Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Please don't kill me.

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Please don't kill me.

    Yes, I know this has been discussed. I've read many many threads found through the search tool, but all the info here and in reviews elsewhere seem to conflict. So I figured I would just ask with details about exactly what I want them for.

    81/85 vs. blackouts

    1990 rr-pro-pro for melodic death/thrash metal

    Just judging by sound clips I would say I like the blackouts better. Side by side the emg's just sound so thin, though that thinness does seem to add some clarity. But I have read that for an alder body guitar the emg's are better. I have also read that for alder the bo's are better... I have read the same statement that x-pickup is better for metal about both brands.

    I will say that before I set it aside to start working on it I had a set of the dave mustain LW's (basically a jb-jazz) with 18v setup in it. Loved it, sounded fantastic. When I decided it was time to get something else to beat on till I got the jackson back into proper order I took the Lw's and put them in an LTD AX-2E (and they sound great there too). As clear and punchy as the emg sound clips seem, I am hesitant to put them in a guitar that does have a good natural sound all on it's own. One thing that most people seem to agree on is that emg's make every guitar sound the same.

    I admit I am getting a bit antsy. I just drives me nuts to see my jackson gutted, so I am really wanting to get it back together asap, but I can only afford one set of pups right now and don't to spend an extra months reselling one to buy the other.

    Oh and incidentally, if anyone is looking for the original jackson pups/preamp that came out of the rr I would gladly sell or trade them. I will never be selling this guitar and never be putting the original electronics back in it so they have just been collecting dust for the last few years.

  • #2
    Why not get the Mustaine set for it?
    I want to depart this world the same way I arrived; screaming and covered in someone else's blood

    The most human thing we can do is comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.

    My Blog: http://newcenstein.com

    Comment


    • #3
      The blackouts are cheaper and if they make it sound anything like that guitar world vid clip of them on youtube I would be very happy. A used set of 81/85 is also cheaper than the lw's and easily available. I dont know, I have never had a set of emg's and have always wanted to try them in one of my guitars, but now that I have the money and started looking the bo's seem more to my taste, but I don't want to get them if they are going to be a bad match for an alder guitar, ect.. This is exactly the situation and led to the lw's in the first place a few years ago! ha! Worse comes to worse I can always yank the lw's back out of the ltd to be swapped with whatever I decide on. Once the jackson is back up to par the LTD will be at home/backup axe. It's easier to play sitting down.

      Comment


      • #4
        well i didnt really like the emgs in my old rr pro. blackouts were warmer to me.

        Comment


        • #5
          The EMG's are NOT thinner, Its the difference of guitars/amp settings you hear... I have and actively play 81/85's, 81x/85x's, and Blackouts, tried them all in the same guitar (what can I say, I get bored easily)... I hate the blackouts... it just has 'sizzle' is the best way to describe it, a very mid-rangy sizzle that is suppose to pass for tone/distortion, kinda unusable imo.

          there is a reason why pretty much every metal player either uses or has used EMG, you cannot go wrong with an 81/85 set, btw the difference between the X's and standard EMG's are kinda like taking a Seymour Duncan Custom versus the Custom 5 or Custom Custom... little different tone, slightly less output, more room for nuance, but the gist of the original is still there.
          Last edited by Gibsonmac; 04-07-2010, 11:56 PM.
          Wish I could add Pics to this thing!!

          Comment


          • #6
            Also EMG's and active pickups period, DO NOT MAKE EVERY GUITAR SOUND THE SAME, PERIOD... they have a characteristic to the nature in which they distort, it would be like saying every guitar with a JB in it sounds the same,

            the tonal characteristics of active and passive pickups is different, you can for the most part pick out an active guitar tone from passive, but every active sounds different in every guitar, they may have similar characteristics (again, as would multiple guitars with JB's) but they are different.
            Wish I could add Pics to this thing!!

            Comment


            • #7
              Well you guys waited a bit long to jump in on this thread. I just opened the mail early and started wiring the blackouts... lol

              And I wasn't talking about different guitars. If you google 81/85 vs. blackout there are quite a few videos of the two sets soundtested in the same guitar with the same settings. maybe thin is the wrong word but based solely on thos video's I would say I like the blackout better. I really wont know for sure until I try them, and I wasn't trying to bash EMG at all. The comment about making every guitar sound the same is just something I have read in 100 different places in reference to negating the natural tone of whatever type of wood it is. Not that a plywood guitar can sound like a usa jackson, even though that seems to be what a lot of people will say about emg's.

              Ultimately I think I would have been happy with either brand, and I will get a set of EMG's eventually. Once the jackson is back in shape I will be starting to gather parts for a project guitar which I had already decided I would try whichever brand I didnt pick for the v.

              Comment


              • #8
                I'd reccomend an 85 in the bridge and a 60 or 81 in the neck.
                I use the 85/60 in my ESP Horizon and I think it sounds great.

                The 85 is much less "active" than the 81, I.e. Not as cold, not as sterile.

                I hate that guitar, so I keep it in Drop B, and the 85 works great.
                I like EL34s.

                Comment


                • #9
                  I have one RR1 with emg's switched to Blackouts last year and couldn't be happier. I'm sure you will like them.

                  MrHiwatt
                  Mesa JP-2c Mesa 2x12 V30
                  RR1 Black
                  RR1 Blue ghost flames
                  Stealth EX
                  Hamer Studio
                  Boss pedals,TC, HBE

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    I put Blackouts (model 1) on my SL2H and the sound is huge and punchy. I had 81/85 there earlier and while they did the job (D standard) OK it was a little 'meh'. On the other hand 81/81 on my ESP M-II was just unbearable due to the sizzle and brightness. Not many passives fit in it either. JB for example was a disaster..

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Telling you, the 85 in the bridge and 60 in the neck is key to good EMG sound.

                      the 85 just sounds godly in the bridge

                      Huge and tight but really open and not really "active" sounding

                      60 in neck is smooth as hell!

                      I don't really care for blackouts, as they aren't very articulate to me. Notes seem to blend into each other

                      as a general rule, I hate actives, but the 85/60 combo is damn awesome.
                      I like EL34s.

                      Comment

                      Working...
                      X