartridge to make a pickup

[netvegetable]

Hi.

I have an idea about making an accoustic instrument pickup using the
element of a turntable cartridge. The idea is that I rip the element out
of the cartridge somehow, without damaging it, somehow wire it up so that
it responds to vibrations as it should, then wire it to guitar jack so it
can plugged into an amplifier. I should then have a pickup small enought
to be drilled into the bridge of a mandolin or fiddle.

Any thoughts on this idea?

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"Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are
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[Spajky]

I have an idea about making an accoustic instrument pickup using the
element of a turntable cartridge. The idea is that I rip the element out
of the cartridge somehow, without damaging it, somehow wire it up so that
it responds to vibrations as it should, then wire it to guitar jack so it
can plugged into an amplifier. I should then have a pickup small enought
to be drilled into the bridge of a mandolin or fiddle.

Any thoughts on this idea?

can be done but why? ... there a lot of cheap guitar kind a pickups to
use...
(I made time ago from cristal phono head a driver & pickup for
homemade spring reverberation system - 20y ago - still have it)

 

[Dick Bridge]

Hi.

I have an idea about making an accoustic instrument pickup using the
element of a turntable cartridge. The idea is that I rip the element out
of the cartridge somehow, without damaging it, somehow wire it up so that
it responds to vibrations as it should, then wire it to guitar jack so it
can plugged into an amplifier. I should then have a pickup small enought
to be drilled into the bridge of a mandolin or fiddle.

Any thoughts on this idea?

--
to email me remove the word "NOT" from my addy

#political_forum irc.undernet.org

"Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are
conservatives." - John Stuart Mill

Hi Netveg

I can't comment on the idea of taking the element out of a turntable
cartridge. However I can tell of my very first conversion of an acoustic
guitar into an electric. I took a piezo electric cartridge fom a gram tone
arm. This I mounted, on its side, under the strings, on the tailpiece side
of the bridge so that the stylus was against the side of the bridge. I
didn't expect much because I thought that the cartridge and the stylus
would both move up and down as the soundboard vibrated, but, to my surprise
it did work probably because the inertia of the cartridge was much greater
than that of the stylus.

The output was toppy and needed some equalisation in the form of bass lift.
Otherwise it was serviceable - there was one slight snag - the pickup heard
any bangs or knocks to the guiutar body.

I suspect that the element in a modern equivalent to my old (mono) pickup
would not necessarily be same as the thin piezo pickups for guitars now so
common. My cartridge seemed to use the piezo crystal in torque and would
probably not have worked as a compression device.

Regards

Dick Bridge

 

[Ty Ford]

Hi.

I have an idea about making an accoustic instrument pickup using the
element of a turntable cartridge. The idea is that I rip the element out
of the cartridge somehow, without damaging it, somehow wire it up so that
it responds to vibrations as it should, then wire it to guitar jack so it
can plugged into an amplifier. I should then have a pickup small enought
to be drilled into the bridge of a mandolin or fiddle.

Any thoughts on this idea?

I believe that was part of Mr. Paul's original research. If I am remembering
correctly, he abandoned the idea.

Regards,

Ty Ford



-- Ty Ford's equipment reviews, audio samples, rates and other audiocentric
stuff are at www.tyford.com

 

[Geoff Arnold]

A little history:

Les Paul did just that to electrify his guitar when he was a kid.

--fletch

"You do not choose the guitar, the guitar chooses you."

 

[Dimitrios Tzortzakakis]

Yes-it's much cheaper, simpler and better to get the dedicated pickup for
this instrument, or get an electric guitar.Not talking about destroying a
precious turntable cartridge.