Taylor Expression System w/ Lyric Mic

[mattmontgomery28]

I own a Taylor 214 CE-G with the undersaddle pickup system. I absolutely LOVE the sound of the Lyric microphone but don't want to uninstall my stock pickup. Is there any way that the Lyric could be used in conjunction with the undersaddle pickup?

Thanks!

[Caleb_Elling]

Hi Matt,
Unfortunately, since the ES is an active system, it can not be used in conjunction with the Lyric (at least with one jack). If you do still want to use the Lyric, I highly recommend checking out the TruPlug system http://www.butchsguitarrepair.com/Bu...uPlug_USA.html

It makes the retrofit look much better.

[Jim Nasium]

Mr. Elling,

This is something I am also considering. It is hard to reconcile that it is not possible. I desire to utilize the ES2 from my 12 string Taylor, in conjunction with a Lyric, and blend the two externally. I also want to be able to use the preamp and controls from the ES2.

Would be possible if the ground was directly soldered to the jack sleeve contact, and the + directly soldered to whichever is the extra ring of the TRRS, bypassing the circuit board?

Best Regards

[Jim Nasium]

Thinking about this further, I believe the wire that the Taylor system uses on the ring to close the switch and turn on the power would also be required to be soldered to the same respective contact on the Lyric jack. This would power on both preamps at the same time, and also power them both off at the same time.

[Jim Nasium]

Again, thinking about this further, the ground and + could likely be soldered directly to the convenient locations on the Lyric preamp board, and only the power switch wire would need to be created and soldered to the power switching ring terminal, and of course the Taylor circuit board would need to be mounted to the battery box in some new way.

Thoughts?

[Caleb_Elling]

Hey Jim,
It is possible to add the ground and switching contacts from the ES to the Lyric, with the signal lead going to the Ring on the Lyric's output jack. It's not an intended use of the Lyric, so the wiring would need to be very precise in order to fit everything inside the shielding barrel. Obviously, if you damaged anything in the soldering process, it wouldn't be covered under the Lyric's warranty either.

So it is possible, and it would give you both signals from a single output jack. It's just not something that I would typically recommend to the average user.

[Jim Nasium]

Thank you, Caleb. You confirmed my suspicion.

I have been struggling to get a good amplified sound from my Taylor 12 string. I have been considering all sorts of things.

Presently I’m running the ES2 into a tuner, compressor, then a reverb, and finally a Venue DI (totally useless tuner for my 12 string). I can get a decent sound out of all that, but it is still different than the unplugged sound.

I do a lot of open mic nights, though, and it is a bit looked down upon to show up with a whole pedal board. I was getting ready to install the Lyric, and ditch the setup I have for a BOSS AD-10, which has pretty much everything I need in just one pedal, and it has stereo inputs, so I could blend the Lyric and the ES2.

Then, I started reading about the Voiceprint DI. Before I do the above, I am considering trying the voiceprint. I might just well be able to show up to open mic with just one pedal, after all, and no mods to my guitar. That would be wonderful.