The Amulet M-VT Phantom is a phantom-powered, bridgeplate-mounted, multi-transducer, low impedance (low noise), feedback resistant pickup.
I find amplification to be a very subjective experience. We all hear something different. Our preferences are shaped by many factors. My "Pickups" articles share my own impressions of and experiences with the named products. Currently, there are no A / B sound comparisons or recordings. A few articles, such as this one, share installation tips.
Two separate polyplanar transducers measuring 1 inch long by 3/8 inch deep that Trance calls their “Acoustic Lens™” are non-destructively attached to the bridgeplate directly beneath the saddle using a special double-stick adhesive, and plug into the integrated pre-amp/endpin jack.
These Acoustic lenses are distinct in their design when compared with the more common contact transducers, in that they are engineered to produce a very low output signal and thus require a very high input impedance to amplify.
Trance Audio says the Acoustic Lens transducers are triaxial sensors, meaning they pick up vibration horizontally, vertically and laterally. The result is a body sensor that approaches the qualities of a microphone without the drawbacks.
Plugged into an amp or mixer providing 48v phantom power (or a separate phantom power adapter), the guitarist experiences a high fidelity, low noise, feedback resistant pickup system with no batteries to be concerned with.
The Amulet M pickup is also available as a separate 9v battery-powered version, and you can selectively choose to add a soundhole-mounted, single-wheel volume control (M-V model), or a twin wheel volume and tone control (M-VT model), if you so desire.
I recommend the Trance Amulet M to any acoustic guitarist seeking to more accurately reproduce your guitar's tone. The Amulet is really in a league of its own, in this regard. Why then is not the end-all, be-all, ubiquitous acoustic guitar pickup?
Few pickups have as exacting an installation/placement requirement. As a result, this pickup may be extremely difficult or impossible to install, or not be the best choice in the following situations:
The Amulet M pickup does not suffer alone in these scenarios. Pickups having a similar design, such as the Dazzo, or the L.R. Baggs HiFi / HiFi Duet, also have similar installation limitations. The Amulet's list of restrictions may be lengthy, but I believe this highlights the significance of the system.
It was engineered specifically to excel when installed into a wooden acoustic guitar having a flat, straight-line saddle slot and a bridgeplate with sufficient room directly beneath the saddle to accommodate the two Acoustic Lens pickups (in other words, most modern X-braced guitars). Players of these guitars can now have one of the most accurate, feedback resistant and least fussy pickups available, anywhere.
Compared with loosening the 1st string, sliding a magnetic pickup into the soundhole and tightening it with Philips screwdriver, installing a Trance Amulet pickup is more involved, perhaps even qualifying as a bit "demanding."
The two separate transducers, each referred to by Trance as an Acoustic Lens, must be optimally placed on the bridgeplate directly beneath the saddle path. As of this writing, Trance provides two separate strengths of double-sided adhesive tape for the task. One is a lower-tack tape, designed for experimenting with the position(s).
The second we shall call "permanent." Though possible to remove, you won't want to ever do it a second time; it forms a really strong bond.
A stiff cardboard (or wooden, or acrylic) template should be constructed for final placement. And that concludes the "fiddly" part.
The two Acoustic Lens Transducers plug into the preamp which is integrated into the endpin jack. The soundhole-mounted Volume and Tone control wheels also plug into the preamp. For the Phantom-powered version (my personal preference) you need only supply a 48v source and you are up and running.
Not all piezo crystal-based pickups are created equal, though they do share similar characteristics. A few of the offerings minimize the familiar piezo "sound" that colors so many amplified performances and recordings. Trance's Amulet is one of those offerings.
I really like this pickup. While you may prefer something different, if the Amulet can be (properly) installed on your guitar, I have yet to meet a guitarist who honestly does not like how it sounds.
NOTE: Having installed several of these pickups in various guitars, I can attest that placement is everything! I can see how, if the "acoustic lenses" are misplaced, the sound quality will "suffer". Install the lenses correctly, and be rewarded.
If you are insisting on purely hearing your guitar, only louder (with NO hint of piezo "color" or "quack", or magnetic "electric" sound), you may want to start with a quality microphone, and learn to deal with the EQ and feedback issues. However, for many (if not most) performing guitarists, a microphone may not be practical.
Alternatively, you can train an "Impulse Response" or "WaveMap" on a specialty preamp such as the ToneDexter II, using your favorite microphone. Such a device can markedly improve the sound of most any piezo pickup, though you will benefit by beginning with a quality pickup source, such as the Trance Amulet.
With or without a ToneDexter, the Trance Amulet M-VT Phantom may be just what you have been looking for.
You can read more about the Trance Amulet pickup on their website » Trance Audio.
I design and build acoustic guitars. Each instrument is created to be a unique visual and sonic experience.Where a factory may faithfully produce a given model thousands of times, every guitar I make is intentionally distinct. I have written several articles that acknowledge, explore, challenge, and at times defy traditional steel-string acoustic guitar convention.
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