How will I like an EMG 85 in the bridge? (EBMM Luke)

[Lord Toneking]

I traded my EBMM Silhouette for an EBMM Luke the other day. The silo was ash and I struggled with it to get a tone out of it that I liked. Of course the neck and playability was excellent but I could never bond with the tone. I tried different pups and even swapped the 250k pots with 500's. Still the guitar was bright and thin. A beautiful guitar that I will definately miss I wish I had the cash to own both but I also felt that the Luke was going to have/or does have more value than the Silo for re-sale value later down the road if it doesnt work for me either

So now I have this Luke on the way. Im not an emg guy but some youtube vids sound pretty good. I played one last year at GC and I loved the C shape neck and the overall feel of the guitar but did not plug it in. Im curious if anyone has owned one or has experimented with 85's in the bridge

thoughts?

 

[sandman]

I can't remember details but I remember liking the 85 better in the bridge than the 81.
I'm a passive guy as well though. The Luke is a nice guitar ! Congrats !

 

[Phrygian]

The Luke is a great guitar, one of my personal faves. I'm sure you'll be plenty happy with the 85 in the bridge. It has more body than the 81 and reacts well with the Luke's alder body.

Nice snag btw!

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

I'm sure the 85 will be awesome in the Alder body.

My experience with EMGs is in a Mahogany bodied PRS, so that will obviously alter things a bit, but...

Running the pickups at a standard 9V, I prefer the 85b 81n setup....the 85 is fatter with a lot of punch, and the 81 is very clear in the neck.

Wiring 18V on the pickups (which I highly recommend!!!!), I prefer the 81b 85n. The 81 at 18V really just comes alive...thickens up just enough to have that awesome attack and snarl that EMGs are know for, without the usual shrill character some complain about.

Since you're running an Alder guitar, I think the 85b at 18V will be an awesome sounding pickup. Definitely more versatile, as the 81 seems to be all metal all the time

Best,

Eric

 

[grooveHT]

Sooooo Tom, this is where I chime in and talk about my Luke You're surprised I have one of those as well, I can tell

The 85 in the bridge is probably the opposite of your PAF Pros in the bridge from the Silo. They're on the thicker side, but not really analogous to any passive pickups that I've played, the EQ just comes off as a little different to me. The normal EMG "high output" perception doesn't really apply here; I'd call the 85 a medium output pickup. Given the fact that you're looking for something thicker than the PAF Pro you had in the bridge of the Silo, it should be right up your alley. For whatever its worth, the Luke is very distinctive compared to my other EBMMs as far as sound goes, the neck and middle pickups are really cool, a little thicker than normal singles, and I've heard them described as 3/4 single, 1/4 p-90, which is pretty apt. The only think I miss is the neck + middle loses a little quack compared to normal singles. The Luke was my first EBMM, and really started my craze. The neck will blow your mind!

 

[lolzgreg]

IIRC, the 85 has a bit higher output than the 81. Also, make sure you get your pickup as close to the strings as possible, because the magnets in the EMGs are very weak, and it is actually the coupled preamp that amplifies the signal a great deal before it hits the front end of the amp.

Like previously mentioned, an 85 in an Alder guitar sounds like a perfect match. There's a reason why that pickup is in there stock

 

[Lord Toneking]

Sooooo Tom, this is where I chime in and talk about my Luke You're surprised I have one of those as well, I can tell

The 85 in the bridge is probably the opposite of your PAF Pros in the bridge from the Silo. They're on the thicker side, but not really analogous to any passive pickups that I've played, the EQ just comes off as a little different to me. The normal EMG "high output" perception doesn't really apply here; I'd call the 85 a medium output pickup. Given the fact that you're looking for something thicker than the PAF Pro you had in the bridge of the Silo, it should be right up your alley. For whatever its worth, the Luke is very distinctive compared to my other EBMMs as far as sound goes, the neck and middle pickups are really cool, a little thicker than normal singles, and I've heard them described as 3/4 single, 1/4 p-90, which is pretty apt. The only think I miss is the neck + middle loses a little quack compared to normal singles. The Luke was my first EBMM, and really started my craze. The neck will blow your mind!

Haha..thee you are! I knew you'd be in here before too long

Man dude I LOVED that silo but it never got used. I was offered a trade and thought it was too good to pass up. It seriously was a sad day to see the silo go...I gassed for that guitar bigtime ever since the day I saw all of your balls on your bed

It's Luke blue and should be here tomorrow so I will post pics. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods

 

[grooveHT]

Sooooo Tom, this is where I chime in and talk about my Luke You're surprised I have one of those as well, I can tell

The 85 in the bridge is probably the opposite of your PAF Pros in the bridge from the Silo. They're on the thicker side, but not really analogous to any passive pickups that I've played, the EQ just comes off as a little different to me. The normal EMG "high output" perception doesn't really apply here; I'd call the 85 a medium output pickup. Given the fact that you're looking for something thicker than the PAF Pro you had in the bridge of the Silo, it should be right up your alley. For whatever its worth, the Luke is very distinctive compared to my other EBMMs as far as sound goes, the neck and middle pickups are really cool, a little thicker than normal singles, and I've heard them described as 3/4 single, 1/4 p-90, which is pretty apt. The only think I miss is the neck + middle loses a little quack compared to normal singles. The Luke was my first EBMM, and really started my craze. The neck will blow your mind!

Haha..thee you are! I knew you'd be in here before too long

Man dude I LOVED that silo but it never got used. I was offered a trade and thought it was too good to pass up. It seriously was a sad day to see the silo go...I gassed for that guitar bigtime ever since the day I saw all of your balls on your bed

It's Luke blue and should be here tomorrow so I will post pics. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods

Yeah, things are ok here...chilly, but ok! I miss my real guitars! I say that because I'm playing steinbergers right now Love them for what they do, but they don't touch my Balls. Write that down

The Luke I have is sorta a V neck, and IT IS AMAZING! Still my favorite neck of all my guitars, I think. Mine is in purple sparkle, which sounds sorta
but really is pulled off pretty well. Let me see if I have pics around somewhere...

The thing is a dream to play! Hope the dust has settled by you man, be harassing ya soon

 

[Bishop5150]

Not the same guitar but I have an 85 in my Zakk Wylde Epi and I love it. I did the 18 volt mod to it also. Easily reversable as well.

 

[Lord Toneking]

Sooooo Tom, this is where I chime in and talk about my Luke You're surprised I have one of those as well, I can tell

The 85 in the bridge is probably the opposite of your PAF Pros in the bridge from the Silo. They're on the thicker side, but not really analogous to any passive pickups that I've played, the EQ just comes off as a little different to me. The normal EMG "high output" perception doesn't really apply here; I'd call the 85 a medium output pickup. Given the fact that you're looking for something thicker than the PAF Pro you had in the bridge of the Silo, it should be right up your alley. For whatever its worth, the Luke is very distinctive compared to my other EBMMs as far as sound goes, the neck and middle pickups are really cool, a little thicker than normal singles, and I've heard them described as 3/4 single, 1/4 p-90, which is pretty apt. The only think I miss is the neck + middle loses a little quack compared to normal singles. The Luke was my first EBMM, and really started my craze. The neck will blow your mind!

Haha..thee you are! I knew you'd be in here before too long

Man dude I LOVED that silo but it never got used. I was offered a trade and thought it was too good to pass up. It seriously was a sad day to see the silo go...I gassed for that guitar bigtime ever since the day I saw all of your balls on your bed

It's Luke blue and should be here tomorrow so I will post pics. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods

Yeah, things are ok here...chilly, but ok! I miss my real guitars! I say that because I'm playing steinbergers right now Love them for what they do, but they don't touch my Balls. Write that down

The Luke I have is sorta a V neck, and IT IS AMAZING! Still my favorite neck of all my guitars, I think. Mine is in purple sparkle, which sounds sorta
but really is pulled off pretty well. Let me see if I have pics around somewhere...

The thing is a dream to play! Hope the dust has settled by you man, be harassing ya soon

the smoke is starting to settle here. Im still at my dads...miss my girls though Things will get better though, just gotta keep plugging along
anywho, here's a pic th the guy sent me of it...

btw...Im confused that this has a floating trem when it looks like the base of the trem is flush with the body. Am I missing something here??

 

[grooveHT]

The deal there is that it comes from the factory set up to float, like 1/8" above the deck or something. Some folks actually set it so it rests against the deck and gives no pitch up, but it is designed and comes factory being able to bend up a little.

 

[Shask]

Running the pickups at a standard 9V, I prefer the 85b 81n setup....the 85 is fatter with a lot of punch, and the 81 is very clear in the neck.

Wiring 18V on the pickups (which I highly recommend!!!!), I prefer the 81b 85n. The 81 at 18V really just comes alive...thickens up just enough to have that awesome attack and snarl that EMGs are know for, without the usual shrill character some complain about.

Since you're running an Alder guitar, I think the 85b at 18V will be an awesome sounding pickup. Definitely more versatile, as the 81 seems to be all metal all the time

Thats funny I have said this a hundred times on forums, and people say I am stupid, lol. I definitely agree with this. Actually, I do not like the 85 at 18V in the bridge. It gets too smooth and fat.

I have used 81's in the bridge for years, and I have just in the past year or 2 started using 85's instead (Mainly because I tried it several times, and hated the sound, until I tried them at 9V). I have been having good luck with the 85 in the bridge. It is bassy enough it doesnt sound thin (like the 81 can), but at 9V it is aggressive enough on the top end to not sound too smooth, but it doesn't have the upper mid scrape sound like most high output pickups have. Its like it sits right in the middle of all the extremes, and sounds clear and tight at the same time...

 

[bigangryguitar]

I had one for a year and I thought it sounded awesome! I loved the shape of the neck but it ended up being too narrow for my big hands.

 

[Juggernaut]

I ONLY use the 85 in the bridge.....

 

[tnourse]

I would really like to try a Luke and compare it to my JP6. I bet you can get some cool heavy tones with the Luke!