K+K Twin Spot Vs. Misi Pickup

brUKEman

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I am getting a Tenor Uke and I have the option of having a K+K Twin Spot pickup installed or for another $50.00 I can have a Misi installed. Is the K+K adequate for occassional use or should I go for the Misi.

Also, If I go for the Misi should I get the volume control?

Thanks.
 
Hehe, spambot. I'd be tempted to go for the MISI, heard great things about them.
 
Make it a MiSi

I've used both. In my humble opinion K&K is okay but the MiSi will blow it away. Amazing trio that MiSi. I just can't say enough positive things about it.... it is awesome!
I am getting a Tenor Uke and I have the option of having a K+K Twin Spot pickup installed or for another $50.00 I can have a Misi installed. Is the K+K adequate for occassional use or should I go for the Misi.

Also, If I go for the Misi should I get the volume control?

Thanks.
 
The MiSi, in my opinion, is the best pickup out there right now for use on a ukulele. Plus, it won't break the bank.
 
I do not have experience with either in a ukulele, but I have K&K's in most of my guitars. They are passive, and to get best sound use an external preamp like an LR Bags PADI. I do sound for a local folk and work music concert series with national and international musicians. I pay quite a bit of attention to the pickup systems people use. In guitars, I have never heard a better system than a K&K. I have heard equal, but none better. Moreover the K&K is dirt cheap. That's why I am putting them in all my guitars and replacing the B-Bands, and other pickups. I really prefer a passive pickup so that I don't have to worry about a battery crapping out on stage too.

My Pono came with a pickup, however if my next ukulele does not come with one, I plan on trying a K&K. Will report back when this happens.
 
The K&K will give you a more natural sound but you will need an external pre-amp to get the most out of it. The misi has the preamp already but doesn't sound as natural. I like the K&K but i also prefer an external pre-amp for tone control. If its just to plug in once in a while for fun and your not gigging with it buy the cheapest one.
 
K&K if you want more natural sound. Even without a preamp (into a PA or other full-frequency system) it sounds more natural than any other pickup I have heard.

Has anyone here used the MiSi preamp with a K&K pickup? (I don't believe MiSi actually makes pickups).
 
Actually... the MiSi is the coil strip that sits under the bridge and it's wired to an LR Baggs preamp. It's a great setup and you REALLY do get 16 hours of actual playing time on a simple :60 charge! I have K&Ks and MiSis in all of my ukes and, truthfully, I think the MiSi trio sounds better and more natural than a K&K. But that's just the opinion of these old ears!
 
K&K makes some top-notch transducer pickups, and they produce a very natural sound. You just can't get the same natural acoustic sound out of an undersaddle pickup like the Misi, because they only pick up the vibration of the bridge, while a transducer picks up the vibrations of the whole soundboard.

I've played dozens of gigs with my Flea with a K&K pickup, and never even used a preamp. People come up to me after gigs to tell me how amazing my uke sounds.
 
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Actually... the MiSi is the coil strip that sits under the bridge and it's wired to an LR Baggs preamp.

With all respect, it's the other way 'round: Mi-Si makes the jack and chargeable preamp. The pickup itself is an L.R. Baggs undersaddle Element acoustic guitar pickup.
 
Love my Mi-Si. If you go for it with the volume control please tell us about it. Good luck!
 
I have a K&K pure mini in my Martin tenor and in my Larrivee mahogany parlor... love the K&K in both, get huge kudos, especially from other musicians. I usually use with a Fishman Aura Imaging pedal (concert model) or a Tech 21 Sansamp para di (ya-ya!), but they do sound very good going straight into the board as well.

Since I love K&K in these two guitars, I've just ordered a K&K Twin Spot to have installed in a Lanikai spruce top baritone I just got. Will let y'all know if I love it as much in this ukulele.
 
I have a K&K pick up on my MP. It sounds good to me though I rarely use it. I just got one installed in case I really need a pick up in the future.

When I was having the uke built, I was intending on getting a MI-SI after all of the good things I had heard here. However, after talking with Mike Pereira (the luthier who was building my uke), I chose the K&K. Mike seemed to believe that the K&K had a better sound, and he was keen on the fact that you can pair it with whatever pre-amp you want. His suggestion of the K&K wasn't an upsell either as the K&K was about half the price of the MISI.
 
I beleive Mike offers the option of the Mi-Si jack and preamp coupled with the KK Twin Spot.

twinspot.jpg


simple-jack.jpg
 
If you want an all-in-one package, go with the MISI. All the way. If you want to have a bit more natural (but "thuddy") sound but headache over "oh shoot, I forgot my preamp. Now my sound is going to suck." - go with the K&K. I had a K&K big spot. For what I do, the MISI blew it out of the water and up on the cliff.
 
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