A stringed musical instrument saddle containing a plurality of electrically independent transducers and associated electrical conditioning components where each transducer is located within the saddle such that it is sensitive to the vibratory energy of a corresponding string or course and senses the vibratory energy in both vertical and horizontal modes. The saddle contains at least one multi-conductor connector which connects to a removable multi-conductor cable to convey the transducer signals out of the saddle to external receiving electronics. The saddle is constructed of workable materials such that its top and bottom can be fit to a particular instrument by a technician.

A magnetic pickup is configured for a stringed instrument with at least one string, a neck part, and a body, which has a soundboard. A north and south pole of the magnetic pickup define a magnetic axis. The magnetic axis of the magnetic pickup is oriented substantially parallel to the soundboard or, in the region of the magnetic pickup, an auxiliary magnet having a magnetic axis is arranged, the magnetic axis of the auxiliary magnet is oriented substantially parallel to the soundboard or at a right angle to the magnetic axis of the magnetic pickup.

A musical instrument includes: an acoustic portion that makes sound in response to vibration; an exciter that includes an exciter body and a vibrating portion vibrating with respect to the exciter body, and excites the acoustic portion; and a support portion that is attached to the acoustic portion and supports the exciter body such that the vibration is transmitted from the vibrating portion to the acoustic portion. The support portion supports the exciter body such that the exciter body is elastically displaced with respect to the acoustic portion. A resonance frequency of a vibration system including the exciter body and the support portion is lower than the lowest resonance frequency of the acoustic portion.

This invention presents a modular circuit using a 3-gang pot to mix and compensate two signals, to produce an output of approximately uniform volume. One gang, Pga, physically simulates a pseudo-sine function, Q(x), where 0≤×≤1 is fractional pot rotation. A second gang, Pgb, physically simulates a pseudo-cosine function, R(x). The circuits using Pga & Pgb multiply the two input signals by the pseudo-functions, so that the length, SQRT(Q.sup.2+R.sup.2), of vector (Q,R) stays near one. The third gang, Pgc, modifies the gain of a summer/compensator op-amp, U3, which adds the two modified signals and compensates for variations in amplitude due to phase cancellations between the two input signals, maintaining an output of near-constant amplitude. A number of embodiments consider 3-gang pots with linear, custom nonlinear and mixed tapers. Any of the three gangs may be replaced by a digital pot, driven by a programmable processor. The functions Q(x) and R(x) are also the basis for full-cycle approximate sine and cosine functions, apsin & apcos, which can be used for forward and reverse spectral transformations to predict the output of such a modular circuit from the inputs as modified by the three gangs. The modules can be cascaded or otherwise combined to add more input signals to the output. The primary application is humbucking pair signals from hum-matched single-coil electric guitar pickups, but there may be applications in other fields.

An interchangeable transducer system for electrical musical instruments, wherein the system embodies one or more transducer cavities formed into the musical instrument, wherein self-contained transducers can slide into and out of each transducer cavity. Thereby the same instrument can generate vastly different tonal qualities depending on the type of self-contained transducers the user interchanges within each transducer cavity.

Systems and methods for onboard, real-time pickup blending for electric guitars/basses may utilize every possible tonal combination that double coil pickups can offer. The industry standard pickup toggle switch may be removed from electric guitar/bass instruments. Instead of a user being limited to only using one pickup at a time to be selected, the user may mix in any combination of the pickups (top, bottom, or both) at any time. Accordingly, multiple pickups can be on at the same time and/or the user may blend in (or out) any percentage of any of the pickups that the user wishes to create a large combination of tones.

A system includes an electric stringed instrument with a remotely controllable electronic configuration. A system includes a remote control for configuring the electronics of an electric stringed instrument. A system includes a remotely controllable electric stringed instrument, a remote control for configuring the instrument, a MIDI controller, and cords interconnecting the system.

A pickup for stringed instruments with an interposed tone-altering signals process is described herein. In one aspect, the pickup can include a first coil wound around a first plurality of pole pieces, where a first end of the first coil is coupled directly to an amplifier output; a second coil wound around a second plurality of pole pieces; and a tone-altering signal processor coupled to an end of the second coil and the amplifier output.

A simple yet effective sustainer for electronic stringed instruments having a bridge pickup and a neck pickup. A driver assembly, disposed adjacent the neck pickup of the instrument, includes a plurality of electromagnetic transducers operative to induce vibrations in the strings. A battery-operated electronic amplifier has an input adapted for connection to the bridge pickup, and an output connected to the driver assembly, such that, when the instrument is played, string vibrations sensed by the bridge pickup are amplified by the electronic amplifier and used to drive the driver assembly, thereby sustaining the played string vibrations. The driver assembly may be disposed in a ring that surrounds the neck pickup of the instrument. The ring may include an ON/OFF switch that routes power from the battery to the electronic amplifier and simultaneously deactivates the bridge pickup in the ON position. The ring may further include a phase reversal switch.

The embodiments herein provide a system and method for instantly switching sound pickups in an electric guitar using a spin wheel arrangement in the middle of a song. The spin wheel houses a pickup assembly with multiple pickups. The spin wheel allows a guitar player to easily roll neck pickup to bridge position and bridge pickup to neck position in middle of a song by rotating the spin wheel. A click stop arrangement halts wheel rotation after completing a semi-circular rotation around a center screw. The backend portion of pickups is connected to spring loaded plunger. The contact pads at bottom portion of guitar body establishes electrical connections between pickups and control components. The pickups under the strings get activated. The spin wheel arrangement allows a guitar player to add favorite pickups for generating various tonalities beyond the limit of a single guitar.