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Last issue of Gear, we told you about the new ‘Nanoflex’ technology from German pickup and preamp supremos, Shadow. Already highly praised in performance terms, Shadow has now expanded the range.
Nanoflex pickups (product suffixed with ‘NFX’) are the result of rigorous research and development by Shadow, and if you listen to any Nanoflex pickups in use, you will realise that they are definitely something special. Nanoflex pickups not only take the vibrations of the strings like common undersaddle pickups, Nanoflex senses the
vibrations of the strings and the body of the instrument simultaneously. Thus the Nanoflex gives the ideal ptimum amplified equivalent of having a microphone mixed with a bridge pickup faithfully reproducing the overall sound of the instrument. Additionally, all Nanoflex pickups are 100% hum-free and feature minimal levels of power consumption.
  
The Nanoflex range has now been expanded with the addition of Nanoflex pickup systems with endpin preamps vailable for ukulele (SH NFX EP-U), acoustic (SH NFX EP-A) and classical guitar (SH NFX EP-C). All 3 versions are supplied with a Nanoflex pickup, endpin preamp and battery pouch. Preamp electronics are trimmed to the sonic characteristics of the respective instruments, where the SH NFX EP-C for classical guitar and SH NFX EP-U for ukulele provide singing, soft trebles and smooth bass. Additionally, the output volume of the classical guitar unit is lower than for acoustic guitars (SH NFX EP-A) for a smooth and accurate tone, and to avoid any distortion. The SH NFX EP-A for acoustic guitar provides sweet trebles and punchy bass, with adjustable output volumes for picking or strumming.
Let’s have a look at what’s behind Shadow’s innovative Nanoflex technology. Shadow reckon that the invention of Nanoflex pickup technology is the latest and, by far, most important step in pickup technology ‘since he first guy wrapped a wire around a magnet to get an electromagnetic pickup’!
 The sound of a string instrument like a guitar, upright bass or violin is not only down to the strings - the entire instrument is involved in its individual sound. And that’s where Nanoflex technology comes in, because Nanoflex pickups not only receive the vibrations of the strings like conventional undersaddle pickups, Nanoflex senses the vibrations of the strings and the body of the instrument simultaneously. No other technology offers this impressive level of sound reproduction. The NFX pickup's flexible sensor is a multi-layered assembly made from seven different, specially chosen material layers and is less than 1mm thick. At its core is a remarkably thin PVDF piezo-electric foil sensor which is capable of registering the pressure of the bridge saddle which transmits the string vibrations and at the same time the vibrations and movements of the instrument's soundboard, all in a precise and accurate manner.
To protect this pure and natural acoustic sound, Shadow developed a unique technology that amplifies and protects the sound signal directly on the pickup. Unlike other pickups, the Nanoflex pickup signal does not pass through even a single millimetre of wire, thus eliminating any external, environmental disturbances before the output connection cable. Due to active amplification directly at the pickup and 100% shielding of the entire system, no sound will be lost and no hum created. This is the difference from any other pickup technology. Even the preamp incorporates Nanoelectronic technology (hence ‘Nano’, but I’m sure you got that already), and is attached directly to one end of the pickup, with a full-toned low impedance output which you can then plug straight in with. Clever stuff, for sure. "The most important thing about making music is the sound,” says Shadow. That’s certainly what Nanoflex takes care of - try a Shadow Nanoflex unit, and prepare to be impressed!
 New US band, Illumina started as a collective of seven musical friends playing shows in New York and hiladelphia. Their first album ‘Nightlight’ has caused a stir and received good reviews on the east coast in America and in Scandinavia. Illumina features four songwriters, a string section and a percussionist and, obviously, high quality sound reproduction is extremely important to the musicians, who use Shadow’s Nanoflex
pickups for violin (SH 945 NFX) and upright bass (SH 965 NFX) and the award-winning soundhole pickup, SH 145 Prestige, for acoustic guitar. “Shadow Electronics pickups have changed our sound completely!” enthuse Illumina. “Gone are the dull, murky tones of the past and in their place are clean, clear sounds that make our instruments sound like gold!
Blackmore replacement in rock legends Deep Purple, is also a fan of Shadow pickup units. Whether classical, jazz, Southern rock, Bluegrass or hard rock, Steve plays them all, and is surely a strong contender for The World’s Best Guitarist™, who has played on no less than 80 albums! He’s also a pioneer in the use of ‘guitar to MIDI’ converters, and plays the Shadow SH-075 because, according to Steve, ‘None of the other units available
today track better, respond faster or are more reliable than the Shadow.’ So guitar technology fans, now you know what to choose!
Copyright Gear Magazine 2007 http://www.jhs.co.uk/gearmagazine.html
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