Installation manual AK15 plus
Contents
1. Audio Electric Research the acoustic people Installation manual a F AK15 plus esy Contents Your aim is to achieve a warm sound with fat bottom end a well defined midrange and sweet crisp treble e Intro Easier said than done It may well be that your instrument acousticly e Considerations reproduces this But bear in mind when amplified the fat bottom end e Limitations that apply to us all will possibly mask the definition of the midrange It will tend to start getting out of control at lower volumes often causing feedback Your sweet clear treble may seem a little harsh just because of the e Warranty volume you hear it at Less amplified treble will again suffer from e Claim masking effect and the harmonic structure will possibly get lost after a short distance e Objectives e Installation guide e List of contents The choice is your own Your instrument is unique There is only one installation e Check and inspect the guitar procedure no reset no slow motion e Prepare the workplace a Prepare the instrument Limitations that apply to us all e Woodwork It is the objective of every pickup system for acoustic instruments to e Pickup installation capture true sound but how hard we may try we stay within the l borders of sensors electronics and personal taste there is no magic e Saddle height adjustment formula e Microphone block installation Consequently the sound we are looking for remains phant2. Audio Electric Research Christine Englerth Strasse 30 D 45665 Recklinghausen www aer amps com page 2 AER 08 05 Audio Electric Research the acoustic people Wood work There should be no routing required if the slot has a regular length The width and depth should be sufficient Should routing be necessary have it done by someone who knows how Widen the endpin hole to 12 mm diameter using an endpin reamer Make sure that it is centered properly and rectangular to the end block Drill a2 mm hole for a wider slot use a wider drill with a 90 angle through the saddle slot and the top at the edge of the slot It is immaterial which side is drilled bass or treble side Avoid hitting the braces We prefer treble side to clamp microphone and pu cable Clean up the inside Pickup installation Take the pickup out of the protecting tube and feed the thread through the hole in the top from the inside of the guitar It will fit most saddle slots easily the slot will not require filling You can use the thread as a spring to keep the pickup in place Make sure the saddle slides easily into the slot however it should not tilt Fix the saddle with masking tape to protect the pickup during installation and use a strip of masking tape to stick the pickup cable inside the guitar to a near top brace as strain relief Saddle height adjustment Take a sharp pencil and a ruler and draw a line 1 5mm from the
3. bottom of the saddle Using a rasp file file it down finishing with sandpaper 80 to 150 grain Be aware of the saddle material Bone Delrin or Micarta respond completely different and need proper tools Take care during the process of sanding If the saddle is too low you can use a cardboard or wooden shim to compensate In any case it should be flat and rectangular 1 oa gt i J aad g E Proper saddle fit and break angle Microphone block installation Peel one side of the white covered foil off the Dual lock tape and attach it to the microphone block The cable leaves the block 10 mm parallel to the top side You can compress the microphone block carefully to secure a proper fit Make sure where to place the microphone We recommend the micropho ne to be placed inside the gui tar on the back along the bridge at about 5 cm away from the side treble of the _ guitar Other positions will work too we find this however to be the sweet spot for best signal performance at minimum feedback Bare in mind the AK15 plus concept is a mix of sources and the microphone being inside the guitar has the job of enveloping the harmonic structure rather than the fundamentals Battery Holder installation Repeat the installation as with the Microphone Block if you prefer not to screw the battery holder to the top block screws are included in the package The recommended p
4. Electric Research the acoustic people Claim AER and AER Korea cannot be held responsible for any damages to your pickup or instrument that may result from improper installation AER recommends installation by qualified personnel only Your national distributor will be able to recommend someone Installation guide A qualified repairman or luthier works with patience and focus A successful installation requires a reasonable amount of care and attention and someone who knows what he is doing However there are some points to check and verify before an installation should be considered Please read the instruction carefully and make sure that you understand everything In case you are not absolutely confident in what you are doing allow a repair specialist to do it for you Check the contents of the pickup system to make sure everything is complete List of contens 1 1x AK 15 plus Endpin preamp with soundhole control SHC 2 1x Microphone foam bloc 3 1x Pick Up with protection tube 4 9V battery 6 2x Dual lock tape size 25 x 40 mm 1x Dual lock tape size 10 x 25 mm 7 3x Cable clamps 8 2 Screws for battery holder Add ons 1 1 AER Built in sticker 2 pencil bag 3 AER strings 4 AER Note pad 5 AER pencil 6 AER sticker Check and inspect the guitar e To make use of the soundhole control it needs to be attached Bracing around the soundhole differs between makers and can conflict
5. with the controls e Check the strings spacing centre to centre of the string or middle between a pair to make sure it matches the AER flex68 pickup recommended from 10 to 12 5 mm always from the middle e An adequate amount of string pressure on the pickup crystals is required to effect correct performance You will find that a mini mum 20 break angle is required if more all the better If your instrument does not provide this the string slots will need ram ping Worst case can be a neck reset or a new bridge See saddle height adjustment e Check that the top bracing does not conflict with the projected cable hole e Make sure that the bridge is not tilted and the top sunken in e Check the saddle Materials bone Delrin or Micarta require dif ferent attention You may consider getting an replacement saddle to work on keeping the original untouched e Make sure that it fits the slot and does not tilt within the slot There should be no routing required The pickup dimensions are 1 5 x 1 6 x 68 mm e Verify that the slot depth including pickup does not remain under half the total saddle height Mismatch can be compensated by chims or removal of material from the bottom of the saddle e Make sure that the tools are in good shape and sharp Working with wood needs proper tools You may find unexpected obstacles where you would normally expect smooth operation It is not complicated but it needs experien
6. ce and have a plaster handy e For sure the saddle slot has to be straight and even the saddle rectangular However this does not necessarily mean there will not be balance difficulties In many cases the balance between the strings of the acoustic instruments is not even the pickup howe ver properly installed just reflects this and needs compensation with e g Scotch tape But bare in mind problems are not always what they first appear Prepare the workplace Make sure you have enough space around you to place and move your instrument during installation without any problem Have an anti skid soft support and a proper neck rest ready Have your tools to hand Prepare the instrument Loosen the strings and clamp them with e g a capo in the first fret to keep them in place Remove the string endpins special bridge pin puller e g www stewmac com and the saddle Some saddles are pretty tight similar to being glued in It needs some skill to remove it either with an edge cutter pliers or a blade hold the trapezoid blade with both hands and pick the saddle at the treble side Remove the endpin special endpin grip e g www stewmac com Depending on what work needs to be done on your instrument use paper masking tape to protect the surface of the instrument around the bridge and the endpin however check the removability of the tape first at a safe spot on the instrument you never know AER
7. in its dynamic range as well as in all its registers It can be used with all instruments steel and classic which allow under saddle pickup installation with string spacings from 10 to 12 5 mm e To focus on tone practicability and durability rather than convenience e To provide acceptable battery life with focus on supply The installation is similar to all under saddle pickup systems The voltage rather than hours of performance instrument does not suffer mechanical stress in use or during installation There is no soldering necessary Considerations Warranty Taere are many Ways MOM tO ayoul ana GESINA pickup system The AK15 plus is warranted to function for a period of two and still it will not fit all applications instruments or personal likes The AK15 plus is what we have to start with That is to say years from the day of purchase In case of failure due to ae there is more to come in future and authentic tone will always be facturing repair exchange or refund are AER s only obliga prime priority As with all AER Products so far comments are tions This does not include consequential damage of misuse always welcome and valid comments will become part of the accident or neglect AER retains the right to makesuch deter product when time allows mination on the basis of factory inspection AER Audio Electric Research Christine Englerth Strasse 30 D 45665 Recklinghausen WwWw aer amps com page 1 AER 08 05 Audio
8. little experience to predict what will happen when doing this Tools you need f l t r pencil cutter wooddrill masking tape adjustable wrench scissors screwdriver Technical Data Max Input 10dBV Piezo Max Gain 20dBV Max Output 10dBV Output Impedance lt 50 ohm lt 91 dBV 22Hz 22 kHz Gain 0 dBV Input shorted Noise Supply Current 5 8 mA 9V Battery Design Low Noise Class A B output stage Low Noise FET input stage DC DC converter OdBV 1V AER Audio Electric Research Christine Englerth Strasse 30 D 45665 Recklinghausen www aer amps com page 4 AER 08 05
9. ll this has been experienced without using a feedback buster If you can hear both signal loud and clear you can install the preamp into the guitar and fix the cable with the cable clamps Soundhole control and final assembly Depending upon the construction of the guitar you may find it necessary to use different materials to underlay or pad the sound hole control If you can attach it directly to wood you can use Superglue to glue the SHC to the appropriate position We use Loctite 454 gel Should it be necessary to remove the SHC a blade can be used without leaving marks If adhesive tape is used you may find it falling off from time to Paper masking tape as strain relief underlay and Sound Hole Control time Also the adhesive tends to react with the wood leaving marks after a while Position the SHC where you can reach it easily and hide the cable behind a top brace using masking tape When mounted the right pot in direction of the bridge is the master volume the left pot in direction of the head stock adds the micro phone signal Now mount the endpin preamp and fix the cables inside the guitar with the cable clamps Insert the strings and bring your instrument up to pitch That should be it We all hope you like what you hear In case of string balance differences remove the strings again and stick a layer of Scotch tape under the saddle at the position of the string with the low signal It needs a
10. om like e Make sure where to place the microphone the search is seemingly unending However there is a difference in approach technology applied quality of instruments playing styles and personal perception and e Test run preferences e Battery Holder installation e Soundhole control and final assembly Thus it makes sense to trust in experts luthiers repairmen around you for consultation and recommendation with regard to your instru e Technical data ment style and listening tastes Objectives Intro AER Pick Up systems are made to Thank you for choosing AER Be assured we have done a lot to achieve this level of performance We hope that it may change the way you look at things a bit e To capture the true sound of the instrument with a maximum of dynamic range even if it exceeds the dynamic range of the instrument The AK15 plus is a two source Piezo crystal plus electret ee e To avoid compression and distortion where ever possible condenser microphone endpin pickup system The two levels are pre adjustable independently at the pre amp and controlled with e To achieve high volumes combined with low noise soundhole control master plus added microphone components for best possible signal to noise ratio It has been a developing goal to come up with an easy to use e To combine more than one source to follow the acoustics versatile pickup system that follows the acoustic sound of the with best truth instrument
11. osition is along the first back brace at the centre close to the top block The dual lock tape gives a firm connection with the sythetic rubber glue holding firm however removable AER Audio Electric Research Christine Englerth Strasse 30 D 45665 Recklinghausen WWwW aer amps com page 3 AER 08 05 Audio Electric Research the acoustic people Test run Connect pickup and microphone block to the preamp according to colour code and connect the battery Then connect output jack to an amplifier Even though the trim pots are sensitive you will have no problem in identifying 4 positions when the pots are turned with a screw driver Zero 1 1 3 2 2 3 3 full 4 Settings depend on the guitar body size the maximum volume you want to achieve and your preference in sound Make sure thats microphone volume and master are at maximum at the soundhole control during test run Factory setting Piezo 10dB between pos 2 and 3 Microphone 10 dB between pos 2 and 3 Note AK 15 plus is not made for microphone only perform ance You will find a surprisingly warm yet strong and clear tone from the piezo due to an suitable electronic environment The microphone will add definition vitality and authenticity as well as an acoustic ambience that make the sound more natural Too much microphone however will make the tone hollow whilst piezo at full volume may make microphone use impractical A
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