K&K Bass Max

I've bought this to amplify a Thomann 111E SN 3/4 Double Bass through a Gallien Krueger MB112-II and I'm happy with the results.

It looks pretty well made and it fitted into the bridge without any need for filing, also the jack clipped securely on to the strings.

It's quite sensitive to the higher frequencies and pickups any clicks and taps that might be included in your playing style, so I have to dial back the high range on the amp. it has a reasonably harsh tone so I expect it isn't suitable for recording by itself and would need to supplemented with a microphone.

But in a live context with a band this perfectly adequate, it has enough gain with spare headroom if you need to push it louder. If left unattended for a 1 minute or so it will begin it feedback but for all intense purposes it would say it doesn't feedback while playing.

Over all a good good enough to get you started with playing with live bands.

I bought one of these as I needed a big double bass tone for the group I was playing with. We were playing modern covers but as an acoustic trio. The Bass Max has a great tone but I wouldn't say it was the most "acoustic" sounding. It had a very big, solid bottom end on my double bass which helped fill out the band overall. It amplifies well before feedback starts and is very easy to install. Mine eventually developed a fault but I believe that was more to do with it getting knocked quite a bit rather than manufacturer quality. It's a great all-rounder pickup at a great price.

This pickup is a good deal. I've had it for one and a half year playing a lot of gigs and switching it between different basses and it still works exactly like it did new. It's good quality for the money!

The pickup has a pretty high output level which is good if you don't have a preamp or have to line the bass. Tonewise it can be quite muddy sometimes (depends on your amplifier of course) and has a lot of bass but otherwise it responds quite good. It is good for both pizzicato playing and also quite good for arco playing. I would not call it a high-end pickup but it's cheap and reliable!