LR Baggs Lyric Acoustic Guitar Microphone

Installed in a 70s Martin D-28 – Disappointed in Tonal Balance I recently installed this pickup in a well-seasoned 1970s Martin D-28 as part of a broader effort to modernize the guitar for stage use while preserving its natural tone. Given LR Baggs' reputation for high-quality acoustic amplification solutions, I had high hopes. Unfortunately, the tonal result fell short of expectations in this particular application. From the first strum, it was clear the pickup system accentuated low frequencies far more than anticipated. The D-28, known for its rich bass response and naturally scooped mids, suddenly felt exaggerated in the low end, producing a "boomy" and somewhat muddy sound when amplified. The articulate, balanced tone I normally get from this guitar acoustically was lost, replaced by a response that lacked the midrange definition and top-end clarity needed for either solo performance or band mixes. I ran the system through several DI boxes and PA configurations to rule out signal chain issues and even experimented with aggressive EQ notching. While some of the muddiness could be mitigated with EQ sculpting, the underlying voicing of the pickup remained dark and overpowering in the lows. To be fair, LR Baggs continues to set the industry standard for many players, and I've used other products from the company with great success. This issue may come down to a mismatch between the pickup's voicing and the naturally resonant, bass-forward character of vintage D-28s. In a more balanced or mid-forward instrument, this system might shine. If you're considering this pickup for a vintage dreadnought with a pronounced low-end presence, I'd recommend testing it first—either in-store or through a dealer with a good return policy. For now, I'll be exploring other options better suited to preserving the vintage Martin tone I've come to love.

I almost gave up on this pick up. Sounded honky and brittle. One day a sound engineer was in the church I play at. He mixed this with an Lr baggs para di and man! My 000-17 sang like it never did before. I got a di venue and it even sounded better. My advice is sweep the mids. The 350hz signal kills the tone of this pick up. Once you take out the honkyness. This will sound like the purest form of your guitar. A compressor will add a lil magic too. To end this review, it's a great product but needs a lot of EQing.

I've had the Lyric in my Gibson L 00 for about a week now so I've not fully tested it in a small gig yet as I mostly do home recording, but it sounds great. Sounds like my parlor guitar and that's what it is supposed to do. It is prone to feedback being is a microphone in the body of the guitar, but not bad really. No more than any other pickup hardly. Anytime you deal with a microphone it will sound better but feedback more. I would definitely get this pickup again,. I may put one in my husband's guitar toy never know.

I'm gonna replace my saddle and bridge pins to see if it improves the overall sound of my 2001 Larrivee D-03. Right now the pickup sounds a little bit boxy and in natural. I'm hoping my upgrades will transfer more good tone into the inside of my instrument. I'm pretty happy, but not as happy as I was with the LR Baggs Stage Pro Element that came with my Larrivee D-40r. I'm sure it'll get better. I did the install myself, so I'll probably have my luthier check it out once the pandemic is over.

I am still tweaking to get the best sound. It is best to have an outboard preamp in addition to the pick up,

Replaced a broken Taylor expression system. Super easy to install. I cut the battery wire and soldered it to the old Taylor expression battery change. The Taylor 810 sounds more natural now.