CharFace":c7796 said:
@ Your Avatar
What? It's true.
mchn13":c7796 said:
i don't want to hi-jack the thread, but what about all out, high output pups? i saw robotechs' comment about the x2n, what else is that hot? i've also used emg85's for years, but i'm putting together a beater metal guitar, and would like to try a passive thats as hot as the emg's.
I find it's easy to match the output level of EMGs with a lot of passives, but if you want that specific compression to the attack which makes the crunch like EMGs I can only recommend one pickup: Dimarzio D Activator.
As for hot passives, you can try these:
-Dimarzio D Activator (the perfect choice for someone searching for "EMG 81 sound, feel and output" in a passive, but with more dynamic range and warmth)
-Dimarzio Super Distortion (not as percussive, not as "open", is quite warm, still does classic stuff nicely, "taps" for a nice single coil sound)
-Duncan Distortion (quite percussive, a "forced" upper mid character that makes it a bit "quacky" that a lot of people think sounds like the attack of an EMG 81)
-Duncan PATB-2 Distortion (like the regular Distortion but supposedly somewhat more natural and open sounding...although this is just what I've been told; I haven't tried one)
-Duncan Custom (good percussive attack, fairly clear sounding, so people tend to liken it to an EMG 81)
-Gibson 500T (probably the highest passive output pickup I've used, still sounds quite nice and "open" but with some guitars the bass gets boomy...gotta watch the pickup's height)
-Gibson Dirty Fingers (like the 500T but with sweeter/richer mids, somewhat less percussive attack)
On that note I've "made" a pickup which I think is great for high output and clarity. It's an older JB (one of the ones which says "JBJ" on the baseplate, and has copper shielding foil around each bobbin that's grounded to the plate), and I put a ceramic magnet from a Custom in it. I've been told that's the recipe for a Duncan Distortion, but this sounds better to me...warmer, smoother, almost no "quack" at all. It could be that the copper shielding foil affects the pickup's inductance, in a way that I happen to like. (That could also be the reason these pickups are the more sought after JBs on the used market.)
There's some talk that the difference from the 500T to the Dirty Fingers is the same thing; the Dirty Fingers used to have copper shielding foil around its bobbins and the 500T didn't. I don't know if they still make both pickups that way, but if they do...that would be interesting.
