EMG 81-x and 85-x experiences?

[Lasse Lammert]

has anyone tried the EMG X series pickups?

(http://forum.emgpickups.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=5)

"increased headroom" sounds to me like the made the preamp actually work with 9v w/o clipping.....has anyone compared the non x 18v to their x-counterpart?
I really hope someone will do a shootout soon that shows that the non-x still sounds better...I don't wanna have to spend 2000€ to equip all my guits with ne pups, haha.

though I guess this might be EMG's returning fire towards the blackouts.....I guess I'll still prefer the non-x then...
might perhaps get an 85-x for neck (clean and legato leads) and also an x-set for my strat to get the tone more "passive-like" again and retain some versatility among my guitars.

I'm very optimistic though that I'll still like non-x-18v the best for my taste. I WANT TO BELIEVE

 

[GuitarHack]

Interesting. I hadn't heard of these.

As a side note we might recognise this bloke:

http://www.emginc.com/artists/featuredArtist/301

 

[abyssofdreams]

Interesting. I hadn't heard of these.

As a side note we might recognise this bloke:

http://www.emginc.com/artists/featuredArtist/301

Who's that?? He looks like Kurt Cobains lost brother with a leather jacket or something...

 

[abyssofdreams]

has anyone tried the EMG X series pickups?

(http://forum.emgpickups.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=5)

"increased headroom" sounds to me like the made the preamp actually work with 9v w/o clipping.....has anyone compared the non x 18v to their x-counterpart?

Sounds very promising

The X's were designed with the passive pickup fan in mind. Active pickups behave differently than traditional passives, our goal was to capture a passive presence while retaining all of the benefits that active pickups bring. They are certainly not "better" than their respective counterparts, just "different".

 

[Lazzari]

Who's that?? He looks like Kurt Cobains lost brother with a leather jacket or something...

hmm.. you are kidding right ?

 

[kev]

hmm.. you are kidding right ?

 

[thefretwanker]

I saw this a few weeks ago, intriguing. I hope its an improvement, i use 81's in my main guitar. Might just be a way of them re-asserting their brand though.

 

[Jaymz]

I would buy these straight away and lob them in either my Schecter C1 or Explorer but a reamp box needs to come first...hopefully somebody pulls the trigger on these and sets the record straight for all of us that are thinking of shelling out for these. I can't see them being any worse than the original these will either be the same just rebranded or "better" *as they claim*.

 

[hsinn3r]

I think that the pickups themselves are identical, but with a new preamp. I'm looking forward to the x series myself.

 

[Metaltastic]

Well at least I can rule out the Blackout and 85 as bridge pickups I'm not a fan of, maybe I'll have to snag one of these eventually to see if the 81 can again defend its throne! (though the problem is I'd absolutely assassinate the resale value with all the routing I'd have to do to get it in my direct-mounted Ibanez )

 

[Lazzari]

Well at least I can rule out the Blackout and 85 as bridge pickups I'm not a fan of, maybe I'll have to snag one of these eventually to see if the 81 can again defend its throne! (though the problem is I'd absolutely assassinate the resale value with all the routing I'd have to do to get it in my direct-mounted Ibanez )

well dude it actually depends on the wood at least with the 85 and the 81, the 81 sounds like empty in a basswood body, while the 85 fills that hole.. on mahogany (like ur ibanez) its different.. the 85 is like to muddy maybe while the 81 is perfect.

 

[Wolfeman]

I may grab one of each and do a shoot out..... Next paycheck.....

 

[Dylan S]

I didn't know these existed, and my new blackouts just arrived!

I still like Blackouts though. I'd be very interested in hearing a 'shootout' between the 'x' pickups and the 'regular ones' however.

 

[Damphire]

Any updates in this topic? I'd love to hear a comparison between the 81 and the 81-X

 

[Metaltastic]

Any updates in this topic? I'd love to hear a comparison between the 81 and the 81-X

I'm your man, cuz I'm really curious myself - just gotta get the green!

 

[Metalus]

According to a friend of mine, The X series is all of EMG's pickups in 18 volt mod "mode". Although i am also very curious to hear how they actually sound compared to the old ones. Imma buy a pair soon, but i was hoping to hear them first. I think i might as well pull the trigger on them and see how they are. Here's hoping they make my poplar body parker fly deluxe sound badass.

 

[Toni S.]

I'm your man, cuz I'm really curious myself - just gotta get the green!

Another "fundraising" thread would be in order, maybe?

 

[Rex Rocker]

I've read that supposedly they're a bit lower-output as well.

 

[Jaymz]

I heard they sound less "active", slightly less compressed sounding and with not as much "high mid spike" as the normal EMG's. Plus slightly lower output as Rex mentioned.

 

[006]

Hmm, I totally forgot about these myself. I want to put an EMG set in my Explorer to bring teh toanz but now I'm unsure of what to get lolz.

James: What Explorer do you have, btw? I've seen you mention it before, and in your sig, and I keep meaning to ask but I always forget. Pics? I'm an Explorer whore.