Electrify your uke for under $10 bucks

Then I loosened the strings on the uke and Scotch Taped them out
of the way and put the 1/4" diameter wooden dowell into the jack
snugly. Then I applied Scotch double sided foam mounting tape to
the side of the transducer that had the part number on it (this tape
is so strong that it can only be removed with a putty knife!):



I pressed the pickup firmly underneath the bridge between the G and
C string, as I had determined this the best position while testing.
Slowly pulled the wooden dowell through the hole and tightened the
jack with its bolt while leaving the dowell inserted for restance to the
tightening:



Complete success! I tuned the uke and plugged it into the amp and
started jamming. It produces a warm and sweet tone:

HaileISela said:

but I found something similar without that negative effect, I don't know if there is something like that in the US, but in Germany you find this... it's awesome...

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Plumbers Putty which can readily be found in Home Depot. Lowes, ACE, True Value and other hardware stores is da' shizzle for this application! I used Scotch double sided foam mounting tape in my project. It's so strong you can only remove it with a putty knife. Ric

good job Ric! Time for me to go to Rad-Shack!

The lady at the counter at the Oceanside Radio Shack laughed when I told her what the components were for, Bugoy. Where do they get these employees fro anyway? Ric

ricdoug said:

The lady at the counter at the Oceanside Radio Shack laughed when I told her what the components were for, Bugoy. Where do they get these employees fro anyway? Ric

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I used to work at a Radio Shack... At least where I used to work, they'd take just about anyone willing to try selling a cellphone to anyone who walked through the door.

...I didn't last long

...And it's worth mentioning that I was the only employee there that had ANY clue what those strange things in the components drawers were, AND I was scolded for helping customers find actual solutions to problems rather than pressuring customers into buying crap they didn't need.

Except for the parts drawers, Radio Shack sucks.

ricdoug said:

Dave, from Waverly Street ukes has an easier method. He's a luthier and does this with his own creations. He does not even remove the piezo buzzer from it's plastic sase. I posted a question to him on another board, as to noise introduced by not using shielded cable. Here's Dave's photo tutorial:

http://www.wsukes.com/electric/electric.html

Here's video of the uke being played amplified:

http://www.wsukes.com/electric/piezodemo.wmv

Click to expand...

Thanks, Ric

I originally got some shielded cable, took the case off, etc. But I got to looking at it and thought "Well heck, there is a 1/2" unshielded at each end of the 4" cable anyway; let's try it completely unshielded...". I can't tell any difference myself, but then I'm not by any means an expert. I do know that it's a LOT easier to just use the existing wires and leave the element in the case.

I watched and listened to your video, Dave. I got pretty much the same results when I tested the final product in my kitchen under a large flourescent light. I did not notice any noise. Your method works just fine! Thanks, Ric

this is awesome. cheap and effective passive pickup system. cant wait to try it out. ive been wanting to plug my makala in for some time now.

ric, do you have a LRBaggs para-acoustic DI? i would like to see how this preamp works with this setup. it does WONDERS for every passive system ive run through it.

ric, how did you manage to get your hand all the way to the bottom to put up the transducer? Im looking at my concert and even my baritone, theres noway I can get my hand in that hole. (insert sexual joke here)

ricdoug said:

Dave, from Waverly Street ukes has an easier method. He's a luthier and does this with his own creations. He does not even remove the piezo buzzer from it's plastic sase. I posted a question to him on another board, as to noise introduced by not using shielded cable. Here's Dave's photo tutorial:

http://www.wsukes.com/electric/electric.html

Here's video of the uke being played amplified:

http://www.wsukes.com/electric/piezodemo.wmv

Click to expand...

I wonder if the leads that come on the transducer would be long enough to do this with a tenor...

NukeDOC said:

ric, do you have a LRBaggs para-acoustic DI? i would like to see how this preamp works with this setup. it does WONDERS for every passive system ive run through it.

Click to expand...

No I don't, Arvin. I do want to try my Ovation Applause through one, though. I've heard the same improvement comments from others that use the Baggs. I was impressed at the sound quality of this cheap transducer, though. I really expected less. Ric

Hobgoblin Steve said:

ric, how did you manage to get your hand all the way to the bottom to put up the transducer? Im looking at my concert and even my baritone, theres noway I can get my hand in that hole. (insert sexual joke here)

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Bamboo chopsticks, Steve. I use them to hold wires when I'm soldering, too. You don't have to get all your fingers into the soundhole this way. Ric

kind of like ricdoug's but not pertinent! creates nice warm tone to!

!!!First know how to solder!!!

-second your gona want three diff. colors of wire. preferably 16-18 g (thats the size)

-next choose the type of 1/4 audio jack connector you want
* either one where you have to drill a hole in your uke like this one:
http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...entPage=search
or a jack like this:
http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...entPage=search
( i opted for the second one because i didnt want to drill a hole in my baby!)

Get a Piezo Element 1500-3000Hz like this
http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...entPage=search

ok now to make it all happen

1. First carefully pry or cut off the plastic on the element. I used a cutoff wheel
2. once you have the Piezo element out solder the Your HOT wire to the copper rim of the disc
3. next take the remaining two wires and twist together and solder as one whole wire to the whit part of the dis. (make sure its close to the edge)
4. Once all soldered braid the three wires together and cut at about one foot.
5. Once all ends are spliced solder your HOT wire to the small little tabs coming off of the audio jack
6. next solder the remaining two wires to the remaining two tabs. each wires gets its won tab.
7. cut a small amount of cork or medium density foam and hot glue it to the bottom of the piezo disc.

thats pretty much it for the one i made kep in mind when i want to hook up to an amp i just use some good old scoth tape and tape it directly to the sound board. make shure you tape the piezo disc down solid to ensure a good connection to the wood.

If you want permanently use this type of pickup then use the first audio jack mentioned and drill a 3/8 hole where you want to mount it. then permanently tape the element under the bridge.

sry if its a little unclear let me if u have n e more questions thx

-Don

beeejums said:

I wonder if the leads that come on the transducer would be long enough to do this with a tenor...

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Quoting my own post... I hope that isn't a faux pas... But for others out there aspiring to plug in their tenors but lacking much experience in such things, the leads that come on the transducer were not long enough. But, after some trial and error, I now have an electric uke!

Nice, Beeejums! How much more did you have to extend the wires for your tenor? At last night's kanikapila with Moonlight Beach Ukulele Strummers, I ran into a few that already added this simple pickup to their soprano and concert ukes. What amp are you playing yours through? Ric

i gotta try this.. thanks for posting this up guys..

SuperSecretBETA said:

Anyone willing to make a YouTube of their creation and installation adventures?

That would help times a million.

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im going to make a new one! gona do it just like the links provided above! i will make a vid of every step! including what to buy!

UkEdman90 said:

im going to make a new one! gona do it just like the links provided above! i will make a vid of every step! including what to buy!

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That would be awesome and helpful.

Link said:

That would be awesome and helpful.

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no prob ight im off to radio shack!

alright guys vid is coming today!