slsmg/dkmgt emg-hz pickups

[bsteam]

I understand alot of JCF members are great megashredders and pros using elaborate tube head/effects chain setups.My question is if it's worth going to 81/85 pickups or simular upgrade if your equipment(50 watt marshall solid state..ect)is'nt up to par? Are emg-hz's that bad? My jam buddies just have average stuff so I never heard a live audio comparison. Are aftermarket pickups that good?

[shadowcat]

Re: slsmg/dkmgt emg-hz pickups

Last year I got a DKMGT and I swapped the pickups for a Seymour Duncan JB/'59 combo.

IMO the sound has improved greatly... the HZs were too weak, cold and sterile for my taste.
The turbocharger helps a little to give them more output, but it also muddies up the sound.

BTW, I use a Marshall AVT-50 combo and no effects at all.

I think that new pickups are definitely worth it, especially with the SLSMG, which doesn't have the turbocharger.
But you have to find out which pickups you like... I don't like the sound of active EMGs that much for example, but others swear by them.

[Sunbane]

Re: slsmg/dkmgt emg-hz pickups

...like me for instance. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

The difference between the HZ's and the 81/85 is like night and day.

[shadowcat]

Re: slsmg/dkmgt emg-hz pickups

Originally posted by Sunbane:
...like me for instance. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

The difference between the HZ's and the 81/85 is like night and day.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">THAT I definitely can't deny. [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]
The active EMGs do indeed sound better than the HZs. [img]graemlins/images/icons/wink.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/toast.gif[/img]

[toejam]

Re: slsmg/dkmgt emg-hz pickups

Real EMGs rule!! I've never tried the HZ pups, but I had a pair of those old passive EMG Select pups I put in my Dinky HX in the mid '90s that were very bassy sounding. They didn't sound bad (sounded decent coil tapped, too), but I had to have the treble cranked on my amp. I put in a real 85/60 and now the guitar sounds much better and I don't have to keep turning the treble down when switching to other guitars. I put the Select in the green Dinky Reverse I sold to Word, and he says he likes them.

[Sunbane]

Re: slsmg/dkmgt emg-hz pickups

I've also had that EMG Select "SEHG" model. It was kinda long ago, but I remember thinking they sounded very "vintage-ish" - not nearly enough bite and output for anything distorted.