Is the LR Baggs VoicePrint DI good for banjo?

** I'm still learning this pedal, but the basic voiceprint sounds awesome. I did see the clipping notification but that bit of video work nicely, so I decided to let it happen. Turned out that it sounded pretty good! My recording setup also isn't ideal, but hopefully it gave you a good idea of the power of this pedal. **
LR Baggs VoicePrint DI: amzn.to/3rlJEYK
Patreon: / jimpankey
Tabs: www.sellfy.com...
Picks:
@Ernie Ball Finger Picks: amzn.to/2N7SH8s
@jimdunlopusa Calico Thumb Pick - Large: amzn.to/2NaeoEP
Dunlop Calico Thumb Pick - Medium: amzn.to/2UYGHud
Capos:
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@g7thcapo amzn.to/3Fdwy3c
Strings:
​ @TheGHSStrings amzn.to/3uYToah
#lrbaggs #effects #banjo #banjopickups

[@kylenobes1]

Wow that really helps with the problem of many pickups taking away the "banjo" sound. Thanks for sharing.

[@JimPankey]

You're right! Choose a pickup, let the VoicePrint handle the rest!

[@OwainKorp]

i love how its asking for simple instructions and you just full on shred on the banjo, never change brother.

[@JimPankey]

😆

[@frankdittmer8540]

Oh yeah! Awesome! Full sound up close and live in person. What a great way to project the pure banjo sound. 😮😮😮❤

[@JimPankey]

Glad you like it!

[@leftycut1]

Jim, I am just an old beginner and will probably never need effects or such things but I can really appreciate your dedication to your craft. I like that you have fun with it whether your playing out or just hanging out. By the way I just received my certificate of excellence. my friend is going to print for me and it will be on my wall by the end of the week. I love that kind of stuff. You make it fun !!! Many thanks, George

[@JimPankey]

Thanks for letting me be a part of your banjo journey! Congrats on finishing the 10 lesson series. :)

[@dvstrom]

Thank you for the great demonstration of the LR baggs. I use the LR baggs. With my Martin guitar and it sounds great but not as good as that new equipment that sounds great.

[@JimPankey]

Glad it was helpful!

[@ryantrahan4942]

Sounds pretty dang good Jim!

[@JimPankey]

Thanks! Yeah, I think so too.

[@donaldfair4259]

Wow I feel it sounds good and may help !

[@JimPankey]

It's a game changer for me.

[@moebloggs7219]

I bought this pedal after watching this video (see prior comment below).... it works amazing!! Plug-in VoicePrint tone is WAY better with than without it. I am using an EMG ACB-5 pickup. One thing I noticed is during your video your pickup showed no signal in the app - were you plugged in while creating your VP? If so, maybe not enough signal to process a good VP? Also, I took my phone cover off to help the phone mic as much as possible. Thanks for the demo - I am sold!!

[@JimPankey]

Glad you like it!!! Was plugged in, but the LR Baggs pickup has a pretty low output, so it doesn’t show unless I really get on it hard. I did that when I went thru the advanced VoicePrint creation.

[@teekaymn9270]

Hey Jim -- thanks for doing this product review! A friend had heard good things about the Bartlett Banjo Mic, so I bought one of those directly from Bartlett and bought a Voiceprint from another source. My guitar-playing bandmate (who is more tech-savvy) and I can't get output from the VP to a speaker when I'm hooked up to the Bartlett. We've cross-tested all the parts and everything is functional -- just can't get the VP to talk to the speaker when using the Bartlett. Have you heard of anyone else having these issues? I may have to ditch the Bartett and get a Baggs pickup. The issue is also apparent with another pickup mic (sorry I don't have name or specs on it) that our mando player uses. Works fine with vocal and guitar pickup though. Mysterious......

[@JimPankey]

That’s beyond me. Hit up tech support at LR Baggs. They’re super helpful.

[@teekaymn9270]

Thanks, Jim! I sent inquiries off to both Bartlett and LR Baggs. Bruce Bartlett replied and said that we need to provide a phantom power supply is needed for the mic and the LR Baggs does not supply that. So, we need to just get a little inexpensive phantom power box in there and we should be good to go. @@JimPankey

[@tylerchatham6442]

I think with a bit of tweaking and experimenting with placement could dial it in even more

[@JimPankey]

Absolutely; it has a mode for that, and that's what I did for my purposes. However, for the video I thought it was pretty cool to show just how easy it is to get going with it.

[@JimPankey]

It's also got a great graphical eq allowing you even more control over it.

[@mrsockmonkey1969]

@@JimPankey some eq fine tuning on the high end freq would get it very close to where it needs to be

[@andyLeer]

This is great! I've been trying to figure out whats best for this type of playing, can you tell me what pickup you're using?

[@JimPankey]

It's the LR Baggs pickup, but I'm convinced the VoicePrint won't care what pickup you use.

[@andyLeer]

thanks, and makes sense....i'd prefer to have something that i can remove easily to take the banjo back to it's "natural" state....was looking at the KNA BP-1 + the Voice Print DI as a potential solution. As always thanks for your videos and thanks for the response!@@JimPankey

[@JimPankey]

@@andyLeer Yup! That would be a good match!

[@bonyragman]

Sounds great, i use the tonedexter which is very simular

[@JimPankey]

Yup. Similar idea, kinda different results.

[@bonyragman]

@@JimPankey have you tried the tonedexter? Just wondered how it compares to the voice print if you have

[@JimPankey]

@@bonyragmanI’ve not used it, but around folks that do. The VoicePrint is much easier to set up, but you’ve got a tuner and a boost button built in.

[@michaelhudson1524]

Cool! Thanks! What amp are you using? That would be really helpful.

[@JimPankey]

At home I’m running the VHT Acoustic. On gigs I run direct to the board.

[@gp-banjo]

Awesome! I like the shirt 😂

[@JimPankey]

Me too! 😀

[@Mando287Banjo]

thats something i ran into with my pickup is it always sounded dry. i ended up getting a pickup with three piazos that could go on different parts of the banjo and that worked fairly well

[@JimPankey]

And this would make it sound even more like your banjo :)

[@neplatnyudaj110]

Wow, that's way better than I've expected. Do you think it will work with fishman banjo pickup?

[@JimPankey]

I’m convinced it’ll work with ANY pickup

[@kpnorkin]

Honest opinion: I think the VoicePrint down the neck sounded too much like the pickup. Lots of artifacts. Nowhere near as natural as the mic sound. But when you started the Bela-style descending melodic run up the neck, those notes sounded great. Really clear. No artifacts, break-up, or pickup sound. Not the same as mic sound but way better than pickup sound. So I imagine with some more time and adjustment, the down-the-neck sound can be improved. I don't gig live in loud environments any more. When I did, I used a Pickup the World film transducer under the bridge through an LR Baggs Para Acoustic. The system was so hot, I had to dial everything on the DI all the way down and adjust the sound at the mixer. My biggest issue with pickups has always been how they magnify the percussiveness. Your demo showsthe Voiceprint eliminating that. This is cheaper than ToneDexter so maybe a good option if I play live again.

[@JimPankey]

I’ve spent a good bit of time with it since this video and went thru the advanced voiceprint creation. Whiles it’s still not acoustic, it’s a noticeable improvement over the one time run through I did here. In a more controlled environment I was able to tweak my sounds. This banjo is a little “stuffy” up the neck acoustically, so thinning it out when creating that first voice print was a surprise. However, turns out that works pretty good with the gigs I’m having to plug in. I’ve a lot to learn about the VoicePrint, but so far it’s impressed the folks I play with.

[@kennorkin79]

@@JimPankey I wrote my comment before I noticed you had mentioned the clipping in the description. So probably the sound I was commenting on was simply the result of too much gain or level or whatever the correct term is for too much volume or signal. What I really like is that even with the clipping, the percussive pick/bridge I get and hear in conventional pickups is gone.

[@somerandomnification]

That's cool - What were you comparing it against?I see in the comments that you re using an LR Baggs pickup, but were you also using a pre-amp or anything? Hang on - The LR Baggs pickup is active, so it doesn't need a pre-amp, does it? Was that straight our of the pickup?

[@JimPankey]

For the last several years I’ve been using the LR Baggs Venue, and before that their Para DI. Both were fine and allowed me a good bit of control over the sound, but the results are nothing like I get here. So , the pickup only was just straight, the clip with the Voiceprint is just the pickup and the Voiceprint.

[@somerandomnification]

@@JimPankey Between my two (different sounding) banjos and my dobro, I'd love to trade up from my LR Baggs Para to this one because of the ability to map out different instruments, but I'm trying to keep to as few wires as possible so the power cord is a deal breaker for now. Then again, i just started palying in some small, noisy places, so if feedback becomes too difficult that'll swing me to the VoicePrint.

[@mooseroberts4963]

What would this do for us clip-on mic folks?

[@JimPankey]

Not something you would need if you’re only using a mic.

[@officialWWM]

Sounds good but it’s ridiculously expensive!

[@JimPankey]

As with most nice gear, it’s not cheap, but it’s something I can justify for the tone and versatility. Since getting this one, I’ve added another for my guitar rig.

[@moebloggs7219]

Maybe I missed it.... what banjo pickup are you using with this VoicePrint DI?

[@JimPankey]

I'm using the LR Baggs pickup

[@steve773625]

I doubted the baggs pickup mounted in the Grover bridge and went with the fishman instead . That will still give me the options of a Snuffy Smith , Sullivan Roasted Maple ,Huber or Dotson Bridge . You know how purist banjo pickers are ..lol But I absolutely love what you are doing !!

[@bonyragman]

How u getting on with it in live situations?

[@JimPankey]

Loving it. I’ve got this one for the banjo, and a separate rig using one for the guitars. For me, it’s a game changer.

[@bonyragman]

​@@JimPankeythanks for reply jim, im gonna order one and sell my tonedexter, i like the fact its smaller and battery powered plus i wanna try it with a magnetic pickup because im playing in a band with a drummer and im always close to feedback with my baggs peizo and ive heard mag pickups are more resistant to feed back, we'll see

[@bonyragman]

Well i tried it on the gold tone smp pickup and it didnt make any difference so maybe it only really works on peizos, the tonedexter did make a big difference with the mag pickup but at real high volumes it started sounding weird when capoed and feedbacky

[@JimPankey]

@@bonyragman I use it on the LR Baggs M1 for guitar - it's a magnetic pickup. Works great.

[@bonyragman]

​@@JimPankey i will have to experiment a bit more

[@codychalmers896]

What amp are you using?

[@JimPankey]

I amp here, just direct.