KNA VC-1 Portable Piezo Pickup for Cello – Lightweight Bridge-Mounted Sensor, Natural Acoustic Sound, Easy Installation, 1/4" Output Jack, No Instrument Modifications, Handcrafted in Europe

I was looking for a no-drill, non-invasive option to add a pickup to my 1959 Gibson L-50 acoustic archtop, inherited from my grandpa. I didn't want to alter ANYTHING on this guitar...not even have a chance of an adhesive pickup ruining the finish. This guitar is in EXCELLENT condition for its age!I was starting to lose hope in finding a pickup that suits my requirements...until I decided to look at pickups for other instruments and found this one! Sure, it's meant for cellos, but I figured I'd send their reps an email with a few questions (kudos to Jon) and see what they say. Then, I made the purchase.I'm AMAZED how perfectly this pickup worked! I took my Gibson to church the morning after I installed it, and it sounded great! And little EQ'ing and our sound guy got it sounded better than my Taylor 414ce!I can't speak to the longevity of this pickup and it's brand new to me, but it sounds great and installs SUPER easy with absolutely no modifications on my guitar! With flat EQ'ing, it sounds a little "tinny" and high on treble, but throw some more bass and mid on the equalizer, and it's perfect! Keep in mind, if you tap your guitar at all, or brush it against your shirt buttons...or if your stomach growls...this pickup will likely hear it.All in all, I'm very happy with my purchase! My grandpa would be overjoyed to know that I'm able to use his vintage guitar in our church band. This pickup gave this old Gibson a new life!

Have used Realist in the past. My opinion is that with proper pre-amplification (which really is necessary for any piezo type pickup) and EQ, this pickup is a more affordable option, while still delivering great tone. 4 stars because I believe this actually used to be cheaper...

Wow, very nice, responsive, easy to install passive pickup! I’ve used others that require a preamp and or a battery.This is so easy to use!Highly recommend it!

Bought it for my daughter so we wouldn't have to use a front mic when playing with the Church band. Works great and was able to reduce the mix gain from 38 to 27 for the cello which is a huge difference. Much less pickup of random noise from the surroundings. Can move the cello when playing. Easy to install and is not on a way when playing. Overall a great and inexpensive product. My daughter just leaves it on at all times, even when not playing with an amp.

I tried a Shure SM-57 to mic my cello to play in the church band but the drums and singers overpowered the cello mic making it near impossible to even hear what I was playing. I got the KNA VC-1 and a low price direct box to run xlr cable to board. I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the sound from this pickup (and so were the sound techs). We use in-ear monitors and we are still experimenting with the EQ in the monitors but the house sound is rich and full. I guess without some kind of pre-amp there is no way to control the volume so the sound tech has to fully control it. Nonetheless, I am very please with this pickup. Easy to install and remove and so far it stays in place without exception.

I am going to be clear. I have used a similar pickup on my double bass from Kolstein (much more expensive pickup). This one for my cello works on a similar principal. It is wedged in a spot in the bridge. However, I do want to be clear, you might need the shims, but that doesn't effect the sound. However, with any pickup of this nature, you will want to use a pre-amp. Now I have a helix, but you will not have to go quite that far as a high-end effects unit. Either way it works. I am happy.

The wooden spacers included with the piezo element are a clever way to fit a myriad of bridges. Once you find the correct combo of spacers, I'm sure you could use a drop of super glue to keep it held together for a more permanent assembly. I find that I'm able to adjust the placement of the piezo element to affect the tone, giving me a range between a focused tone with more attack and a warmer tone with smoother attack.This is a very convenient and adjustable piezo pickup, and seems to be made very well. I've used a lot of different models over the years, and the KNA looks like it will last a very long time.

The pickup produces this weird thin, tinny buzzing noise. I’ve tried repositioning, using different cables, preamps, & DI boxes to eliminate this issue.I’m a producer/musician, so I travel a lot and I thought this would be a more efficient & reliable way to record my cello. Unfortunately, the Sound quality is not up to par. Requesting a refund.