EMG 89 myth or truth?

[guitar geek]

I have heared some mixed things about the 89 and I wonder whether someone can clear that up for me. The 89 is supposed to be an 85 with the possibility to split it to an EMG SA, but I have heared some stories that is not quite an 85 and even less a SA, so it is a compromise that comes somewhere near the 85 and SA, but it is it not quite. is that true, or a fable?
I am looking to replace an 81 with either an 85 or 89 (it is the bridge position) and I like the 85, but am not sure what to buy, the 85 or the 89, because I like to have some extra options, but not at the expense of tone. It should be installed in a charvel 750xl [img]/images/graemlins/help.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/help.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/help.gif[/img]


Harrald

[Matt Crooks]

Re: EMG 89 myth or truth?

I've not ever put an 89 and an 85 in the *same* guitar... but in similar guitars they certainly sound like the same pickup to me. I'm not a huge fan of the coil-tapped sound of the 89 though... the volume drop makes it difficult to use live...

[Number Of The Priest]

Re: EMG 89 myth or truth?

I've currently got an 85 in the bridge and an 89 in the neck of my KE3, and they sound similar enough in humbucking mode for my tastes, ignoring the obvious physical placement of the pickups. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

Yup, there is quite a volume drop when switching to the SA mode, and EMG recommends putting in an Afterburner thingy if you want to boost it, but it's pointless. Otherwise, it has a great single coil flavor to it, and absolutely ESSENTIAL for a guy like me who loves and needs both a humbucker and a single coil in the neck position.

[Venomboy]

Re: EMG 89 myth or truth?

EMG told me that there are actually 2 separate pickups in the EMG 89. The dual coil side was modeled after the EMG 85.

[fuel0707]

Re: EMG 89 myth or truth?

I used to have an SA/SA/89 setup in my Valley Arts. While I can't comment on how closely the 89 sounds like the 85, it was pretty beefy. And like others have said, there is a noticable volume drop when you go to the split mode, but that is certainly to be expected, given physics. The single-coil mode of the 89 sounded pretty similar to the SA's though a bit thinner, as I recall, though I ended up not using it much. The full 'bucker mode seemed to have pretty good output.

I think you should try addressing this question to EMG directly and see what they have to say.

[guitar geek]

Re: EMG 89 myth or truth?

well, I decided yesterday that I am going to part with them, they simlpy are not my cup of tea I guess

harrald

[Fragle]

Re: EMG 89 myth or truth?

a bud of mine has a fender double fat strat with the following pu's: 89 neck, SA middle, 85 Bridge so we can compare them in the same guitar.
i'd say, the 89 is very close to the 85, if not totally the same (hard to find out because of the different positions in the guitar). in split mode, the 89 was indeed a bit thinner than the actual sa (although it doesnt matter in this guitar because it was in the neck position and therefore sounds a bit thicker anyway), but its not THAT much. the 89 is ok if you occassionally play some deep purple or whatever (stuff that was played with a strat, basically) and therefore would like to have the possibilities the 89 gives, as long as your main focus is on the humbucking mode.

greets
fragle

[guitar geek]

Re: EMG 89 myth or truth?

OK, lets dig up an old topic [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]. I decided to put a 85/85 combo in my guitar and I must say, I was not really an EMG fan before this action, but I have to say the 85/85 combi sounds awesome, exactly what I was looking for!

Harrald

[Number Of The Priest]

Re: EMG 89 myth or truth?

Oooh, dual EMG-85s! They sound surprisingly lifelike, don't they? You're now part of the growing cult... Mwahahaha........ [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

But sadly, my days of being in the EMG-85 club are numbered... I've been summoned by APC lately... [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

[guitar geek]

Re: EMG 89 myth or truth?

hmm, it is not the reason why I put them there, but if I am part of a growing cult because of it I will not really regret it [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

harrald