L.R. Baggs LB Pre Pickup for Acoustic Guitar

L.R. Baggs LB Pre — Endpin Preamp with Volume Control

The LB Pre is the companion piece to the L.R. Baggs LB series saddle pickups. LB pickups are passive and deliberately have no controls of their own — the output is strong enough to go straight into an amp — but as soon as you want to set your level at the instrument, or feed a PA with an active signal, a preamp belongs in the chain. The LB Pre puts that preamp inside the guitar, in the one place where it requires no new holes: the endpin.

What It Adds to an LB Pickup

The unit combines three things in a single body — the output jack, the strap button and the preamp itself. The active stage buffers the pickup and drives the cable properly, which matters on long cable runs and when the next device in the chain has a lower input impedance than a piezo pickup would like. The thumbwheel volume control sits at the jack, so the player can trim the level on stage without reaching for an amp or a pedal.

Installation

The jack needs a clean half-inch hole through the tail block, which is the same hole used for any endpin jack — on a guitar already fitted with one, no new drilling is needed at all. The nut and washers are adjusted so that roughly 90 % of the smaller threaded section extends past the tail block, and the strap ring is fitted last. The threaded section must end up flush or near flush with the end of the strap ring, otherwise the plug will not make electrical contact. Professional installation is required.

Specifications

• Type: Endpin preamp with output jack and strap button
• Designed for: L.R. Baggs LB6, LB6X, LBC and LB12 saddle pickups
• Controls: Thumbwheel volume at the jack
• Power: 9V battery
• Mounting: Tail block, 1/2" hole — uses the standard endpin position