F.A.Q.

Frequently Asked Questions:

Question: Who is Percoustix™ for?
Answer: Percoustix™ is a great fit for any artist who wants to expand the percussive capabilities of their acoustic and/or enhance their percussive playing technique.

Question: Will Percoustix™ fit in any acoustic body size?
Answer: Yes. The wiring harness will fit in any acoustic body size including jumbo. 

Question: Do I have to permanently modify my acoustic to use Percoustix™?
Answer: You do not have to permanently modify your acoustic to use Percoustix™. It is possible to run the wire harness and jack on the outside and simply use tape or velcro to attach them to the body. However, the jack and wiring harness were designed to be installed on the inside by drilling a hole in the lower bout of the body to help with cable management and for the sake of cosmetics. If percussive playing is your technique and you want to use Percoustix™, why wouldn’t you modify your instrument to fit your technique? 

Question: Can Percoustix™ be mounted over a preexisting pickguard?
Answer: Yes

 

Question: Is there an ideal pickup system to have on your acoustic when using Percoustix™?

Answer: It all depends on your technique and preference. The most important thing to note is that Percoustix™ will naturally produce a percussive “tap” when you play them unplugged. The question is how much of that “tap” do you want to hear in your signal when you plug in? 

Under Saddle Piezo Pickups - These pickups can work great with Percoustix™ because they primarily focus on picking up the sound from the strings and will not pick up too much of the percussive “tap” from Percoustix™. This is especially helpful when triggering a bass drum sound with Percoustix™. An under saddle pickup will not capture much of the “tap”, letting the bass drum stand out and not be mixed with other percussive sounds happening on the body of your acoustic.  

Internal Microphones - These are popular with many percussive guitar players. If you don’t want to use Percoustix™ for your bass drum sound but instead like to play your bass drum using the heal of your palm,  an internal microphone will do a great job capturing that deep bass thud. However, the one thing to keep in mind is the internal mic will also pick up the natural “tap” from playing Percoustix™. This is not necessarily a bad thing. For example, if you assigned a snare sound to be triggered with Percoustix™ when you play, you will simultaneously hear the snare and the “tap” together with each strike. This can create some more interesting percussive sounds and layers to your playing. 

Soundhole Pickups - Soundhole pickups can be used with Percoustix™ but they can take up a lot of real-estate in your sound hole. Depending on the soundhole pickup and the diameter of the sound hole on your acoustic you may be able to fit both in the same sound hole. You may  also be able to “angle” the Percoustix™ differently so that they can fit with the sound hole pickup. 

Conclusion, there are many different pickup systems out there and there is no right or wrong one for Percoustix™. Ultimately it comes down to how much of the “tap” you want to bleed through. The more your pickup system captures the sound from the body of your acoustic, the more “tap” you will hear. In contrast, the more your pick up system focuses on the strings, the less “tap” you will get in your signal.  Either way, it is important to consider this before installing Percoustix™ on your instrument.