Designed for acoustic guitars, the 3AV magnetic pickup mounts in the soundhole. It has a bright, clear hum-canceller (stacked coil) with B-string compensation*. It includes the plastic mounting brackets and a 10 foot cable with strain relief. The brackets make it easy to install the pickup to your guitar for gigs at the coffee shop or stage and then remove when playing solo.
The adjustable brackets fit most soundholes from 3 7/8 inches diameter and larger.
*The B-string is typically thicker than the high E-string and the solid cores of the wound strings. For that reason, the pickup compensates the B-string to ensure even output of all 6 strings.
Excerpt from “A behind-the-scenes look at Nirvana’s brilliant performance on MTV’s Unplugged.” By Alan di Perna, Guitar World, March 1995
Kurt Cobain played a Martin D-18E. Earnie Bailey, Kurt’s guitar tech, said “…Unfortunately, the instrument’s DeArmond pickups were designed with nickel strings in mind, so hearing it with bronze-wound strings was pretty disappointing. Our solution was to attach yet another pickup-a Bartolini model 3AV-to the top of the Martin. Kurt first became interested in that pickup when he saw Peter Buck using one and really liked the sound.”
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