Maton's Legendary AP5-Pro Electronics

November 10, 2021

After years in development and countless iterations, the new Maton AP5 PRO Acoustic pickup system lives on!

The AP5 pro is my most favorite amplifying system for acoustic guitar. It is very realistic and usable at higher levels onstage.” Eric Johnson.

The AP5 has been held in the highest regard for over a decade by players all over the world. It was with this in mind that we began development of its successor - The AP5 PRO. 

The AP5 PRO now features separate Microphone and Piezo input controls allow for blending of both microphone and piezo levels prior to sending the actively combined signals through to the master volume¹. Highly selective cardioid microphone system allows for much greater microphone level before feedback in live environments. This newly upgraded microphone is directly mounted to the preamp casing via an adjustable arm, which permits easy final tweaking of microphone position to suit the individual artist's style.

Tighter component packing via miniature surface mount components allows the complete preamp to be placed on one PCB, so the complete system is smaller and less prone to hum and noise pickup. The greater rigidity of this smaller PCB means that it is less prone to develop problems with ageing, and because it is bolted into position in the casing, the whole assembly is unlikely to develop rattles with the constant movement and shipping expected of performing musician's instrument.

The entire audio path has been scoured of electrolytic capacitors as these are known to affect high-quality audio. As a result, the sound of the AP5 PRO is much cleaner, with less 'fur' in the sound and does not suffer from tonal quality degradation with time.

All controls are now at your fingertips, and their 'resistance curves' have been specially designed and manufactured expressly for the AP5 PRO. As a result, the Bass, Treble, and MID are now much more 'linear' in feel. The FQ (Mid Sweep) now goes down much lower and has a much wider frequency band ( 600Hz to 2.4kHz ) to give greater control when targeting your specific sound.

Battery choice is 2 x AA batteries, why? - energy density. 2 x AA batteries have almost twice the stored energy of a 9 volt for approximately the same space requirement, therefore giving the performer a much longer operational life before battery change.

The AP5 PRO also has improved battery terminals - both terminals are identical and now made from phosphor bronze – the same material as used in ships propellers – it is extremely corrosion resistant, so should the batteries develop a leak, the terminals can be easily cleaned to restore them to 'as new' operation.

The entire AP5 PRO system has been designed with easy maintenance in mind. All connectors are gold-plated RJ11 (telephone type) click-in connectors, from the pickup right through to the output jack. If any replacement parts are required, they can be easily fitted without needing special tools, and the plugs are 'locked-in' so that they cannot work loose with time and the vibration of travel.

The AP5-Pro piezo pickup has also undergone a transformation. The pickup channel material is now made from 6061 T6 alloy - super light, super strong, the same alloy used in rock-climbers crampons & fittings. The updated channel assembly now has a new, more rigid, gold-plated PCB allowing smoother sound, improved detail and sharper transients than ever before.

Upgrading/retrofitting is easy, please contact us for more information.

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