VPDI with external mic | Red Hat Recommendation 

Yes! I was very pleased to see that this has been updated.

interesting. Is this vs bare fingers or vs flat picking?

Thanks again. I am hopeful that LR Baggs will continue to come out with new features. This is a really good pedal that will likely become a great pedal with a few updates. You are right. The ability to eq the external mic ahead of time was critical. That and the ability to monitor the sound in real time and adjust the position.

@@redhatreview Ah, ok I was wondering if you eq'd the mic before sending it to the pedal. You mentioned it, but wasn't sure. All great things to know.

@@roamsy Yes. Very sparingly though. Mainly to address the build up of low end I had been getting. I may try more eq in the future, but I am happy with how it is sounding now.

@@redhatreview Cool, I think it sounds awesome, but it can always sound better ; - )

@@roamsy That is what we are all chasing! lol

Let me know how it works for you.

@@redhatreview Worked beautifully. Tried two different mics with great results. I still think the iphone mic works great but the option to use mics now is another layer of awesomeness.

You are welcome! This simple method takes an already great pedal and makes it more versatile! Let me know what kind of results you get with different mics.

Glad it was helpful!

I am planning on doing a comparison video at some point to help others figure out what will be best for them. Although it takes some extra equipment, you definitely can use any mic you have to make a voiceprint. Surprisingly, this does not have a huge increase in fidelity, but it does give you a different 'flavor' that you may prefer. Prior to the update that allows for a separate EQ on the voiceprint itself, I found using an external mic best to shape the eq during the creation process. It resulted in a voiceprint that I didn't have to EQ so much in the app and allowed for more seamless blending. This is still helpful, but less so with the recent software and firmware updates. I prefer the Voiceprint, but that doesn't mean I would recommend it to everyone over the Tonedexter. I think they both have their place. I'll go into detail in a video, but in short: Tonedexter is more mic-like than Voiceprint. It has a depth and hollow sound that is convincing, but not what I like live. The voiceprint maintains more of the feel and attack of your pickup and is a bit more direct sounding, but alters the tone and eq of your pickup to sound very much like your guitar. I hope this is helpful.

I agree. These are best for piezo pickups.

This guitar has a Trance Audio Amulet M pickup. It’s a soundboard transducer pickup with internal preamp. I have used the VPDI with SBT’s, the Anthem, and UST pickups. It works well on all of them. In particular, the VPDI works better with a wider variety of pickups in comparison to other options. I think you can store up to 99 presets. I have not tied it on a resonator.

@@redhatreview OK, thanks !

@@redhatreview Hi again. Thanks for your reply. OK, one or two things I'm still not clear about. Is the audio output original analogue audio of the guitar, with specific EQ (programmed by the Voiceprint) to modify that analogue audio, or is the whole audio signal converted to digital, processed, then output as digital (or even converted back to analogue) ? If going into the digital domain, I'd expect some latency - what is the latency in milliseconds (roughly) ? ie. I'm trying to work out if there is a slightly latency / delay in the audio coming out from the speakers. A rough millisecond estimate would help me decide if it would be enough to bother me. I'm a keyboard playertoo, and using MIDI from a sound source to the controller etc causes a perceptable latency, on some devices. Thanks again.

​@@snakehips81 The signal chain within the pedal is: Input -> AD Conversion -> Processor -> DA Conversion -> FX Loop -> Analog Volume-> Outputs. It has no noticeable latency in my experience. My guess is there is latency, but it's so low that it is imperceivable.

It's a Trance Audio Amulet M pickup.

@@redhatreview thanks homie! I’m pretty confused about which acoustic pickup to put in. I’m looking for something that won’t effect my natural acoustic sound. Been looking at the HFN and K&K. I’ll take a ganders at this one as well. Which flavor pickup is your preferred on a Dred?

@@randyranderson pretty much any sound board transducer pickup fits the desire to not change the acoustic tone of the guitar. I don’t have experience with HFN, but my understanding is it’s on the bright side of the spectrum where as K&K is on the warm/bass-y side of the spectrum. My experience with the trance is very good and i’d probably opt for it again over both other options you mention. If you are wanting a passive pickup, look into Dazzo and Ultratonic as well. Best of luck.

@@redhatreview Thanks for the good gouge bro bro!

I have had a similar experience. In a full band I have found that a very low blend of IR can work. I have used the Aura this way for a long time. Just to add a little body and depth. The trouble with Aura and other 3rd party IR’s is that they aren’t based on your actual guitar and pickup. I also personally think just a great pickup sounds fantastic in a live full band situation. I have very little full band live experience with the VPDI due to venues not being open, but I’m optimistic that this one will work better than others I’ve tried. I still will likely have it blended with my pickup, but I can see the blend going higher than that of the Aura or Tonedexter and providing a very good sound. As I get some more experience in loud full band settings with the VPDI, I’ll report back with my findings.

@@redhatreview , yeah... I understand that. Actually, I've made some IRs at home for my guitar, thanks to the free algorithm made by JonFields45 (theacousticguitarforum). While they sound much better than 3rd party ones at home, I'm still hesitant to try them live because I was reasonably satisfied with the pickup sound with the full band... And experience told me it wasn't worth trying any more. I'll be really following your news! Even though I was more or less done with IRs, there's always a possibility to improve. Thank you for your reply, and keep on making these great, honest and useful reviews!

@@dheranYT I think a good pickup through a PA is great with a full band. No need to mess with a good thing if you are liking your sound. I will say of all the IR stuff I’ve tried with acoustic, the VPDI retains what I like about my pickup more than others. And doesn’t feel hollow or disconnected like some others have for me.

Aaron, it's just like if you were describing what I think about all of this. When I gave up IRs for live acoustic guitar, I was fairly happy with the pickup sound. Our sound tech guy told me several times to turn off those fxxxxxx IRs and give him just the raw piezo signal. It was a nightmare for him to place in the mix the processed signal. He wasn't able to make it properly. So the pickup signal was the way to go, no need to search elsewhere, actually. That hollowness, or disconnection, that you say... Is exactly what I felt too. But I can't help keeping an eye to new devices or technology. If VPDI is somehow an improvement, I'll be watching. I just love these things!

You certainly could use the VPDI to record. I would personally always choose microphones in a recording setting if possible.

Rodrigo - I can tell you what I prefer, but it may be most helpful to ask some questions as well. Are you planning on using the VPDI or TD live or for recording, or both? Have you used IR with acoustic before and do you prefer a blend or full IR signal? Do you have other guitars / pickups that you will plug into them in addition to the K&K equipped HD28? With my guitars and pickups, and the way in which I like to use IR on acoustic, I prefer the VPDI. I will say that the TD is maybe more mic-like in that it has a depth and space to it that is hard to describe, but is there. This seems to be a polarizing thing as some people, including me, find that this creates a disconnect when plugged in. There is a hollowness to the sound AND feel. From the audience perspective, it's probably all positive. But for me as the player, I don't like the feel as much. The VPDI handles a wider variety of pickups that TD in my limited experience including mic based pickups like the Anthem and Lyric. I like the blending on the VPDI better. Most importantly to me is the feel and responsiveness of the pickup is not altered with the VPDI - even at 100%. This is the main reason I like it better. It may not be quite as mic-like as the TD, but I find I just like the sound and feel better. keep in mind, I am using it live and not for recording, and I prefer to use a blend of it and treat it like I would adding a mic to my pickup signal, which I already like. I'm not looking to totally replace the pickup sound. Just add some depth and woodiness to it by way of the IR. These things tend to shift as well as there are software updates, so keep in mind this is my thoughts on it as of now. Sorry for the long winded reply. I hope this helps.

@@redhatreview Thanks again for some great advice.

@@darrylday30 I’m happy to share my experiences and thoughts and hope they can be helpful.

You have a great guitar and a great pickup system. The advantage of the voiceprint over the venue is the IR capabilities as well as the fully parametric eq. The advantage of the venue is the physical knobs that allow easier real time adjustments. Which one do you think makes most sense for you and the environments you play in?

Glad you found this helpful. Let me know how your voiceprints turn out with your outboard equipment.

@@redhatreview Will do. I also think external mics add some other things, too, even if we assume that the iPhone mic is pretty flat. For one, character. I have a pair of Microtech-Geffell mics that add a little something over what any other mics I have can do on an acoustic guitar. Another thing is the ability to aim them, and have a pattern that can reject some of the artifacts that the iPhone omnidirectional mic couldn't. Then you start getting into good preamps, etc, and combine that with the EQ flexibility and feedback control the Voiceprint offers, and I think it's going to be nice. Ordered the camera kit today. Thanks again!

Thanks for watching. I’m hoping to do a compare and contrast of some of the options out there including VPDI and tone dexter. Until then, I’ll just say that I prefer the VPDI, but there are people for whom and scenarios in which I might recommend the Tonedexter. They are both great. Are you interested in one of these for live use or recording? What kind of settings are you playing in? Full band? Solo? Do you like your pickup sound?

@@redhatreview Hi, I am classically trained, only coming recently to jazz. I play the bass line in a jazz group (lots of saxes.....) and also with a guitarist. I want a clean sound, with effects from me and my cello, not electronic kit, at least for now. Not interested in recording at the moment, but who knows. Using a Fishman pickup and LR Baggs Para DI at the moment. Fender 85 that I use does not work at all well and I am about to get another amp as well. Trying to choose between AER and Acus; any advice on this also welcome and many thanks for your interest.

@@johnbaruch3106 Hi John. You might want to check out these two videos of a guy who thoroughly tests both the Voice Print and the Tonedexter for use with cello and violin: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-g4O91nT8V7E.html ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-RUx29JHrptk.html He kind of gave the Voice Print a negative review for use with cello, but he only used the iPhone mic (which is the only official way of using it!). I think if had tried external mics as @Red Hat has, he would have been able to get better results. What I love about the concept of the Voice Print is the ease of use, ease of manipulating voice prints with EQ, and the fact that LR Baggs can and probably will be for a long time updating the app and giving new features that improve the pedal more.

@@neilzubot Thanks Neil. I have ordered the Tone Dexter, partly so I can get boost and mute without needing extra pedals. Also getting an Acus Cremona amp so if the sound is bad it will be all down to my playing.......

Sorry to hear that. I never had a problem, so unfortunately, I’m not sure how to advise you on making it work. Maybe get in touch with Apple support? Best of luck.

That’s the amount of voiceprint blended with the pickup signal.

Yes, you can. You will have to create the voiceprint with a real acoustic though and it would be best if it had the same or similar type of pickup in it.

Thanks. I just got one for my acoustic guitar. But when gigging I use a dual voiced Godin. Been using an Aura Spectrum DI for the longest time. And I'm thinking of replacing the Aura on my board for this. Because of the eq functionality. Thanks for the reply. I'll try it out. Great tip by the way on the external mic

i don’t think so. I think the iPhone dongle is made for a TRRS jack that handles audio in and out in one jack. If you can find a dual 1/4” to 1/8” TRRS cable, and it’s wired correctly, it could work. Give it a try and let me know.

I give the edge to VPDI because it works with a wider variety of pickups and has the least amount of distant/detached sound and feeling. Plus the EQ is insanely powerful. That said. Tonedexter is easier to use with studio mics and probably gives the more realistic mic sound which is great for recording or streaming.

I have heard of others experiencing unwanted noise. I haven’t had that problem.

@@redhatreview interesting. I’ve tried three and all had this noise. Also both in ears and through front of house

Dang. That is really too bad. Hopefully Baggs can resolve this issue with V2.