# Why Does Anyone Like Active Pickups?



## Science_Penguin (Sep 27, 2014)

Let me just start by saying I'm not trying to start a fight here, and I'm not trying to be a dick. I'm genuinely curious and want some opinions.

My experience with active pickups (mainly EMGs) has pretty consistently been that they sound good while I'm playing them, and then I pick up a guitar with passives and realise what I was missing. They just don't seem to respond to picking the way passives do. On top of that, it doesn't seem all that difficult to find a passive pickup that nails the same basic tonal characteristics of an active, while retaining the responsiveness (in my opinion, the D Activator is a good clone of the 81 and the Evolution sounded kind of similar to an 85 through my rig). 

So, with all of the above in mind, I'm looking at the price of your average active pickup, plus the amount of work that goes into installing them in a guitar that previously didn't have actives, plus now you've got the added step of replacing the battery, and I'm just wondering "why?"

Without resorting to the old "It's a matter of taste" cop-out, can anyone here tell me what it is they like about active pickups? What is it about them that makes them worth the hassle?


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## DudeManBrother (Sep 27, 2014)

Not from me! I feel the same way you do


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## decreebass (Sep 27, 2014)

So I recently got my Carvin DC800 back - it's my only guitar with actives. I love the tone of it. While I love passives "more," there's just something wonderful and compressed-but-not-really-compressed about actives. It's very difficult to describe lol. I think both kinds have their place, but I'll typically opt for passives; mainly it's a battery issue. I hate changing batteries lol.


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## TheWinterSnow (Sep 27, 2014)

Why do I like Actives, it literally comes down to that is what I like, saying preference is a cop-out is like asking why someone would like a V30 other than simple "preference" as an answer. 

They have a compressed and fizzy sound about them that adds to the aggressiveness of the tone and takes away from some of the nastiness of massive amounts of saturation, yeah its an artificial sound but it works. If you don't like actives so much the ol' 18v mod might be worth a shot as that will clean up the pickup a lot. At that point if you still don't like the tone it may be a matter of actual pickup winding/magnet design and preamp design, those are things that can easily be changed in pickup design. Most people from what I have gathered that don't like actives don't like them because there isn't enough headroom with 9v batteries and as a result the preamp adds some distortion that people don't like.

Its only a matter of time before we start seeing different flavors of active pickups, eventually getting to the vast diversity that passives have and hopefully we stop this whole debate about which is better and start talking about all pickups in regards for which one is better for which job.


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## Metaldestroyerdennis (Sep 27, 2014)

My only electric has Blackouts in it. Never had any complaints aside from not being able to keep my guitar plugged in when I'm not playing.


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## Blue1970Cutlass (Sep 27, 2014)

First I want to be clear that I am speaking in general terms - there is obviously a HUGE range of sounds within BOTH passive and active pickups... but when people say "active" I usually assume they mean EMG and more specifically - probably the 81

With that out of the way, for ME -- passives sound way better if I'm just jamming by myself. Choose your superlative = richer, fuller, more dynamic, you get the gist...

...but I like actives for 2 things
1.) a band setting - again, I'm not saying that there aren't passive pickups that can achieve the same thing, but EMG's for one excel at cutting through the mix instead of being lost & muddied with the bass -- I suppose this can vary depending on the tuning & style of music being played, so YMMV
2.) Recording. To be more specific - I should say that my studio / mixer guy likes active pickups.There's less work to be done with EQing and other post-recording affects, for the exact same reason.. they already stand out in the mix for the exact reasons no one likes to play them solo

Again, this is all just my personal experience as to why I "bother" with active pickups in certain situations.

...although c'mon... "hassle"? What, you mean changing a battery like once a year (if that?)  just fvcking with ya


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## Force (Sep 27, 2014)

I love EMGs because I'm a lazy picker, doesn't matter too much how you pick, it comes out much the same. Plus, I just love the tone they give, especially the palm mutes, nice & tight.

I will agree with the OP in that the D'Activator series is awesome, they don't sound like EMGs but they do sound great.

I am starting to find more passives I like but that's just how I am, actives do it for me.


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## The Q (Sep 27, 2014)

Hm, I find that your question makes a point that needs to be addressed.

By stating "why anyone likes active pickups" you are essentially claiming that all active pickups sound the same or at least have definite characteristics that put them far away from passives. While you can argue the point that actives are more compressed, I'd point out that newer models from EMG (most notably the 57/66 & the HetSet) have quite a generous headroom and a voicing much different to their older products.

If I am to trust my bass guitar which is loaded with a couple 40TW-Xs as well as my 18V-modded EMGs, I could definitely say that compression is not an issue to my ears - enough headroom for what I like. With that in mind, I'd say that while actives usually exhibit more compression, there are ways to overcome that (on EMGs at least).


All in all, to me a pickup is good, bad or meh, regardless of the technology it uses. If it needs batteries, sure, I don't mind changing one every few months. If it sounds bad, I'll rip it off, be it an active or a passive. I'd never categorise a pickup based on whether it has a preamp or not (active vs passive) because it'd be misleading, would tell me nothing about the pickup itself and would lead me to miss awesome active offerings like the 57/66 set.


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## Grindspine (Sep 27, 2014)

Science_Penguin said:


> Without resorting to the old "It's a matter of taste" cop-out, can anyone here tell me what it is they like about active pickups? What is it about them that makes them worth the hassle?


 
Active pickups are inherently buffered by the internal preamp. That is to say that they can drive longer cables without losing high frequency response due to capacitance.

That is the technical advantage that all active pickups have over their passive counterparts.


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## Fretless (Sep 27, 2014)

I find there are plenty of reasons to like active pickups. I personally prefer them to passives on bass. I feel that I can sculpt my tone with a bass far more easily if I have active pickups. Being able to dial in a flat tone and go from there rather than have an already dynamic starting point that you have to fight to try and shape provides ample benefits. That is not to say I don't like passives though, but it's all a matter of what the situation calls for.


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## that short guy (Sep 27, 2014)

I'm an active guy but I use the 57/66 combo across the board (6 7 and 8 string versions). And to me, I haven't been able to find another pick up that reacts to my playing the way they do and give me the sound they do. normally its one or the other. so that's why I play the actives.


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## tmo (Sep 27, 2014)

I am a passive guy, regarding Pickups, I mean.

I use almost only humbuckers and do whatever I can with them: Serial, Parallel, Split and sometimes reverse phase.

To my knowledge, these are not reachable by Active humbuckers, being the coil split an exception on some models.

Plus, if compression _is_ their sound mark, one can always compress passive pickups outside the guitar... yea, not the same, but similar...


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## Redoubt9000 (Sep 27, 2014)

There's this word I use to describe tone that can be heard on either passive or actives, "sandy" or "throat" - it's that new string sound you get when ya put on a set, when the tone of the string is really shining through. Not necessarily bright, but simply detailed. I can hear this tone pretty much die within after a day or so on passives. When I got my first set of actives though, I could hear that tonal character for days if not well over a week! I can certainly appreciate that. Perhaps it's the guitar and the selection of passives in it, but doesn't make me dislike the actives any more so


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## techjsteele (Sep 27, 2014)

I am both an active and passive pickup lover. For guitar, I am a huge fan of DiMarzio pickups, but for bass, nothing satisfies me more than EMG active pickups (I have an EMG 45DC pickup set in my Brice HXB-406 I installed and would not trade them for the world).


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## Itchyman (Sep 27, 2014)

TBH, there isn't a pickup as tight as the EMG 81. No if's and's or but's about it. If you want your low string to sound like a machine gun, there is no other pickup for you. And yes, in order for your tone not to sound thin as a piece of tinsel, you do need to design your rig around it. 

If you play a large sounding passive guitar into a rig set up for an EMG 81, then you would most certainly think it sounds muddy and slow. It probably wouldn't be enjoyable to play. 
The same goes in reverse, which a lot of you seem to do: Playing an EMG 81 through a rig set up for passive guitars. "It sounds thin and anemic" "It doesn't have any balls" "I just can't seem to find any size in it's tone". Does any of that sound familiar?

Actives traditionally don't have as much dynamic response as passives do, either. So, if that's something you're expecting, then they just aren't for you. Some people don't need, or want, as much control over those things. Active pickups, like scotch or tequila, is an acquired taste. You either like it a lot, or you don't like it at all.


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## that short guy (Sep 27, 2014)

Itchyman said:


> TBH, there isn't a pickup as tight as the EMG 81. No if's and's or but's about it. If you want your low string to sound like a machine gun, there is no other pickup for you. And yes, in order for your tone not to sound thin as a piece of tinsel, you do need to design your rig around it.
> 
> If you play a large sounding passive guitar into a rig set up for an EMG 81, then you would most certainly think it sounds muddy and slow. It probably wouldn't be enjoyable to play.
> The same goes in reverse, which a lot of you seem to do: Playing an EMG 81 through a rig set up for passive guitars. "It sounds thin and anemic" "It doesn't have any balls" "I just can't seem to find any size in it's tone". Does any of that sound familiar?
> ...



I think you're the first person to actually get this into words lol. but I would like to say that the 57/66 set actually do the dynamic response like passives.... I seriously can't say enough good things about these pickups.


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## tmo (Sep 28, 2014)

Itchyman said:


> (...) If you play a large sounding passive guitar into a rig set up for an EMG 81, then you would most certainly think it sounds muddy and slow. It probably wouldn't be enjoyable to play.
> The same goes in reverse, which a lot of you seem to do: Playing an EMG 81 through a rig set up for passive guitars. "It sounds thin and anemic" "It doesn't have any balls" "I just can't seem to find any size in it's tone". Does any of that sound familiar?



This is so true. If one needs a a reason for going into rack gear, this could be THE ONE.

We should even make the rig sound accordingly to the pickup type in use. Balls and thinness is a matter of EQing correctly the setup...

... but in the end, I am still a passive guy for their flexibility in tone options (serial, parallel, etc.).


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## Dayn (Sep 28, 2014)

A lot of passive pickups colour the sound. I don't want that. I want a clean, even sound to sculpt how I see fit.

Yes, some passive pickups do that, but actives are much cheaper and more plentiful.


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## Phantom (Sep 28, 2014)

I love passive PU's, always have, for many of the very same reasons previously stated. However, I think it inevitably comes down to preference. For example, I have played active PUs through someone else's setup and it sounded good, but not so in mine. The reason is that my settings on amp, pedals and whatnot are all built around the passives I use, because I prefer the sound. Its a little unfair to judge PUs, active or passive, because of so many different factors that result in the final tone.


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## K3V1N SHR3DZ (Sep 28, 2014)

We've all heard arguments saying EMGs are sloppy, have bad dynamics or lack definition. I believed them until I bought an 81-8 & 60-8 set for my RG8. I had such a hard time getting a good tone out of it with the D Activator or Ionizer. Picking hard resulted in a big nasty mess, and I couldn't really hear the intervals in dense jazzy chords with distortion like I could with the Evo7 or DA7. I had a hard time even TUNING by ear. It was like driving with a muddy windshield.

In MY experience, the 81-8 has helped my picking become cleaner in both sound and technique. Picking hard seems to bring out distortion and thickness instead of just getting louder or devolving into a sloppy mess. Dynamics are still there, but they're more narrow. 

The clarity is out of this world. After installing the 81, I could HEAR THE NOTES. Seriously. Sounds stupid, but it was that big of a difference.

The 60-8 has a really nice clean tone, and I love it for leads. It's not as good as some of the Dimarzios I've owned, but very usable.


If they come out with the H cap in black/white plastic, I may very well retire my Evo/Blaze sets in my 7-string guitars. They're that good.


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## Shimme (Sep 28, 2014)

Grindspine said:


> Active pickups are inherently buffered by the internal preamp. That is to say that they can drive longer cables without losing high frequency response due to capacitance.
> 
> That is the technical advantage that all active pickups have over their passive counterparts.



Sh1t, just yesterday I was looking at an add-on that is is used before your output jack that will buffer passive guitars. Although being able to do that out of the box is certainly nice.


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## Jonathan20022 (Sep 28, 2014)

Actives are awesome as are Passives, I used to needlessly hate them years ago but after spending more time with them I don't feel like there is anything there stopping you from achieving good tone. 

I find that sheer laziness is a reason why most guitarists stick to one or the other, because like said before you do need to readjust and recreate your sound and rig to match them. My first experience with active was my first 7 string, a Jeff Loomis Signature with 707's. I didn't enjoy them much at all, but after trying the 6 string EMTY Blackouts and then the 707X's and 57/66 Pickups from EMG. I enjoy playing them just as much as my passive pickups, there's a certain thick tone the 57-66's give you, and tight modern metal tone the 707x's bring.

Also pickup swaps are SO easy, I don't mind soldering but spending less time and stress on all that is definitely pleasant!


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## Itchyman (Sep 28, 2014)

that short guy said:


> I think you're the first person to actually get this into words lol. but I would like to say that the 57/66 set actually do the dynamic response like passives.... I seriously can't say enough good things about these pickups.



I'm probably one of the first few to have the balls to say it 

Also, I swear to god, the biggest, fattest and most devastating tone I've ever played and heard was a from a guitar with an EMG 81-7. It did not flub, nor did it cut into your ears. On the opposite side, the most pure and beautiful clean sound I've ever played was from an EMG 60. 

TBH, my experience with those 2 particular pickups has been very dynamic, to say the least. I've played rigs that just do not sound good at all. Then there was the one I mentioned. Just as I've played rigs with passive pickups that sound both amazing, and like shit. If you tailor a rig to a particular set of pickups, and know what you're looking for, then you can do just about anything with any pickup (and guitar). 

I grew up with an EMG 81 and 60, with the 18v mod. Until I began dialing off volume to clean the gain up, I did not run into any type of draw back. I simply dialed in a different amp tone (I've always had the luxury of playing into a good tube amp).


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## BornToLooze (Sep 28, 2014)

Jonathan20022 said:


> I find that sheer laziness is a reason why most guitarists stick to one or the other



I started using them because that's what James Hetfield and Zakk Wylde used, I still use them because it's either that or learn how to solder. And honestly I barely have time to play guitar anymore, so I'd rather be able to change pickups in a couple of minutes when I get a new guitar than spend the time to learn to solder. It's either that or take it to a tech and not have my guitar for like a week.


So, pretty much, I like them because I'm lazy and they sound good enough.


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## TRENCHLORD (Sep 28, 2014)

I like the extra compression and don't find changing batteries to be an obstacle at all, unless you have 10 or 20 guitars with all actives , and you're keeping them all at battle-ready status at all times. EMG quietness is another big plus.
Passives do offer something actives can't, and vise-versa, so I use both.


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## Itchyman (Sep 28, 2014)

TRENCHLORD said:


> I like the extra compression and don't find changing batteries to be an obstacle at all, unless you have 10 or 20 guitars with all actives , and you're keeping them all at battle-ready status at all times. EMG quietness is another big plus.
> Passives do offer something actives can't, and vise-versa, so I use both.


But really. I have 8 guitars (out of 10) with actives, and not only is there the "trouble" of having to keep the batteries at 'optimum' level, but half the time, half the guitars are 2000 miles away from me. I never think about battery life. Ever. An EMG pickup is rated to be OK for 2000 hours. 1000 hours @ 18v. I'm an exception, for sure, but let us go and divide 5 guitars by 500 hours. It'll probably be 3 years before I need to replace the $1 batteries. Dude, my condoms cost $1.25.


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## Grindspine (Sep 28, 2014)

Itchyman said:


> I've played rigs that just do not sound good at all. Then there was the one I mentioned.


 
Recall what that rig was? I'd love to have a canned answer for an amp that works that well with the EMG 81 & 60.


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## PlumbTheDerps (Sep 28, 2014)

Not having to worry about noise, built-in compression, and they just bring the br00tz tonally in a way that passives sometimes can't. If I were recording a tech death or breakdown butt-metal song I'd definitely choose actives over passives. But there's also a lot of variation in actives; an 81 sounds like a chainsaw, but my 57/66 set sounds smooth as butter.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands (Sep 28, 2014)

Science_Penguin said:


> Without resorting to the old "It's a matter of taste" cop-out



It's not a cop-out, it's the truth. Get off your high horse with that shit. It's a matter of taste because there's people that like the compression and sharp attack of actives that most EMGs offer. That's why I don't like the standard Duncan Blackouts; they sound like muddy-as-...., over-gainy passives. 

Also, there's a hassle with EMGs? This is news to me.  Only "hassle" I have is changing batteries once a year, probably even less than that since I use a single EMG 85 with the 18v mod.


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## Chokey Chicken (Sep 28, 2014)

Because, like every pickup, they have a different tone. Some people like that tone, others do not. The same can literally be said about any pickup ever. 

Why does anyone like bkp when you can get duncans?
Why does anyone like duncans when you can get dimarzio?

It all boils down to taste, which is not a cop out.


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## Andromalia (Sep 28, 2014)

I always come back to the EMG81 after some time. Probably because that's something I'm used to and grew up with. They were my first "dream pickups" in the early nineties.


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## wat (Sep 28, 2014)

Chokey Chicken said:


> Because, like every pickup, they have a different tone. Some people like that tone, others do not. The same can literally be said about any pickup ever.
> 
> Why does anyone like bkp when you can get duncans?
> Why does anyone like duncans when you can get dimarzio?
> ...



Why does anyone like velveeta when you can get kraft?


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## wat (Sep 28, 2014)

Because they have a tone and feel that passive just don't, plain and simple.


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## JoeuJGM (Sep 28, 2014)

My first "good" electric (Schecter Devil Custom) had the EMG 81/85 set, so I've come to love them because it's what I'm used to. I've been using the 18v mod on that guitar for about a year and a half now and I've never looked back. The attack and extended headroom offered by the 18v setup is unreal, from E standard down to drop F# the note definition and clarity is great. I've also had a 7 string Dimarzio pups and a 6 string with Duncans and they sounded great as well, but I found it much harder to dial in usable tones on those passives (PAFs/JB) then the 81/85. I guess I'm accustomed to the sound of EMG is all. Personal preference is all it is, people like different pickups and there is no wrong or right.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands (Sep 28, 2014)

wat said:


> Why does anyone like velveeta when you can get kraft?



What if I told you that Velveeta was made by Kraft?


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## Leuchty (Sep 28, 2014)

Emgs don't have poles that rust.


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## Science_Penguin (Sep 28, 2014)

Geez, LOTS more responses than I thought I'd get. 

Well, let me head this off at the pass right away:



HeHasTheJazzHands said:


> It's not a cop-out, it's the truth. Get off your high horse with that shit.



When I say "cop-out" I mean, I want real explanations for why people like them. Every damn time I've seen anyone bring up Actives vs Passives, you always get one asshole who, rather than contributing to the discussion, will simply say "It's just a matter of preference- people like different things" Yeah, great, buddy, thanks for the wealth of information! I want people with real experience to tell me why actives are worth it!

Aaaaaaand and a good deal many of you delivered on that! (Even you, BILLY!)

I really appreciate a lot of the information I'm getting on this thread. Apparently, I just need to experiment more with actives, cos there are some out there which have better dynamics. Like I said before, I'm not trying to be a dick, I'm trying to learn.


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## Omura (Sep 28, 2014)

CYBERSYN said:


> Emgs don't have poles that rust.



if the pole pieces on your guitar are rusting. you're neglecting it...


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## silent suicide (Sep 28, 2014)

Honestly the 57/66 set is amazing. Try those before knocking on EMG again


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## that short guy (Sep 28, 2014)

Grindspine said:


> Recall what that rig was? I'd love to have a canned answer for an amp that works that well with the EMG 81 & 60.



My old Roadster and Mark IV heads that went into a recto cab and a marshal 1960a cab sounded amazing with the 81/60 set on their own without any pedals or anything else to help. you just have to be patient and set the amps accordingly


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## McKay (Sep 28, 2014)

Force said:


> I love EMGs because I'm a lazy picker, *doesn't matter too much how you pick, it comes out much the same*. Plus, I just love the tone they give, especially the palm mutes, nice & tight.
> 
> I will agree with the OP in that the D'Activator series is awesome, they don't sound like EMGs but they do sound great.
> 
> I am starting to find more passives I like but that's just how I am, actives do it for me.



Anyone who says this is objectively wrong. Why do people like EMGs? They feel good to play, they sound gnarly and they sound good. EMGs give a certain tone that works great for certain vibes and on bass especially give a fantastic grind that is hard to replicate with passives.

As for batteries, AFAIK they work like the water bottle a hamster uses to drink. Even with 1/10th of the water, the hamster can still take the water at the same rate, right up until there is basically nothing left.


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## Electric Wizard (Sep 28, 2014)

Science_Penguin said:


> Every damn time I've seen anyone bring up Actives vs Passives, you always get one asshole who, rather than contributing to the discussion, will simply say "It's just a matter of preference- people like different things"


Ugh, what an asshole! How dare someone be content to just live and let live and not debate personal opinions! 

I kid, but it is kind of obnoxious to solicit opinions and then shoot down posts for not giving the opinion good enough. Seems antagonistic. 

Re: actives; I don't use any currently but I did like their feeling in some instances. It's kind of like having a compressor on, which could be good or bad.


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## Grindspine (Sep 28, 2014)

Force said:


> I love EMGs because I'm a lazy picker, doesn't matter too much how you pick, it comes out much the same. Plus, I just love the tone they give, especially the palm mutes, nice & tight.


 


McKay said:


> Anyone who says this is objectively wrong. Why do people like EMGs? They feel good to play, they sound gnarly and they sound good. EMGs give a certain tone that works great for certain vibes and on bass especially give a fantastic grind that is hard to replicate with passives.
> 
> As for batteries, AFAIK they work like the water bottle a hamster uses to drink. Even with 1/10th of the water, the hamster can still take the water at the same rate, right up until there is basically nothing left.


 
Nope.

Older series EMGs, which are the topic of this discussion, are subject to the internal preamp compressing. The older preamp design used before the X series, the Het set and the 57/66 was known for having a limit to the dynamic headroom. For some players, the dynamic control being largely within the pickup is an advantage. This is part of why EMG released the X series alongside of the originals instead of replacing them.


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## Science_Penguin (Sep 28, 2014)

Grindspine said:


> Nope.
> 
> Older series EMGs, which are the topic of this discussion, are subject to the internal preamp compressing. The older preamp design used before the X series, the Het set and the 57/66 was known for having a limit to the dynamic headroom. For some players, the dynamic control being largely within the pickup is an advantage. This is part of why EMG released the X series alongside of the originals instead of replacing them.



The question is: is it worth it to buy the X series EMG to get the added dynamics when you could probably spend less to get a passive set? Do the X series retain some qualities of the originals that you won't get on a set of passives? (Same question for the 57/66)


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## that short guy (Sep 28, 2014)

the 57/66 aren't like most actives They have the fast response, clarity, and strength of an active but they have the dynamics, warmth and color that a passive have. I seriously can't think of another pickup that does what they do.... and that's why I use them.


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## Science_Penguin (Sep 28, 2014)

that short guy said:


> the 57/66 aren't like most actives They have the fast response, clarity, and strength of an active but they have the dynamics, warmth and color that a passive have. I seriously can't think of another pickup that does what they do.... and that's why I use them.



Sounds intriguing. How would you say they compare to something like a Tone Zone in terms of character?


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## Curt (Sep 28, 2014)

For me, the EMG 85 just has this fat low end that has never gotten muddy on me, and the mid voicing of it hasn't been matched by any other pickups I have tried while retaining the low end and clarity. I thoroughly enjoy the sound of them. I also like the 57/66 set, but the 85 will always be my go to.


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## Jacobine (Sep 29, 2014)

I like a huge sound. I love actives because im lazy when it somes to picking and the compression keeps everything a little more similar right hand wise so im not beating the shit out of the string to get the punch I want. I'm actually so lazy and want my right hand dynamics so perfect and consistent I even run a compressor at the beginning of my rig chain. I've done this so long when I play on passives I get tired from having to try so hard. It just isn't as consistent as actives and that's what my sound calls for


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## TheWarAgainstTime (Sep 29, 2014)

TRENCHLORD said:


> I like the extra compression and don't find changing batteries to be an obstacle at all, unless you have 10 or 20 guitars with all actives , and you're keeping them all at battle-ready status at all times. EMG quietness is another big plus.
> Passives do offer something actives can't, and vise-versa, so I use both.





HeHasTheJazzHands said:


> It's not a cop-out, it's the truth. Get off your high horse with that shit. It's a matter of taste because there's people that like the compression and sharp attack of actives that most EMGs offer. That's why I don't like the standard Duncan Blackouts; they sound like muddy-as-...., over-gainy passives.
> 
> Also, there's a hassle with EMGs? This is news to me.  Only "hassle" I have is changing batteries once a year, probably even less than that since I use a single EMG 85 with the 18v mod.



Preach it   I love love LOVE my D-Activators, but there's simply nothing else quite like using an 81 or 85 in the bridge position for metal. The 57/66 set is also ultra rad and versatile  

However, to entertain the OP's original question and ignore the silly old "different gear for different sounds" thing, I've gotta say that when I've used active pickups, I've really enjoyed the low noise, sleek look, and "feel" on my right hand when palm muting and chugging


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## HeHasTheJazzHands (Sep 29, 2014)

Also, another argument in favor of EMGS:


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## crg123 (Sep 29, 2014)

I've never personally been a huge EMG guitar pickups fan (The set of blackout 8's I had was ok though, didn't blow me away), but I always thought the whole "oh I hate having to change batteries" argument was silly. I wouldn't can't believe that's an actual argument.

On the other hand I seem to love active basses (particularly sets like the nordstrands + active preamp I have in my BTB) and don't think I could ever go any other way.


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## kamello (Sep 29, 2014)

if I were looking for actives, it would be mostly to play Thrash, Death met00lz or Metalcore. Because, why the hell would I need dynamics there?  (half-kidding, of course)

the thing is...



tmo said:


> I am a passive guy, regarding Pickups, I mean.
> 
> I use almost only humbuckers and do whatever I can with them: Serial, Parallel, Split and sometimes reverse phase.
> 
> ...



...this


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## that short guy (Sep 29, 2014)

Science_Penguin said:


> Sounds intriguing. How would you say they compare to something like a Tone Zone in terms of character?



I can't really give you an honest answer on that one my friend, I've never used a Tone zone. As far as Dimarzio's are concerned I've used Dactivators, Air Norntons, Crunch lab and Liquifire and in my opinion it blows them all away (for my taste in sound anyway) 

here are some videos that give an extremely accurate demo of how they sound ( i can vouch for the video fluff did because I have them in the exact same guitar just wired with no tone knob just using 2 volumes. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcPuOwecVzE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdhUvQdxHH8

and if you don't want to trust either of those vids I can send you the link to a demo I did of them that is completely unedited, processed, eq'd, whatever else you can think of.


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## Explorer (Sep 29, 2014)

Using the 18 volt (two battery) method, I can get uncompressed sound out of my actives, and without noise. 

Having a full frequency range without adding noise to my signal chain is a great reason to use actives. No high frequency roll off like a humbucker + no noise like on a single coil + full dynamic range = win!

Given that there are also more EQ/tone sculpting options for actives, yet more win if you value versatility.


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## Oreo_Death (Oct 1, 2014)

I feel like a lot of the debates between passive and actives are just fads man. My first guitar had passives in it, and my next had actives and for reasons I cant describe, I love actives so much more. Something about the sheer power I get out of em in comparison to my passives, I love it. Granted I havent played on many passive geets, I like my active 81/85 combo, and will probably get that same set-up in my next guitar.


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## Nour Ayasso (Oct 1, 2014)

Same reason why people prefer Tube heads over digital, more power. Actives simply have more power and balls to the tone. I like the cleans on actives as well, they sound very thick and heavy and not crisp and thin like passives. In general though they're both different and are used for different things.


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## Andless (Oct 1, 2014)

Nour Ayasso said:


> In general though they're both different and are used for different things.



Half-true? I'm sure I use my BKP Painkiller to play many pieces of music that could easily have been played with an EMG 81/60 set...


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## themightyjaymoe (Oct 1, 2014)

silent suicide said:


> Honestly the 57/66 set is amazing. Try those before knocking on EMG again



+1 Also the HetSet.

Pickups ive owned: 
Duncan: custom, custom custom, jb, jazz, 59 bridge and neck, blackouts. 
Gibson: burstbucker 2 bridge, 57 classic and classic plus, 490 & 498
Dimarzio: domnion, d activator 7, crunch lab and liquefier 7, blaze 7. 

No bareknuckles or hand wound stuff but i found my favorites of the bunch above to be the dimarzio dominion, burstbucker 2, and the 59 bridge and neck combo. But i came back to emg and see no reason to switch. I need cleans i lowered the neck pickup and roll back on the volume.


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## Given To Fly (Oct 2, 2014)

My EMG 808x's made me stop thinking about other 8 string pickups. They just made me want to play the guitar. That's why I like active pickups!


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## Science_Penguin (Oct 2, 2014)

that short guy said:


> I can't really give you an honest answer on that one my friend, I've never used a Tone zone. As far as Dimarzio's are concerned I've used Dactivators, Air Norntons, Crunch lab and Liquifire and in my opinion it blows them all away (for my taste in sound anyway)
> 
> here are some videos that give an extremely accurate demo of how they sound ( i can vouch for the video fluff did because I have them in the exact same guitar just wired with no tone knob just using 2 volumes.
> 
> ...



Yeah, I'd definitely love to hear any demo you can throw at me. I want to hear what kind of variety of sounds these things can get.


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## Itchyman (Oct 2, 2014)

Here's an example of tightness most likely only achievable with EMG's:
Kevdinsation - YourListen
There's almost silence between those notes. 

Of course, it may not be everyones cup of tea. Also, keep in mind this was an impromptu recording with poor mic placement and basically no post-processing.


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## MetalHeartGR (Oct 3, 2014)

I really love EMGs but they are not my cup of tea. They sound a bit sterile to my ears. I use Blackouts now and I really love them as much as passive pups. They have that organic feel of passives. Plus, actives make almost zero noise, which is what I was looking for. My previous guitar had some cheap korean passive pups and it was a mess with all the background noise...


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## Nour Ayasso (Oct 3, 2014)

Andless said:


> Half-true? I'm sure I use my BKP Painkiller to play many pieces of music that could easily have been played with an EMG 81/60 set...


Well my point is there is no "right' choice. Every pickup can account for any genre (to an extent) so it comes down to specific preference/goals. Instead of saying passive are the best, I just say both can be used for different things were they have they're advantages. my own example (OPINION) would be that passives will never sound even close to actives. You can add as much output or distortion as you want to passives but they'll sound thin, which is good for certain things. On the other hand you have actives which feel really powerful thick. 



Given To Fly said:


> My EMG 808x's made me stop thinking about other 8 string pickups. They just made me want to play the guitar. That's why I like active pickups!


How do they compare to 808's? I heard both have nearly no difference except a little head room and less output.


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## Explorer (Oct 3, 2014)

MetalHeartGR said:


> I really love EMGs but they are not my cup of tea. They sound a bit sterile to my ears. I use Blackouts now and I really love them as much as passive pups. They have that organic feel of passives.



One sees that kind of reasoning regarding buffers restoring the lost highs and mids in a signal, that the restoration of the highs and mids gives a "sterile" sound. To them, that roll-off is what they're looking for, but they want it before it hits the amp, because they don't know how to use their tone controls.

Similarly, the "sterile" sound of EMG pickups is because they are more accurate at reproducing the entire frequency range of the sound. Use of a tone control on the instrument or at the amp can roll off the natural highs, as opposed to needing a pickup which filters out that natural content. 

I'm not saying that someone is wrong is wanting that filtered sound, or in rejecting having more tonal variety at their fingertips. Self-imposed limits can be a good thing. 

I *am* saying that it's not sterility, but accuracy, which is perceived as bad by some.


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## Given To Fly (Oct 3, 2014)

Nour Ayasso said:


> How do they compare to 808's? I heard both have nearly no difference except a little head room and less output.



There is a pretty big difference. I'm terrible at describing pickups so I'll keep it simple: 808x's = greater clarity, minimal compression, higher output. I think the 8 string market would be very different if some production guitars came with 808x's stock. 

As for the 808's, think of them as an enormous, angry dragon locked in a small box, and the 18v mod is the key that unlocks that box.  Again, the 8 string market would be different if some stock guitars came with 18v modded 808s stock.


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## McKay (Oct 4, 2014)

Grindspine said:


> Nope.
> 
> Older series EMGs, which are the topic of this discussion, are subject to the internal preamp compressing. The older preamp design used before the X series, the Het set and the 57/66 was known for having a limit to the dynamic headroom. For some players, the dynamic control being largely within the pickup is an advantage. This is part of why EMG released the X series alongside of the originals instead of replacing them.



Go record two snares and limit them the exact same way. Limiting and compression are not magic identical tone machines, the two snares would sound different and so do different guitars with EMGs in them


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## Grindspine (Oct 4, 2014)

McKay said:


> Go record two snares and limit them the exact same way. Limiting and compression are not magic identical tone machines, the two snares would sound different and so do different guitars with EMGs in them


 
Where did I say anything about magic identical tone machines?

Get back on topic. We're talking about active pickups here.


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## Nour Ayasso (Oct 4, 2014)

Given To Fly said:


> There is a pretty big difference. I'm terrible at describing pickups so I'll keep it simple: 808x's = greater clarity, minimal compression, higher output. I think the 8 string market would be very different if some production guitars came with 808x's stock.
> 
> As for the 808's, think of them as an enormous, angry dragon locked in a small box, and the 18v mod is the key that unlocks that box.  Again, the 8 string market would be different if some stock guitars came with 18v modded 808s stock.



Huh well thanks for your feedback. People say all that clarity/different sound is just from added headroom. As for the mod, I watched a few recordings off of youtube. Only difference for me was static, a lot of static and loss of clarity for distorted tones. For clean tones there was _some_ headroom and a bit of brightness. Not sure if this did much for me, not enough to add more batteries lol. I will say that standard 808's already sound like an angry dragon to me  Do they bring out the tone of the wood or drown it out? 



McKay said:


> Go record two snares and limit them the exact same way. Limiting and compression are not magic identical tone machines, the two snares would sound different and so do different guitars with EMGs in them



Actually what he said was relative to what you were saying. "magical tone machine" was relating to the the over compressed emgs that supposedly sound the same in any guitar. Though a snare is a bad example, snares are an acoustic instrument, like an acoustic guitar, every factor effects the tone. Electric guitars (which are technically hybrids) are under debate whether wood even makes a difference. Oh and the topic isn't old emg's, it's general actives and passives.

That being said, if dynamics are achievable with active pickups then why are people still saying they don't?


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## Explorer (Oct 4, 2014)

I guess we'll see if there is any difference in tone once some results come back from Tom D's study, about whether the wood has any affect on tone in an instrument with magnetic pickups. 

Common wisdom when I worked in music retail was that pickups affect tone much more than guitar woods or construction. The same pickup in different instruments tends to sound the same. 

It will be interesting to see the data.


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## Konfyouzd (Oct 4, 2014)

I think they sound good... That's pretty much it...


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## Given To Fly (Oct 4, 2014)

Nour Ayasso said:


> Huh well thanks for your feedback. People say all that clarity/different sound is just from added headroom. As for the mod, I watched a few recordings off of youtube. Only difference for me was static, a lot of static and loss of clarity for distorted tones. For clean tones there was _some_ headroom and a bit of brightness. Not sure if this did much for me, not enough to add more batteries lol. I will say that standard 808's already sound like an angry dragon to me  Do they bring out the tone of the wood or drown it out?



I told you I was terrible at describing pickups.  The 18v mod I had done was on an ESP LTD FM-418 and I was playing through a Mesa Boogie Roadster. I also had the guitar tuned up a a minor-third which may have made a difference. I would not say the 808's with the 18v mod brought out the tone of the wood, rather, they elevated the tone of the amp. EMG's are high output but they have a lot of clean gain. They will not distort the amp, but if the amp is already distorted, that clean gain gives the amp more to work with. Great amps sound better, not-so-great amps sound worse.


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## that short guy (Oct 4, 2014)

Science_Penguin said:


> Yeah, I'd definitely love to hear any demo you can throw at me. I want to hear what kind of variety of sounds these things can get.



Sorry for the delay but here it is
[SC]https://m.soundcloud.com/i_get_bored/ltd-bw-1-demo[/SC]

Tuned half a step down and used my Ltd BW-1 to record it


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## darren (Oct 4, 2014)

Some people love the attack and compression you get with most actives. They're also super-quiet, which is very helpful in many situations.


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## Alex Kenivel (Oct 4, 2014)

/thread


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## Grindspine (Oct 4, 2014)

Nour Ayasso said:


> Oh and the topic isn't old emg's, it's general actives and passives.
> 
> That being said, if dynamics are achievable with active pickups then why are people still saying they don't?


 
Because when many guitarists think "actives" they think of the first actives they heard... older EMG pickups. The EMG 81 is pretty much the archetype active that guitarists complain about and form their opinions.


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## tmo (Oct 4, 2014)

Explorer said:


> (...) The same pickup in different instruments tends to sound the same. (...)



I kind of agree with you. I have some RG7s which can interchange pickups pretty fast, one is Mahogany (with floyd rose the other is basswood fixed bridge). The Evo7 sounds better in the basswood RG than in the mahogany one... how much better? How do I tel the difference? Well, for start, the strings weren't the same, so... it really felt different... but similar, I must say.


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## Nour Ayasso (Oct 5, 2014)

Grindspine said:


> Because when many guitarists think "actives" they think of the first actives they heard... older EMG pickups. The EMG 81 is pretty much the archetype active that guitarists complain about and form their opinions.


Interesting, I have yet to play the 81, I guess the 808 has done active pickups quite some justice.



darren said:


> Some people love the attack and compression you get with most actives. They're also super-quiet, which is very helpful in many situations.


I agree with this. I don't think they have more attack, but actives definitely have more beef, and the compression/noise cancelation really adds to the clarity in the beef. Just my thoughts.



Given To Fly said:


> I told you I was terrible at describing pickups.  The 18v mod I had done was on an ESP LTD FM-418 and I was playing through a Mesa Boogie Roadster. I also had the guitar tuned up a a minor-third which may have made a difference. I would not say the 808's with the 18v mod brought out the tone of the wood, rather, they elevated the tone of the amp. EMG's are high output but they have a lot of clean gain. They will not distort the amp, but if the amp is already distorted, that clean gain gives the amp more to work with. Great amps sound better, not-so-great amps sound worse.


Lol na you did a fine, good enough for me to know there's an actual difference between the x series and isn't just a market scam. So far I'm not digging the mod thing, it just seems like the last thing you want to do to and active pick up is drive it with more volts. And then the resut being a slightly louder and messy tone that is more "open" compared to passives. I have a feeling the compression helps a lot  Yeah I watched the video and yeah...definitely too much noise from the that mod, I don't get that from passives if it's gated right so maybe the same applies to actives, but imo I don't like that. Not sure how everyone else likes it though, too me actives do not shine with that mod but maybe it was just the 808.



tmo said:


> I kind of agree with you. I have some RG7s which can interchange pickups pretty fast, one is Mahogany (with floyd rose the other is basswood fixed bridge). The Evo7 sounds better in the basswood RG than in the mahogany one... how much better? How do I tel the difference? Well, for start, the strings weren't the same, so... it really felt different... but similar, I must say.


Well if the strings were different that's already a big factor interfering with this equation. People say certain pickups effect wood differently as well, so I mean dang, there's a lot of factors here. In general of course guitars with the same pickups will sound _similar_ but not the same.


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## Science_Penguin (Oct 5, 2014)

that short guy said:


> Sorry for the delay but here it is
> [SC]https://m.soundcloud.com/i_get_bored/ltd-bw-1-demo[/SC]
> 
> Tuned half a step down and used my Ltd BW-1 to record it



Sounds pretty nice. I like the cleans as well- usually I have to split to get cleans like that... Uhhh, those don't split, right?


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## that short guy (Oct 5, 2014)

Science_Penguin said:


> Sounds pretty nice. I like the cleans as well- usually I have to split to get cleans like that... Uhhh, those don't split, right?



Thanks man. And you're right they don't. But if you roll the volume back on the guitar to about 8.5 or 9 they sound amazing. That was the neck position. Here's a clip of my EC-1000fr with the same pickups using the middle position only just different volume levels on each pick up.

[SC]http://m.soundcloud.com/i_get_bored/hauntingly-beautiful[/SC]


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## McKay (Oct 6, 2014)

Grindspine said:


> Where did I say anything about magic identical tone machines?



You said guitars with actives sound the same? I was paraphrasing.


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## Slamrish (Oct 6, 2014)

Science_Penguin said:


> Let me just start by saying I'm not trying to start a fight here, and I'm not trying to be a dick. I'm genuinely curious and want some opinions.
> 
> My experience with active pickups (mainly EMGs) has pretty consistently been that they sound good while I'm playing them, and then I pick up a guitar with passives and realise what I was missing. They just don't seem to respond to picking the way passives do. On top of that, it doesn't seem all that difficult to find a passive pickup that nails the same basic tonal characteristics of an active, while retaining the responsiveness (in my opinion, the D Activator is a good clone of the 81 and the Evolution sounded kind of similar to an 85 through my rig).
> 
> ...



I have 6, 7 and 8 string guitars all with EMG pickups in them and I've learned that over time that I have different usages for passive/active pickups.
> The active pickups are super dope for live scenarios because you can super saturate your tone with gain (I'm a metal guy) and not have to worry about as much to get the personality out of the pickup because well...it doesn't have much.
> For recording / daily practice I enjoy the passive pickups because you can shape an amp EQ around the characteristics of the pickups and really bring out the sound of the pickups. When I record with a passive guitar the sound is easier to manage in a mix and there's less overall compression I need to do to the guitar to get a distinctive sound to come out that cuts through the mix without sounding like it's slightly "far away" if that makes sense.


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## SeditiousDissent (Oct 8, 2014)

I have been a dyed in the wool EMG guy for 16 years now. An old lead singer dropped a guitar I had saved for and bought 2 days earlier and seriously messed up the finish. The dude felt terrible, so he bought me a ZW set and had them installed (this was pre-solderless EMG). They beat the stock pups out by miles and I really just fell in love with the sound. All of my early guitar heroes were EMG guys (Hetfield, Hammett and Wylde), so I felt like I was "in the club," so to speak. 

I prefer the 85 to all others. To my ears, it's more musical and less sterile than the 81. I have 1 guitar with an 81-X that I use for Drop B, but I'm considering swapping it for an 85-X.


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## ah_graylensman (Oct 9, 2014)

While I'm mainly a fan of passive humbuckers, I have had two guitars with the standard EMG 60/81 setup and another with the Het Set. The two with the 60/81 set sound great, and I didn't really have to redial anything to make them sound good. However, the attack and compression characteristics of the EMGs that make them great for metal also make them just so-so IMHO for less aggressive music. (And I just didn't care for the Het Set... long story.)

With Strats, OTOH... I was never able to bond with a Strat long term until I put actives -- specifically, the Dragonfire knockoff of the EMG DG20 -- into one. That may have something to do my idea of good Strat tone being '90s Dave Gilmour rather than Hendrix or SRV.


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## Nour Ayasso (Oct 21, 2014)

Any reason I keep reading that actives are supposed offer more tonal characteristics while people are saying they're "sterile" ? If anything now I'm leaning away from actives since they seem to always have an overdriven tone that's automatically over compressed by the pre amp giving it that "sterile" sound everyones talking about...


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## lelandbowman3 (Oct 21, 2014)

from my experience, live sound you want actives. for recording, passives is better.


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## SeventhSlinger (Oct 28, 2014)

2 of my guitars had active pups pre-installed so I didn't have to bother with switching them. One is the EMG 81/85 and the other is the 85/60. Both are great sets although I prefer the latter. Honestly, I just like the sounds and tone they produce. Ignore the hassle and the work, go to GC and play a guitar with actives to see if you like the tone. I'm exploring passives and loving what I'm hearing. It's all about tone.


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## Zado (Oct 28, 2014)

At the moment I have only passives mounted in my guitars,so this may sound a lil weird but..dunno,I just can't find myself comfortable playing certain genres,specifically higain ones,without the good old couple,the skinny hysterical 81 wife and the phat and pissed off 85 husband. It's a kind of sound that fits just great into specific situations,extremely recognizable no matter what.I like that compressed metal sound I hear when I listen to old Bling Guardian stuff (Andre Olbrich has always had a great lead sound if you ask me) and other bands with a similar tone.
I'm more into classic-hard rock now,but sometimes I really think "I should put those EMGs back into their place and smash some windows with chuncky metal riffs one of these days",that's why I still have them,with no intention to sell.


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## Chiba666 (Oct 29, 2014)

I used to swear by the 8q but I put one in an Ibby RG 300 series (maple board) and I hated oit couldnt get it to sound right. Threw and 85 in thir and yep that hit the sweat spot, just gels better with the sound of the guitar and my set up. I have an RG550 with a pinakiller in the bridge that I am now questioning wether I like it or not compatred to the 85. I think it might go for an 85-x or one of the new 57s is it.

All i know is after having tried a few passives, not mnay JB, Painkillers and Aftermaths I am swaying the way og the active. As long as it is an 85 not an 81.


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## Mprinsje (Oct 29, 2014)

because they sound like i want to. the emg 85 and 89 are awesome. I have a guitar with a passive pickup (gibson PAF i believe) and while it sounds great when recording and for when i want to play stoner, for use in a band i like actives much more.


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## CudBucket (Nov 2, 2014)

I don't like them either. Can't imagine why a pickup needs to be that hot with the type of gain available on most amps these days.


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