K&K pure mini acoustic pickup (2024)

I also have the K & K PM in many guitars. No battery needed, no need to hack into the bridge (3 discs glue to the maple bridge plate internally and can be removed with little trace they were ever installed if you decide you don't like them) and work with many different pre-amps. What's not to like? They sound very natural to me. I would recommend them.

Removing the expression system may be a bit difficult. I believe I saw detailed instructions on the Acoustic Guitar Forum a couple years ago for how to remove it.

Good luck with the switch over!

I'm a big fan of their stuff. I have used the Pure Mini in several guitars and have the Trinity system in my current guitar. If I use a mono cable it just sends the Pure Mini signal; a stereo cable sends the Pure Mini on one side and the mic on the other.

I have one in a Larrivee. It just sounds like my guitar.

As always take what I say with a grain of salt.

I have. K&K in my J45 Standard. I removed the LR Baggs VTC UST, and love the K&K. I run mine through a Radial PZ Pre and it sounds great. The K&K will sound it's best when you pair it with a preamp that matches the impedance of the K&K (The Radial PZ Pre has a switch for both low and hi-z impedance choices).

Best compromise between spending a ton on a pickup system and getting a pretty darn nice, fairly natural sound. The K&K is definitely way more natural sounding than a UST or magnetic sound hole pickup, way more responsive/touch-sensitive, and way cheaper and easier to use than an expensive dual-source system that uses both a mic and some sort of SBT (like the K&K trinity system).

On some guitars the K&K may meed a little extra TLC when EQ-ing, and it's not the best pickup if you plan on using it with a loud band, but for me (solo stuff, or playing with a buddy where we're both playing acoustic), or doing an open mic solo, the K&K has worked for me.

The K&K may not be the "best" pickup out there, but it's hard to beat for the money and for my uses is light years better than a UST or magnetic sound hole pickup.

I have the K&K pure mini in two of my acoustics. They sound very natural. I use the k&k preamp, one internal and one external. Either way I get great results. They sound really good with a band and I will throw a sound hole cover in if there’s a feedback problem. I’ve played it with a loud band with drums and ripping vocal monitors with minimal problems.

They really really shine with quiet acoustic stuff, but are good all around. If I was putting a pickup in a new acoustic today, I would buy a third one without hesitation. Of course YMMV as always. There are great options out there, but I don’t see a need for me to get something else a this point.

Burt-Reynolds said:

The expression system in my 06 Taylor just S$#t the bed and I'm looking at the K&K pure mini to replace it. I've looked into going with the new ES2 upgrade from Taylor, but I kind of want an easy setup that keeps the natural character of the guitar. Anybody tried the K&K pure mini and liked it?

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1. I have tried the K&K ...did not like it. And this through diff preamps through console/PA. Others like it; I do not.
2. Are you the original owner of the Taylor? If so, the mothership will replace it, gratis! If not the original owner, I'd recommend you replace your orig ES (AA battery version wasn't great, IMHO) it with the ES1.3, which is "version 1, 3rd iteration" ...it sounds superb, requires little-to-no EQ to sound natural, and retains the use of the V,T,B controls which I have always found handy playing live. Even if you have to pay to get it done, an authorized Taylor tech is likely not far from you and worth every penny in the long run. (btw, I likewise don't recommend the ES2, go with the 1.3, really).
3. Should you prefer to not keep the ES and replace it, I'd recommend not getting the K&K and opting instead for the Baggs Lyric or the Anthem SL which is more versatile than the good Lyric.

Edward