Anthem trumic placement and sound issue

[bigbang]

Long story not much shorter, I have/had multiple guitars with the full and stage pro anthem units. Regardless of guitar size, woods, mfg., etc., they all sound VERY similar (in a good way) when plugged in.

The last one presented a challenge as the bracing put the trumic right up against the bracing on both ends of the mic housing, and close enough on the G and D strings to where the ball ends would usually rest on the outer portion of the housing. This resulted in some nasty sounds on certain notes/frequencies.

So I moved the mic to the rear of the bridge. This results in very hollow sound. Like it's being mic'd from very far away with some kind of weird high frequency phase thing going on. I've rechecked the saddle pup and it is fine, sounds great on it's own, not installed upside down, but the high frequencies from the mic are thin and distant regardless of how much I mix in or how loud/quite I make the mic with the mic level control. I also removed and reinstalled the mic as close to the back of the pins as I could. No change.

I can only assume this is due to placement of the mic, but I've read it shouldn't be that sensitive to positioning. Could it be a preamp issue? It's a newish unit that I haven't had much plugged in time with.

If it is placement:

1. Can I attach the mic to the braces themselves in front of the bridge? This would place the mic about an 1" forward of where it would normally go, and of course further away from the top.

2. Could I trim away the black "guard" on the mic housing so the balls don't contact there and install in the normal position? Is it an issue if the housing is tight up against the braces on each end? That's really the only way it will fit in front of the saddle unless I attach to the braces.

3. What is the tape I need to attach the mic and where would I find it? I've burned up the extra pieces that come with the units trying to resolve this issue.

Unfortunately my work/gig schedule makes it hard to contact support on the phone so I'm trying here while we play phone tag.

Thanks in advance!

[Caleb_Elling]

Hey bigbang,
Thanks for posting. If you want to email me at [email protected], I can set you up with some more mic adhesives.

As for placement, I wouldn't recommend modifying the mic housing at all or placing the mic on the bracing. Instead, I think that you would be better off putting the mic off of the backside of the bridge plate, directly to the top. I would also place the mic slightly toward the treble side. From my experience, this can be a good alternative placement if the bridge plate isn't working out.

[jaykob]

Long story not much shorter, I have/had multiple guitars with the full and stage pro anthem units. Regardless of guitar size, woods, mfg., etc., they all sound VERY similar (in a good way) when plugged in.

The last one presented a challenge as the bracing put the trumic right up against the bracing on both ends of the mic housing, and close enough on the G and D strings to where the ball ends would usually rest on the outer portion of the housing. This resulted in some nasty sounds on certain notes/frequencies.

So I moved the mic to the rear of the bridge. This results in very hollow sound. Like it's being mic'd from very far away with some kind of weird high frequency phase thing going on. I've rechecked the saddle pup and it is fine, sounds great on it's own, not installed upside down, but the high frequencies from the mic are thin and distant regardless of how much I mix in or how loud/quite I make the mic with the mic level control. I also removed and reinstalled the mic as close to the back of the pins as I could. No change.

I can only assume this is due to placement of the mic, but I've read it shouldn't be that sensitive to positioning. Could it be a preamp issue? It's a newish unit that I haven't had much plugged in time with.

If it is placement:

1. Can I attach the mic to the braces themselves in front of the bridge? This would place the mic about an 1" forward of where it would normally go, and of course further away from the top.

2. Could I trim away the black "guard" on the mic housing so the balls don't contact there and install in the normal position? Is it an issue if the housing is tight up against the braces on each end? That's really the only way it will fit in front of the saddle unless I attach to the braces.

3. What is the tape I need to attach the mic and where would I find it? I've burned up the extra pieces that come with the units trying to resolve this issue.

Unfortunately my work/gig schedule makes it hard to contact support on the phone so I'm trying here while we play phone tag.

Thanks in advance!

Hey Bigbang, I was dealing with the same issue, not happy with the sound of the mic in my Anthem System. One day I decided to fool around with the mic placement and this is what happened. While trying to place it different places on the inside of the top of the guitar, the tape wore out, the mic suddenly got loose and the mic hung up in the "air" inside the guitar, and wow the sound was there!!! Fat, woody, airy, mic- like sound. So- I ended up sticking the mic with a hot glue gun to one of the X brace, pointing the diaphram inside the guitar - see the pic. I guess I may be the only one using the system this way but it sure works for me, the ballance mic vs pup is fine, I

[Caleb_Elling]

Hey Bigbang, I was dealing with the same issue, not happy with the sound of the mic in my Anthem System. One day I decided to fool around with the mic placement and this is what happened. While trying to place it different places on the inside of the top of the guitar, the tape wore out, the mic suddenly got loose and the mic hung up in the "air" inside the guitar, and wow the sound was there!!! Fat, woody, airy, mic- like sound. So- I ended up sticking the mic with a hot glue gun to one of the X brace, pointing the diaphram inside the guitar - see the pic. I guess I may be the only one using the system this way but it sure works for me, the ballance mic vs pup is fine, I

I think it's safe to assume that you're the only person doing this right now. Are you encountering any additional feedback issues when you play louder?

[jaykob]

I think it's safe to assume that you're the only person doing this right now. Are you encountering any additional feedback issues when you play louder?

Maybe a little bit more on the low end around 100 Hz, but it has a big round sound. The thing is I have a lot of mic tuned in by the "E" screw and "A " botton all the way mic. So far I

[ami1234]

Hey Jeykob,

I've just installed Anthem on my modest Taylor guitar and experiencing what I think is the same issue. The Element pickup sound great but Tru-Mic does not. I'm gonna try replacing the Tru-Mic as you suggested. Nice picture (-: