Any love for EMGs?

[rOB]

HZ soapbars in my Schecter. Love them.

[harleyheath]

never used the pick ups but I did install a EMG EQ once, it was bloody awful and cost £120, total bland crap, think I've still got it some where, It might sound better coupled up to some EMG p/u's, free to anyone who wants to pay postage!

[scojack]

I'll take that off yer hands

[Valhalalf]

I really like them. Swapped a Jazz set in my old Squier VM bass and they sounded lovely.

I'm going to get a mexican Jazz V and fit a J5 at the neck and a 40TWX at the bridge then couple it with a BQC system at 18v.

[Kongo]

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1351467098' post='1851598'] "Modern" sounding? Sure, if by that you mean precise and articulate.
[/quote]

Haha, I think this here is the perfect response.

[quote name='Mudpup' timestamp='1351502209' post='1851733']
Got a feeling the HZ series are passive
[/quote]

They are but I think this thread is about EMG's as a whole. Completely different concept though I agree.

[Cosmo Valdemar]

[quote name='Spoombung' timestamp='1351277065' post='1849696']
They're fine. People talk enormous twaddle about their soulless sonic quality but they produce a nice even spectrum of sounds often requiring no EQ unlike other makes. Particularly underrated are the HZs - the passive models.
[/quote]

This. I love the HZs in my old Spector NS2000 - in fact I probably prefer the tone I get from it to the various Euro Spectors I've owned over the years. They're running at 9v - I've certainly never felt the need to upgrade in any way.

[Dood]

[quote name='harleyheath' timestamp='1351526455' post='1852183']
never used the pick ups but I did install a EMG EQ once, it was bloody awful and cost £120, total bland crap, think I've still got it some where, It might sound better coupled up to some EMG p/u's, free to anyone who wants to pay postage!
[/quote]

I guess it depends on what you need from an EQ. The EMG system is transparent and 'colourless' tonally, only providing boost and cut to the frequencies specified in the spec sheet. Therefore, if you send it a bland signal, then that's what you'll get out of it. If you replace it with a certain well known preamp that has a lot of colouring in it, then the EMG will sound flat in comparison. I've heard people reviewing the likes of the EBS Multicomp calling it flat and lifeless too, but again, this is a really transparent pedal not designed to colour the signal at all - i think the same applies to that too.

I put EMGs in to my first serious bass many years ago (about 20 I think!) and I've always used them - even when I tried something else, I've come back to EMG. Yeah, great pickups - powerful. I really like that you can make EMGs sound old skool easiliy if you want, but it's much more difficult to get an old skool sounding pickup to sound like a modern EMG.

As for guitar pickups - If they're good enough for Dave Gilmour - and of course my fellow LickLibrary tutor and (sometimes band) mate Andy James, then that's a pretty good endorsement I reckon!

[Audiokostas]

[quote name='Kongo' timestamp='1351295280' post='1849945']
Not sure about Jazz basses and Precisions with EMG's, seems you guys want trad when using them. If you want trad stay away from the EMG's.
40DC soapbar active EMG's are the best pickups I've used of that style so far. Better than Bartolinis and Nordstrands IMO. I have no idea what this stigma of "soulless" or "use by skill-less player" is, I really don't they are a pickup and that's that.
To me they deliver some of the most crushing tone and output but at the end of the day it's my hands that play the damn thing, not the pickups. :-P
[/quote]
[quote name='dood' timestamp='1351613922' post='1853285']
I guess it depends on what you need from an EQ. The EMG system is transparent and 'colourless' tonally, only providing boost and cut to the frequencies specified in the spec sheet. Therefore, if you send it a bland signal, then that's what you'll get out of it. If you replace it with a certain well known preamp that has a lot of colouring in it, then the EMG will sound flat in comparison.
[/quote]
Couldn't agree more.
Currently I am using a [b]40P5[/b] in the neck and a [b]40DC [/b]in the bridge position (in order to have an "illusion" of a PJ bass) paired with a EMG BTS preamp on a Custom Landing medium scale and I am more than happy with them. I did not get them for their vintage character and I definitely not getting any of it.

I wouldn't call them soul-less (since the soul comes out of the music you make) but I would characterise them somehow HiFi-ish (not in a British but rather in a more American way that pays attention to treble and bass and a tad less in that magic midrange).

They are pretty versatile paired with a good preamp but they usually need some eq fiddling to shine in the band (since, on their own, they sound better than vintage pups).
The good thing is that they eventually, (almost) always blend in nicely (unlike some one trick -arguably the best trick - pony gorgeous vintage flatwounded p-basses) no matter the occasion.

Although they rarely require battery change, I am not that comfortable that I would be force to change while tuning before a live performance.
Never happened though.
It's true that 18V provide you with more headroom but I wouldn't go as far as calling them rubbish with 9v. I never tried them with 27V...

As for cliches such as "[i]Batteries belong in flashlights", [/i]I leave them to manufacturers that a)can not learn new tricks and b ) do not have active pups in their range (either by choice and/or by inability to produce them)[i]. [/i]

My 2 eurocents.....

Edited October 31, 2012 by Audiokostas

[deefer_dog]

Love EMG. My Kramer has the MMCS pickups ( 9v ) and it sounds amazing through the EBS! Crisp and a helluva lot of punch!

I want to put the 35HZ into the fleabass, and maybe JHZ's in the SJB down the line!

[Kongo]

[quote name='Audiokostas' timestamp='1351675183' post='1853926']
Couldn't agree more.
Currently I am using a [b]40P5[/b] in the neck and a [b]40DC [/b]in the bridge position (in order to have an "illusion" of a PJ bass) paired with a EMG BTS preamp on a Custom Landing medium scale and I am more than happy with them. I did not get them for their vintage character and I definitely not getting any of it.

I wouldn't call them soul-less (since the soul comes out of the music you make) but I would characterise them somehow HiFi-ish (not in a British but rather in a more American way that pays attention to treble and bass and a tad less in that magic midrange).

They are pretty versatile paired with a good preamp but they usually need some eq fiddling to shine in the band (since, on their own, they sound better than vintage pups).
The good thing is that they eventually, (almost) always blend in nicely (unlike some one trick -arguably the best trick - pony gorgeous vintage flatwounded p-basses) no matter the occasion.

Although they rarely require battery change, I am not that comfortable that I would be force to change while tuning before a live performance.
Never happened though.
It's true that 18V provide you with more headroom but I wouldn't go as far as calling them rubbish with 9v. I never tried them with 27V...

As for cliches such as "[i]Batteries belong in flashlights", [/i]I leave them to manufacturers that a)can not learn new tricks and b ) do not have active pups in their range (either by choice and/or by inability to produce them)[i]. [/i]

My 2 eurocents.....
[/quote]

Indeed man. Y'know, I think I'd go as far as to say EMG active's (Not Hz, those are [b]passive[/b]) give you in essence what a modern player looking for that sound would want; proper hi-fi signal.
I mean, there is nothing whatsoever wrong with vintage tone or a pickup that has "that sound" but I feel this is where some players meet their folly They have a sound in mind yet they keep hitting a wall. Why? Because their own electronics are fighting them.

EMG active pickups give you pure hi-fi signal to do with what you wish. Your amp gets a healthy dose of crystal clear signal and you can process it from there.
I guess in that way maybe they are characterless but then again not...It's hard to explain.
But these pickups DO NOT clash with you in any way.

My guess is this is why active pickups are more welcome in the bass world, because guitarists are very purist on the old ways. Don't even mention graphite neck to a guitarist. They are adventure shy when it comes to technology, maybe this is why the guitar world hasn't changed much (unless you include Djent and 8-string guitars, there's a storm in a teacup).
Their world is different though where grit and distortion comes natural through valves whereas we prefer solid state and tonnes of headroom.

But I digress.
Conclusion is there is truth in the above post and I feel that's the best way to describe active EMG pickups; Pure hi-fi signal...Without the baggage. They should use that as a sales pitch. :-P

Edited October 31, 2012 by Kongo

[harleyheath]

[quote name='dood' timestamp='1351613922' post='1853285']
I guess it depends on what you need from an EQ. The EMG system is transparent and 'colourless' tonally, only providing boost and cut to the frequencies specified in the spec sheet. Therefore, if you send it a bland signal, then that's what you'll get out of it. If you replace it with a certain well known preamp that has a lot of colouring in it, then the EMG will sound flat in comparison. I've heard people reviewing the likes of the EBS Multicomp calling it flat and lifeless too, but again, this is a really transparent pedal not designed to colour the signal at all - i think the same applies to that too.

I put EMGs in to my first serious bass many years ago (about 20 I think!) and I've always used them - even when I tried something else, I've come back to EMG. Yeah, great pickups - powerful. I really like that you can make EMGs sound old skool easiliy if you want, but it's much more difficult to get an old skool sounding pickup to sound like a modern EMG.

As for guitar pickups - If they're good enough for Dave Gilmour - and of course my fellow LickLibrary tutor and (sometimes band) mate Andy James, then that's a pretty good endorsement I reckon!
[/quote]

Fair enough, thats good info, thank you, It really didn't colour it all, I must admit I was using a cheap pair of p/u's, and it did sound bland, and yep when I replaced that EQ with 'a certain known EQ' it did come to life, I'm sure it would of sounded ok if coupled with a pair of EMG's, but for that bass the EQ changed it insanely, it was my first build and had some great tonewoods in it (wenge, bubinga) and I was excepting more punch from it, but was quite bland with the EMG.
Strangely to this day is still the second best sounding bass (to my ears) i've made, I don't use off the shelf p/u's anymore, that was the first and last one, but if I did and I needed range in that bass the I'd go for that EQ every time. I maybe should of given the EMG another whirl with a decent set of p/u's. my bad!

Edited November 1, 2012 by harleyheath

[bertbass]

Hi all,

I had an amazing experience last night but let me begin at the beginning.

I retired my old bass, which I made in 1993 as it was getting a bit tired and needed a refinish and re-fret and have been using a bass that I got together to tide me over. It was fitted with a PJ set of EMGs powered by 9Vs. It played fine but I struggled to get a great sound, it was OK but not great.

I finally finished renovating the old bass, which has a pair of Jazz EMGs powered again by 9Vs and used it again for the first time on Saturday. The difference was astounding.

The old jazz pickups had so much output compared to the much newer PJ set, I'd guess at 4 x the output and the tone was immense. More highs and lows, more definition and more of everything. I was more than happy, my sound was back. I should mention that I'd changed my amp along the was so the change in sound was even more astonishing.

The Jazz set was bought in 1993 and they were used as well so probably made a lot earlier than that. The PJ set were bought about 5 or 6 years ago. I don't know whether the pre 1993 pickups were designed to run on 9V or not but they sound fantastic at that voltage so I'm not going to do anything that might destroy them, so at 9v they will stay. If I can find room under the scratch plate of the other bass I might try 18v and see if the PJ set come as alive as the others. If I do I'll let you know.

[iiipopes]

The HZ series (get it - High Z, or high impedance, since the electrical symbol for impedance is "Z") is the [i][b]passive [/b][/i]series of pickups. If there is a battery in a bass with HZ's, it's because someone has added a preamp or an effect or other add-on. My Ibby SRA305 has the licensed version of the EXB, which Ibby calls the "Phat II," so it needs a battery to run the add-on. These are great pickups, but here's the catch: they are more interactive with the controls you attach to them. EMG recommends 500kohm controls, but that can make them brittle sounding. I jumpered my neck pickup volume control with a 1-megohm resistor to bring the effective load down to 330kohms, and it smoothed out the response of the pickup. Mine are wired V-V-T, like a jazz bass, then the "Phat II." When I get around to it, I'm going to be switching out one of the controls with a push-pull pot so it can be taken completely out of the circuit so that if it goes dead at a gig, I can pull the knob and completely bypass the EXB, er, Phat II and keep going.

Again: [i][b]the HZ series is passive[/b][/i]. If there is a battery in a bass that wears HZ pickups, it's because the battery is running something else, either a separate onboard preamp or an add-on or mod, not the pickups themselves, as are the EMG soapbar series and others.

Edited November 12, 2012 by iiipopes

[Conan]

I bought my GL jazz from here and it already had an EMG J set in place. To be fair, the wiring had not been done correctly and the sound was a bit weak, but after it was sorted by the Bass Doc it sounded fantastic! OK, maybe not as much "growl" as Geddys are known for, but much more usable for all that. In fact, the first time I used it at a rehearsal the band (ALL of the band!) commented on how good my tone was. I've [i]never[/i] had that before!

Interestingly, I've never heard about the 18V thing before. Does it [i]really[/i] make that much difference? Adding a second battery will probably involve routing out a rear-access compartment, making the bass less "authentic". Not that I have any intention of selling it I suppose... Would it be worth me getting this mod done?

On the general point about EMGs though - definitely not "sterile and soul-less"!! Clean - definitely. Smooth - totally. Classy and glassy. I love them in this bass, but not sure I would install them in my fretless. The added raunch works (to my ears) in a fretless application better than in a fretted one. YMMV of course.

When I listen to Bobby Vega playing slap on his EMG equipped Jazz bass, I think he sounds more like Marcus Miller than any Fender MM sig bass!!

[AttitudeCastle]

Personally I don't rate EMGs for guitar at all, only heard one or guitar tones with EMGs that I've liked,

BUT on bass I think the are really great! And do the hi-fi, clear and articulate thing really well

[gjones]

They sound good on this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3-uPgqcHuo

[ChrisG]

I've had EMGs on both guitars (a USA Jackson with the 'classic' 81/85 set) and on bass.

I quite liked them on the guitar either for clean or heavy distortion. You could use them for mid distortion (blues/classic rock) but there are far better choices.

I also had them on my Warwick Thumb 5. They were the stock pickups from 1986. I liked the middle three strings (E,A,D) but found the B and the G sounded a bit weak. I read somewhere that this is likely because the EMG Js that were fitted were designed for four string basses in that era (the EMG J 5 set is a recent invention) and the magnets are a bit short so they don't cover either end as well. Or maybe they were tired after 26 years of service. Either way I'm in the process of getting them replaced with Delano JMVC 5s and a Glockenklang pre-amp.

My own opinion is that EMGs don't lack character they just have a character of their own. However they seem to polarise opinion (certainly among guitarists) because of the music they are used for and the players they are associated with.

[Kongo]

They are fantastic on electric guitars for "squealies", them ultra wide pinch harmonics you can hit and bend forever.
Again, these will mainly be used in metal, usually Extreme Metal styles (Death, Thrash, Black etc) and have been adopted into the hardcore crossover sub-genres too. Guitarists don't seem to like them for clean tone because they don't overdrive the valves like classic pickups do.
Also, guitarists are very funny at trying "new" technology.
Graphite necks and active pickups are very taboo in the guitar world.

[quote name='gjones' timestamp='1352715490' post='1866346']
They sound good on this video [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3-uPgqcHuo[/media]
[/quote]

[size=2]"The all new EMG[/size] [size=6][b]JVX [/b][size=2]pickup."
[size=4]Jesus that made me laugh! He does it each time haha.[/size][/size][/size]

Edited November 12, 2012 by Kongo

[Mog]

IME most of the nonsense spouted about EMG's comes from those who've had little or no experience with them. Usually its guitarists who label them as sterile and lifeless (in most cases the only exposure to EMG's they've had was an 81 or an 85 being mangled by a boss metal zone and crappy Marshall head).

They certainly have a sound of their own but the only way to determine if they are for you is to get hold of some. I cant see myself taking them out of the Spectors anytime soon as the provide exactly what I'm looking for.

[Conan]

[quote name='harleyheath' timestamp='1351526455' post='1852183']
never used the pick ups but I did install a EMG EQ once, it was bloody awful and cost £120, total bland crap, think I've still got it some where, It might sound better coupled up to some EMG p/u's, free to anyone who wants to pay postage!
[/quote]

Do you still have it?

[Conan]

[quote name='Conan' timestamp='1352708070' post='1866254']Interestingly, I've never heard about the 18V thing before. Does it [i]really[/i] make that much difference? Would it be worth me getting this mod done?[/quote]

Apologies for quoting myself here.... but opinions on this would be appreciated!

[Mog]

I did it on one of the Spectors. There is a difference but it is not massive. Perhaps there was a little more headroom but nothing substantial.
IMO of course.

[Dood]

[quote name='Mog' timestamp='1352824274' post='1867956']
I did it on one of the Spectors. There is a difference but it is not massive. Perhaps there was a little more headroom but nothing substantial.
IMO of course.
[/quote]

I'll go with that - Certainly I noticed more headroom and iirc, I had more punch from my slapped bass low end- again, probably due to having the extra headroom. Oh and if nothing else, you'll have waaaay more time before your batteries run down low enough for the preamp to stop working completely. i.e. if the preamp can no longer function below 6v (for example) then it'll take longer to get down there from 18v than it would from 9v.

[Mr. Foxen]

Ages ago a bcer drew me this to explain making a reversible adapter for running EMGs at 18v. Can't remember who for credit:
[IMG]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b69/Incarante/18vemg.jpg[/IMG]

[KingBollock]

[quote name='dood' timestamp='1352845946' post='1868461']
I'll go with that - Certainly I noticed more headroom and iirc, I had more punch from my slapped bass low end- again, probably due to having the extra headroom. [b]Oh and if nothing else, you'll have waaaay more time before your batteries run down low enough for the preamp to stop working completely. i.e. if the preamp can no longer function below 6v (for example) then it'll take longer to get down there from 18v than it would from 9v.[/b]
[/quote]
Are you sure? I was always under the impression that if you had batteries in series you got twice the voltage but they would last the same amount of time as one battery. To get twice the time you would wire them in parallel, but then you only get the voltage of one battery.

Edited November 14, 2012 by KingBollock