Georgia On My Mind - Eastman/Schertler

[Kevin Briggs]

Hi Everyone,

Hope you’re well. :-)

This is a clip from a gig last Saturday night. We played at Pine Grove Hall in Pine Grove Mills, PA, a great little place with a stellar sound system complete with three-angle video capabilities as the clip shows:

https://fb.watch/6kke3duv4Z/

I’m playing a 2020 Eastman 805, using a Schertler DYN-M pickup through a Schertler Yellow preamp. It’s a sweet combo. The Eastman sounds very good acoustically. The DYN-M is my favorite mandolin pickup that is reasonably affordable and can sound great plugged directly into the PA. The Yellow preamp is just phenomenal. It balances and focuses the DYN-M tone and has all kinds of nifty bells and whistles, including a resin feedback reducer.

Hope you enjoy. The Eastman is a good stop-gap mandolin while I wait on a highly anticipated custom build, especially for the "blem.” Truly, I like it better than some of the much more expensive mandolins I've owned. I know Eastman quality control can be a thing, but I got a good one. I’ll definitely be keeping it.

Feedback on any and all of it more than welcome!

[John Kelly]

Great video and fine performances from all of you, Kevin. Sound mix is really good and the video clips very professional. Great venue!

[Bren]

Sounds great Kevin - I would have said you were playing through a mic, based on sound only.

Have you played the Schertler DYN/Yellow combo in a noisier outfit?

[Bob Clark]

Thanks for posting this Kevin. I use a Schertler Basik pickup (stick-on) and Schertler Guilia amp. Recently, I have been thinking about getting a Schertler Yellow preamp. You've pretty much convinced me it's a good idea. I really like your sound in this recording. Great playing too, by the way.

[maxr]

Thanks for posting this Kevin. I use a Schertler Basik pickup (stick-on)..

How do you find the Basik pickup, Bob? It's a lot more affordable than some other Shertlers here in UK.

[Kevin Briggs]

Hi Everyone,

Thanks for your replies.

Bren… I’ve used the DYN/Yellow in a six piece with drums, electric bass, electric guitar, and pedal steel. It’s definitely doable in that setting, although a challenge. The most significant obstacle though seems to be sound techs. Only one so far has realized the master volume on the Yellow should be cranked so the mando channel on the PA can be on 2 or 3.

Bob… the Yellow is fantastic, a really nice preamp. I waited years for good gear and it is definitely that, Michael at Djangobooks was a great resource too and I was happy to buy it there.

Another nod to Schertler for warranty follow through on the DYN, which has a cord that has been known to fray.

[Frankdolin]

Really nice Kevin. Some sweet vibrato there.

[Bob Clark]

How do you find the Basik pickup, Bob? It's a lot more affordable than some other Shertlers here in UK.

Hi Maxr,

I really like it. I use it on my OM, flat top and arch top mandolins, and flat and arch top piccolo mandolins and in each instance, I hear the specific voice of that instrument coming through the amp. They clearly sound as they should. On each instrument, I move the pickup around until I find the best spot on the top for it. Swapping it instrument-to-instrument is quick and simple, and off you go playing that next instrument. You can easily do this in a gig setting, as long as you remember to shut the volume down while doing the swap!

Initially I had some problem with bumping the pickup's wire while playing, making a very objectionable noise. Then I figured out that if I run the wire back to the tailpiece and attach it to the pin with a small piece of 'bread-tie', problem solved.

Anyway, it works so well, my duo partner bought one too. Pretty good endorsement, I'd say.

Best wishes,

Bob

[Alfons]

Kevin, nice job! Nice to get the rundown on the equipment and then see/hear it in action. I liked that the sound overall is great, you can hear everyone very well in the mix and you weren't trampling all over each other. I found myself thinking that your three part arrangement would support you and the guitarist doing some chord stuff together, and maybe trading some licks as well. Thanks for sharing this fine performance with us.

[Bren]

Hi Everyone,

Thanks for your replies.

Bren… I’ve used the DYN/Yellow in a six piece with drums, electric bass, electric guitar, and pedal steel. It’s definitely doable in that setting, although a challenge. The most significant obstacle though seems to be sound techs. .

An obstacle I've encountered many times ...

If I ever go gigging again, it will be back to on-call substitution gigs in my friend's ceilidh band.

I turn up on a "know the repertoire, got a car, plug'n'play" basis.

No drums but he has a heavy left hand on the accordion and the bouzouki player is an ex-punk rocker with hearing problems but he sure knows how to amp up that zouk.

Band does its own sound and the mandolin is often inaudible in the front mix even when it's clear on the monitors. I have a Mcintyre feather in my mando and for simplicity, use a BOSS G-7 EQ on which I crank up the master volume as far as I dare without risking too much distortion. (that's a little higher than normal , when I'm playing with those two)

And then occasionally we find ourselves in festivals , charity gigs or other public gigs and once again at the mercy of sound techs with seemingly vast experience ... of heavy metal power trios and little else.

So thanks again for the details Kevin.

I must say if I've ever heard a mandolinist in a band at a venue and thought their amplified sound was good enough for me to ask , the name Schertler has come up most often.

[Bob Clark]

Hi Everyone,

The most significant obstacle though seems to be sound techs.

Same here. One place we play in particular. He's always had a few too many and is completely checked out.

[Kevin Briggs]

An obstacle I've encountered many times ...

If I ever go gigging again, it will be back to on-call substitution gigs in my friend's ceilidh band.

I turn up on a "know the repertoire, got a car, plug'n'play" basis.

No drums but he has a heavy left hand on the accordion and the bouzouki player is an ex-punk rocker with hearing problems but he sure knows how to amp up that zouk.

Band does its own sound and the mandolin is often inaudible in the front mix even when it's clear on the monitors. I have a Mcintyre feather in my mando and for simplicity, use a BOSS G-7 EQ on which I crank up the master volume as far as I dare without risking too much distortion. (that's a little higher than normal , when I'm playing with those two)

And then occasionally we find ourselves in festivals , charity gigs or other public gigs and once again at the mercy of sound techs with seemingly vast experience ... of heavy metal power trios and little else.

So thanks again for the details Kevin.

I must say if I've ever heard a mandolinist in a band at a venue and thought their amplified sound was good enough for me to ask , the name Schertler has come up most often.

Thanks, Bren….

Yes, my experiences have led me to feel the Schertler DYN-M is a great match for the mandolin, and the Yellow preamp just really dials it in.

Nothing against piezo pickups…. I have a K&K Pure Mine in my Martin HD-28 and run it into a Pure Preamp. It sounds great. But, some of my experiences with piezo pickups on mandolins has left me cold.

[kookaburra]

That sounds really nice!

[Kevin Briggs]

Thanks, kookaburra!

I'm also highly anticipating a custom build that will likely be ready this summer. I've been keeping it under wraps since October and I'm about ready to burst! It will be my fancy pants mandolin and will be brothers with the Eastman, which I also love and do not anticipate getting rid of. Truly, it's a great mandolin, especially for the price, but even if it were more expensive. I have no complaints about it whatsoever.

Can't wait to hear the Schertler DYN-M and Yellow Preamp on my custom build too. The versatility is one of the great things about the DYN-M. Because it attaches via putty it can be used on all of your instruments, which you can only play on at a time by the way! :-)

Thanks again!
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