Fishman NeoD Humbucker

THANKS TO FISHMAN’S RARE
Earth active pickup (originally
conceived by British luthier Mike
Vanden), guitarists have for nearly a
decade been able to enjoy a soundhole
pickup that captures an accurate
acoustic tone but without any piezo
‘ping’. Easy to fi t, the Rare Earth can be
either permanently installed (with
dedicated endpin jack) or used when
the need to amplify your acoustic arises.
Both single-coil and humbucking
versions, however, aren’t cheap, which
led Vanden and Fishman to develop the
KEY INFO ❘ FISHMAN NEO-D HUMBUCKER ❘ PRICE: £79 ❘ TYPE: PASSIVE SOUNDHOLE ’BUCKER ❘ TEL: SOUND TECHNOLOGY 01462 480000
MISCELLANEOUS CD TRACKS 6 & 7
KEY INFO ❘ SOUND LAB PEDAL POWER ❘ PRICE: £33 ❘ TYPE: PEDALBOARD POWER SUPPLY ❘ TEL: BARNES & MULLINS 01691 652449
PROVIDING POWER TO YOUR
pedalboard is the concern of every
responsible gigger and, if you’ve ever
had the misfortune of a mid-show
battery failure, you’ll certainly be aware
of the importance of a consistent supply
of juice.
This simple unit is designed to power
six stompboxes with nine volts of power
via six DC leads, each of which can be
plugged into the supply itself and
subsequently removed when the show
is over for easy packing-away. The PSU
is hard-wired to a mains lead and also
features an on/off switch (but there’s no
power LED…)
Although there’s no provision for
pedals that require 12 or 18 volts
(products that do this, such as the
admittedly wondrous Dunlop DC Brick
at £133, cost signifi cantly more), one
issue is that the six DV connectors are
all of the same length, which means that
the supply needs to be placed virtually
equidistant from your pedals.
IN USE: If, like us, you already have
a working layout for your effects, this
could prove to be something of a
compromise, but after some re-jigging
we were able to connect everything up.
The unit is stable and silent in its power
provision, and does exactly what it says
on the box: just remember to turn the
PSU on before you hit the stage…
Verdict
There is quite a wide choice of power
supplies from such High Street outlets
as Maplins and Argos, but we’d
recommend opting for one that’s
designed specifi cally for guitar pedals
as that way you’ll be sure that the
current won’t cause any damage. The
A simple and affordable solution for your pedal power needs… by Simon Bradley
Sound Lab Pedal Power 450 £33
RATING
RATING
electric edge that gives
a fi rmness and fullness to
upper lead lines – all without a
hint of piezo-like zing.
Verdict
A very fi ne and affordable all-round
pickup – just the ticket too for slide
players and those leaning towards jazz
and blues in their acoustic style.
Need to quickly amplify your steel-string acoustic? Fishman has the answer yet again by Dave Burrluck
Fishman Neo-D Humbucker
£79
Pedal Power is about as simple as
we’d like to get, but at the meagre
asking price, this is a perfectly
acceptable choice.
The Neo-D has
got plenty of zing
and sizzle
Pedal Power
450: the stable
and silent type
FISHMAN NEO-D TEST RESULTS
Build quality
Fitting
Sound
Value for money
■ WE LIKED Easy to fi t; great all-round
tone; no batteries
■ WE DISLIKED Relativity low output but
doesn’t ruin the fun
PEDAL POWER TEST RESULTS
Build quality
Features
In use
Value for money
■ WE LIKED The straightforward nature
and consistency of power
■ WE DISLIKED Same length DC leads and
lack of an on/of f LED
JULY 2007 151
passive Neo-D, initially in a
single-coil format (reviewed
Guitarist issue 234), and now
humbucking.
SOUNDS: Fitted in seconds the
Neo-D is perfect for the occasional
performer. And if you’ve not
experienced the sound of these
modern soundhole pickups you’re in for
a shock. The Neo-D, by nature, is very
quiet and free from hum pickup. Its
output will need a little help as it’s lower
than a comparable active pickup, but
the sound is beautifully balanced string-
to-string producing plenty of zing and
sizzle in the high end and surprisingly
crisp low string response. The tonal
balance too – as with so many Fishman
products – is bang on the nail. Be
prepared to be surprised, the Neo-D will
give some older under-saddle picks a
run too with such a natural thumb-print
to the tone and a really appealing slight
GIT291.rev_quick 151 18/5/07 08:26:22