Comments on EMG 81 & 85 - Going from Passive to Active Picku

[zabitha]

I'm thinking of changing my Dimarzio humbuckers for EMG's. I have a 1996 USA Custom with a quilt top and a Mahogany body. I still have the stock pickups mounted. A PafPro in the neck position and a Tone Zone in the bridge. I want to replace them with the EMG 85 in the neck and the EMG 81 in the bridge. What can I expect by going from passive to active pickups? Any comments!

[okan]

I would never prefer active pickups on my guitar because i think they sound really terrible but what I am curious about is what you are going to do with the battery problem. Those pickups need a battery to work. Where are you going to put the battery?

[badwamajama]

I would'nt go so far as to call em' terrible, but I have to agree that i would'nt change from passive to active.

My emg's sound good, but can't even touch my evo's....

the emg's to me are a bit .....treble..y...

I think I just made up a new word...

[alienx]

The battery is required for the preamp and other active onboard active eqing if you wanna use them, but not for the pup itself. The pups have builtin batteries which last for about 3000hours when pluged-in (according to EMG. Many players prefer to mount the extra battery at the back of the guitar when there is no place to put it in the circuit-cavity. EMG 81 and 85 combo is a popular one.

Why do you want to change the dimarzios?

Cheers Alien

[zabitha]

I'd like to change the Dimarzio's on the USA Custom to the EMG's cause I have an RG3120 that also has the PafPro and the Tone Zone. And I've heard so much talk about the EMG 81 & 85, that I'd like to try them. I've also been thinking about replacing the PafPro and the Tone Zone for the Air Norton and the Steve's Special. But my first choice are the EMG's.

[jemsite]

zabitha - In the future, please do NOT post the same message to multiple forums. I've deleted the other ones. Thanks in advance... glen

[jemsite]

I don't like active pickups and would NEVER make this type of change with any guitar, nevermind a nice USRG or USA Custom. * I would entertain the idea of alternate passive pickups from any manufacturer. Keep the originals in case you change your mind or need to resell the guitar. Good luck... glen

[zabitha]

Sorry Glen! It won't happen again!
Glen, why do you dislike active pickups so much? If I put in the EMG's, how would my sound change? Is the Air Norton and Steve Special a better combo than the PafPro and Tone Zone?

[wyldbill]

zab-

if you decide to ditch the TZ and PAF Pro, lemme know, I need a set. Also, you may want to fill out your email address in your profile so folks can contact you off line for stuff like this.

-bill

[DEICIDEL]

I have the '81 & '85 in one of my guitars and I like it. I was a bit skeptical of going active myself, but I gave them a try and have no complaints.
I play mostly metal/prog/fusion type stuff. They are really quiet, even with a lot on gain.
It all depends on the sound you want, the '81 has ceramic magnets, the '85 has alnico (if this helps) . *
The EMG's do have a sterile clean tone if your amp sucks (mine - H&K attax 80), but a little chorus helps

[jemsite]

Also, you may want to fill out your email address in your profile so folks can contact you off line for stuff like this.

Each member needs a valid email to "register" but you can select to keep it "private" hence it won't appear. I also think it's a good idea to make it available from your profile if you're looking for info.

As for an explaination of my preference... let me put it succinctly. To my ears, all the best guitar tones in recording history are from guitarists who used passive pickups. When in Rome... glen

[alienx]

Hi, me again... :biggrin:

so, you're looking for a sound other than you can already achive with another guitar of yours.

My opinion about EMGs are that they're extremely quite, have low empedance and can handle the issue "signal los" in long effect chains or complicated racks very well. That's the main reason why they sound "better" than passive pups in such setups and are prefered by Metallica, David Gilmour or Steve Lukather mainly for this reason. I don't like their sound, since it's too sterile, too "hifi", too cold (difficult to explain huh?) for my taste. Give them a try, or play another axe equipped with them, your own experience and expectation counts over all of ours anyway.

Is there any special sound you're looking for?

Cheers! :cheesy:

[zabitha]

Hey Alienx:
I love Kirk Hammet's sound as well as Zakk Wylde's. I know they both use EMG's! I don't have a complicated rack. I just have a 5150 combo, the line 6 pod and a Morley Bad Horsie Wah.

[rgr]

Here's a suggestion to try before you go to EMGs, the TZ is a huge sounding pup already. *This should get you pretty close to a Zakk Wylde sound, which is an awesome sound.

First, if you are using the POD with your 5150, DON'T! *You're messing up the sound of a perfectly good tube amp with digital simulations. *(I know I'll catch crap for that)

Next, set the amp for a medium to high gain sound, not mushy, nice and detailed.

Get a Boss SD-1, the Super Overdrive, not the Distortion. *It's the pedal of choice for ZW, it's also the pedal that SSV used on FTLOG and all of PAW. *It's not a high gain pedal but it works great to push an already pumping tube amp. *It is not the same as a Tube Screamer, the SD has an asymetrical clipping circuit in a feedback loop that generates alot of even harmonics and gives some nice octave overtones to the sound. *Start with the gain around 11:00 - 1:00, the tone 10:00 - 11:00 and the output 12:00 - 2:00, adjust to taste from there. *Too much gain is not a good thing if it turns your sound to mush, ZW has a very defined distortion sound, the tone in "No More Tears" is one of the best heavy tones I have ever heard.

You should be able to pick up an SD-1 for around $40, if you run it into a hot TUBE amp and compare it to a DS-1 you will notice the SD has the FTLOG tone in it, given the right amp and settings. *I was goofing off with some circuits on my bench one day and built a pedal that is similar to an SD-1, I plugged it in and "Holy S**t!" that's the sound. *Having said that, I still have a DS-1 in my pedalboard, it's a great pedal too. *

$0.02,
Roger

[zabitha]

RGR:
I also have the Boss Metal Zone (MT-2). How would that compare?