Loading product data...
Dead Battery During a Live Gig?
When you play live gigs, losing battery power during a performance is disruptive, distracting, and can ruin your performance. It happens all too often -- in the middle of a live set the battery goes dead and your guitar sound drops out. Walking off-stage to find a new battery and replace it is often not an option and is incredibly disruptive to the performance.Why do you not notice the battery is low before you start playing? Because the 9V battery can last for months so it is too easy to forget to check it, and the way the built-in battery indicator works makes it too easy to miss that the battery is getting low. The built-in battery indicator is deep inside the guitar where you can only see it if you make an effort to look inside the sound hole at a low awkward angle. It is impossible to see this light while you are playing. It also is a light that goes OFF when the battery is low, but who notices a warning light that is OFF? A warning condition (low battery) should turn an indicator ON.
Never Lose Power Mid-Set Again
Stage Assure is the worlds only really useable battery monitoring system for Taylor® Expression System® guitars. With a unique 2-level alert system you can't miss, even if you are not looking for it, you will never be surprised on stage by a dead battery again. Not only does Stage Alert alert you when your battery is getting low, it tells you the most important thing you need to know -- how much play time is left. Stage Assure will alert you when there is 10 hours of remaining play time, and again when there is 5 hours remaining. So you can play with complete assurance that the battery is not going to ruin your performance.Stage Assure is easy to install for anyone with basic DIY skills. It can also be installed by a professional luthier if you prefer. The kit includes everything you need including custom tools that simplify the process. We provide complete step-by-step instructions.
Here are some common questions and answers:
Not at all. Most users complete the installation in under an hour (see the Installation Instructions). It requires no special tools or technical skills, just a bit of patience and care working inside your guitar. There are no permanent modifications to your guitar and the installation is completely reversible.
If you are not comfortable working inside your guitar we recommend you have it done by an experienced luthier.
No.
Acoustically and plugged-in, your guitar will sound exactly the same. The hardware is extremely lightweight and mounted internally in a way that does not dampen the soundboard or interfere with the bracing's vibration.
Electrically, Stage Assure does not alter the amplified signal in any way. The preamp output is not processed by the Stage Assure and passes directly through to your amplifier or pedalboard the same as it always has.
No. Our proprietary circuit design consumes such a small amount of power that it has virtually no impact on battery life (and it does not run at all when the guitar is unplugged).
Even when the Stage Assure LED is flashing it consumes far less power than a standard LED, less than 1/100th of what the preamp is consuming. So, you can be assured that using Stage Assure will not run down the very battery it is designed to monitor and protect you from.
Use our Compatibility Guide that walks you through identifying your system. Generally, if you have a Taylor® guitar with 3 knobs on the upper shoulder and a 9V battery at the endpin, your guitar is compatible with the Stage Assure system.
You can expect the alerts to be accurate within about ±2 hours. So the 10-hour alert will come on when you have between 8 and 12 hours of play time left, and the 5-hour alert will come on when you have between 3 and 7 hours of play time left.
These specific alert times were developed for common live performance scenarios. For example, if you are doing a full-day event and the 10-hour alert comes on, you can be assured that you have enough battery life to get through the rest of the day. If you are doing a 1-hour set and the 5-hour alert comes on, you can be assured that you have enough battery life to finish the set.
See the Stage Assure Usage Guide for more details on the two alert levels.
No, not at this time. The Claria™ system uses a different preamp design and battery configuration that is not compatible with the current Stage Assure system. The Claria system suffers from the same lack of essential battery warnings as the Expression System®, maybe even worse. The longer battery life of the Claria system means that you go even longer between battery changes and are even more likely to be caught off guard by a dead battery. So Stage Assure is just as needed to solve the problem of having the battery die on you in the middle of a performance. We hope to support the Claria system in a future version of Stage Assure.
Yes, as long as the electronics are compatible. Use our Compatibility Guide that walks you through identifying your system. Generally, if you have 3 knobs on the upper shoulder and a 9V battery at the endpin, your guitar is compatible with the Stage Assure system.
Yes, as long as the electronics are compatible. The preamp board on some left-handed guitars are slightly different than the photos in our installation guide but Stage Assure installs and works the same way.
Use our Compatibility Guide that walks you through identifying your system. Generally, if you have 3 knobs on the upper shoulder and a 9V battery at the endpin, your guitar is compatible with the Stage Assure system.