In 1975, I was working with Bill Lawrence...
... on a new acoustic soundhole humbucking pickup for acoustic guitars. This, like the DeArmond that preceeded us, was a magnetic string sensing pickup with a 6’cable that dangled to the floor. It actually worked well, but didn’t sound particularly like an acoustic guitar because it was magnetic. Around that same time came the Barcus-Berry and the Frap style top sensing units that were pretty terrible, but if you used their outboard preamps, it was a little better.
Then one day back in 1985 , we were working in the studio with Crosby, Stills, and Nash, when Dallas Taylor came in with something brand new. It was a fire engine red Guild Acoustic 6 string with a Baggs saddle/pickup installed in the bridge. We thought it sounded just great but actually, it was more of a convenience than a good representation of tonal quality. Those were the early days in a new era of great piezoelectric acoustic guitar electronics, not a mic, and not magnetic. We still have that guitar in it's primitive form.Now there are so many great systems available to choose from. I've installed hundreds of pickups in acoustic guitars, but each installation requires a short consultation with the owner to find out just what that particular player is wanting his guitar to sound like. This helps determine the brand and style of system to use. Currently, I am recommending the B-Band system and for many reasons. They have a superior pickup material coupled with a very sophisticated buffer/amplifier and come in several mounting configurations. Alternatives are the Fishman, Baggs, Dtar, and many others.