LR Baggs iMix Onboard User Manual

L.R. BAGGS PPEAMPS

iMIX ONBOARD

INSTALLATION MANUAL AND USER'S GUIDE

483 N. FRONTAGE RD.

NIPOMO, CA 93444

WWW.LRBAGGS.COM

T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S

1. Package contents

2. Overview & cautions

3. Removal of previous system (retrofit only)

4. New installation woodworking

5. Strapjack installation

6. Preamp installation

7. iBeam installation: pin bridge guitars

8. iBeam installation: non-pin bridge guitars

9. iBeam removal and repositioning

10. Element installation

11. iBeam gain control

12. External controls

SPECIFICATIONS

Preamp size: 4" x 2.6" x 2.5"
Preamp weight (including battery): 6oz
Battery: single 9v
Current consumption: 3.4mA
Battery life: 150 hrs (alkaline)
Bass: +- 6dB @ 100Hz
Treble: +- 10dB @ 10kHz
Signal to noise: -87dB unweighted
Input impedance: 10 megohms
Output impedance: 620 ohms

1 . P A C K A G E C O N T E N T S

Pickups:

one (1) Element undersad dl e pi ck up
one (1) iBeam br id ge p la te t ra ns du ce r
one (1) iBeam qu ic k mo un t fi xture kit including :
one (1) fix tu re instruc ti on she et
two (2) threaded posts
two (2) standoffs
two (2) .312" nuts
one (1) fix tu re board
two (2) adhesive strips
two (2) small adhesive dots

Onboard Preamp:

one (1) onboard preamp
six (6) ½" black ins ta ll at io n sc re ws
six (6) fiber washers
one (1) flexible black p reamp be zel
three (3) self-stick wire clips
one (1) preamp routing template
one (1) stereo strapjack harness

2 . O V E R V I E W & C A U T I O N S

The L.R. Baggs iMix Onbo ard is an onbo ar d retrofit ster eo mixer, w hi ch co mb in es the iBeam bridge pl ate transducer and the El em en t undersaddle
pickup with an all-discrete class A battery -access prea mp. The sys tem is a drop-in retrofit upgrade that is d es ig ned to f it in the hole used by se veral
common factory-installed systems.

We r ec om me nd that this s ys te m be installed by a profes si on al deal er/i ns ta ll er. We do no t prov id e installation advice o r support for home or
hobbyist installations. In st al lers : please read the instructions carefully before proceeding. We will not be responsible for any da ma ge to the guitar
or personal injury resulting from installation, improper installation, u se or mi su se o f the produc t.

Before beginning a r et ro fi t inst al la ti on , b e sure t ha t the sc rew ho le s in t he i Be am p reamp be zel (m ounting fl an ge) li ne u p with the existing preamp
screw holes on the guitar.

The i Be am fits x-brac ed guitars with at least three in ch es of flat open space
directly under t he s ad dl e (see f ig ur e 1) .

For n ew i ns ta ll ations, the preamp will g en er al ly f it i n guit ar s with a sid e widt h of
four inches or larger, as su mi ng average lining and top thic kness.

Ag ain , ver ify that thes e re qui rem ent s are met be for e mak ing any
alterat ions to the guitar.

If t he space is too s mall to accommodate the i Beam , do not c ut the iBea m to
fit a tighter space.

The preamp requires a 9V battery, which is not included in t hi s pa ck age. 

Ther e is a sma ll slit und er the i Beam cap about 1/2 " fr om each end of the
pickup. Do n ot p ok e anything into the slit.

The pe el -and-s ti ck adhesive is t he best way to adhere the iBeam. It will hold the
iBeam quite fi rm ly, but wi ll a llow t he p ic kup to b e sa fely r em oved at a la ter ti me.
Th e use of any adhe sive other tha n the prov ided self -st ick p ads i s not
recommended and will void the warranty.

Avoid unnecessary bending of the Element picku p.

Installation overview: The recom mend ed inst allation proced ure is to begin by
remo ving the pre vi ous s ys tem and /or p erf ormin g any nec essar y woo dw ork.
Then the strapjack and p reamp s ho ul d b e ins ta ll ed and c on ne cted. Following
that, the iBeam sh ou ld be installed, con ne cted an d tested to ensure optimum
pl aceme nt. T hen t he Elemen t sho uld be instal led, con necte d and test ed to
en sure prope r soun d an d st rin g ba lance . Fi nally, the g ain set ting on the
underside of the pre am p should be adjusted so that the iBeam's level matches
that of the Element.

fig. 1

Each pickup should be ins talled and tested as if it were the only s ou rce in the
system. Perfec ting the sound of eac h pickup individually will prov id e the most
rewarding ove rall blend when you finally turn the mix kno b to 12: 00 and hea r
the two sources together.

3 . R E M O V A L O F P R E V I O U S S Y S T E M

(retrofit installations only)

Remove the e ntire p reamp, output har ne ss and pi ck up. You will a lso need to
remove th e ol d st ra pj ac k.

Most gui ta r man ufac ture rs inc lu de c ro ss -gra in r ei nf or ce me nt p anel s on sol id
wood guitars beneath the preamp mounting scre w h ol es . If, upon remo vi ng the
ol d pre amp from a soli d woo d gui tar, yo u dis cover that the re ar e no
reinforce me nt strips, we recommend installing cro ss -g ra in reinforc em en t shims
underneath the screw holes to prevent chipping the wood on the g ui ta r.

On ce the pre vious system is rem oved, p roceed to the strapj ack i nstal latio n
(section 5 ).

4 . N E W I N S T A L L A T I O N W O O D W O R K I N G

4.1 Rout ing the preamp hole : Be absolutely s ure that the pr ea mp will f it inside

the guitar at its intended location befor e m ak ing a ny cuts to the instrument!
Gu ita rs wi th a sid e wid th of les s tha n fou r inc hes may be una ble to
accommodate the preamp due to the size of the interior lining.

For solid wood guitars (especially mapl e) , we recommend glui ng two 2.5” (63.5
mm) x .5 ” (12.7 mm) plyw oo d cro ss -g rain reinforcement panels on the insi de of
the gu it ar body whe re the screw ho le s will be drilled. This preve nt s the wood
from splitting during th e dr il ling p rocess.

If you are uncomfort ab le freehand-cutting this area usi ng the enclosed paper
template (as desc ribe d below), we recommend that you use th e paper template
to fash ion a ha rd te mplat e out of mas onite, Plexig las or anot he r suitab le
material.

1. Choose a location on the side of the instrument to mount the preamp. The
flattest po ss ib le area jus t above the wa is t on t he upper bout and below th e
shoulder is recomm en de d. Double-check to mak e sure the pre am p will clear all
internal braces and other obstacles when i ns ta ll ed.

2. Lay the en closed paper template on the cho se n location an d secure it with
mask in g ta pe o n al l four edges. With a sharp s cr ib e put a di mp le i n the center of

each o f the scre w hole s and then drill ou t th e holes using a #45 drill bit (. 082” or

2.08 mm). Cut out the area for the preamp ca refully an d slowly using a ro ta ry
cutter with a sha rp 1/8” cutting bi t. We recommend cutting ju st insi de the lin es
for the init ial c ut and then clea ning up t he edg es wit h a f ile. Rem ove t he
template and clean up any exc es s ta pe residue w it h a so ft cloth and naphtha.

4.2 Dri ll ing the s tr apja ck hole: For prope r installa ti on, t hi s jack requi re s a
clean 1/ 2" hole in the tai l block of the instrument. Star t by placing a piece of
mask in g tape on the outside of the instrument over the drilling area (to avoid
chipping t he finish), drill a small p ilot hole i n the tail bloc k and t he n foll ow with
a st ep dr ill. N ow pr oceed to th e str apj ac k ins talla tion as de tai le d in the
following section.

5 . S T R A P J A C K I N S T A L L A T I O N

Remove the strap ring, ret ai ni ng nut and one washer from the end of the jack.
Th er e should s till be one s tar lock ing was her, on e flat wash er and a nut
remaining on the jack. Bring the jack down through t he s ou ndho le i nto the
body and insert it into the pre -d rilled hol e in the tail block. Usi ng the internal
nut (be sure to include the flat and star washers), set the proper depth that will
allow the entire smaller thre ad ed section to protrude from the instrument (se e
figure 2) . With th e jack in place, lay th e rem aini ng wash er over the threads and
attach the ext er na l reta in in g nut unti l i t’s ti gh t. Fi ni sh by atta ch in g t he st ra p
ring (i t sho uld cover th e ret ai ni ng nut and washer) so as not to crack the fini sh
of the ins trument by assertin g too much pressure. Now proceed to the prea mp
installation in the following sect io n.

6 . P R E A M P I N S T A L L A T I O N

This preamp is des ig ne d for sides th at a re . 090” t o .1 65” th ic k and re as on ab ly fla t
or convex. T he sk ir t o f the bezel may bottom ou t on guit ar s that have especially
thin or concave sides. This will p revent the b ezel f ro m seat in g comple tely o n th e
gu ita r ’s sid e. If this h appens, pla ce the pro vid ed fiber wash ers ove r th e
protruding ends of the screws (ins id e of the guitar bod y) to space the preamp
down into the guitar.

The bezel is mad e of a special ma teri al that may be cold-formed by hand an d
can be easily mad e to con form to the curvature of the gu it ar side. Simply bend
the bezel by ha nd until it fits to the gu it ar side without any gaps . I t m ay help to
over -bend the bezel slight ly in spot s unti l it lies f lush on the guit ar sid e's
surf ace.

1. Onc e the bezel has been formed, drop it into the existing cutout and sc re w
the 4 provi ded screws into the holes until they protrude into th e gu it ar a bo ut
1/16”. Do not enla rge the holes in the guitar! I f you enlarg e the h ol es, the screws
will not be able to hold t he b ezel i n pl ac e to p os it io n the preamp.

fig. 2

tail
block

smaller

threaded

section

protrudes

2. In se rt a battery into the battery compart ment (obser ve polari ty!) an d push
the compartment into the hole until it click-locks into place. Inser t the pre am p
into th e guitar t hr ou gh the sound ho le and place it i nto the opening in t he
be zel fro m in side of the gui tar. Wig gle it unt il t he s crew end s fi nd t he
corresponding sl ot s in the ch as si s. Center the p reamp laterally (a lo ng t he length
of the side) in the bez el and star t the screws into the pl as ti c. H ol d the pre am p
firmly against t he s id e so that it does not “walk ” as you tighten the screws.
Before you tighten the s cr ew s completely, be sure th at t he b attery compar tm en t
does not bind agains t th e be ze l wh en y ou o pe n an d clos e th e co mp ar tment.

Do not overtighten the scr ews! This will cause the bezel ends to lift fro m the
side. Exce ss ove rtightening m ay eve n cause the screw s to cut through the beze l.
It is helpful to watch the edge of the bezel as you tighten; stop when it seats
nicely against the wood.

3. Plug the strapjack wir e into the preamp's right -han d socket, and secure the
wire inside the gu itar with the self-stick wire clip provided. Then proce ed to the
appropriate iB eam inst allation instructions (pin b ridge or non- pin bridge) i n the
following sections.

7.iBEAM INSTALLATION: PIN BRIDGE

7.1 Genera l po siti onin g gu idel ines : The i Be am i s a hig hl y sensiti ve pickup;

th erefo re , plac eme nt and the uni que char act eri st ics of the instr ument are
cr itica l f actor s i n p ro ducin g t he outsta nding resu lts of whic h th e i Beam is
capable. A few m illi me te rs in any d ir ec tion can have profou nd ef fect s o n the
quality of th e sound. We can tell you appr oximately wher e the p ic kup should be
placed, but we can not provide an exac t sp ec if ication.

Though the Elem ent w ill mask some of t he characteristics of a non-optimum
iBeam placement, we strongly encourage the installer to invest the nece ssar y
time to perf ect t he iBeam as a sin gl e source. This wil l have a sig ni ficantl y
positive impact on t he overall mix.

The iBeam is desig ne d to att ac h to the bridge plate, direct ly und er the sad dl e
li ne an d gen erall y par al lel to the sadd le, with the attach ed pe el-an d-sti ck
adhesive. Good results should be con si stently had by att ac hing the pickup as
sh own in f igure 3. Howeve r, be cause e ver y guit ar is u nique , yo u may be
rewarded by searching for the o pt im um l oc ation.

In g eneral, p laci ng the iBea m directly unde r the saddle w il l prov ide the g reatest
se nse o f imm ediac y, impa ct, sna p and “strin g” soun d. Offse tting the p ickup
either tow ar d the sound ho le or tow ar d the bridge pins in the area sho wn in
figure 4 will in cr ea se the amount of “bod y” in the sound and ge ne ra ll y ha ve a
mo re me llow an d h omoge neous so und wit h l ess mid range. We have oft en
achieved our ver y best results by placi ng the pic kup as close to the stri ng ball ­ends as is practical and offsetting it about 1 to 2 mm toward the treb le side of
the saddle.

An alternative location that h as of ten w or ked well, provided t he x- braces are
wide enough, is to offset the pickup toward the front edge of the bridge plate.

7.2 Pin bridge installation (ini ti al pl acement):

1. A ss em bl e th e mo unti ng f ix ture.

2. R emove the strings from the p in h ol es .

3. Re ac h inside the hole and feel around under the b ridg e to be su re the bridge
plate is free f rom debr is and ob st ruct ions. I f you are unsure, stick a mirror insi de
to inspect t hi s ar ea .

4. Place the stationar y rod of the mo unting fixt ure in the high-E brid ge pin hole
and a dj ust the movable r od laterally in the sl ot until it drops into the low-E
bridge pin hole as s hown i n fi gu re 5 . Tighten the nut to sec ure th e movable rod.

fig. 3

underside of top

fig. 4

underside of top

low E

soundhole

bridge

saddle

iBeam

bridge plate

low E

soundhole

bridge

saddle

5. Pla ce t he adhesive dots on the fixture over t he saddle, one on each side of t he
big slot. Remove the a dhes ive bac king from the dots an d p osit io n t he iBea m
ove r t he fi xture in the desired location. S ti ck the iBeam to th e adhesive dots on
the fixt ure as s hown i n fi gu re 6 .

6. Remove the f ixture and iBeam tog ether fro m the bri dg e and rem ove the
adhesive backi ng f ro m th e bo tt om s ur face of the iBeam.

7. Insert the fixture ho ld in g the iBeam in to the guitar. Find the high- and lo w- E
string bridg e pi n ho le s with t he rod s on t he f ixtu re.

8. Inse rt the rods into thes e hol es and the n eleva te the fix ture stra ig ht up unti l
the rod s just poke out of the holes abo ut 1/2". Grasp one of the rods fro m the
outside of the guit ar and hold it. Do not pul l up yet . Whi le hold in g the one rod
let go o f the fixture inside of t he guitar and g rab th e ot he r ro d on t he o utsi de o f
the guitar.

9. Now pull straight up on the rods as shown in figure 7 to elevate the iBe am
until it contacts the br id ge p late. Tug up on the rods to secure the pickup.

10. Pop the fixt ur e of f th e iB ea m in si de the g ui ta r an d remove the fixtu re.

11. Press u p firmly al ong the top surf ace of the iBeam, especially on the ends, t o
secure it. It ’s usually a g ood ide a to press down on the bri dg e fro m the outs ide
of the guitar as you press up on the iBe am fr om th e i ns id e to equalize pressure
and avo id c rack ing th e to p. Wiggle the iBeam front to back a little as you press.

12. P lu g the iB ea m into the preamp's cente r socke t, res tr ing the guitar, plug th e
preamp into you r amp or PA, and turn the mix k nob completely to the ri ght.
Now te st the pickup placem ent. Confir m that the pre am p' s EQ contro ls are at
their de fault posi tion s and that the stereo/m on o switch underneath t he preamp
is set to mono. If the sound is satisfactor y (see below), secure th e wire with a
wire clip and cont in ue to the Element inst al la ti on in section 10. If th e sound is
unsatisf ac tory, we encourage you to exper im en t w it h al tern at ive pla ce me nt s
(see section 9). Do not te st the pickup pl acement without firmly sec urin g the
adhesive. Wit ho ut compl etely securi ng the pic ku p, the sou nd test will produce
unreliable results.

fig. 5

bridge plate

iBeam
placement
range

The op ti mu m location will deliver a soun d that is foc used and ti gh t, wi th proper
st ring bala nce a nd goo d pre sen ce. It wil l c aptur e eno ugh o f t he str ing
reso na nce to be articu la te, but w ill be mel lowe d by a f ull and s tr ong body
resonance. Ultimately, it will accurate ly c ap tu re t he d is tinc t tone of th e

instrument. A n unsatisfactor y l oc at io n will often be chara cter ized by a woof y or
nasal tone, po or s tr in g bala nce an d a hi gh s ensiti vi ty to feedback.

8.iBEAM INSTALLATION: NON-PIN BRIDGE

8.1 Genera l po siti onin g gu idel in es: The iBe am i s a highly sensitive pickup;

th erefo re , p lacem ent a nd th e uni que c harac ter istic s of the ins trume nt ar e
cr itica l f actor s i n p ro ducin g t he o utsta nding resu lts of w hich th e iB eam is
capable. A fe w m illi me ters in any d ir ec tion can have pr ofound ef fect s o n the
quality of the sound. Bec au se eve ry guitar is unique, you may be re wa rded by
searching fo r the opt imum location. With non-pin bridge gu it ar s, it is unlikely
that the first selec te d sp ot will be i de al .

Though the El em ent w ill ma sk some of th e characteristics of a non-optimu m
iBeam placement, we strongly encourage the installer to invest the nece ssar y
time to p erfec t the iBe am as a sin gle sou rc e. This will have a s ig nific an tly
positive impact on t he overall mix.

In g eneral, p laci ng the iBea m directly unde r the saddle w il l prov ide the g reatest
sens e o f immedia cy, impac t, snap a nd “st ri ng” so und. O ff setting t he p ickup
either toward or awa y from the sound ho le w ill incr ea se the amount o f “body ” in
the sound and generally have a more mell ow a nd homogeneous sound with l ess
midrange.

8.2 Non-pin bridge installation (i niti al p laceme nt): Installatio n on non-pin
bridge guitars r eq ui re s th at y ou r em ove the sadd le, drill a small hole in e ach en d
of the saddle slot, an d inser t g ui de pi ns to ac t a s a re ference when locating the
iBeam. The hole locations will correspond to the small slots in the bo ttom of
each end of the iB ea m (see f ig ur e 8) . A good st ar ting pla ce i s to d ri ll t he h ol es s o
that the iBeam will be cen te re d under the E strings. You will ne ed an in sp ec tion
light, inspection mir ror, drill, 1/16" dri ll bit, woo de n matc hsti ck s or toothpicks,
and a shor t pe nc il .

fig. 6

fig. 7

1. Drill a 1/16" hole thro ugh the bridge at both end s of th e saddle slot. If the
guitar already has a hole in the saddle slot for a pickup, you may be able to us e
this as one of the hol es. The minimum distance betw ee n the holes should allow
th e notch es in e ach e nd of t he iB eam's base to nes t ov er the protr uding
matches or toothpicks that you will insert as a refe re nc e to p la ce t he i Be am .

2. Press the matches or toot hp icks in to th e h ol es unti l they just protrude (1/16"
to 1 /8") i nt o the g ui tar. The se will a ct as loc ating p ins for d eterm ining the
iBeam's placement.

3. Re move the adhe si ve back in g from the iBeam and, holding the iBeam upright
between your t hu mb a nd two middle fingers, use your in de x and litt le f inge rs to
locate the matches.

4. Hold the iBeam at a sl ig ht angle away fr om the inside of the guit ar top, and,
us ing t he sl ot in o ne en d of th e botto m of th e i Bea m, locat e one o f the
protruding matches. Rotate the othe r end of the pickup unti l you find the othe r
protruding match wit h the slot in the ot he r end of the iB ea m. Th en very lightly
press the adhesive ag ai ns t the bridge p late with j ust enough pressure to h ol d it
in place.

5. Once you have tacked the pickup int o place, inse rt an inspection mirror into
th e bod y to c he ck the placem ent o f the p ickup. After con firmi ng tha t it i s
located co rr ec tly, rem ove the gui de pins and press firmly with a little rocking
motion over th e surfa ce of the t op of the pickup to secu re it to th e bridge plate.
Be sure to a pply a n e qual d ownwa rd forc e to t he top of the bridg e w he n
pressing up from the inside to prevent damage to the guitar.

6. Plug the iB ea m into the preamp's center
socket, restring the guitar, plug the pre amp
into your amp or PA, and turn th e mix kno b
completely to the right. Now test the pickup
pl aceme nt. Confi rm t hat t he p reamp 's E Q
controls a re at t he ir default p os itio ns a nd
that th e stereo/mono switch on the bottom

fig. 8

Th is t op-d own vie w de pic ts t he b rid ge w ith
th e sa ddle re moved . The se p in h ole loc atio ns
ap ply to a ll non- pin bri dges .

of t he preamp i s set to mono. If the sound i s
sa tis fac tor y (s ee b elow) , sec ure the wir e
with a w ire cl ip a nd c on ti nu e to the Element

saddle slot

in stall ation in secti on 10. If t he so und is
un sati sfa ctor y, we enco ura ge yo u to
experiment with altern ative placements (see
section 9). D o not test the pick up placement
wi tho ut firml y se cur ing t he a dhe sive.

bridge

Without comp le tely securing the p icku p, the
sound test will produce unreliable results.

drill pin hole here

iBeam

bridge

tie block

The op ti mu m location will deliver a soun d that is foc used and ti gh t, wi th proper
st ring bala nce a nd goo d pre sen ce. It wil l captur e eno ugh o f the str ing
reso na nce to be articu la te, but w ill be mel lowe d by a f ull and s tr ong body
re son ance. Ult imate ly, it wil l acc urate ly cap ture the dis tinct ton e of the
instrument. An unsatisfactor y loc at io n will often be chara cter ized by a woofy or
nasal tone, poor s tr in g bala nce an d a hi gh s ensitivi ty to feedback.

9 . i B E A M R E M O V A L A N D R E P O S I T I O N I N G

The adhe sive used to secure the iBeam is very strong. O nce you stick it down, it
will increase it s grip over about a week’s tim e. If you wis h to experiment with
placement, it w il l be easie r befo re the ad he sive de velops its full strength. To
experiment with pl acement, begin by outlining the p ic ku p in i ts c ur re nt p os ition
with a pencil; this will ac t a s a reference of the initial location. Next, p la ce th re e
fingers along the length of the back side of the pi ck up. Pull firmly with even
pressure parallel to the guitar top, unti l t he adhesi ve gives way. Ro ck it up onto
one edge and then lift up one end to pull the ad he si ve away from the bri dg e
plate. Do not pul l up on the cap. Then pul l the pickup off. Bec ause the iBeam
reli es on a cle an c onnec tio n with th e g uitar bo dy, w e do n ot reco mmend
reusing the adhesive; instead, use a new strip.

To remove the adhesive from the bottom of th e pickup, roll it off li ke carp et .
After tack ing the new pad to th e bottom of the pickup, use the edge of a penc il
to press the adhesive firm ly to the pickup. We’ve in cl ud ed tw o extra pads in the
kit, and extra pa ds are available from us in p ac ks of 1 0 fo r $5.00. Be su re to
inspec t the bridg e plate for any adh es ive res id ue b efore you r ep osit ion the
iBeam.

Now reposi ti on and test the pickup. Remember that moving the pick up towards
the s ad dle wil l i ncrease p re sence and str ing res po nse, whi le aw ay fro m the
saddle w ill increase war mt h an d b ody response. If the sound i s s at isfa ctory,
continue to t he Element installation in se ction 1 0. If not, contin ue reposition in g
the iBeam as neede d un ti l you fi nd t he p ro pe r lo cation.

1 0 . E L E M E N T I N S T A L L A T I O N

10.1 Insta ll ation no tes: For optimum pe rformance of the El em ent, the bridge

slot must ha ve a cl ean, flat s ur face free of a ny de br is or over -spray from th e
finish. Th e slot must be a minimum of .125” (1/8”) deep, but we su gg es t a depth
of at least .187" (3/16”) to avoid exce ss ive saddle tilt.

The commonly-known 50/50 rule applie s: The amount of saddle visible above
the br id ge surf ace (with pick up installed) should be no greater than the amou nt
of saddle in the slot beneath the bridge sur fa ce ; other wise t he balance and
output of the pick up m ay suffer.

10.2 S hort sadd le note: The first 1/8" of the Element pi ck up is not active. If you
do n ot h ave a min imum of 1/4" of sadd le be yo nd th e E str ings, you may
experience low outp ut on these strings. To remedy this, drill a smal l horizontal
hole in the end of the slot t o ex te nd the pic ku p fu rther under the saddle (see
figure 9). To d rill this hole with ou t disrupting the floo r of the sa dd le slot, place a
small jeweler's screwdriver under the tip of the drill bit. On sh or t sad dles we
also advise tha t the pickup exit hol e be drilled into the end wall of the saddle
slot rather tha n th e slot's floor (see figure 11) to lik ewise ex tend addle/picku p
contact at t he e xi t en d. Aga in use t he j ew el er 's screw dr iver to protec t the sa dd le
floor as you drill.

10.3 Installation: Remove the strings from the guitar. To duplicate the string
height exactly, scribe a line along the front edge of the saddle where it extends
above the bridge. The line will later be used as a guide when r em ov in g material
from the bottom of the saddle to compensate for the thickn ess of the pickup
(.037” total). Remove t he saddl e to d rill the hole for the pickup. The d ri ll bit
needs to be as large as the saddle s lo t wi ll a llow.

Inspect the insi de of t he guitar a nd note t he position o f the br aces and th e
iBeam in relation to the saddle sl ot. Dri ll at either end of the slot on the si de
that will enable you to avoid all braces as yo u penetrate the top, as shown in
figure 12. Do not dril l through the iBe am! Blow out the slot with co mp ress ed
air and check for remaining debris.

fig. 9

extension

fig. 10 fig. 11

drill bit

norma l sa ddle :
drill flo or

jewel er's screwd river

short sad dle:
drill sid e wall

fig. 12

Th is v iew dep icts th e br idge at an angl e t hat is l evel wi th t he guit ar
to p an d pe rpe ndic ular to the sad dle slo t. No te t he roun ded edg e
wh ere the hol e ha s be en dril led.

drill bit

bridg e

slot

Import ant: Round the insid e of the hole where it meets the bott om of the slot
with a small, shar p k ni fe or small file to avo id pinc hi ng the pickup as the saddle
lies on it.

Feed th e pick up into the sl ot f rom in si de t he g uita r wi th e it he r side u p. Ins er ting
a too th pi ck or s im il ar object t hrough the hole from the outside is helpful in
finding the location of th e ho le o n the in si de o f the guit ar.

guitar top

brace

iBeam

Import ant: The fi t of t he s ad dl e in t he slot is the single m os t impo rtant fac tor in
this i ns ta ll at io n. It i s cruc ia l that the botto m of the sl ot and the lower su rface o f
the saddle be fla t to make eve n contac t wi th the pickup. The saddle should fit
loosely eno ugh in the slot that it can be pul led out wit h your fing er tips. It wil l
th en ha ve a s light for ward lea n whe n the stri ngs a re un der t ensio n. It is
absolutely nece ss ary to compensate for this sli gh t lean by sanding a tilt in the
bottom of the sad dl e so it still si ts flat on the picku p when th e strings are at
tension (see figure 13 ). If the saddle is too tight, binds at all or is too loose, th is
will have a n eg at ive effect o n th e st ring b al an ce a nd o utput.

Se t the sadd le in t he slo t, not in g how much mater ial m ust b e rem ov ed to
compensate fo r the thickness of the pi ck up. Sand the bottom s urface of the
saddle on a belt sand er unti l the scribe lin e is just above the bridge top. Finish
sanding th e bottom by h an d. It is b es t to do t hi s against a machined f lat surface
with fin e sand pa pe r. Use a straighte dge with a str on g ligh t sour ce t o insp ect the
flatness of your saddle.

Insert th e pic ku p a ll th e w ay into the slot, place the saddle on top of it, and
temporarily secure it with a pie ce of ta pe. Secure the wire wi th a wir e cl ip as
close to the exit hole a s is prac tica l, with a on e- to t wo-inch service l oop. Failure
to secure th e wire m ay p ro du ce b oomi ne ss and feedback. Now plug th e Elem en t
into t he preamp's left-hand socket, restring the guitar, plug into your amp or PA
and turn t he mix knob com pl etel y to t he l ef t. Confirm that t he E Q controls a re a t
their default po si ti ons an d te st the Element, pay in g ca reful at tention to str ing
balance. I f th e so un d is s atis fa ctor y, proceed to the next s ecti on. If not, r ea d on.

String balance pr ob le ms are almost a lways th e result of a n uneven i nter face
between the bottom of th e sa ddle and the saddle slot. If the string balance is
uneven, ch ec k th ese su rfaces to ensure that they are both completely flat.

Tip: A segmented packaging knife blade is a usefu l tool in determining t he
flatness of the saddle slot. Break off onl y enough blade segme nts so as much
blade fits into th e slot as possible. Br iefl y use a back-an d- forth scraping motion
to see if the slot bottom scrapes even ly. Any high or low the saddle slot. Break
off enough b la de s eg me nts so as much of t he blade fits into the sl ot a s poss ib le .
Briefly us e a back-and-fort h scra ping motion to see if the slot bottom sc ra pe s
evenly. Any high or low spot s will be readily appa rent. A minor low spot in the
slot may be compensated for by shims under t he pick up ; however, for gaps ove r
.005" or multiple gaps, we r ec om me nd r er ou ti ng t he s lot.

fig. 13

proper saddle-pickup contact

(saddle lean exaggerated)

1 1 . i B E A M G A I N C O N T R O L

The lik el ih ood of the iB ea m and Element ga in leve ls being naturally eq ual is
extremely low. There fore we have provide d a gain cont ro l that affects only the
iBeam channel, which is located on the underside of the preamp. Adjust in g thi s
can b e tricky, b ut it i s an e ssential step i n per fect in g the mi x. To adjust th is
correctly, yo u will n ee d a sm al l Phillips s crewdriver.

Fir st , make su re e verything is plugged in a nd t urne d on , and rotate the mix knob
comp letel y cou nterc lo ckw ise ( to "pz" ). N ow test the o ve rall vol ume o f the
Element by playi ng all the strings in you r normal play in g style. Then rota te the
control comp letely cl oc kwis e ( to "iBe am ") an d do the same. Note the difference
between the two pickups.

Now adjust t he gain control accordingly. Insert t he screwdr iver t hrou gh t he h ole
on the underside of t he pre am p. To increase th e gain , rotate th e scre w cloc kwise
in relation to the p re am p' s u nder si de ; to de cr ea se th e iBe am ga in , rotate the
screw counterclockwise.

Once t he gain has be en adjusted, agai n test both p icku ps individually, us in g the
mix knob to pan between th e two. If the ou tp ut s are equal , the installation is
complete: you can rotate the mix knob to the 12:00 position and star t enjoying
your new iMix system. If the outpu ts diffe r, repeat thes e st ep s as necessary to
make them equa l.

Be su re to review the ex tern al contro ls, which a re ex plai ne d in the fo ll owing
section.

1 2 . E X T E R N A L C O N T R O L S

Caution: Do not remove the battery from the preamp w hi le p lu gged i n.

fig. 14

5

1

2

3

4

1. Battery g auge light: Wh en the bat te ry lig ht d ims, it time to replace t he

batter y. To change the battery, simp ly press the top of the prea mp to disengage
the click-lock access. This will pop out the battery c om pa rtment.

2. Volume contro l: Th is a dj us ts t he preamp volume.

3. Mi x co ntrol: Th e pos it io n of t hi s k nob w il l d et er mine h ow m uc h o f e ac h
pick up's signa l will be pre sent in the o ve rall mix. When the knob i s turne d
completely counterclockwise, the output will be 100% El em ent; likewi se, when
the k no b is turned completely clock wi se, the output wil l b e 10 0% iBea m. Fo r
most situations, t he b est po si ti on i s 12:0 0.

4. Treble and ba ss co ntrols: Th es e c on trol s a dj ust t he leve l o f hig h an d lo w
frequenc y ou tp ut .

5. Phase: This invert s the signal phase. If you are expe rien ci ng feed ba ck , this is
th e f irst too l t hat sho uld be u sed. Howev er, d ep endin g on you r p ositi on in
relation t o the spe ak er(s), pr es si ng this b ut ton may have no e ffec t or even make
the problem worse. A ls o, p hase i nversion is of l it tl e use if you a re m ov in g ar ou nd
the stage. There is no way to predic t befor eh an d whether or not you are in the
correct phase se tt in g wi th ou t us in g th is b ut ton.

6. Stereo/mono sw itch (on un ders ide of preamp): This controls whe th er the
output is summed t o on e mono channel or split into tw o signals. The stereo
position is tow ard the n eck, mono is toward t he ta il bl oc k. The defa ul t setting is
mono, whi ch mixes bot h picku p outpu ts into one signal , to b e run d ow n a
standard mono cab le. Stereo mode requires the use of a standard ste re o cable
or stereo Y cable; this mo de pu ts th e Element on the tip channel and the iBea m
on the ring chan nel. If you use a mono cable in stereo mode, only the Element
will be present.

In s tereo mode, the volume, mix and phas e controls are fully func ti on al ; only the
treble and bass sl id er s are de feated. Phas e inversion will affec t both channels,
and the mix knob w il l co ntro l th e level of out put for bot h picku ps in their
respective channels. With the mix control at 12:0 0, both pickups will have equ al
output; rotating it will decrease t he leve l of one pi ck up until that ch an ne l is
completely silent, while s lightly increasing the volume of th e other pickup in i ts
channel. The master vol ume af fect s th e levels of both cha nn el s eq ua lly.

This setting is useful for recording ea ch pickup i nd ep en de nt ly, creating s eparate
blends for two di fferent sets of speakers (for e xa mp le, the ho us e sp ea ke rs and
stage monitors), or applying different effec ts t o ea ch cha nn el .