I hear a little bit of more top end on the Les Paul... But pretty damn close. If you just added a little bit of top end to the Stratocaster track with a EQ tweak... I believe they would sound exactly the same!!! In other words the EMG 81 don't sound the same in every guitar... but they DO!!! Keep those nice videos coming... I really appreciate them!!!
I suspect the bridge pickup being closer to the bridge is making it sound a tad brighter. Your technique might be different on the Les Paul too, depending on where you're hitting the strings. Did you account for pickup height too?
the differences come from the different scale lengths of these guitars and i bet the distance between the strings and the pickups is also a bit different with the LP being set lower
I'm hearing a slight shift in the mids, sounds like the lower mid frequencies are hitting the amp a bit harder with the Les Paul. Might just be from the differences in scale length/pickup placement/component tolerances.
In certain situations and signal chains I would agree. But I have a few other guitars with the same pickups (passive) with different woods and they sound very different.
Sorry but no, i did this test before, i was surprised that they sounded so different it was night and day for me, i tried a cheapo basswood bolt on neck vs a mahogany lespaul guitar The mahogany guitar had such a better response with palm muting and trebles too and better sustain, its almost like it was a tighter thicker higher output pickup with the mahogany lespaul and the cheaper basswood guitar was sounding really flat and some palm mutes would get lost into muddyness Now ive put this pickup into another guitar with bolt on maple neck and fretboard but with a mahogany super strat body, the pickup sounds super glassy but also remains tight with good palm mutes response and is way better than basswood guitar i had but the thicker mahogany lespaul still sounds a tiny bit better for my taste, now with active pickups i think because they are kinda like 'programmed' the difference would probably still be there but really hard to notice, with all of that said if u have a super cheap guitar it would be best to put an 81 in it
@@dildojizzbaggins6969 I use to agree with your statement until I hung out with a luthier one time. He built two identical guitars, he built one out of maple and the other out of mahogany. He put identical electronics in both ( DiMarzio tone zone.)The two guitars sounded nothing alike at all. Night and day difference. Signal chain is important when doing these tests. Some pickups sound almost identical in different guitars, some pickups do not, and have a transparent effect that allows you to hear the difference. Also, some amplifiers sound the same regardless of what you plug in, and some amplifiers do not. The over used word,”transparency,” is not a myth but it is relative to what is being used in your signal chain. If you don’t believe this, no big deal. However, if you get the opportunity to try enough gear then it becomes very clear. The truth is tone wood is completely real but if your pickups or your amp are not transparent then you will just never know.
*An acoustic electric (hollow body) or an acoustic vibrates the wood in the body because there are flexible panels. In a 1 or 3 piece solid body, you don't get much vibration. It is rigid. There are subtle vibrations in solid bodies. But not much.*
Thanks Scott for the great riffing and comparisons here! As others mentioned little more top end on the Epiphone and probably some other slight tonal variations but very similar! Excellent!
It's an interesting and well thought out test. I think that this is one of the most difficult situations to really differentiate between pickups, hi-gain signal, active pickups and similar body wood. I found that there was a natural compression with emg's which might also mask the differences. I've definitely taken the same set of pickups from guitar to guitar and noticed a predictable and fundamental difference in sustain/attack and perceived frequencies between tone woods and construction of neck joint.
What about a cheap bridge will upgrading help with tone? I say NO EMG pickups sound the same in a Glarry Stratocaster as they do in a American Professional Stratocaster. Any thoughts before I buy a bunch of upgrades I don't need?
Nice video! For me, Fender with a boost before amp slightly have more bass while the epiphone have more high gain. But without boosting, they are really similar for me, too.
I think they would sound the same, the only difference that could be made is that the scale lengths are different. Lp being 24.75 and st being 25.5. They both sound great, nice playing dude! Thanks for making this.
Ha! They do basically sound the same lol... But you buy these for what they sound like. However, my Warbeast and Jackson Dinky sound pretty different. The Warbeast sounds fuller and more passive almost. The Dinky sounds more chainsaw like if that makes sense both sound equally awesome just that they do sound different.
Not only from the copper wire, but from the tolerances of the electrical components used inside. And your assumption is spot on, the differences are there, with a good amp you hear them very clearly.
@@Dudemandude007 Yeah, I guess that's why so many players have moved to Fishman from EMG, though "good" EMGs sound noticably better, others sound much worse. With EMG it's always a lottery, with Fishmans you get the exact same sound every time. Myself, I have a handful of old EMGs, that sound absolutely incredible, much better than Fishman. But if I had to start from scratch, I'd go with Fishman without any doubt.
@@Dudemandude007 ... that would be an EMG-81 from 1988 to about 1994 (HH to ID), those are the best "vintages" of 81s I have ever heard. Totally outclassing anything after that, and before for that matter. To my knowledge certain parts had been made by Schaller in Germany during these years, the best parts used and closest to specification. ;)
Riff Master! Thanks for answering my question in a great video with ripping guitar riffs. When you tuned up and went back and forth I could here a little the difference, the Les Paul is a little clearer and lighter in the mid range. I doubt I could walk into a club and know what guitar someone was using though. They both sounded the same and they both sounded great. So question answered, which was "can I slap an 81 into my strat to get a similar sound to my Jackson with an 81?" Yes.
Exactly. The differences are there, subtle, but there. And depending on the context (like you say in a live situation) the difference doesn't really matter. Thanks for watching man!
I feel like the mid range is slghtly less present in the Strat only because LP’s are generally thicker in construction, Strats also have a bit of a hollower sound to begin with more often than not
For me even listening over a tv and not my Kii Three its subtle but definetly a hearble difference... The Strat seperates the individual Strings clearer for me...which means it sounds quite clearer in the sense of... more like already mixed or eqed = more defined /accurate The Lespaul is quite more rough in presentation its gives the chug riffs more deep whoomp / emotion/ Feeling to it but the sound is more chaotic/ less defined / rougher Strat for everything except Breakdowns Chug Parts... there i would prefer emotion over clarity Thanks for the Video really good answer for the question...if you would use same emg81 in both guitars with same hight adjustments it would be more scientifical correct and get rid of all the questions marks... that would be perfect
Hey Scott. I've actually owned an identical Epi Les Paul Custom since '11. It was a limited edition so I can't believe I've found someone else with it! That neck has always impressed me. People usually can't believe it's an Epi. How are you finding it?
Bolt-on vs. setneck has some differences in envelope. Spankier on bolt-on usually, and rounder with setnecks. Tonewood doesn't matter, but construction quality does and it's mainly for the envelope characteristics and playability. The strings and pickups are a closed circuit, from what I understand, and the wood does nothing to affect what the pickup picks up in terms of tone.
Blot-On vs. Setneck or even Neckthrough makes no difference in sound whatsoever. It's the other factors like fretwire and type/material of the saddles on the bridge. Then of course what gauge of strings you use in which tuning and also the construction of the strings themselves. The type of neckjoint and "tonewood" have no influence on the sound of the guitar at all. It's the entire system apart from that. The incluence of scale length as such is also not a huge as some claim. It's one factor, but one out of many. You take the same instrument construction and have it two different scale lengths, the difference in sound will be next to negligible.
Thank you for this, I never understood why les Paul guitars are so expensive, and for me personally, they are not comfortable to play at all, but that being said, I knew they have a different sound, but my question was: "How much of a difference is there? Is it worth all that much when you pay for it?" Thanks to your video, now I know. I think it's just better to get a super strat style guitar with the same woods and scale length of a les Paul, so you get really close, without going bankrupt and having to deal with all the uncomfortable issues it has. Thanks a lot for this.
Also, the Jim Root strat has a mahogany body, so, the woods are closer than if you had an alder bodied strat, particularly with the tremolo system. That's a LOT of wood gone around the bridge.
Both sound good. The LP has more high-mids maybe a bit more complex in that area, it makes it sound more aggressive and imo better for chug riffs. The Strat has more low end, and the high mids are less present and complex, it's a tiny bit mushy-r, but imo it would beat the LP in less aggressive genres. The diference is subtle tho, and hard to notice in the mix. I believe, if the body wasn't "mahogany1 vs mahogany2", but for example "swamp ash vs mahogany" the difference would be very obvious. Good comparison, recording and editing. Good work! \m/
Always loved a raw maple neck on a les Paul. One day I will hunt down an old 70s or 80s lp custom with a raw neck. I know they exist! I regret even more not picking up a Zakk Wylde epi bullseye all those years ago on clearance at Sam ash for like $399. Always been a big Zakk fan and that was the first time I played a les Paul with a raw maple. Now used people want $1500 for that same epiphone made in Korea I believe too! So much great metal was made on EMG equipped guitars. They most certainly have their place love them or hate them.
Agreed. I don’t always love EMGs but every so often they hit the spot haha. Also these Epiphones are interesting. Apparently like 140 were released in Canada and a limited number in Europe. Rumour has it they were supposed to be Zakk signature models with the skull graphic but something fell through and they released them just black. There isn’t a lot of information about them. Hard to come by.
the jim root strat sounded fuller and tighter probably cause of the tension of the strings too they also play a role I guess, also yes the wood makes them sound different due to the vibrations of the strings when you hit them and the frequency they produce over the pickups to make their own sound I could be wrong just my theory
To me, the Strat has less low end, which seems to give more space for the mids. The LP sounds chunkier on the open notes but kind of muddier on the palm muted notes. Both sound great but you can definitely hear the difference, mostly when isolated. In the mix it was harder to discern because the bass probably takes up the frequency range that makes the difference between the Strat and the LP
they sound pretty identical but the les Paul definitely has more body and is more clear when chords are played. sounds a little more balanced as well but the differences are so small it doesn't really matter and just come down to the guitars physical feel for the player.
Even with the same pickup height to the strings, it is the location of the pickup. The distance from the bridge is farther away on the Strat. The closer the pickup is to the bridge is, the brighter, snappier and less low end it will have. The only other significant variable would be the value of the potentiometer. If one measures at 25k and then another at around 21k it's a night and day difference.
Hey James, thanks for checking in brother. I’ve had a bunch of people reach out lately wondering where I went haha. I’m still around. Took a bit of a mental break from posting. And work has gotten really busy for me so I haven’t had as much time for guitar. But I’m working on a new video. Should be up tomorrow! Hope you’re doing well my friend. Cheers!
In the mix you can’t discern a difference at all but on the singled out riffing, I could hear the LP guitar was a bit brighter compared to the low sludge riff tone of the Stratocaster. I’ve a JS32 King V basswood with EMG 57 and a king V Pro mahogany with EMG 57 and they tonally are different. Then again one is a TOM bridge and the other is a FR trem. I love the Basswood TOM King V.
2 things I’d like to add to the discussion. 1. They say you hear less of wood/hardware differences the hotter the pickup is. Seymour Duncan’s Invader comes to mind as a passive pickup that’s similar to this. 2. Here’s the bigger point….if an 81 sounds the same in different guitars, is that actually a bad thing? Me personally, being able to consistently get my preferred tone from every axe would be AWESOME.
@@ScottBynoe yes. Because emg changed parts over the years in thier pickups as well as the hard wiring verses stick together wire harness.. yes its a real wuestion
I have a Gibson flying v from 2010 and an ESP Eclipse from 2008, both with EMG 81 in the bridge. The V sounds more dry and tight, and the ESP has more bass. But yeah they do have the same sound.
The mids ring WAY higher on a Strat. It almost sounds like a stuffed-up/nasely tone. Not very nice sounding compared to the muddled/fuzzy of the Les Paul.
The only difference i could really think of is maybe the strat had a more clear sound without having being boosted which i would largely contribute to the strat having only one volume pot and a pickup selector switch. I've researched guitar electronics a while back and i found out that the more pots your guitar has, the more that your tone starts to darken up. It's why you see a lot of players using guitars with a single volume pot and a selector switch, or in a lot of cases just a single bridge pickup and a volume pot.
These two guitars sounds super close but I have a 27" baritone with maple top and mahogany body and it has extended lows and highs and sustain for days. Alternatively I have B.C. Rich Jr. V Deluxe with a Nato body and floyd Rose and that guitar sounds like a damp sponge its dark and has no sustain.
Apparently you could take all of the components from a guitar, minus the wood, set it up on a mount wirh the same scale length and it will sound exactly the same.
Hmmm, both guitars were mahogany. I feel like we hear more differences due to scale length. An alder strat with EMG's vs a mahogany strat with EMG's would have shown more difference. When you use EMG's, it's like using the same boost/overdrive between a guitar and an amp so there is very specific filtering going on.
Depends on who you talk to I think. Many say a lot of the tone comes from the neck and fretboard instead of the body. Plus one is a set neck and the other is bolt on. Not to mention the LPC likely has weight relief and is chambered versus the Strat that is solid......so even though both mahogany they are so very different.
@@peteryanick9238 I can appreciate that. I was lucky enough to order 4 Suhr Standards years ago with identical specs, with the exception of the woods for this exact purpose. Same electronics, same neck shape, same hardware. It was very interesting to learn how the different tonewoods impacted both the tone generated as well as what the feel and response was to play those different guitars. I'd say 75-85% comes from the body (which makes sense since the pickups are installed there) and the rest from the neck. I even performed an experience where I took a Suhr Classic with alder body and one-piece maple neck and swapped necks with a Suhr Classic with a swamp ash body, maple neck and Brazilian rosewood fingerboard. The differences were certainly subtle, but definitely there.
The only major differences between those two guitars are the scale length and the placement of the pickups within that scale length, which will have an impact on string vibration length, and which harmonics will be picked up.
The strat sounded just slightly tighter. But that could be scale length and tension and not wood. I have a two guitars with 81s and they sound much more different in person isolated but I think I account that to the tone of my touch from the difference in how my fret hand plays the two different guitars.
Hey mate, quite clearly the Les Paul had a tiny bit more high end than the Strat (a counterintuitive statement, for sure!). I’m not saying that on a stage anybody would notice (or care, for that matter), but the tiny little difference is there.
I agree with this, and that on stage it may not matter. However, I think as a player, if you hear a difference it may affect the way you feel the guitar as you play. A guitar’s buildout may affect how you play it altogether.
There is a difference depending on 24.75 vs 25.5 scale. İts not just EMG's all of the sounds comes mostly from pickup. Let me tell you what has influence on tone in my humble opinion sir To me 1-Potentiometer-Pickups(+Pickup Height)-Amp-Pedal- Strings (String Height)- Pick- (%85) 2- Scale Length( %10)- Bridge type (%7)- Neck connection (%3) 3- Players picking technique %200
The scale lengths are different, the pickup height is different, and also the distance between the bridge and pickup is different, pluuuus the Les Paul has a tone knob, the Strat doesn't, that also makes a huge difference.
Actually there is a bit of difference...... The epi sounded bit brighter and the fender bit darker.... The fender sounded bit like 85 in the bridge position at times..... Like in the very first riff the fender definitely sounded darker than the epi.....
Electric guitars produce sound by the strings interrupting the magnetic field produced by the pickups. It's not possible for non magnetic materials to effect the sound. The strings don't vibrate differently because if the type of tone wood, the shape of the wave in the string is fixed that's how it produces the correct pitch. If the tonewood effected the strings it would change the pitch.
I gave this video a like BUT this video was created with the assumption that the wood of a solid body electric guitar will make a sonic difference. I say the wood makes virtually ZERO difference so yeah, both guitars sound identical.
EMG 81s have a character that you can't get around - you either dig what it does, or you're stuck with something that you don't want. This may be the 'tonewoods don't matter' source, or, more likely, that's a mantra by guys who put $300 into a $200 guitar and 'can't tell the difference.' Some 'can't tell the difference' between a Mercedes and a Kia with the leather package, either, and gods bless 'em. They're perfect for thrash of course and other genres - even Dopethrone uses them, and you wouldn't necessarily guess that by their sound. I find them polarizing - if I'm going full out, great, but if I'm doing Sabbath or any classic rock, nope. Solution: Fluence Moderns. Not only do you get the Passive voicing, but the 81 voicing is just better at not sounding wrong or out of place. I sometimes go into a different musical mode and forget I'm using the 'wrong' voicing with them.
Jim root is much thicker. All in all tho, the whole debate of emgs sounding the same in every guitar is kinda dumb imo. A pickup is a pickup active or passive. Its supposed to have its own sound. A duncan jb is gonna sound like a duncan jb. An emg is gonna sound like an emg. Fishmans sound like fishmans. Bare knuckles, you get the idea. But also so much goes into tone tho when it comes to pickups. The pickup is gonna sound like its self but its also a question of your amp settings, your guitars construction, hell recently i realized just how much of a difference your strings make in your tone. The nut material even matters. You couldve made this video with that epiphone next to literally the same epiphone and played them both. Doesnt mean they wouldve sounded the same. Just how tone works. All in all tho yes people. An emg 81 sounds like an emg 81. Because its an emg 81 lol.
I‘ve got an expensive guitar with 81 EMG and a cheap Harley Benton with generic Harley Benton Active Pic-Ups… my EMGs are more expensive than the whole Harley Benton guitar. And there almost no difference between them. The cheap one with generic chinese pick ups sounds sometimes even better.
Ya it’s a load of crap. I’ve played two guitars from same manufacture (different models but very similar) and their was definitely a favorite of the two (tonally).
Tone woods don't matter period. It isn't about active pickups. It is about where the sound in a guitar comes from. The sound in an electric guitar comes from the electronics. There are some very good videos on YT where people went to a LOT of trouble to prove this. Passive pickups are the same as actives in this regard. With high gain particularly, the biggest contributor to tone, other than the guitar's electronics, is the characteristics of the amplifier and the speakers. Not tone wood.
There are actual scientifically journaled articles proving that tonewood does make a difference. I can’t link them because RUclips removes comments containing links, but there’s a subreddit where a post was made with many scientific links proving it’s a real thing, but there’s not a single scientifically backed article that proves otherwise. Let’s look at the extreme end of the spectrum as an example. Aristides guitar bodies have no wood in them at all. They’re made of a proprietary composite called Arium made from various epoxies and resins. However….they build them in a specific way. Snipped from their own article on the matter: “The great challenge is to make the guitar stiff, but not too stiff. When it is too stiff you’ll have great sustain but no warmth in the tone.” Also snipped from the same article: “this is a scientifically developed ideal tone material with clear sound, good sustain, warmth and beautiful character in tone. We take great pride in ensuring the build quality of our guitars, but the material itself plays a huge role in tone as well.” Therefore, what a guitar is made out of directly affects the tone, even if it’s not made from wood.
The Strat is darker sounding, and flatter overall, whereas the Epiphone is more mid-forward. Of course, the same pickup is always going to have the same characteristics in any guitar, and I don’t dislike like either sound, but I think it’ll be down to the player and what they’re playing. The differences we’re hearing here might be based on scale length as well, but the Epiphone having a maple fretboard matches the theory that maple is brighter than ebony.
I hear a little bit of more top end on the Les Paul... But pretty damn close.
If you just added a little bit of top end to the Stratocaster track with a EQ tweak... I believe they would sound exactly the same!!!
In other words the EMG 81 don't sound the same in every guitar... but they DO!!! Keep those nice videos coming... I really appreciate them!!!
Totally agree man. The Epi has a little on top. The same but different haha
I was going to say the same thing about the epiphone having a little more top end, but its in the same ballpark
Thing is, it didn't have a fret wrap with I could hear the pingy harmonics cutting through which could have been it
Pickup position/height/proximity to strings makes a difference.
I suspect the bridge pickup being closer to the bridge is making it sound a tad brighter. Your technique might be different on the Les Paul too, depending on where you're hitting the strings. Did you account for pickup height too?
All good points. Lots of variables between the two. Definitely not a scientific test.
the differences come from the different scale lengths of these guitars and i bet the distance between the strings and the pickups is also a bit different with the LP being set lower
I found the Jim Root Strat sounded fuller in the mix, but isolated they were dead identical to my ears. Great video man!
I'm hearing a slight shift in the mids, sounds like the lower mid frequencies are hitting the amp a bit harder with the Les Paul. Might just be from the differences in scale length/pickup placement/component tolerances.
Totally
honestly, I think if you compared two identical passive pups in two different guitars, they will sound similar as well
In certain situations and signal chains I would agree. But I have a few other guitars with the same pickups (passive) with different woods and they sound very different.
Sorry but no, i did this test before, i was surprised that they sounded so different it was night and day for me, i tried a cheapo basswood bolt on neck vs a mahogany lespaul guitar
The mahogany guitar had such a better response with palm muting and trebles too and better sustain, its almost like it was a tighter thicker higher output pickup with the mahogany lespaul and the cheaper basswood guitar was sounding really flat and some palm mutes would get lost into muddyness
Now ive put this pickup into another guitar with bolt on maple neck and fretboard but with a mahogany super strat body, the pickup sounds super glassy but also remains tight with good palm mutes response and is way better than basswood guitar i had but the thicker mahogany lespaul still sounds a tiny bit better for my taste, now with active pickups i think because they are kinda like 'programmed' the difference would probably still be there but really hard to notice, with all of that said if u have a super cheap guitar it would be best to put an 81 in it
@@OldMisterBelieving in tonewoods is like believing in god or Santa Claus.
Makes you sound pretty ridiculous, buddy...
@@dildojizzbaggins6969
I use to agree with your statement until I hung out with a luthier one time. He built two identical guitars, he built one out of maple and the other out of mahogany. He put identical electronics in both ( DiMarzio tone zone.)The two guitars sounded nothing alike at all. Night and day difference.
Signal chain is important when doing these tests. Some pickups sound almost identical in different guitars, some pickups do not, and have a transparent effect that allows you to hear the difference.
Also, some amplifiers sound the same regardless of what you plug in, and some amplifiers do not.
The over used word,”transparency,” is not a myth but it is relative to what is being used in your signal chain. If you don’t believe this, no big deal. However, if you get the opportunity to try enough gear then it becomes very clear.
The truth is tone wood is completely real but if your pickups or your amp are not transparent then you will just never know.
*An acoustic electric (hollow body) or an acoustic vibrates the wood in the body because there are flexible panels. In a 1 or 3 piece solid body, you don't get much vibration. It is rigid. There are subtle vibrations in solid bodies. But not much.*
Thanks Scott for the great riffing and comparisons here! As others mentioned little more top end on the Epiphone and probably some other slight tonal variations but very similar! Excellent!
Cheers man thanks for watching!
It's an interesting and well thought out test. I think that this is one of the most difficult situations to really differentiate between pickups, hi-gain signal, active pickups and similar body wood. I found that there was a natural compression with emg's which might also mask the differences. I've definitely taken the same set of pickups from guitar to guitar and noticed a predictable and fundamental difference in sustain/attack and perceived frequencies between tone woods and construction of neck joint.
Thanks for watching Nick!
Strat sounds with more bass to me, more deep. But very close, impossible to notice in a mix
What about a cheap bridge will upgrading help with tone? I say NO EMG pickups sound the same in a Glarry Stratocaster as they do in a American Professional Stratocaster. Any thoughts before I buy a bunch of upgrades I don't need?
Nice video! For me, Fender with a boost before amp slightly have more bass while the epiphone have more high gain.
But without boosting, they are really similar for me, too.
Thanks for watching!
Yeah the boost made them noticeably different but straight through the amp they were indistinguishable! Crazy!
I think they would sound the same, the only difference that could be made is that the scale lengths are different. Lp being 24.75 and st being 25.5. They both sound great, nice playing dude! Thanks for making this.
Thanks for watching! Scale length for sure can be a factor. I should have renamed the video 'Does scale length change your tone?" lol
@@ScottBynoewhat strings did you use for each guitar?
Daddario NYXL. Gauge no clue. This video was a while ago and I don’t remember since I’m always experimenting.
Ha! They do basically sound the same lol... But you buy these for what they sound like. However, my Warbeast and Jackson Dinky sound pretty different. The Warbeast sounds fuller and more passive almost. The Dinky sounds more chainsaw like if that makes sense both sound equally awesome just that they do sound different.
I'm not a Strato guy, but this one is the only one that I'll probably buy 🤘🏽 Nice vid
Thanks! I feel the same about Strats. This is one of the few that I’m into.
Even being actives, the EMG 81s are still made of copper wire, wich means that there might be some slight differences from a pickup to another.
Not only from the copper wire, but from the tolerances of the electrical components used inside. And your assumption is spot on, the differences are there, with a good amp you hear them very clearly.
Exactly. I heard that the way the Fishman’s are made that there is little to no difference between pickups.
@@Dudemandude007 Yeah, I guess that's why so many players have moved to Fishman from EMG, though "good" EMGs sound noticably better, others sound much worse. With EMG it's always a lottery, with Fishmans you get the exact same sound every time. Myself, I have a handful of old EMGs, that sound absolutely incredible, much better than Fishman. But if I had to start from scratch, I'd go with Fishman without any doubt.
@@mercatorjubio3804 I have yet to hear anything better than a EMG81 running at 18v for a bridge pickup for metal. 🙌
@@Dudemandude007 ... that would be an EMG-81 from 1988 to about 1994 (HH to ID), those are the best "vintages" of 81s I have ever heard. Totally outclassing anything after that, and before for that matter. To my knowledge certain parts had been made by Schaller in Germany during these years, the best parts used and closest to specification. ;)
Riff Master! Thanks for answering my question in a great video with ripping guitar riffs. When you tuned up and went back and forth I could here a little the difference, the Les Paul is a little clearer and lighter in the mid range. I doubt I could walk into a club and know what guitar someone was using though. They both sounded the same and they both sounded great. So question answered, which was "can I slap an 81 into my strat to get a similar sound to my Jackson with an 81?" Yes.
Exactly. The differences are there, subtle, but there. And depending on the context (like you say in a live situation) the difference doesn't really matter. Thanks for watching man!
I feel like the mid range is slghtly less present in the Strat only because LP’s are generally thicker in construction, Strats also have a bit of a hollower sound to begin with more often than not
I definitely heard a more mid forward sound on the Les Paul.
For me even listening over a tv and not my Kii Three its subtle but definetly a hearble difference...
The Strat seperates the individual Strings clearer for me...which means it sounds quite clearer in the sense of... more like already mixed or eqed = more defined /accurate
The Lespaul is quite more rough in presentation its gives the chug riffs more deep whoomp / emotion/ Feeling to it but the sound is more chaotic/ less defined / rougher
Strat for everything except Breakdowns Chug Parts... there i would prefer emotion over clarity
Thanks for the Video really good answer for the question...if you would use same emg81 in both guitars with same hight adjustments it would be more scientifical correct and get rid of all the questions marks... that would be perfect
I have a pretty good ear for these types of things, and the emg81's do some almost identical.. Really interesting, and kind of cool.
Thanks for watching!
@JSlikbeer-ni6xf Sure bud
Hey Scott. I've actually owned an identical Epi Les Paul Custom since '11. It was a limited edition so I can't believe I've found someone else with it! That neck has always impressed me. People usually can't believe it's an Epi. How are you finding it?
Is it possible to replace only one pickup with emg h4 or h3
Bolt-on vs. setneck has some differences in envelope. Spankier on bolt-on usually, and rounder with setnecks. Tonewood doesn't matter, but construction quality does and it's mainly for the envelope characteristics and playability. The strings and pickups are a closed circuit, from what I understand, and the wood does nothing to affect what the pickup picks up in terms of tone.
Blot-On vs. Setneck or even Neckthrough makes no difference in sound whatsoever. It's the other factors like fretwire and type/material of the saddles on the bridge. Then of course what gauge of strings you use in which tuning and also the construction of the strings themselves. The type of neckjoint and "tonewood" have no influence on the sound of the guitar at all. It's the entire system apart from that. The incluence of scale length as such is also not a huge as some claim. It's one factor, but one out of many. You take the same instrument construction and have it two different scale lengths, the difference in sound will be next to negligible.
Thank you for this, I never understood why les Paul guitars are so expensive, and for me personally, they are not comfortable to play at all, but that being said, I knew they have a different sound, but my question was: "How much of a difference is there? Is it worth all that much when you pay for it?" Thanks to your video, now I know. I think it's just better to get a super strat style guitar with the same woods and scale length of a les Paul, so you get really close, without going bankrupt and having to deal with all the uncomfortable issues it has. Thanks a lot for this.
Cheers!
Also, the Jim Root strat has a mahogany body, so, the woods are closer than if you had an alder bodied strat, particularly with the tremolo system. That's a LOT of wood gone around the bridge.
When you isolated them, there is definitely more crunch on the epiphone.
Both sound good.
The LP has more high-mids maybe a bit more complex in that area, it makes it sound more aggressive and imo better for chug riffs.
The Strat has more low end, and the high mids are less present and complex, it's a tiny bit mushy-r, but imo it would beat the LP in less aggressive genres.
The diference is subtle tho, and hard to notice in the mix.
I believe, if the body wasn't "mahogany1 vs mahogany2", but for example "swamp ash vs mahogany" the difference would be very obvious.
Good comparison, recording and editing. Good work! \m/
Thanks man! Cheers!
So unique and beautiful that lp with that maple fingerboard
It’s a pretty neat guitar. Don’t see many of them floating around.
Always loved a raw maple neck on a les Paul. One day I will hunt down an old 70s or 80s lp custom with a raw neck. I know they exist! I regret even more not picking up a Zakk Wylde epi bullseye all those years ago on clearance at Sam ash for like $399. Always been a big Zakk fan and that was the first time I played a les Paul with a raw maple. Now used people want $1500 for that same epiphone made in Korea I believe too! So much great metal was made on EMG equipped guitars. They most certainly have their place love them or hate them.
Agreed. I don’t always love EMGs but every so often they hit the spot haha. Also these Epiphones are interesting. Apparently like 140 were released in Canada and a limited number in Europe. Rumour has it they were supposed to be Zakk signature models with the skull graphic but something fell through and they released them just black. There isn’t a lot of information about them. Hard to come by.
More treble in the maple neck one which has a touch more clarity when playing richer chords as a result. The strat is a touch fuller in the low end.
That’s how I felt too. Thanks for watching man!
Agree with this.
the jim root strat sounded fuller and tighter probably cause of the tension of the strings too they also play a role I guess, also yes the wood makes them sound different due to the vibrations of the strings when you hit them and the frequency they produce over the pickups to make their own sound I could be wrong just my theory
To me, the Strat has less low end, which seems to give more space for the mids. The LP sounds chunkier on the open notes but kind of muddier on the palm muted notes. Both sound great but you can definitely hear the difference, mostly when isolated. In the mix it was harder to discern because the bass probably takes up the frequency range that makes the difference between the Strat and the LP
great demo. very similar sounds, but slightly different
these two guitars would probably sound great together double-tracked.
Cheers!
i heard the differences. maple neck/fret board has a brighter sound as it should. the ebony fret board is a darker sound for sure.
they sound pretty identical but the les Paul definitely has more body and is more clear when chords are played. sounds a little more balanced as well but the differences are so small it doesn't really matter and just come down to the guitars physical feel for the player.
Agreed
For the most part they were pretty much the same. The fender had more low end to it though. Which surprised me.
I’d agree. The maple fretboard on the Epi was a bit brighter on the top end.
Even with the same pickup height to the strings, it is the location of the pickup. The distance from the bridge is farther away on the Strat. The closer the pickup is to the bridge is, the brighter, snappier and less low end it will have. The only other significant variable would be the value of the potentiometer. If one measures at 25k and then another at around 21k it's a night and day difference.
@@masongregory278 thank you for this. A lot of it I did not know. Glad that I was able to learn something new!
@@sb632 You are welcome. Thank you for listening. We can only learn more about how our gear works when we are open to other's experiences.
Pretty identical but to me the lp sounded more aggressive and i liked it more
Ain't seen you around the groups in a while. You doin alright? I hope you're well and just too busy with life to post and nothing's wrong.
Hey James, thanks for checking in brother. I’ve had a bunch of people reach out lately wondering where I went haha. I’m still around. Took a bit of a mental break from posting. And work has gotten really busy for me so I haven’t had as much time for guitar. But I’m working on a new video. Should be up tomorrow! Hope you’re doing well my friend. Cheers!
on the 2nd test... there's a different... that fender sound little bit warmer than epiphone...
They both sound very VERY similar but from what i hear, the epiphine had a ever so sligjtly tighter low end.
In the mix you can’t discern a difference at all but on the singled out riffing, I could hear the LP guitar was a bit brighter compared to the low sludge riff tone of the Stratocaster. I’ve a JS32 King V basswood with EMG 57 and a king V Pro mahogany with EMG 57 and they tonally are different. Then again one is a TOM bridge and the other is a FR trem. I love the Basswood TOM King V.
2 things I’d like to add to the discussion.
1. They say you hear less of wood/hardware differences the hotter the pickup is. Seymour Duncan’s Invader comes to mind as a passive pickup that’s similar to this.
2. Here’s the bigger point….if an 81 sounds the same in different guitars, is that actually a bad thing? Me personally, being able to consistently get my preferred tone from every axe would be AWESOME.
No disagreement from me :)
On top of everything, I actually quite like the demo song. Specially the longer chords, which I'll call the "chorus bit".
why dont you do a test of a variety of emg 81s from different time periods to see the difference in them? ?.....
Is this a real question?
@@ScottBynoe yes. Because emg changed parts over the years in thier pickups as well as the hard wiring verses stick together wire harness.. yes its a real wuestion
Nice video. It's definitely a myth. I have the Root Strat and Root Tele, both with 81/60. Pretty noticeable difference between the two.
Interested in hearing your thoughts on the difference. What do you think?
Did they have new battery?
yes
It's weird. I've got these pickups on my Caparison Dellinger and Gibson les paul guitars and they sound absolutely different
I have a Gibson flying v from 2010 and an ESP Eclipse from 2008, both with EMG 81 in the bridge. The V sounds more dry and tight, and the ESP has more bass. But yeah they do have the same sound.
The mids ring WAY higher on a Strat. It almost sounds like a stuffed-up/nasely tone. Not very nice sounding compared to the muddled/fuzzy of the Les Paul.
The only difference i could really think of is maybe the strat had a more clear sound without having being boosted which i would largely contribute to the strat having only one volume pot and a pickup selector switch.
I've researched guitar electronics a while back and i found out that the more pots your guitar has, the more that your tone starts to darken up. It's why you see a lot of players using guitars with a single volume pot and a selector switch, or in a lot of cases just a single bridge pickup and a volume pot.
Longer scale length too
You need to try real cabinet. I realise that when you try to different guitars with IR. Result is totally same sound
These two guitars sounds super close but I have a 27" baritone with maple top and mahogany body and it has extended lows and highs and sustain for days. Alternatively I have B.C. Rich Jr. V Deluxe with a Nato body and floyd Rose and that guitar sounds like a damp sponge its dark and has no sustain.
Apparently you could take all of the components from a guitar, minus the wood, set it up on a mount wirh the same scale length and it will sound exactly the same.
Hmmm, both guitars were mahogany. I feel like we hear more differences due to scale length. An alder strat with EMG's vs a mahogany strat with EMG's would have shown more difference. When you use EMG's, it's like using the same boost/overdrive between a guitar and an amp so there is very specific filtering going on.
Depends on who you talk to I think. Many say a lot of the tone comes from the neck and fretboard instead of the body. Plus one is a set neck and the other is bolt on. Not to mention the LPC likely has weight relief and is chambered versus the Strat that is solid......so even though both mahogany they are so very different.
@@peteryanick9238 I can appreciate that. I was lucky enough to order 4 Suhr Standards years ago with identical specs, with the exception of the woods for this exact purpose. Same electronics, same neck shape, same hardware. It was very interesting to learn how the different tonewoods impacted both the tone generated as well as what the feel and response was to play those different guitars. I'd say 75-85% comes from the body (which makes sense since the pickups are installed there) and the rest from the neck. I even performed an experience where I took a Suhr Classic with alder body and one-piece maple neck and swapped necks with a Suhr Classic with a swamp ash body, maple neck and Brazilian rosewood fingerboard. The differences were certainly subtle, but definitely there.
is same string gauge?
Yes sir
The only major differences between those two guitars are the scale length and the placement of the pickups within that scale length, which will have an impact on string vibration length, and which harmonics will be picked up.
The fact the lespaul has 2 volume and 2 tone knobs VS the fender with only 1 volume knob could be a factor too
Epiphone was brighter and more snap. Fender was beefier in the low end. I prefer the Epiphone personally. Thanks for the comparison
Seems like a lot of folks are preferring the Epi in the comments. Thanks for watching.
In my experience, there's less of a difference than passive pickups, but a difference nonetheless.
I guess there is no reason to upgrade my LTD ec 330 with 81/60's to an ec 1000
The strat sounded just slightly tighter. But that could be scale length and tension and not wood. I have a two guitars with 81s and they sound much more different in person isolated but I think I account that to the tone of my touch from the difference in how my fret hand plays the two different guitars.
Root was way fuller. More depth. Nice playing 👍 listening on the ipad 🤷♂️
Thanks, appreciate that!
Hey mate, quite clearly the Les Paul had a tiny bit more high end than the Strat (a counterintuitive statement, for sure!). I’m not saying that on a stage anybody would notice (or care, for that matter), but the tiny little difference is there.
100%
I agree with this, and that on stage it may not matter. However, I think as a player, if you hear a difference it may affect the way you feel the guitar as you play. A guitar’s buildout may affect how you play it altogether.
There’s a tiny bit of difference, in that the Les Paul has a bit more attack and high end. Very little.
There is a difference depending on 24.75 vs 25.5 scale. İts not just EMG's all of the sounds comes mostly from pickup. Let me tell you what has influence on tone in my humble opinion sir
To me
1-Potentiometer-Pickups(+Pickup Height)-Amp-Pedal- Strings (String Height)- Pick- (%85)
2- Scale Length( %10)- Bridge type (%7)- Neck connection (%3)
3- Players picking technique %200
The scale lengths are different, the pickup height is different, and also the distance between the bridge and pickup is different, pluuuus the Les Paul has a tone knob, the Strat doesn't, that also makes a huge difference.
The Fender sounded a little beefier on the first couple measures…..
But very subtle…..
Actually there is a bit of difference...... The epi sounded bit brighter and the fender bit darker.... The fender sounded bit like 85 in the bridge position at times..... Like in the very first riff the fender definitely sounded darker than the epi.....
I hear more highs on the Les Paul and a more low mid on the strat
Sound the same. Useful vid.
the difference can only be attributed to scale length
Strat was darker and had more bottom punch to it, the Les Paul was brighter, less bottom.
Ya that’s what I’m hearing too. It’s subtle but you can definitely hear the Epi is brighter.
Electric guitars produce sound by the strings interrupting the magnetic field produced by the pickups. It's not possible for non magnetic materials to effect the sound. The strings don't vibrate differently because if the type of tone wood, the shape of the wave in the string is fixed that's how it produces the correct pitch. If the tonewood effected the strings it would change the pitch.
the low end sounds different to me but the high end is about the same
Strat sound bit muddier to my ear , single cut epiphone sound better.My monitor I am using is Yamaha HS7
I gave this video a like BUT this video was created with the assumption that the wood of a solid body electric guitar will make a sonic difference. I say the wood makes virtually ZERO difference
so yeah, both guitars sound identical.
EMG 81s have a character that you can't get around - you either dig what it does, or you're stuck with something that you don't want. This may be the 'tonewoods don't matter' source, or, more likely, that's a mantra by guys who put $300 into a $200 guitar and 'can't tell the difference.' Some 'can't tell the difference' between a Mercedes and a Kia with the leather package, either, and gods bless 'em.
They're perfect for thrash of course and other genres - even Dopethrone uses them, and you wouldn't necessarily guess that by their sound.
I find them polarizing - if I'm going full out, great, but if I'm doing Sabbath or any classic rock, nope.
Solution: Fluence Moderns. Not only do you get the Passive voicing, but the 81 voicing is just better at not sounding wrong or out of place. I sometimes go into a different musical mode and forget I'm using the 'wrong' voicing with them.
I noticed that ephiphone sound much more aggressive. idk why
They do sound the same but the strait has a bit thicker tone the les Paul has a bit brighter tone but that's just me
More top end with the Epiphone Les Paul... Interesting.
The attack is more present in the les paul
Didn't hear any difference. Great video!
Thanks for watching! Cheers!
With type of sound it doesn't matter if the guitar is a Glary or a Gibson..no dynamics.
They sounds pretty much the same. The Strat sounds a bit clearer and the Epiphone muddier. I can't tell much of a difference in the mix though
Jim root is much thicker.
All in all tho, the whole debate of emgs sounding the same in every guitar is kinda dumb imo. A pickup is a pickup active or passive. Its supposed to have its own sound. A duncan jb is gonna sound like a duncan jb. An emg is gonna sound like an emg. Fishmans sound like fishmans. Bare knuckles, you get the idea. But also so much goes into tone tho when it comes to pickups. The pickup is gonna sound like its self but its also a question of your amp settings, your guitars construction, hell recently i realized just how much of a difference your strings make in your tone. The nut material even matters. You couldve made this video with that epiphone next to literally the same epiphone and played them both. Doesnt mean they wouldve sounded the same. Just how tone works.
All in all tho yes people. An emg 81 sounds like an emg 81. Because its an emg 81 lol.
hm.. They sound almost identical. thanks
I‘ve got an expensive guitar with 81 EMG and a cheap Harley Benton with generic Harley Benton Active Pic-Ups… my EMGs are more expensive than the whole Harley Benton guitar. And there almost no difference between them. The cheap one with generic chinese pick ups sounds sometimes even better.
Which hb guitar do you have
@@ripley4726
I have:
SC1000 VW
EX-84 Modern EMG VW
SC Custom II Lemon Flame
Strat warmer
They sound completely different even with the same pickups. Some may say otherwise however the difference is noticeable.
Ya it’s a load of crap. I’ve played two guitars from same manufacture (different models but very similar) and their was definitely a favorite of the two (tonally).
Strat is a bit snappyer and more highs
The Fender has better details, cleaner, focused sound.
I need that les paullllllllll
Tone woods don't matter period. It isn't about active pickups. It is about where the sound in a guitar comes from. The sound in an electric guitar comes from the electronics. There are some very good videos on YT where people went to a LOT of trouble to prove this. Passive pickups are the same as actives in this regard. With high gain particularly, the biggest contributor to tone, other than the guitar's electronics, is the characteristics of the amplifier and the speakers. Not tone wood.
There are actual scientifically journaled articles proving that tonewood does make a difference. I can’t link them because RUclips removes comments containing links, but there’s a subreddit where a post was made with many scientific links proving it’s a real thing, but there’s not a single scientifically backed article that proves otherwise.
Let’s look at the extreme end of the spectrum as an example. Aristides guitar bodies have no wood in them at all. They’re made of a proprietary composite called Arium made from various epoxies and resins. However….they build them in a specific way. Snipped from their own article on the matter: “The great challenge is to make the guitar stiff, but not too stiff. When it is too stiff you’ll have great sustain but no warmth in the tone.” Also snipped from the same article: “this is a scientifically developed ideal tone material with clear sound, good sustain, warmth and beautiful character in tone. We take great pride in ensuring the build quality of our guitars, but the material itself plays a huge role in tone as well.”
Therefore, what a guitar is made out of directly affects the tone, even if it’s not made from wood.
The 81's sound best in a Gibson Guitar
It's what we spect, for me les paul has more balls and low end, Fender stay where its supossed to, Middle Frequencies !
Plot Twist: any pickup work just as the same. Wood don't give a shit about your tone. Grow up, guys! We are not in 60's anymore
Yeah close your eyes and listen then tell me when it switches guitars....
Gary Moore used a single EMG 81 in his Charvel. Check out his Empty Rooms concert video. Sounds awesome.
Small scale lenght, more mids.
That is not true a mahogany body has a better sound you can use Alderwood or some other crappier would out there but I'm a mahogany man
The Strat is darker sounding, and flatter overall, whereas the Epiphone is more mid-forward. Of course, the same pickup is always going to have the same characteristics in any guitar, and I don’t dislike like either sound, but I think it’ll be down to the player and what they’re playing.
The differences we’re hearing here might be based on scale length as well, but the Epiphone having a maple fretboard matches the theory that maple is brighter than ebony.