FlagShip

1. FlagShip Preconfiguration

• Stereo jack
• Piezo volume control
• 5-way lever or 3-way rotary switch
• Battery cable

2. Scope of Supply

• FlagShip preconfigured (see above)
• Two screws and one adhesive pad for fixing the FlagShip unit into place
• Screwdriver for green crimp connectors

3. Installation (if required please seek assistance from a guitar builder or technician)

1. Attach the FlagShip unit with the two screws supplied or alternatively with the adhesive pad provided. If necessary, drill suitable holes for the screws in advance.
2. Install the Stereo jack
3. Position and install the 5-way lever (switch position 1 in the direction of the bridge, i.e. position the circuit board ‘away from the strings’ ) or 3-way rotary switch
4. Position and install the tone potentiometer
5. Connect the positive and negative cables of the piezo bridge to the crimp connector (see below)
6. Connect the plus and minus cables of the magnetic pickup to the crimp connector (see below)
7. Attach the Phase jumper plug
8. Connect the battery

For the Hannes Piezo:
The plus and minus cable of each of the string saddles/piezo elements are bundled in the crimp connector. Simply plug the crimp connector into the multi-connector/adapter. Next plug both the plus and the minus cables of the adapter into their corresponding crimp connector on the FlagShip preamp. Screw tight with the small screwdriver provided.
Plug the crimp connector into the adapter. Make sure positive (red) and negative (black) are both on the correct side of the adapter (one side only), i.e. red to red and black to black. See image below.

Image 1: Hannes Piezo bridge with crimp connector
Image 2: Adapter socket for the Hannes Piezo

On item 5):

Piezo positive (red multi-connector of the Hannes bridge) to the crimp connector marked with a red dot.
Piezo negative (black multi-connector of the Hannes bridge) to the crimp connector marked with a black dot.
Please note: the piezo negative is not the general shield of the guitar.

On item 6):

Magnetic positive on the crimp connector is marked with a yellow dot.
Magnetic shield on the crimp connector is not marked with a dot.

For magnetically positive and negative poles, for example, the cable that was soldered to the jack plug socket can be used.

The following steps should be taken:

• Positive and negative poles that come from the pickup are to be removed from the jack plug socket by heating the solder connections.
• Plug this cable into the FlagShip connector ( "yellow" and "green/without" colour markings).
• Install the new jack plug socket that is delivered with the Flagship and plug the cable connected to the amplifier into the new cable socket.

On item 7):

The jumper can be positioned by either plugging onto pins 1 and 2 or onto pins 2 and 3 and determines whether the piezo-signal is 'in phase' with the magnetic signal or 'out of phase' - the latter providing inferior sound quality.
The required positioning of the jumper is dependent on the individual switching characteristics of the guitar. For correct 'in-phase' positioning of the jumper we recommend testing 'by ear' once all connetions are made and the preamp is hooked up to an amp.
This only applies to our Hannes Piezo bridges. Piezo systems with the same earthing (grounding) may need to be brought "in phase“ by reversing the existing poles on socket 1 (input for magnetic pickups).

• Caution: When a connection is made to pickups that are already live, the output signal increases automatically!
• A 9 volt battery can be used as a general power supply.
• Please note that piezo bridges are not earthed.

4. 5-Way Lever Switching

Options in Mono- and in Stereo-Mode
Mono and stereo positions 2 through 5 feature identical controls and functions allowing for a transparent layout and easy handling.

Pos 1 mono and Pos 1 stereo feature special utility settings.

5. Potentiometer Functions 5-way lever switch

6. 3-Way Rotary Switching

Options in Mono- and in Stereo-Mode

7. Potentiometer Functions 3-way rotary switch

8. Addendum:

1. In case one of the pickup systems is not connected to the guitar's circuitry (whether magnetic or piezo), a wire tap must be connected on the respective input for effective noise reduction.
2. To keep electromagnetic interference to a minimum all conductive parts of the guitar must be thoroughly grounded, particularily the Hannes retainer block and the FlagShip enclosure.
3. For Stereo operation of the FlagShip preamp use a Y-cable with the following connectors: One 6.3 mm stereo jack (guitar signal output) into two 6.3 mm mono jacks (to amplifier or mixing desk inputs). Required wiring:

• Stereo jack inner ring to ring of mono jacks A and B simultaneously
• Stereo jack middle ring to tip of mono jack A
• Stereo jack tip to tip of mono jack B

9. Quick 10 Step Guide to FlagShip

01. signal-to-noise ratio
ratio describing the level of signal to the level of background noise in dB (higher is better)

02. dynamic range
measured gap from the loudest possible undistorted signal amplitude to the most quiet one in dB (higher is better)

03. bandwidth
span between the lowest (here 1 Hz) and the highest frequency (here 20 kHz) the preamp can linearly (meaning without distortion) amplify or reproduce

04. noise floor
signal created from the sum of all noise sources (lower is better)

05. hardwire-bypass or true bypass
pure and unaltered guitar signal by way of bypassing any form of active signal-processing

06. reverse polarity protection
circuitry protecting the electronic components from interchanging plus and minus polarity (here: protection from interchanging the +poles and -poles of the battery)

07. static discharge protection
circuitry protecting the electronic components from an electrical voltage spark or 'spike'

08. piezo pickup
piezo-electrical signal created by transforming pressure/vibration into output voltage

09. magnetic pickup
magnetic pickup signal is created by transforming string motion and magnetic resistance into output voltage

10. buffered signal
high impedance signal transformed into a low impedance signal, therefore unaffected by high capacitance of excessive signal-cable and/or patch-cable lengths.

Another significant benefit of switching pos 4. is the buffered signal, i.e. the conversion of the high capacity passive pickup signal into a low capacity active pickup signal. This prevents sound degradation commonly associated with running extended cable lengths or using inferiour cable qualities. Your magnetic pickup signal will remain strong, clear and detailed even on the most unfavourable conditions.

Schaller Hannes Piezo cable layout and earthing
(see: Quick 10 Step Guide to FlagShip)

10. FlagShip

Sounds - you never thought possible

With this groundbreaking class A preamp your playing has never sounded better. Clear smooth highs, soulful mids and bodacious bass combined with an impressive dynamic range of 115 dB will lead your inspiration to new levels.

With a true bandwidth of 1Hz to 20 kHz at +/- 0 dB our state-of-the-art FlagShip circuitry provides unprecedented signal fidelity along with exceptional operational convenience.

And because of FlagShip‘s leading-edge rail-to-rail technology a single 9V alcaline battery will provide you with 1.000+ hours of play time.

Enjoy a self-sensing circuitry automatically switching in mono- or stereo-operation respectively by sensing which kind of chord you plugged in. In addition the FlagShip preamp offers an ultra-silent operation with a signal to noise ratio of -115 dB and a noise floor of just 20 dBµV. Schaller‘s own FlagShip gold contact 5-way lever or 3-way rotary switch lets you choose from a vast variety of piezo and magnetic switching options and –combinations never seen in any preamp before.

Please note: The FlagShip 5-way lever or optional 3-way switch are for controlling the preamp only. They do not replace the guitar`s 5-way lever or 3-way toggle pickup selector!

11. Schaller FlagShip preamp – Stereo / Mono Operation

For mono and for stereo use the FlagShip preamp features an advanced mono / stereo self-sensing output stage. The FlagShip preamp senses whether a mono 1/4“ or a stereo 1/4“ plug is inserted and switches into the appropriate mode automatically. Not only does this prevent misuse so commonly known from mono/stereo toggle switches. It also allows for just one output jack (see stereo jack enclosed) in your guitar to operate the FlagShip to its fullest potential.

In mono mode the sound of the magnetic pickups is mixed with the sound of the piezo pickups within the preamp. We recommend using a regular 1/4“ plug guitar cable. Please refer to the FlagShip manual for all dedicated sound options in this mode.

In stereo mode the sound of the magnetic pickups and the sound of the piezo pickups are sent seperately to the stereo output jack. Please refer to the FlagShip manual for all dedicated sound options in this mode.

We recommend two ways for routing the signals:

1. Using a stereo cable with two 1/4“ plugs for routing the magnetic and piezo signal seperately to a mixing console’s stereo input.
2. Using a Y-cable with two 1/4“ mono plugs and one 1/4“ stereo plug for splitting your signal between a guitar amp for the magnetic pickups and a PA or acoustic amp for the piezo signal.

The stereo and mono plugs should be connected as follows:

• Tip of stereo plug goes to tip of mono plug left.
• Ring of stereo plug goes to tip of mono plug right.
• Sleeve of stereo plug goes to sleeve of mono plug left.
• Sleeve of stereo plug goes to sleeve of mono plug right.

Please note that by connecting the grounds of two amps or an amp with a PA a low-frequency ground hum may occur. This is an inherent problem caused by ground loops and in no way a fault within the FlagShip preamp.