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Joined:
December 2009
Posts: 4
| Hi,
I just registered here in an attempt to get an answer to a question. I have a friend with an Ovation Celebrity model # CC61. Years ago it was loaned to someone who returned it after (apparently) removing the pickup. The input jack is missing. The wires coming out of the module that holds the volume and tone pots are not connected to anything. When I looked at it I was not able to remove the strings and lift the bridge saddle, but I loosened the strings and reached inside and couldn't feel anything that felt like a wire hanging down from an under-saddle piezo.
Can anyone tell me:
-Did this guitar originally have an under-saddle piezo pickup, or some other type of pickup?
-If it had an under-saddle pickup, is there any reason why I couldn't replace it with any brand of under-saddle piezo (assuming it fits in the slot for the bridge saddle)?
-Would this guitar have had any other electronics on board (e.g., a preamp)?
-Does anyone know where I could find a wiring diagram for this guitar?
TIA,
Scott |
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Joined:
November 2006
Posts: 3969
| Welcome. It sounds as though the wires were pulled out from the pickup. Ovations use an integrated saddle-piezo pickup - it's all one unit. You can buy a replacement directly from Ovation. Look on the Ovation website for the phone number and speak to customer service, but wait until after the New Year as they're closed for the holidays. What you call the "module that holds the volume and tone pots" is the pre-amp. The wire from the pickup plugs into that. |
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Joined:
December 2003
Posts: 13984
Location: Upper Left USA | Welcome Scott.
-Did this guitar originally have an under-saddle piezo pickup, or some other type of pickup?
A - It had an undersaddle piezo pickup.
-If it had an under-saddle pickup, is there any reason why I couldn't replace it with any brand of under-saddle piezo (assuming it fits in the slot for the bridge saddle)?
A - Yup, Artec makes a lot of good piezo options and can be found on Ebay pretty easily. You do need to match the length and width though.
-Would this guitar have had any other electronics on board (e.g., a preamp)?
A - Yes, there should have been a preamp. Is there a hole in the bowl such as a single 1/4" or a rectangle or an oval?
-Does anyone know where I could find a wiring diagram for this guitar?
A - Take a look at Jerome's Ovation Tribute pages (link in my signature) and you will find pictures of preamps and some schematics. |
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Joined:
December 2009
Posts: 4
| Between the two responses I'm unclear as to whether this guitar would have had an integrated saddle-pickup, or a seperate saddle and under-saddle pickup. It sounds like, in either case, I could use another brand of under-saddle piezo wired into the preamp moduile that's there.
To answer Mwoody's question, there's just the hole for the 1/4" jack, no hole for an externally-accessed onboard preamp. Looking at the preamp in Jermome's pages, I would think what we have here is the Celebrity 2-knob preamp. Unfortunately that picture is not clickable to get access to a wiring diagram. Can I assume that this preamp would require power and that, therefore, one of the wires coming out of the preamp module would connect to, say, a 9volt battery?
-Scott |
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Joined:
November 2006
Posts: 3969
| I'd go with Woody's info. I wasn't familiar with that particular model. I assumed it had one of the standard Ovation integrated saddle-pickups, but I just looked at a picture and it looks like a compensated saddle over a separate undersaddle piezo. Sorry if I confused you. If you could post a pic of the side of the guitar with the knobs, we might be able to give more advice. |
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Joined:
September 2006
Posts: 10777
Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | I had a Celebrity CC57 that actually said 'Celebrity' on the headstock. It had a volume and a tone knob on the side, but it did not take a battery. Hence, no preamp.
Ovation has some pick-up/saddle combos that are one piece. But you can get a Artec piezo undersaddle pick-up and just put a new saddle on top.
That would give you the option of getting bone or tusq or plastic, compensated or not.
The last Artec pick-up that I bought has a plug-in end, but you can shop around and find something that you could wire into the volume and tone pots.
So, if your Celebrity does not have a place for a battery, your pots are passive. |
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Joined:
December 2009
Posts: 4
| Thanks for the additional info folks. To provide a little more detail:
I don't have acess to the guitar so I can't share photos. I do believe it said something like Ovation Celebrity on the headstock. It does have a volume and tone knob on the outside of the body.
I didn't see a place to mount a battery inside so perhaps it was passive.
The internal unit that held the pots was enclosed. It had a silver (IIRC) cover with rounded ends. It had one red wire coming out of one end and a gray (or black?) wire coming out the other.
Perhaps I'll advise her to pick up an Artec piezo pickup. I was looking at those on eBay for a while. I eventually picked up a used Artec soundhole mag pickup with an active preamp built into the endpin. I installed that on a cheapo Alvarez in order to have a spare electro-acoustic for gigs. |
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Joined:
December 2009
Posts: 143
Location: Ontario Canada | Welcome mcknigs and a Happy New Year.
Jim. |
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Joined:
December 2009
Posts: 4
| Just checking in to see whether anyone else has posted on this.
FWIW, I received a couple responses from Ovation tech support that were polite but not particularly helpful. I think my friend has decided not to bother replacing the pickup. She mostly plays for herself and records a little. She had wanted the pickup for recording but I've suggested that her microphone will sound better. |
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Celebrity Pickup Question
