LightWave Atlantis HexFX

Started by brooster, May 24, 2011, 11:15:09 AM

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brooster

I will have a LightWave Atlantis HexFX* in about a week. I have a VG-99 to use with it.

Here is a blurry video with the Atlantis using the optical pickup with out the HexFX. Sounds good!


here's the manual with info on the HexFX pickup:
http://www.lightwave-systems.com/Support/Atlantis_User_Manual.pdf

*HexFX Edition
LightWave guitars equipped with the HexFX option have a 13-pin DIN output jack and the deck controls to enable playing through and controlling MIDI converters, hex DSP processing devices, and string fanout boxes. The LightWave output signals and deck controls on these instruments are fully compatible with the 'GK' standards for existing MIDI-ready guitars.
• 13-Pin Output Jack: This is the standard connection for plugging in a 13-pin cable (not supplied) made by other manufacturers. The LightWave's individual string signals, and the single output present at the 1/4" output jack, are routed through the connector pins, in standard pinout configuration.





Elantric

#1

brooster

I checked in with LightWave. The HexFX pickup is also optical.

onemoreguitar

How is the Atlantis going??  Looks like it could be good with the VG-99.  How loud is the guitar acoustically?  This was a problem I had using acoustics with the VG in the past, especially since I mostly used the COSM guitars for alternate tunings.  I've been looking for a solution for a while.

paults

I'm guessing palm muting on this guitar would be even more problematic than a Variax ;)


Elantric

#5
QuoteI'm guessing palm muting on this guitar would be even more problematic than a Variax

Precisely the principal reason I can't consider using the Lightwave myself as I use a lot of Palm muting with my playing  technique.

But the technology seems ideal for Bass!

paults

Yes - bass players need the fastest possible tracking speed.  Someday, we'll get pitch wired frets, with a GK-style pickup to sense the difference between fretted pitch and actual pitch.


Macciza

Quote from: paults on July 10, 2011, 07:43:38 PM
Yes - bass players need the fastest possible tracking speed.  Someday, we'll get pitch wired frets, with a GK-style pickup to sense the difference between fretted pitch and actual pitch.
Already here isn't it/ See this little Aussie offering . . .
http://www.industrialradio.com.au/midi-bass/midi-bass.php
'70s Strat, Brian Moore iM, VG-8, VG-99, FC-300, VL-70m, StringPort, SoftStep, Sentient6, iMac QC i7 27".

Gastric

Quote from: Macciza on July 11, 2011, 12:56:18 AM
Already here isn't it/ See this little Aussie offering . . .
http://www.industrialradio.com.au/midi-bass/midi-bass.php

Hopefully for less than $3995 + shipping. :)

gumbo

When was your birthday again??

..I'm sure we could put one in the post disguised as a cake... ;D
Read slower!!!   ....I'm typing as fast as I can...

Gurudragon

Hi Guys,

I just bought Hex fx bass 5 string for $1395 from light-wave. Should be ready by next week with  my VB-99. I will keep you guys posted and do a video review asap. Can't wait!!!!!!  8)
Self Cultivation

Elantric

#11
QuoteI just bought Hex fx bass 5 string for $1395 from light-wave.

Please post a review!

But be sure you have a 30 day return agreement with the store.

Too bad we never heard back from Brooster how good (or not good) the tracking performance was with the Lightwave hex acoustic guitar, when used with the Roland processors.

With his silence, I can only assume it didnt!   

Re:Lightwave hex acoustic guitar   - I know i could never own one, since the technology does not allow palm muting at the bridge.


My understanding is the Lightwave optical PU technology should work well with Bass guitars.




falseknight

Wal did pitch wired frets for midi bass in the 90s.  They don't seem to come on the market very often.

Charles5150

#13


It seems that everybody who buys from Lightwave dissapears suddendly from Earth....



Midiman57

Never heard of this system except in a John McLaughlin review. He apparently uses it.

Elantric

#15


QuoteIt seems that everybody who buys from Lightwave disappears suddenly from the face of the Earth....

Agreed!! I can never find any reviews by actual owners of these  Lightwave instruments

http://www.amazon.com/LightWave-Atlantis-ElectroAcoustic-Guitar-Flame/dp/B001KW02S2/ref=sr_1_5?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1401486537&sr=1-5&keywords=lightwave


EDIT - Here's a recent review
http://www.amazon.com/LightWave-Atlantis-ElectroAcoustic-Guitar-Flame/dp/B001KW02S2/ref=sr_1_5?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1401486537&sr=1-5&keywords=lightwave
QuoteThis is poorly advertised as an ElectroAcoustic guitar. It is really a hollow body electric and requires an amplifier.
http://www.youtube.com/user/WillcoxGuitars/videos






Dann Glenn, LightWave artist and composer, playing and describing his Willcox | LightWave Atlantis Guitar. This Atlantis is the HexFX Edition, with individual and summed string outputs sent to a 13-pin connector. Great for sound modeling, MIDI applications, and individual string routing and processing.

More info at: www.willcoxguitars.com



My 2 cents - Since I can not Palm Mute at the bridge on this technology,  this LightWave Atlantis Guitar is not for me.

Elantric

#16
If you want to disappear - buy one of these and post a review

QuoteIt seems that everybody who buys from Lightwave disappears suddenly from the face of the Earth....

Agreed!! I can never find any reviews by actual owners of these  Lightwave instruments




http://www.harmonycentral.com/news/see-the-light

Willcox Guitars Offers Saber Basses, Featuring the LightWave Optical Pickup System

LightWave pickups give Willcox instruments a significant upgrade in tone compared to instruments using traditional pickups


Carpinteria, California, June 15, 2015 – Willcox Guitars, an acclaimed instrument manufacturer and a leading innovator in guitar and bass pickups and related technologies through its proprietary LightWave Systems (LWS), will be displaying instruments from its revolutionary Saber Bass product line at t he upcoming Summer NAMM Show in Nashville, TN, July 9-11, 2015.

Like all Willcox instruments, Saber basses feature the LightWave Optical Pickup System, considered by many to be the most innovative and unique pickup technology to be developed for electric string instruments since pickups were first introduced. These pickups use infrared light technology to see string vibration, resulting in a significant enhancement in tone and sustain compared to traditional pickups. This technology allows Saber basses to offer extended bass response with long, natural sustain and extremely low noise and no inherent coloration. The lightweight, ergonomic design is engineered for high performance. 

Saber VL and SL are high-performance, professional basses available in 4-string, 5-string, fretted and fretless configurations, featuring selected tonewoods, and a variety of stunning finishes. 
The premium Saber VL models feature swamp ash bodies with resonant chambers, feature AAA Flamed Maple Tops and Maple neck with Custom Composite fingerboards. Both the Saber VL and SL models are renowned for capturing the tone of an upright bass.
The Saber SL models are more affordable, offering the same design and electronics as the VL, with the same high performance sonic characteristics, on a solid alder body and with a rosewood fingerboard. 
Electronics specs (both Saber VL and SL models)
LightWave optical pickup system
Custom GraphTech monolithic bridges
Transparent response
Master volume
Bass boost and cut
Mids boost and cut / mids sweep
Noble potentiometers
Switchcraft output jack
NiMH rechargeable battery pack
Rapid-charge system (1 hour recharge)
16 hours playing time per charge
IceTone™ Saddles / IceTone™ Blend
Warm / Cool toggle switch
For more information, please visit www.willcoxguitars.com and www.lightwave-systems.com.


Four-string Willcox Saber VL.

About Willcox Guitars & LightWave Systems
Willcox Guitars invite the artist to an innovative and transformative playing experience. Christopher Willcox designs electric guitars and basses, and other exceptional electric string instruments, incorporating traditional quality with a contemporary look and feel, combined with advanced technology. Willcox is also the founder of LightWave Systems, and the inventor of the LightWave Optical Pickup technology. LightWave optical pickups are featured in all of the Willcox Guitars instruments. Players who "make the jump to light" discover a world of rich versatile tone, complex harmonics, singing natural sustain, clear note articulation and string-to-string separation, refined touch sensitivity, low noise, and dynamic response.
Willcox Guitars / LightWave Systems is exhibiting at booth 1432 at the 2015 Summer NAMM Show in Nashville, TN.

Elantric

#17
Round #3 (?)
( * warning *   - folks who buy these Optical hex Pickup 13 pin instruments tend to (a) disappear faster than you can say David Paulides., or (b) give up playing high tech guitar - and know there is no path for String muting with your Palm  and playing outdoors in the sun or bright stage lights may impact the operation

Willcox Atlantis Thinline HexFX Edition with Optical Pickups


Willcox Guitars introduces the Atlantis Thinline HexFX, featuring an optical pickup and a 13-pin DIN connector.

Willcox Atlantis Thinline HexFX Edition


This electro-acoustic chambered body guitar features Wilcox' own LightWave optical pickup system, and combines it with MIDI capability via the HexFX 13-pin output.


The most notable feature of this guitar is its unique pickup system called LightWave, which utilizes infrared light to sense string vibration instead of conventional piezo. According to the company, this better captures the sound of the instrument, and also allows for individual string processing. Getting each of the strings isolated in turn results in better synth/MIDI compatibility.

The pickup is designed in such a way that each string has a dedicated transducer, and since light is used for vibration detection, string isolation is achieved without any electrical or mechanical spill over. Now this is an interesting technology, however its a little concerning because the cross talk between strings is essential in forming the guitar sound that we are all familiar with. Still, this pickup system allows for deep control over your tone, articulation and string to string balance, something that's not possible on traditional pickups.

Taking further advantage of the string isolation, Willcox introduces the HexFX edition which translates the sound of your guitar into MIDI and sends it out a 13-pin DIN connector. You are basically getting a guitar with precision synth like control, making individual string modeling and processing possible.

The optical pickup technology provides fast and accurate tracking with virtually no latency. False triggering and glitches are also avoided with its isolated string design, maybe fans pointing their infrared lights during a concert could cause a problem, but then again maybe not. The addition of HexFX lets you do polyphonic string processing and pitch-to-MIDI conversion that will let you play virtual instruments that include analog and digital synthesizers.

According to the company, "The 13-pin output follows the Roland GK Protocol, so it is compatible with all of the Roland GK and Virtual Guitar (COSM) modeling devices, as well as any device that also follows the protocol, including Axon, Keith McMillen StringPort, and many more. The HexFX Editions include additional controls: MIDI Volume, Momentary Up / Down Program Selector Switch (S1/S2) and Output Selector Switch (Mono / Individual String / Both) for an infinite palette of tonal possibilities."

The guitar features a chambered mahogany body with a European spruce top that gives it acoustic like qualities. The 25.5" scale length neck is crafted from mahogany and topped by a rosewood fretboard. Check out the official video demo below:  The Willcox Atlantis Thinline HexFX Edition guitar is now available, starting at $2331. For more information and for the complete specifications, visit Willcox Guitars.

http://willcoxguitars.com/atlantis-electroacoustic-hexfx-edition/





http://willcoxguitars.com/technology/

THE DIFFERENCE IS CLEAR
We created the LightWave Optical System to give musicians a non-intrusive, absolutely transparent pickup that allows the purest and most natural sound from string instruments. Conventional pickups interfere with string vibration. The LightWave Optical Pickup System uses our patented infrared light technology to detect string vibrations, the first and only of its kind. Our pickup 'sees' the vibration of the string without affecting string motion in any way. It harnesses the pure power of light to deliver accurate, full-range sound.

HOW IT WORKS
The LightWave technology utilizes light sensing electronics to "see" the vibration of the string, enhancing the strings' true voice by eliminating the magnetic influence or "pull" on the metal strings. As a non-contact sensor, optics do not interact with the movement of the string. Instead, they provide a flat, even response throughout the tonal spectrum of the vibrating string, producing a sonic foundation that accurately represents the instrument and the musician. This neutrality allows the string to vibrate naturally, resulting in the most powerful and responsive method of string transduction ever developed, and a sound advantage for today's music.
Music at the Speed of Light

The optical pickup is a proprietary type of transducer which utilizes an infrared emitter and an array of photodetectors for each string. The emitter casts a shadow of the string onto the photodetectors. As the string vibrates, the size and shape of the shadow changes accordingly and modulates a current which passes through the photodetectors. This current is the analog electrical signal which represents an accurate depiction of the vibrating string.

THE VOICE OF THE STRING
What you will hear is extraordinary: the sound of the strings, the sound of the instrument, and most importantly, the sound of your playing. You will notice a whole new sensitivity in the interaction between your fingers, the strings, and the instrument that give you a new palette of subtle nuances and unique tonalities. Playing chords, heavy fingerstyle or slap styles, screaming leads, tight intervals, complex voicings or harmonics on your LightWave instrument will be a revelation. You hear an openness, transparency and dimensionality unlike anything you have previously experienced.

NATURAL SUSTAIN
Since the Optical Pickup System does not interact with the strings and because it is capable of much greater sensitivity, the strings sustain naturally. In fact, the Optical Pickup will read string vibration for its full duration, fading in a pure, linear fashion into silence, without an abrupt ending or distorted artifacts. The vibrations from the string are like ripples upon water that gradually get smaller over time, and the optical pickups can effortlessly read these vibrations far beyond the capacity of human hearing.
Because of these traits of the optical pickup system, our instruments do not require greater mass to achieve higher levels of sustain. This means that with our light weight instruments, you can play longer and with less strain without having to give up the tonal qualities a heavier instrument will normally give you.

SILENCE IS GOLDEN
Unlike magnetic pickups which induce extraneous noise to the sound, the LightWave Optical Pickup System has virtually no inherent noise. As a result, you can play at any volume without annoying background hum or buzz. This is an breakthrough for recording: virtually noise-free, extraordinarily transparent sound. Even with your amp at high volume, you experience amazing dynamic range and sensitivity – loud notes will be loud and clear, while soft notes and subtle nuances are not masked by hum or buzz.

TONE-SHAPING
If you wish to use EQ or signal processing to shape your sound, you can use any amount desired to create subtle or dramatic tonal variations without tonal artifacts. Since the output of the LightWave pickup is pure and transparent, you augment the actual sound of the string, as opposed to the odd response curves and background noise found in conventional pickups.

ICETONE™
Our exclusive circuit allows blending the LightWave Optical Pickup with tailored piezo transducers built into each string saddle. The result is a smooth, natural high frequency enhancement ranging from crisp high end to percussive presence. iceTone cannot be selected separately, but is added to the optical signal as the control knob is turned up.

admin

https://www.premierguitar.com/articles/industrial-light-music-inside-lightwave-systems-and-the-optical-pickup-1
n the electric guitar world, magnets rule. But new technologies on the market promise to shake up that longstanding truism. PG speaks with Founder and CEO of LightWave Systems, Chris Willcox, to learn about one such option.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. For all of the advances made in the pickup's history, from noisy single coils to humbuckers to high-powered active designs, they have essentially remained small casings of magnets, coils and wire. And while there are thousands upon thousands of takes on the premise available today – a few extra turns of wire here, a different magnet there – they all act in similar ways. So much for research and development.

After 50+ years of research and development, players and designers alike continue to aspire to recreate original sets of Broadcaster single coils and Gibson PAF humbuckers. But is that because they sound clearly superior or because guitarists have a sort of deep-rooted allegiance to their history? It's a prickly issue that has been known to flare tempers in online forums and at conventions worldwide, and has kept guitarists looking back instead of looking forward.

Industrial Light & Music

Enter Chris Willcox and the small crew behind LightWave Systems. With the help of infrared technology, LightWave Systems have brought the pickup kicking and screaming into the 21st century. With several bass and guitar models, Chris has dispensed with age-old magnetic principles in favor of new technologies that promise to make players think carefully about how they interact with their instruments and what exactly they should expect from them. And while they may not sound like magnetic pickups, that's exactly the point.

We spent some time with Chris discussing LightWave's newest products, what players can expect from these pickups and the challenges of introducing new technologies into a market smitten with the past.


Industrial Light & Music
Chris Willcox of LightWave displays the
Atlantis ElectroAcoustic guitar I'd like to begin with a little background – where did this all start for you?

I did an apprenticeship in New Jersey when I was 17, learning how to build guitars with John Vile, who was a Master Craftsman from C.F. Martin. He was an expert in pearl inlay and did all of the inlay work on the D-45s and the top-ofthe- line Martin models. Then he went off on his own to start his own custom shop and hired me on as his assistant. He built the guitars and I did a lot of the operations. I also learned how to do repairs, and that partnership lasted until I moved to California in 1976.


How old were you when you headed to the West Coast?

21 years old. I had played in bands back East, but I was never that serious about becoming a musician – I preferred working on the instruments. But I moved to California and by the early eighties I had gotten settled and started up a little guitar shop. It was a part-time gig; I still had regular day jobs. Towards the end of the decade I initially got the idea to build some primitive prototypes of optical pickups, and I quickly realized I was onto something, so I started applying for U.S. and international patents in the early nineties.

Industrial Light & Music
Saber in UltraBlack The first incarnation of the company was called Audio Optics, and we never productized anything – it was essentially a little prototyping company located in the back of my guitar shop. Eventually as we got more serious I got some investors involved and LightWave Systems was officially launched as a California corporation in the late nineties. After that, we moved into a larger facility – my original place was just a one-man operation.

We started out providing only the electronics. We were providing systems for mostly boutique and custom builders, and we were focused on product development. We did that for a few years, and a little over two years ago I started designing complete instruments. As we speak, I'm currently working on developing a new division of LightWave Systems called LightWave Guitars, which will be dedicated to the instrument side of the business – it's still an exclusive and proprietary system for us.


What initially drew you to the idea of optical pickups – did it begin with an interest in traditional pickups?

Well, just like your magazine's tagline, I was experimenting in the never-ending search for tone and sustain, mostly with electric guitars. I began with the usual ideas, trying various wood combinations, building techniques, bolt-on necks versus through the body designs and so on. What I found was that the voice of the instrument was so dependant on the type of magnetic pickups on it that I began to wonder if there was some other way to sense string vibration that was non-intrusive and not so heavily voiced as magnetic pickups are.

Of course, I like magnetic pickups to this day – I have great respect for them – but I thought there might be something different out there. At the time, infrared technology was beginning to proliferate. A lot of it began in military applications and was really expensive, but it started to trickle down into consumer goods – these days it's everywhere and quite affordable. I got interested in the fact that you could look at a string and the string didn't realize it was being sensed.


Did you envision the optical pickup as a response to a perceived need within the industry, or was it more of an attempt to push the bounds of existing pickup technologies?

I perceived it as a desire rather than a need. I've always believed that players want alternative tones and experiences from their guitars and I got such a positive response from the early prototypes that I just couldn't help but launch it into fullscale product development. I went on to believe that this is an important contribution to the continued evolution of guitar technology.

It could actually become an industry standard for some segments – for example, it could be identified as a need in terms of electrifying acoustic instruments. Piezo pickups are well entrenched in that segment, but they have a lot of drawbacks. People have accepted them for what they are but we offer some serious advantages in that area.

In electric string instruments, we definitely want to emphasize our differences as an alternative. We're not saying, "We're gonna replace magnetic pickups," we just want to be another option in the mix. You know how guitar players are as collectors. We're not saying you're gonna get rid of all of your guitars, just that you'll want one of these too.


How does the infrared technology actually "look" at the string, as you've described it, and how does that make it to the amplifier?

Each string has its own array of infrared emitters and photodetectors; the emitters cast a shadow of the string onto the detectors. When you vibrate the strings, the size and shape of the shadow changes, which in turn modulates a standing current in the detectors. That signal, just like most transducer signals, is very small, so it goes immediately into a motherboard, which is in a cavity at the back of the guitar, and contains preamps. The motherboard amplifies the signal and also has a socket for a daughterboard, which is where all of the tone controls happen. From there it goes directly to your standard 1/4" jack and cable. It's a completely analog system, and the overall sound is clean, balanced and natural.

It might sound like rocket science, but we're not doing anything exotic. For what it does, it's a very robust and dependable system, and it really isn't that complicated. This system is compatible with all preamps, amplifiers and signal processors in the marketplace, and it provides you with a kind of high-definition string signal to start with, so any amplification and signal processing you plan on doing is noticeably enhanced.


Industrial Light & Music
Saber Hybrid in Thunder Gray So even though the signal is sent through a motherboard and daughterboard, it's analog the entire way?

All analog, all of the way. There's no digitizing anywhere.


The words "transparent response" are all over your marketing materials. Can you describe the tone that these pickups generate in comparison to a traditional magnetic pickup?

Well, let me start with magnetic pickups since you've made the comparison. All magnetic pickups have built-in voicing – they cannot be flat by nature. Even the flattest model adds 6 dB of gain per octave across the entire spectrum, so they are really changing a lot of what the string is actually doing. You can think about it this way: there is nothing richer than the sound of the vibrating string itself. Any means of transducing it is going to be a subset of that. Magnetic pickups also dampen sustain and make sustain and decay sound somewhat unnatural, especially towards the end. They alter the actual harmonic structure of string vibration, choking some of the harmonics – Stratitis would be an extreme example.

Optical pickups have no inherent coloration, so if you set all of the controls flat you're really getting the sound of the string, the instrument and whatever the player is doing. You get a really rich, fullbandwidth signal with extended frequency response; really long, natural sustain; and a nice, even decay. It's kind of like a grand piano and the nice, natural decay you get when you hit a note. You're really starting with a truer and more accurate string signal source, and that's just the direct clean sound of the pickup. You're free to add EQ without fighting existing curves. You get a lot of versatility and your downstream effects will be enhanced because you have a better signal at the front-end. Another thing you will notice as soon as you plug in is that the system is dead quiet and doesn't generate any of the annoying hum and buzz associated with magnetic pickups. Recording engineers love it.


So the wood and components still play a critical factor in the instrument's tone with the LightWave System?

Absolutely, and perhaps even more so, because you've taken the pickup out as a primary voicing generator.



admin

https://www.premierguitar.com/articles/industrial-light-music-inside-lightwave-systems-and-the-optical-pickup-1

Does this transparency help create an honest instrument?

I think that's a really good word. A lot of players also tell us that it improves their technique. The sensitivity provides a more honest playing experience. Also, fretless bass players seek out the most realistic upright bass sound they can get, and they are really attracted to our fretless models.


What are the tradeoffs for these benefits?

The obvious one would be that you pay a slightly higher price, especially in the early stages of development, just as you do with any new technology. We have lower volume production, so we haven't achieved economies of scale. Magnetic and piezo sensors have been around for a long time – they've become commodities with a very low cost of entry.


What about powering the system? Could that be seen as a drawback?

It is a rechargeable nickel-metal hydride battery system. Some people – before they learn how it works – consider it a drawback, but this actually functions like any other active pickup system. By now most people are familiar with recharging batteries in pieces of equipment, and once they learn how simple and reliable it is consider it more convenient than 9V battery systems. There's no more running to the store for a battery or finding your replacement battery is also dead.

It's a rapid recharge system and takes about one hour to charge, giving you 16 hours of playing time. The battery and charger are very reasonably priced, so buying spares and replacements isn't hard on your wallet, and the batteries have many charge cycles, so it's a very easy technology to get used to.

As far as power running out mid-set, there's a battery status LED right on the bridge that begins to dim, giving you better than a two-hour early warning. And the instrument never just dies – it fades out over that two-hour period. If need be, you can play and charge at the same time, with the charger plugged in.


Who is the target audience for your technology?

There's no narrow focus here – we're going after all string instrument players and all styles of music. There are advantages here and certainly the majority of players are looking for something to differentiate themselves. We're also aiming at anyone who wants to capture a natural acoustic string sound at any volume for live performance or recording. Players will come to find that they're more intimately connected to the strings and the instrument when they're getting this level of sensitivity from our transducer.


It seems that your efforts to date have centered on the bass guitar. What's the reasoning for that?

Bass was a good starting point, mostly from the standpoint that they're bigger strings and are spaced wider apart. Bass players are fairly open to new technology, and they were very impressed with the extended frequency response here. It really shows up on 5-string basses; the low B has never sounded this tight and focused. All of those things came together and bass was just our first product.


Industrial Light & Music
Saber in InfraRed What was the thinking in incorporating a conventional pickup in your SL Hybrid bass?

Actually, that was mostly requested by players, and to be honest, I resisted at first due to the fact that if you put the magnetic pickup on there – even if you're not listening to it – it's still doing string damping stuff. But a lot of our boutique builders began building instruments with both, and I became rather enamored with the combination. There's also a novel set of tones you can get by mixing the optical and magnetic pickups with the pan pot. Some players also wanted the convenience of having both systems on one instrument. We listened to our customers and found there was enough demand for it.


The bridge designs on your basses are quite striking. Who did you work with to develop them, and do they provide any benefits over a more traditional design?

The bridge was originally a LightWave design; we call it the "monolithic bridge." We did work closely with Graph Tech to develop the actual product and they helped us create it out of a proprietary blend of Graph Tech materials, which offers sonic benefits as well as being very rugged and dependable.

Design-wise, I was looking for what you might call a mechatronic approach, where each one of the monoliths integrates everything. It contains the mechanical termination of the string, the electronic and transducer functions, and action and intonation adjustments all in one assembly. It looks cool, too.

We wanted to draw some attention to the fact that the guitars look different from the standpoint that you don't see any magnetic pickups, which gives our instruments a real clean look. But then it draws your eye down to the bridge and the fact that you've really got something different going on.


You've also been promoting your new Atlantis ElectroAcoustic guitar – could you tell us a bit about that?

The Atlantis will be shipping within a few weeks – the first production run is underway. We were able to transfer the technology to the full range of string gauges. Wire strings were a challenge, but we've found a way to work with them and now the system can be adapted to any instrument we choose. We certainly plan on many guitar variations.


Why were wire strings such a challenge for your system?

Well, they're just so small that the shadow I was telling you about actually gets lost when we used the bass transducer assembly. So everything has been miniaturized and fit into a much tighter spacing. But we've solved that problem – we can pretty much sense any string gauge that's out there now.


As you know, guitarists are notoriously traditional. Has it been difficult to get guitar players on board with the design of the Atlantis ElectroAcoustic?

It certainly plays a part – vintageitis is what you're talking about and it certainly has an effect. But we've really focused on getting guitars into the hands of players, in terms of expanding our dealer network, because you can write about it and advertise and do reviews, but until a player actually gets it in their hands, they won't understand that it's a new tool, a new means for expression. Granted, there are players who are not going to be early adopters, but there's a large segment of players that are interested, and I think that's an advantage in many ways. Magnetic pickups have been around since 1935 and the primary guitar designs on the market are from designs created in the fifties. The last real development in pickups happened in the eighties when they went active. So obviously there's room for something new and different. Look around – every other segment of this industry has experienced technological evolution in the last 20 years that you can barely keep track of, so why not the pickups?


The ElectroAcoustic has a unique blend of radical and familiar aesthetics – are you looking to come out with a more traditional approach for those players suffering from "vintageitis?"

With my guitars, I try to give them a modern, recognizable design, but nothing that's too out there. I try to create them based on the tradition that I learned how to build guitars in. I carefully choose the woods and don't use any radical materials – the proper woods for tone generation don't change. It's just that with the optical pickup you get more tone generation from the instrument, the choice of string and the player's style and technique.


Industrial Light & Music
Atlantis ElectroAcoustic Guitar Would you say that the choice of string is a lot more important in this setup?

It can have a much greater importance. The pickup is very sensitive to different string materials and types because there's no more interaction between the pickup and the string. You don't need a ferrous string anymore – you can use any type of string you'd like, composition-wise. Eventually we plan to come out with some custom string options once the instrument base is larger. For instance, a copper-wound string would give you a piano sound, which you could not do with a magnetic pickup. There's certainly a lot of uncharted territory here. Players who buy our instruments typically put their favorite brand of strings on there to start, but they'll often find that they can experiment a lot more.


You currently market your own instrument designs, something you don't see from most pickup manufacturers. Did that arise out of a desire to create an entirely integrated solution or out of sheer necessity?

It's actually more interesting for me as an integrated solution. I'm very quality and detail-oriented and like having control over the instrument design. The pickup system is not a retrofit at this stage, so even when we worked with boutique and custom builders, they had to learn how to integrate the system into their instruments. I also believe that a complete instrument helps us to build our brand identity – it's not a LightWave pickup on some other guitar. We offer an integrated system where the instrument and pickup are designed together for maximum performance. It puts the company in control of the growth and development of the entire technology.


Are there any plans to work with manufacturers in an OEM capacity?

Long-term, yes – there are a lot of manufacturers that are interested, but it's too early to name names. We went through an OEM phase early in the beginning, working mostly with boutique and custom builders, and that was a great experience for us, in terms of product development and working with some great builders – Joe Zon, Harry Fleishman, Jens Ritter, Michael Spalt, really too many to name. LightWave pickups ended up on a lot of fantastic guitars out there and I think eventually we'll get back to it on a bigger scale where we're working with large, global companies. It's one step at a time; we definitely felt that doing our own instrument lines was the logical next step.


With the nation's economy seemingly headed for a soft patch – if not a full on recession – has it affected your plans? Do you expect players to scale back?

We're not planning on it – you know how musicians are. The electric guitar industry has been resistant to economic fluctuations over the years and we certainly didn't position ourselves to become a huge company overnight. We're just trying to go after a reasonable share of the market so that we can continue to grow and offer the technology to more players on more stringed instruments.


How many people are involved with the company now?

We're keeping it lean. This facility [in Carpinteria, CA] is mostly design and final assembly. To keep the price reasonable, we farm out a lot of the manufacturing – PC boards, guitar necks and bodies and a lot of the sub-assembly. So it's less than ten people here right now but that's certainly going to change. We do intend to do all of the final assembly here and the proprietary transducer work is always done in-house.


Are you relying on overseas manufacturing?

Just for the necks and bodies. We assemble, setup, test and QC every instrument here with the highest standards. We manufactured in the U.S. for a while but the price was so high that it was really a great point of resistance in getting this into a player's hands. Now we've got a great manufacturing partner with really high quality and reasonable pricing. Our basic models go out the door for under $1000, which was a dramatic change for us. When we were doing production completely in the U.S., our instruments were in the $2000-$3000 price range and that kept it out of a lot of players' hands.


What's in store for the future of LightWave Systems?

Many electric stringed instruments. We'll make a version of the Atlantis guitar with nylon strings, a solidbody electric guitar and maybe an archtop. We'll definitely get into bowed string instruments – violins and cellos – since magnetic pickups don't work with them and piezos have their shortcomings. We also envision add-on pickups for acoustic instruments. Thinking long-term, probably even a system for grand piano, which would be pricey but in a live concert or recording situation would be a great transducer solution.

We're also very excited about hex effects (trademarked as HexFX), which is our implementation of MIDI and Hex technologies. The motherboard has a second socket and if you plug in another daughterboard, it can route the individual string signals to a 13-pin connector. From there the signal is compatible with pretty much any MIDI equipment, the Roland V line and any variety of synth boxes, as well as fan-out boxes for individual string signal routing. And when I say individual string outputs, there is a totally separate transducer for each string with zero electrical crosstalk. That gives us some real, noticeable differences like chords that are never muddy – they're very clear and well articulated. Even when playing tight intervals like minor seconds and double-stops you can clearly hear each note. So that's another exciting opportunity for us. Ultimately, we aim to be the dominant force in an entirely new segment of the guitar industry.


LightWave Systems
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http://lightwave-systems.com/
https://www.premierguitar.com/articles/industrial-light-music-inside-lightwave-systems-and-the-optical-pickup-1


Majiken

Anybody laid hands on one of these?
Take what you need, put back a bit more, leave the place behind you better than it was before :-)

www.majiken.rocks

Elantric


Due the Optical Hex pickup design with optical shield , there is an inability to Palm mute on these guitars = no interest here.

mmmmgtr

Any chance that you could palm mute off the sheild as the anchor point?  Looks possible but would likely take some technique alteration...

Curious on thoughts/experience from anyone that has played one.

Majiken

Palm muting is an important element of my technique, would be hard to adjust.... wondering about their claim of massively improved lack of crosstalk, help to eliminate warbling? Is that system truly advantageous, ignoring the palm muting issue?

Their website doesn't give much help, can't even find basic specs like scale length and neck width at first and second glance.
Take what you need, put back a bit more, leave the place behind you better than it was before :-)

www.majiken.rocks