KNA Pickups MP-2

This pickup has some genuine potential, but poor manufacturing tolerances and a seriously flawed volume control undermine the experience.

It is probably better than some piezo pickups, but don't set your expectations too high. A pickup mounted directly under a bridge is never a good thing, but it is certainly convenient.

The sound is pretty decent, but the pickup is extremely sensitive to its placement and how tightly it fits. Both adjustments can be quite tricky because, on a mandolin, the gap between the upper and lower parts of the bridge is rarely exactly parallel due to the action setup.

The specifications state that the pickup is between 1.9 and 2.0 mm thick. This tight tolerance would indicate good quality control in the manufacturing process. But no, it doesn't. My pickup is 2.6 mm thick! That's too thin to fit tightly, yet too thick to use a single shim without sanding it down. Even worse, the shims, which are supposed to be 0.6 mm and 1.0 mm thick, are all between 0.5 and 0.6 mm.

Worst of all, the volume control is terrible. At first glance, I thought it was a terrific feature—and it would be, if it actually worked! The volume control also doubles as a tone control, although this is most likely unintentional.

As you turn up the volume, it increases as expected, but the sound also becomes brighter. At low volume, you get a dark, mellow sound, but over the upper 40% of the control's range, the sound becomes razor-sharp and excessively bright, to the point of being completely unusable, even with an equalizer.

I was looking for a non-intrusive pickup for my f-style mandolin. I didn't want to drill holes or make any fuss, possibly ruining it. This pickup came up in my research and after watching a couple of videos on YouTube, I was convinced the KNA MP-2 was exactly what I needed! I've only picked up the mandolin recently and I don't have any comparison with other pickups, but I'm also a music producer so I trust my ears. The KNA MP-2 is incredibly easy to setup and yet very solid. At first look, the piezo looks a bit frail but after installing under the bridge, it stays there and doesn't move. The sound is honestly better than I was expecting. It's very clear and bright so you may want to watch those high frequencies, but it perfectly reproduces the main features of the instrument.