Humbucker in a steel string?

[BenedettoGibson]

Forgive me if this has been covered here already. I have a favorite little old Epiphone AJ200 which I slapped some flatwounds on and use as an everyday/practice instrument. It sounds fantastic and I love playing it. I bought it used and the former owner had installed a passive acoustic pickup of unknown description with no volume or tone control. I have a lot of "better" guitars, but I love playing this guitar and probably play it more than any other guitar I own. So I had the idea to install a Seymour Duncan Benedetto humbucker in the neck position and blend in the existing pickup for a little bit of acoustic sound. So I am wondering if anyone here in the forum have done this already and any experience/advice you can pass along before I hack up a favorite instrument. I have many certificates in analog and digital electronics so I am wondering if anyone here might be able to share schematic diagrams or have any experience doing this. I know JJ Cale hacked up his old Silvertone and installed a bunch of pickups (five) and it sounded pretty good as a jazz guitar. I wouldn't consider him a jazz guitarist but he had a little of that in his style.That is probably a subject for another thread. Anyway...any advice is appreciated and I thought it might make for an interesting topic of conversation. Sure I can just go buy another guitar...and probably will. I like to contemplate unnecessary projects for no apparent reason. Thank you for your indulgence.

[sgosnell]

There are lots of soundhole pickups available. That's the way I would probably go. A very thin neck-mounted pickup might work, but there usually isn't enough room between the top and the strings. In the soundhole is the way to go, IMO.

[citizenk74]

Forgive me if this has been covered here already. I have a favorite little old Epiphone AJ200 which I slapped some flatwounds on and use as an everyday/practice instrument. It sounds fantastic and I love playing it. I bought it used and the former owner had installed a passive acoustic pickup of unknown description with no volume or tone control. I have a lot of "better" guitars, but I love playing this guitar and probably play it more than any other guitar I own. So I had the idea to install a Seymour Duncan Benedetto humbucker in the neck position and blend in the existing pickup for a little bit of acoustic sound. So I am wondering if anyone here in the forum have done this already and any experience/advice you can pass along before I hack up a favorite instrument. I have many certificates in analog and digital electronics so I am wondering if anyone here might be able to share schematic diagrams or have any experience doing this. I know JJ Cale hacked up his old Silvertone and installed a bunch of pickups (five) and it sounded pretty good as a jazz guitar. I wouldn't consider him a jazz guitarist but he had a little of that in his style.That is probably a subject for another thread. Anyway...any advice is appreciated and I thought it might make for an interesting topic of conversation. Sure I can just go buy another guitar...and probably will. I like to contemplate unnecessary projects for no apparent reason. Thank you for your indulgence.

[darkwaters]

Horses for courses. I’d find a good acoustic pickup that’s made for the job.

[medblues]

I like how this guy did it:

[TheGrandWazoo]

Bill Lawrence A-300.

[Dave70]

Gabor Szabo used a DeArmond 210 pickup:

[maxsmith]

Fishman makes some great soundhole pickups; I have one mounted in an acoustic, slanted like Gabor’s - had a guy wire it up to a jack where the strap button was, sounds good to me with Thomastiks.

[maxsmith]

Beautiful tone, there.

Gabor Szabo used a DeArmond 210 pickup:

[sgosnell]

I have one of those. It's a pretty good-sounding pickup, but I haven't had it mounted in a guitar in many years. I just don't play my flat-tops much any more. It's on a shelf or in a drawer somewhere. IIRC, I removed the volume control because I had mounted pots in the top of one. I should install it again and see if I like it better now, after all these years.

[BenedettoGibson]

So what I am really trying to achieve is a humbucker sound with the option of adding a little woody/acoustic tone. I had a friend named Nathan Page who was a fantastic guitarist. Sadly he is no longer with us. He played with Kenny Barron. Jimmy Smith, Herbie Mann, Roberta Flack, Jackie McLean, and Sonny Rollins. He played a Guild Starfire IV as I recall. It's was a semi hollowbody but he had an acoustic pickup or a mic installed and he blended it in with the humbucker. He had one of the most beautiful guitar tones I have ever heard. So I am trying to recreate that sound. I'm beginning to think maybe I should just buy a Godin A6 and slap some flatwounds on it.