I bought this on ebay; https://www.ebay.com/itm/155407062138
It uses a single Li-ion cell. Drives a panel exciter, which I've glued on to the back inside of a nylon string acoustic, over the top of the manufacturers label. Turns the back of the guitar into a speaker of sorts - you can hear sound radiating clearly from the backs wood surface.
Doesnt take a lot of power to make the guitar substantially louder. It's all reverb however - which is how the device gets away with driving the guitar's sound from a piezo pickup back into the guitar body without feedback.
I mention it here not to hijack the thread, but just as a point that it doesnt take much power to make an ordinary acoustic louder. There's no wet / dry mix available however; you can only drive a delayed signal back into the body.
There's even a microphone which picks up sound from inside the guitar; if that isnt a recipe for feedback I dont know what is. Because of the delay it doesnt feed back. Need to investigate if that mic actually does anything; it's got its own control even. Of course, BT - everything's gotta have Bluetooth... I could listen to music using my guitar as a DML speaker...
It uses a single Li-ion cell. Drives a panel exciter, which I've glued on to the back inside of a nylon string acoustic, over the top of the manufacturers label. Turns the back of the guitar into a speaker of sorts - you can hear sound radiating clearly from the backs wood surface.
Doesnt take a lot of power to make the guitar substantially louder. It's all reverb however - which is how the device gets away with driving the guitar's sound from a piezo pickup back into the guitar body without feedback.
I mention it here not to hijack the thread, but just as a point that it doesnt take much power to make an ordinary acoustic louder. There's no wet / dry mix available however; you can only drive a delayed signal back into the body.
There's even a microphone which picks up sound from inside the guitar; if that isnt a recipe for feedback I dont know what is. Because of the delay it doesnt feed back. Need to investigate if that mic actually does anything; it's got its own control even. Of course, BT - everything's gotta have Bluetooth... I could listen to music using my guitar as a DML speaker...
Hello RS - the mag pickup is in the sound hole, and the piezo is under the saddle. The pots (potentiometers) are the controls. Jacks are 1/4", but I am open to others. The amp and battery can be mounted into the openings from the back of the guitar. I have based this on the Roland AC33, does not need to be the same, but a good start. I am open to any suggestions you have to make this work. I am not an electronics guy, does this help? Not sure if a custom amp is feasible. I am not concerned about price right now, I will pay to test, but of course this is a big concern for future production, what do you think? Thanks much for your input!
Where are they shown in your document?
The piezo is your speaker? You need to specify a speaker, that one you can buy today, not something from an old speaker as in your proto, so possibly the mech needs to change to accommodate a final speaker choice.
what's the jack needed for? the proto? the final version will have the mag pickup connect directly to the amp and the amp wired to the speaker, all done inside the cavity of the guitar?
Same drawings as before, exactly what part of the amp are you using?
need to make a drawing, a black box representing the amp, specify the jacks , pots etc of what is connected to what, in you prototype, and then the final design, figure out how much power you really require?
imo your drawings should show mechanically where the jacks and pots are placed, even to the point of specifying the diameter of the the pot knob etc
someone needs to find a Roland AC33 amp service manual to figure that one out. mfg/specs for the mag pickup. Just need to figure out how much gain is required, how about tone controls?
All depends on where its going, are you building one or a thousand. Customers come to mind, who wants one and for what? I don't. I do not play nor want to learn, but lots of fish in the sea.
You apply for a patent, I have no idea of what that costs, I'am guessing some serious $, so I wonder how much for a patent/lawyer etc vs hiring a electronics designer, to design a custom solution for your patented guitar?
Its a patented custom guitar, it deserves custom electronics, not something shoehorned in there from unreliable suppliers. as in a prototype. need a stage two proto, with custom electronics, have to pay to play 🙂
You have the concept and working electronics, just need it fine tune the specs, package it up properly.
The battery needs to be better defined, how is it charged? is it contained and needs a built in or external charger or
is it easilly changed and charged outside? How long do you want the battery to last?
Lots to work out sir
Good Luck
Hello RS- all good questions, thank you for taking an interest in my project. Do you build custom amps? Can you build (3) of them for approx. $500 each given the low volume? I could easily go higher for just one if needed, not a problem. If this goes to high volume, obviously that will change the cost structure.
If you can do this, then yes I will write a full spec to answer all your questions, and can also provide drawings and dimensions for you to work with.
The piezo is the pickup, I also use a magnetic pickup. The 3" speaker is a Tectonic TEBM46C20N-4B BMR 3" full range speaker 4 ohm. I have about (20) of them in stock, they are great sounding full range speakers. I have tested many that do not compare.
The 1/4" jacks are from the pickups into the amp. I am sure there are smaller alternatives. I will include the Roland AC 33 specs in my specs.
I wrote the patent myself. It was a long learning curve to do this, but I have this guitar patent granted from the USPTO (Patent # 10,177,172), you can find it on Google Patents. I have a recent second patent that is not related to this guitar, but has also been granted. I have a third patent that is being reviewed by the USPTO now, and IS related to this guitar, multiple patents are common for a new product. That does save money for an electronics designer. I know I can NOT do that, but you can. I like your comment about how this deserves custom electronics, I agree!
Obviously if you sell me (3) amps, it is no big deal to you, but what if this takes off and I need many many more from you, would that interest you? Get in on the ground floor.
I will give you battery specs, but will likely need to get that from the Roland amp specs, they say it can last about 4-5 hours, and charging is with a USB. I do like the idea of swapping the battery out with a spare, as you and JJ both mentioned. Power getting low, swap it out!
Are you a dreamer? I am. I have been working on this for years, and I know for sure it has not been done before, or at least if it has, somebody did it without a patent and has no legal rights, but I doubt it.
Canada and the U.S. respect each others patent rights, so no problem there. Oh yeah, and as you know, Canada has more Maple trees, and big ones, than I believe any other country in the world. Rock Maple is a beautiful sounding tonewood, very strong, cuts well, finishes well, and is not even close to ever being an endangered species, like Brazilian Rosewood (which I love). Let me have it and thank you!
If you can do this, then yes I will write a full spec to answer all your questions, and can also provide drawings and dimensions for you to work with.
The piezo is the pickup, I also use a magnetic pickup. The 3" speaker is a Tectonic TEBM46C20N-4B BMR 3" full range speaker 4 ohm. I have about (20) of them in stock, they are great sounding full range speakers. I have tested many that do not compare.
The 1/4" jacks are from the pickups into the amp. I am sure there are smaller alternatives. I will include the Roland AC 33 specs in my specs.
I wrote the patent myself. It was a long learning curve to do this, but I have this guitar patent granted from the USPTO (Patent # 10,177,172), you can find it on Google Patents. I have a recent second patent that is not related to this guitar, but has also been granted. I have a third patent that is being reviewed by the USPTO now, and IS related to this guitar, multiple patents are common for a new product. That does save money for an electronics designer. I know I can NOT do that, but you can. I like your comment about how this deserves custom electronics, I agree!
Obviously if you sell me (3) amps, it is no big deal to you, but what if this takes off and I need many many more from you, would that interest you? Get in on the ground floor.
I will give you battery specs, but will likely need to get that from the Roland amp specs, they say it can last about 4-5 hours, and charging is with a USB. I do like the idea of swapping the battery out with a spare, as you and JJ both mentioned. Power getting low, swap it out!
Are you a dreamer? I am. I have been working on this for years, and I know for sure it has not been done before, or at least if it has, somebody did it without a patent and has no legal rights, but I doubt it.
Canada and the U.S. respect each others patent rights, so no problem there. Oh yeah, and as you know, Canada has more Maple trees, and big ones, than I believe any other country in the world. Rock Maple is a beautiful sounding tonewood, very strong, cuts well, finishes well, and is not even close to ever being an endangered species, like Brazilian Rosewood (which I love). Let me have it and thank you!