EMG 85 a discussion

[guitar geek]

here's the case. In the past I posted about EMG 85's etc with regard to the sound. I put a set of 85s in my Charvel 750xl and as a standalone it sounded rather nice. At about the same time I put a Tonezone in the bridge of my model 6 and the difference is staggering with the 750. The passive DiMarzio has more tone, more grit, more bite, more attack etcetc. I am confused since I always thought the EMGs were famous in that field and now compared to a couple (my guitar loaded with a Steve's Special as well) passive guitars the 750 with EMGs just sounds thin, shrill etc... I am really confused about that. I used all the proper ingredients, electronics etc and I really cannot get used to its sound. Possibly because of the unusual combintion of tonewood (see the import charvel section) namely basswood with a fat maple cap, but I am REALLY going to swap out the EMGs and get some passives instead...

anyone else with the same feelings?

harrald

[Newc]

Re: EMG 85 a discussion

EMGs are funny - some people say they sound better than passives, but "better" is always subjective.
It has been my personal experience with EMGs that they are tonally flat (some say "even" with no added highs, mids or lows like passives, but I consider "even" the same thing as "flat", as in "flat response").
That's why studio engineers favor EMGs, because they can shape the tone via EQ into whatever they want it to be.

Anyhoo, with EMGs, the majority of your tone has to come from an EQ, otherwise you're stuck with whatever's coming out of the pickup.
With passives, if you want a PAF tone, get a PAF-type pickup; if you want something that works well with a non-high-gain amp, get a Distortion-class; if you want a full-on shred tone, get one of the Extreme pickups like the Detonator or whatever.

Newc

[David Dineen]

Re: EMG 85 a discussion

i have several guitars with 85's. must say i prefer the passives...i just plug and play. with the 85's i always feel like i need to tweak the eq, effects etc or i'm not happy with the tone. in my book, you can't beat a duncan jb.

[xenophobe]

Re: EMG 85 a discussion

Newc, that applies very nicely to the EMG 81. The EMG 85 is a bit different, in that it does have a lot of lower mid and bottom end, and the upper mids and highs aren't as bright.

guitar_geek... EMGs, contrary to popular belief, are not massive high output pickups that scream gain and distortion. They're a relatively low output and very quiet passive pickup that is internally signal boosted to make it a relatively high gain pickup. You can boost it further by setting them up in 18v configuration, and even more by adding the AfterBurner or a PA2 signal booster.

Even though a lot of people don't think so, body wood DOES play a good part in how an EMG will sound in any particular guitar, otherwise an EMG would just always sound like an EMG, as opposed to just being a small part of the sound chain.

I feel the 81 is a perfect pickup for the highly processed super mass rackmount rigs. I think the 85 is better plugged directly into a tube head, but EMGs don't sound the greatest on amps that don't have a lot of gain.

Have you tried using an overdrive or some kind of signal boost with the EMG? Just use enough to put a load on your preamp, but before the signal compresses or clips.

[guitar geek]

Re: EMG 85 a discussion

I was surprised indeed with the output, which I considered to be rather low compared with some passives. I bought the 85's with the bottomend in mind, but surprisingly it really LACKS that... My amp is at clipping point so that is not where things go wrong. It only sounds decent on my solochannel, but compared with the Tonezone it really lacks... I don't know, but I think I'm a passive type of guy.

harrald

[etaeniura]

Re: EMG 85 a discussion

I'm not in a band or anything (nor would any band want me in it) But I have noticed that what I think sounds good when jamming in my house, sounds nothing like the tone you hear "real" guitar players having. Very trebly guitars irritate me to no end, but if you listen to alot of recorder music, the lead player almost always has a really trebly sound, and then when you hear them hit a power chord, it sounds like an electric razor. I prefer a heavier, meatier tone (I love neck HB's) that sound more like a lawnmower than a razor....see what I mean? So depending on the situation, a thinner tone is desireable. I'm just rambling....

[toejam]

Re: EMG 85 a discussion

I pretty much agree with Xeno. Also, you will need to adjust the EQ on your amp for other pickups. One setting that works well for certain pickups may not for others.

Oh yeah, the 85 rules in the bridge with either an 81 or 60 in the neck! [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[Number Of The Priest]

Re: EMG 85 a discussion

I was actually quite surprised at the output level of the EMGs when I used to use them as well. I expected a really over-the-top insane sound but I was pleasantly surprised that they weren't that high output. If I strike the strings hard enough, sure, I can very very very mildly distort the clean channel on my amp, but it was a very pleasant subtle overdriving effect with both the EMG-85 and EMG-81 in the bridge. If anything, EMGs were the cleanest and quietest pickups I've ever used with great string definition.

That being said, I do happen to like the sound of the alnico EMG-85 and EMG-89. To me, they sound like a classic humbucker with a bit of a modern flavor/twist to them. It seemed like they had a near perfect balance of medium-hot output, fatness, and "alive" character to them that I still haven't found in a passive pickup yet, although I'm awaiting my order of APC pickups which promise to give me what I need in a passive format...

I've always felt that too many people think they can get a fat Metallica/Zakk/Slayer sound using an EMG-81, when in my experience, the EMG-85 sounded like it was a little more suited to that realm.

[axeman81]

Re: EMG 85 a discussion

as usual, I'm with xeno, toe and NOTP on this one! [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[Immortal]

Re: EMG 85 a discussion

Yeah, me too, Rune! [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

[toejam]

Re: EMG 85 a discussion

[ QUOTE ]
I've always felt that too many people think they can get a fat Metallica/Zakk/Slayer sound using an EMG-81, when in my experience, the EMG-85 sounded like it was a little more suited to that realm.

[/ QUOTE ]
Yeah, especially Slayer, since they pump out a lot of midrange in their sound. Both Kerry and Jeff use dual 81s (which is definitely a cool setup), but I'd figure they would use the 85 in the bridge to get more of a midrangey sound. Kirk Hammett also uses dual 81s, and James Hetfield also did at one point but then switched to a 60 for the neck.

[j2379]

Re: EMG 85 a discussion

yep, i had an 81 in a warlock was OK, switched to an 85 it sounded alot better. more chunky low end & just fuller sounding. there was very little difference if any in harmonics & stuff. its got a duncan custom in it now tho. i think the 81 sounds best with a ton o gain thru a really nice tube head or rack w/outboard gear. otherwise i think the 81's just sound thin.

[guitar geek]

Re: EMG 85 a discussion

I must say, it is an experience that gives me some new insights about pickups. what bothers me most is that my roommate has a strat with a EMG60 and some SA's and strangely THAT one does sound great with my amp etc. ah well, no more actives for me, just passives

harrald

[xenophobe]

Re: EMG 85 a discussion

If you're looking for blistering high gain distorted active pickups, try the Seymour Duncan Metal Zone Live Wires... I had those in my Charvel Model A, and I have a little Boss practice amp at work... it's the only set of pickups that have ever caused that little amp to feedback, even at really low volume.... they literally blew me away. They're just WAY too much gain for me, especially in a band situation, but it was fun to practice on and sounded good.

[guitar geek]

Re: EMG 85 a discussion

well, I am not really into high output PU's like the metal livewires or invader or X2N or what other kind of high output PUs float around. I bought the EMG85s for a good, more classic orientated rock tone (which I knew they should be good at). if it brings a nice metaltone as well, so be it [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img].

Harrald