5 GUITAR GEAR TRENDS That Are DYING!
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- Опубликовано: 8 сен 2024
- In this video I discuss 5 trends in heavy rock & metal guitar gear that seem to be dying. What would you add to the list? Let me know in the comments. Thanks for watching!
#guitartrends #guitar #rockguitar #emgpickups #ampmodelling
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I will not give up my 4x12
As long as you want to carry it, and as long as venues allow it, rock it.
I wish I had that same attitude but my back really loved it when I sold my 2 4x12 and got a single 2x12
But your back will probably give up on you.
4x12 are awesome.. but are so hard to carry (and to fit in my little car haha)
I won’t give up my four 4x12s
Kemper gear looks like hospital gear.
thats hilarious!!🤣
1950s Hospital gear.....
@@davidwood9966 Exactly or a 50s tube Radio 📻
Kemper has been on life support since ToneX’s arrival.
This,they look like a EKG monitor or something. Can't do it, I gotta sound like me, and that ain't 19 almost amps for 19. songs.
Am I the only who hates the new age heavy mid focused and overly compressed rhythm guitar sound?
Me too😅
Rate my tone...
If you're talking about the Djent sound then yes I agree with u
Me too, everybody have the same 5150 into v30's mesa oversized cab with the same overdrive or tc boost... No bass but a lot of quacky mids. It's ok, many people like that. I'm more a Guy that i love High output pickups into solid state brutality tone with moderate mids. Before someone says to me " mids are the Heart of guitar sound " i know, i just put lesser mid than you. But it's More the result of speaker combinaison with the setting. Guys they are a tons of cab than the v30 to experiment the result is More character to me. with IR technology you Can try a lot of stuffs. Recently i felt in love with Jensen Nighthawk Don't get me wrong, i love the evh 5153 El34 but with different speakers than v30 and not set as quacky mids sound. Again, nothing against that, if some love it cool, but it's not for me.
I don’t HATE it, but scooping mids makes a guitar seemingly collapse in volume, especially in a full band mix. As long as it doesn’t sound boxy or like bees in a jar, I love a good midrange focus. Just pair it with a lot of presence and a ten band EQ to take out a bit of the boxy midrange in the 500 - 1KHz range.
0:06 The popularity of EMG pickups
1:50 4x12 cabs
3:31 Scooped mids
4:50 Wattage
6:34 High output pickups
This should be pinned
Rate my tone... I'm doing everything but the EMG 😊
Thank you.
Funny, I am in business for long time and it is always a wave. In the 80s was a time everyone had EMGs and a huge rack with tons of effects. It went over with grunge. 2015 I had a lot player with Kempers, 3 years later they went on tour with old Marshalls 4x12 and tube amps... and the game goes on and on...
maybe im just a stupid a-hole who doesnt get it; explain to me the use of this, please.
I play a Les Paul into a 6505, the full size 100w version, with the mids scooped (and boosted with an 808) into a 4x12. I love being a dinosaur!
2024 dinosaurs dead......1 kg same sound :D
Yes, i scoop and boost the mid's as well, it sound's just better then just boost the mid's... 😅
Literally same except ts9
I play the exact same Setup. But EQ ist all 7/10.
I have a 6505 mh and love it but I got an 8100 valvestate and have been using that lately. Cant go wrong with any 6505.
People over think thus stuff. Just find a good sound that suits your playing and don't worry about fashion or style. Amps are guitars are just a means to an end, the great players make it work and everyone else follows!
EMG will always be the gold standard for active pickups
HELL YES
@@genghisghostthey’ve been around for 50 years. They’re not going anywhere.
I totally agree. Beyond that, I also expect EMG's to have a resurgence of popularity. The feedback on the new Jackson USA Soloist SL2MG coming with the classic 81/85 set has been overwhelmingly positive.
Since 80s session (tones) guitarists are becoming more popular today, I'd expect people bring back emg sets like Luke's ones
EMG rock bruv. No idea why people think otherwise. Forum trolls for twenty years maybe? I’ve got three sets.
As much as I personally understand the financial restrictions of bringing big cabs and stacks on the road nowadays, people disregard just how effective they were as stage props. Their inconvenience stands as a monolith to the fact that we know pursuing our art is irrational but we have to do it anyways. Contributes to the whole "rock" aesthetic. Venue shows where you can't see anything behind the musicians' backs, or it just being some banners in the case of metal bands, just doesn't look as cool. Even if I know it's not the case irl, I want my rock/metal/punk musicians to feel somewhat larger than life when they're onstage, not just preoccupied with their own comfort and convenience.
And here i am playing over 100 gigs a year across the US still rocking EMGs, 2 100 watt EVH heads in stereo and 2 4x12 cabs hahaha. People always brag that i sound more powerful and i agree when its compared to people with modulars. I do use a helix for all my effects
That's probably the way most people should gig use a real amp for distortion and have all your pedals on a modeler that way you don't have to bring a bunch of pedals with you to every gig and also if your amp dies during your set you can just change your modeler to a preset that has an amp model and cab.
A lot of bands have all that shit on stage and the cabs are just empty boxes.
All that aside, the audience can’t hear your rig unless it’s mic’d up and you’ve got a good sound guy. Modelers are a great alternative and a LOT more reliable, but you still have reliance on a good sound guy.
Also, never heard of dead reckoning.🤷♂️
It must be nice to play venues where you have the room to use a rig that size. But the weddings that have been paying me between $600-800 a pop are not appropriate and some of the venues actually have a db threshold and a 4-12 can with a 100 watt head will hit those thresholds the second I click off the standby. So 30 watts it is and those high paying brides don’t know any different.
Scooped mids, 4x12s and a 100w Marshall head for life
In the local Hardcore scene I still see pretty much every band using a 4x12 cab, most small venues and DIY spaces have shitty PA's and don't usually mic up amps so you gotta move some air, the 6505/4x12 cab combo is still alive and well. If you show up and try to go direct with your modeler it's gonna sound bad. Some people even use 6x12' cabs
NAILED IT! You need 100 watt amp and a 4X12 to play a packed basement gig. All those bodies up close to the "stage" absorb all the volume from a guitar. So you need a loud guitar.
@@Mxyaguitar5150 yes! You can not replace the feeling of a loud driven tube amp or the feeling of a 4x12 making you "feel" the notes!
As I remember EMG had a supply problems during covid limitations. That’s why ESP increased number of models with Fishmans
Yeah. I mention this but this is a clearly "click on me for attention" video from the poster.
I hate the number of ESP guitars with Fishmans now all I want is just Seymour Duncans in a guitar and they don't have any in the Arrow 1000 series.
@@josephhutchins8 yes ( I’m not a fishman fan and I’d prefer emg or SD in guitar
I have 4 esp ltd and they all came with Seymour Duncans
And fishmans suck ass!! I love EMGs and the fact that they’re still American made.
In my personal experience, the use of a standard ground wire immediately antiquate fishmans. EMGs have a self-contained grounding unit and are a lot quieter in terms of noise.
Huh. I'm actually playing a gig tonight, so I've gotta go load in my 100 watt tube amp, 4x12, and Les Paul with high out put pickups. Cheers!
Sorry, but I've been playing for 39 years and I heard all the same stuff back in the late 70's and 80's that everything from the 60's was dying out as well. Analog vs digital was the war back then and analog is still here. What really happens is it all just gets incorporated. Mixing gear is where many new ideas come from.
Your amp modeler that you bought yesterday will be a brick in ten years. My 68 Bandmaster will need a $200 recap and will keep on trucking
That's the other thing: while the modeler might still be able to fire up a lot of modeler makers produce computer software that they stop developing when they stop selling the modeler and then using and programming that device is much harder. My Mesa preamp has been bombproof for the three decades I've had it.
Not to be devil's advocate but one day tube's will go the way of the dodo
@@zxexrxox they were saying that in the 80's too. Yet here we are. Every proclaimed modeler lover is turned to quivering rubber legs of joy the first time they plug into a plexi or a twin reverb.
eh, solid state is the most reliable and low maintenance of the three.
@@xxsouthxxsidexxroyxx Eventually people will stop making vacuum tubes or they'll become so expensive it'll be the same price as a new 20w head nowadays, although I don't think that'll happen for at least another 50 years. I will say tube amps generally sound better live but for recordings there's not much difference and you can get a similar sound from a modeler by using a power amp and a cab.
I've been in the music scene longer than RUclips has been around. Everything goes circular, technology can change things, but old becomes new anyway. There are confusions in your video: first off, are we talking live or studio? Most musicians do not know the differences are monumental. The differences between a studio ready guitar versus a live guitar, studio ready amp versus a live amp, drums and piano also need to be addressed for studio versus live.
Second, what a good tone is, varies from song to song, player to player and feel.
Third, musicians and bands are on different levels of musicianship and creativity, your "useless" gear might be another's source of inspiration.
I think putting music and musicians in terms of "do's and don'ts" is limiting to music and musicians. Don't be afraid to experiment, don't be reserved about "comfort" zones. If you want to emulate another band, using similar gear helps but remember you'd be amazed how much change music has made simply because somebody didn't know how to do something and tried.
I think we're literally talking about fashion. I've been playing bass since the 90s and will continue to with very little regard to what the kids are playing.
Agree. Iron Maiden and Yngwie Malmsteen has always used a lot of mids.
Imho amp wattage has always been a bit of a dick measuring contest. Ive got a 60 watt 2x10 combo amp ive used at small gigs, and a 20 watt amp mini head that shakes my house 🤷
Most people think that wattage and perceived volume is a linear progression. It is always funny explaining that, no, 50 watts is NOT half the volume of 100 watts. The volume difference between a 50 and 100 watt amp is typically 4-5 dBs.
Jake addressed this in the episode with the discussion on headroom. A 100 watt amp has much more headroom to handle dynamics than a comparable 20 watt head from the same manufacturer. It's not always about volume and one-upmanship.
It is for the uninitiated. It's all about that headroom.
As i noticed in the past years: It depends more on which amp your'e using or better which one with which speakers your'e using!
5w 1x6 combo...yeah, that wouldn't shake the house, but my 5w Epiphone Valve Junior on an 2x12 or 4x12 with celestion Vintage 30 or something like that, could make your ears bleed and the house shaking... :D
I suddenly have the urge to buy an ESP KH2, 120w Crate Blue Voodoo, and two 4x12 cabs
The electric guitar is 1940s technology. We use magnets to transfer the vibration of strings to a useful voltage. We plug into amplifiers using 1/4" cables which were used by telegraph and telephone operator switching boards. We use tubes even though transistors are more efficient, tiny and lightweight. We use inefficient, overweight speaker technology even though far superior designs exist. Every time we try and take a step forward, most users are staunchly opposed to progress and hold us back.
We are partially paralyzed by tradition because it's the way we've always done things. It's the way our heroes and influences did it and we want to do that too. But we also do it because it still works and most often works better than the shiny new thing does.
EMGs were dead, and then they're back. Died again, back again. Died once more, back once more.
Things evolve. We get tired of hearing and seeing the same thing over and over, but we all keep following the trends because that's what we do until someone comes along and says, "I'm not going to do what everyone else is doing, I'm going to do what everyone else already did" and then we all follow them and make that the new trend yet again.
Nothing dies in music if it's marketable. If EMG goes bankrupt tomorrow, another company or entrepreneur will look at it and say, "That product can still sell" and down the road you'll see EMGs again and we'll all argue about how the original ones were better. Every product that has a following will always have infinite lives. It will always come back around again.
People have been trying to bury Guitar Center alive for 30 years. No, it isn't what it used to be and never will but it fills a massive hole in an established market: products to make music with. But uh oh, here comes AI! No human will ever make music again! Guitar Center is dying! Nope, they'll just sell you music AI instead while still calling it Guitar Center. How many businesses have been around for more than 100 years? Is there a 118+ guy running it? Of course not, but the name is established and they still do business.
So, in your limited perspective (and that's not an insult, all of our perpectives are limited to some degree), these products are dying. They're not. It's just low tide for them. It'll swing back. Name one product in the music industry that sold well and was trendy that died withour ever coming back in any form. In my lifetime, it's the Firebird X... a futuristic guitar with automatic tuners and a USB output jack. Well, we all plug into USB at some point, even if we're miking up a 1957 Strat into a 1963 Vox AC30 the mic goes into an interface. "I record to tape" congrats, you're still flying it into a DAW at some point. And we will have automatic "robo" tuners again at some point. It'll swing back around again, it always does.
EMGs will make a comeback. I got really into Fishmans and passive pickups but recently installed an EMG 81/81 set in a guitar after not having EMGs for years, and immediately remembered that these are the best metal pickups ever.
Exactly! Fishman is not even close.
Just discovered your channel over the Harley Benton Jim Root Strat review...i will stick here, like what you are doing!
Thank you so much Lukas, I really appreciate that! Glad to have you here 😊🤘
@@JakeLeighGuitarhey uhh just a fun fact but the reason the ltd and esp didn’t have emgs was because of covid they couldn’t keep up with demand
There is one big advantage to the reduced use of 100 watt heads... they've become very reasonably priced on the used market. Example: Marshal JVM-410's are now hitting the $1000-$1200 range (based on the Reverb offers I've been receiving). Picked up a mint unit that sounds amazing in my home studio. For years, this was (and is) my grail amp.
That's about where they should be a lot of ampeds are overpriced in my opinion
I have a JVM 410 as well, love that amp, and Marshall 2-12 1936 cab, sounds amazing and I crank that bitch up when I play it.
I go to many many shows every year. EMG pickups is still very popular, 4x12 is still the standard and lastly I see tube amps on stage and in studio all the time! Depends on what music you listen to and what band.
😅😅 Dude just noticed that right now when popular trendy bands are starting to bring back stacks and 4x12s on stage with that US emo / nu metal / blink revival + turnstile hype (after 20 years of seing only fender vox roland combos on stage). Some people you wonder where theyve been living for the last couple years.. seriously
I see a lot of people saying they won't give up their 4x12's. That's fine, but how often are you gigging and in what size venues? Are you stilling "turning up to get your sound"? If so that's gotta be pretty loud and a lot of venues just won't allow it anymore.
^^^This. I'm only in a weekend warrior cover band playing bars, and I can certainly say those small venues have become very strict about noise levels. I run a Fractal now and get a great and controlled sound without the weight or bleeding ears. I'm in my 50s and don't need to prove anything. That guy in the back with his arms crossed and disapproving look can suck it. He's watching and I'm on stage getting paid.
And not forgetting that your ears are probably destroyed by now!
4x12s are still the default i'm seeing.
Modelers suck live. You gotta move air
This. At least for small to medium club sized gigs. It seems counterintuitive but having a real amp that can push air is more important in a 100 person room than it is in an arena.
@@AlexhPDX agreed. by the time you’re in an arena the audience wants to watch the show and hear the record. The PA doesn’t care where your signal came from. There’s a thousand reasons some people prefer big tube amps and real speakers , and they’re not all apocryphal Boomer-stitions either.
I’m not shitting on modelers. I’m blown away by the technology and the possibilities.
There are still a few things the old 20th century warhorses do better. That’s why people emulate them
@@EvanDanderI agree modelers have come a long way and I still will prob use them in smaller gigs just for ease of changing tones for a song but you are right
A fractal, with a power amp, on a 4x12, moves air.
@@johnstone1526 and still get swallowed up in a club mix
Jake . Fight me.
Plate reverb - delay - two overdrives - - noise gate and a spring verb (into a Fender Blackface) is the signal chain of the gods😅
I don’t wanna fight, I’m enjoying your comments! Put those overdrives up front and I’ll agree with you! Haha 😊 Thanks for all the comments and sticking around here!
@JakeLeighGuitar Love your stuff. Quite good for a metallic head.😀😀😀😀😀😀
I love a good clean tone, btw. I'm thinking of putting emgs into a chap strat copy.
This guy is going places! I want to hear this!!!
Yea drives in front and delay next to last then verb always sounds better last to me. If u haven’t tried it u should check it out. Hell, if u like it the way y got em, Rock on.
Unless you have a ported/oversized cab a 2 x 12 isn’t going to have the same punch as a 4 x 12, just easier to get a 4 x 12.
Big amps aint goin nowhere
They will have to pry my Friedman 4X12 from my cold dead hands, it pushes more air and sounds warmer/fuller than my 2X12s. Couldn't agree more that cab-less stages are all drums and lacking in the guitar dept. It seems FOH engineers are anti-guitar these days.
Funny - I've just recently found myself gravitating from standard humbuckers to DiMarzio Super Distortion and Gibson T500 and Dirty Fingers. I still hate "always on" overdrive and distortion pedals. Solo only.
Dimarzio super distortions are so good
@@bandolierboy1908 Yes, the name sells the pickup short, but if you're going to market a pickup in 1974, there was no better name. The silly thing does EVERYTHING, and does it well!
Touring with Conan converted me into hauling around 2 4x12s. I also play in a black/doom band so there's that ahaha. With that being said, I prefer the fuller sound, and feel if that makes sense.
I'm happy to stick with a JCM 800, 4X12 and a 498T in a Gibson. Then again, i'm an old guy that's almost deaf.
NAWW we’ll take 6 4x12s down here in the Republic of Texas. And the 6 big ass cabs are all loaded with speakers and WATTS following through them. And that 3 100 watt heads. Oh Yeah over doing it the Southern way.
Sus compensation and a waste of money 😂
@@judaspriestchild then you have a guy like John Petrucci getting it done with an offstage 1x12 iso cab.
@@judaspriestchildJ Mascis isn’t compensating for anything
Have fun carrying them then
You gave me my money's worth in this video by discussing the value of cabinets on stage. I recently started using an effects processor for everything I do at home or at open mics but of course those are small spaces where crowd noise isn't really a factor.
Use whatever you want.
Smart video! I like the way you got right to the point and didn’t get distracted or start blabbing about irrelevant stuff. I wish all RUclipsrs were as interesting and disciplined as you are!
Funny. I've been using passive pickups for 30 something years and just recently started using EMGs. I love them. And I'm no metalhead at all.
Les Pauls with high output Bareknuckles into a Mesa Badlander crunch channel boosted with an SD1 here. Oh, and a 4x12. I’ll never give it up!
@@NelderGuitar I bet that sounds amazing. Love every part of that rig! 🤘🎸😊
I won't give up on tube Amp what a crazy thing to say... Even if simulation has become so good there's nothing like opening an oven to crisp pizza
There isn't a modeler out there that can even come close to matching my favorite valve amps, not one.
There’s also not a modeler in the world prone to tube failure, a limitation of the future. I guess I’ll get back to writing letters on paper for communication.
@@thisguy2973 There is no shortage of good tubes if you know where to shop. You buy a bunch when they're on deal. Simple fix. If your Kemper or AXE goes down, good luck with a quick fix. Yeah stick with that generic inarticulate sounding modeler, sounds like you were meant for each other
1. EMG's I only tried once and they're definitely not my cup of tea. Give me old school passive pickups any day.
2. 4x12's just don't make much sense these days unless you're in a bigger band. Smaller gigs, vertical 2x12's just make much more sense and they still look cool.
3. Scooped mids is something I just never got.
4. I think higher wattage amps are coming back because after the trend of lunchbox amps, people are realising their benefits in terms of tone. And I also noticed how on my MT15's lower wattage setting, the sound turns to mush really quickly as i turn up the gain compared to the full power setting. A JCM800 studio for example sounds really shrill if you don't crank up the master volume which is what they're designed to do. So I practically dime it and regulate the volume with an attenuator. That way I can reap the benefits of pushing the tubes without pissing my neighbours off.
5. I actually prefer high output pickups for the reason you mentioned. I prefer to get a high gain sound by pushing the input with the pickups and maybe a pedal for a solo boost. I find that you get less electronic hum and noise that way and retain note definition. The PRS Tremonti Treble and Bare Knuckle Pickup Alnico Nailbomb are great high output pickups for boosting the mids and not too harsh sounding.
Great video, I agree with all your points.
For the last 15 or so years I was always trying to keep my rig small (because I'm lazy XD) but not compromise sound. I still have 2 small Amp Heads and 2x 1x12 cabs I intend to keep, in the last few years though modellers now sound so good and are so convenient.
Do you think effects pedals (or at least larger boards with lots of them) are in the decline in favour or modellers? Since going the modelling route, mine got smaller and smaller, that could just be me though
I sold all 13 of my pedals and working on selling all my tube amps (3 left to go).
I switched to modelers and FRFR speaker wedges last year. Bought a Spark Mini practice amp. Modelers are so freaking good it’s crazy. I can get any tone I want and I have like 60+ pedals at my fingertips now. The best part is when the digital effect are rip offs of real pedals so you already know how to set the thing the way you like.
@@sebastianmedina1234 Agreed man. Unless I was after a very specific sound / effect, I can't see myself going back to a board full of pedals over a modeller now. They do everything n are so much more convenient n practical.
Whilst I do think an amp n cab with a modeller as the controller can be decent, at this point its just more stuff to carry when you need not most of the time
Kempers live sound like a recording of a guitar turned up really loud more than an amp turned out really loud.
There, I said it.
Which is exactly the sound that fractals and kempers are suppose to give you...glad to see someone understands that.
As a man now screaming through his 30s, my back thanks me every gig for not hoofing a 4x12 up the stairs at a gig because the lift is broken. I love my 2x12. But what I've found on wattage and massive cabs is that sound engineers are really appreciative of it. Massive heads only really start cooking at higher volumes anyway, I once took a little LC-15 to a gig with my HK Tube-Factor in front. Created a massive wall of guitar, which may have been a little much for a pop gig!
With the mids - man, I spent some of the 00's in the Aussie death metal scene. Nary a mid was heard.
EMGs are kinda fun, but I've gone back to mid-output pickups after something Ola said - he likes the amp to do the work with a cleaner signal, and I wholeheartedly agree with that! The Retro 70s in some of the HB models are super smooth and full of life - something I always thought the 81/85/80s had an issue with.
The way the world is going is: in a decade or so there'll be no cabs, no pickups, no amps....no bands! This is why all modern bands sound exactly the same, especially singers and guitarists who appear to suffer from a Copy+Paste production, both live and in the studio. It means jack shit whether you use no active pickups, no 4X12s, no amp heads without the most important component: talent. People nowadays listen with their eyes instead of with their ears, that's why the music scene is what it is: dying and established acts get away with charging exorbitant prices foe concert tickets. The majority of the new bands I've listened to have no originality and sound just like copies of whichever act they're aping. Bottom line, try and be yourself and spend more time being original. Ultimately it'll all come full circle and in a few years all that's been stated in the video above (active pickups, oversize - whatever the fuck that means - cabs and amplifiers) will be trendy again. It's human nature.
EMGs aren’t dying. If anything, many guitarists seem to be returning to them Meanwhile, Fishmans seem to be a trend. Unless they continue to innovate, I don’t see them killing off the OG active brand. Plenty of guitarists have the Moderns which are the most prevalent set. The signature sets is where they excel but it seems like they’re slowing down in terms of releases. Now, if EMG could come out with a line of pickups with customizable preamps, they would take the lead. Just imagine a bridge pickup that you can model after an 81/81X/85/60/57, etc. let alone if you could hook your guitar up to a computer and tweak it yourself.
That’s a really interesting take on it. I much prefer EMGs to Fishmans so I hope you’re right! Thanks for the comment.
@@JakeLeighGuitar please see my updated comment… Its popular to hate on EMGs but there’s a reason they’ve been around as long as they have and as widely used as they are. They just work. The 81 nails most metal tones people are after. The X series and 57/66 do that with added versatility and more dynamics which people wanted. The single coils have always been great and if it’s good enough for Clapton or Gilmour, it’s more than good enough for me.
I get not needing a 4x12 full stack now, but I'll never play a silent stage with direct out modeling. I will always have at least a 1x12 tube amp on stage. Direct out, mic it, whatever. That's the sound guy's problem. I find my tone, he fills the venue with sound. The feeling of pushed air on stage can never be replaced
In Chicago, most clubs have their own cabs, people either use what's there or plug in their own amp. Maybe not in other cities but you rarely have to carry in cabs any more. The clubs get them cheap (an SVT cab can be had now for like $400 and last forever) and it REallY speeds up load in/out and the monitoring since mikes never move. Times Change! For me, it's KEMPER Stage 100%. I hand the FOH my stereo XLR and I'm running right away. Live it's perfect.
A 100w Marshall JCM 800 2203KK, two Marshall JCM 800 4x12 cabs, Les Paul with 81/85's, and nothing in between is all I need, and it rips!!!
The way metal was meant too be.
I'm Loud n Proud, and I won't get rid of any of it.
I still love cranking up my 4x12, but it honestly has not moved out of my little home recording room in at least 7-8 years. All the local venues around here are pretty adamant about silent stages now. Kinda sucks. I remember when metal was about your amplifier blowing your hair back on stage.
EMG made their entrance in the early to mid 80s by the likes of Luke. Commonly used in Valley Arts style Super Strats. The 81,SA,SA set up being the most popular because they were great in the studio and live by cutting through the keyboard midrange. Got my first set of SA's for a Strat in 1985. Used them for 15 years.
EMGS were super popular because they were so hot, but they were a specific sound. You can put EMG's on a show box and it'll sound like EMG's. I think people got tired of that a while ago. $x 12 cabs are just notnecessary. It's more than you need in a small club and in stadiums you're gloing through a P.A. anyway. The same goes for super powerful heads. Scooped mids were popular in the 90's. Having sparkling highs and solid lows while losing harsh mids seemed very appealing. But it's interesting that on the First BOSTON album form the 70's , which still has some of the greatest guitar sounds of all time -- those guitars are VERY mid-range-y. High output pups aren't necessary with high output amps and they don't record as well as pups with less gain.
With the explosion of Vintage pup boutique manufacturers like Lollar & Frailens one can tailor their tone🤷♂️ Love my Partscasters, Strat (vintage HSS Frailins & VegaTrem) Tele (vintage Lollars- series/parallel)
Give me clean tube power and stacked pedals.
I had a Schecter C-1 Elite FRS. The Sustainiac, imho, had a huge influence over the tone. Squashed it! Like a compressor🤷♂️. Played great and after 30 years of battling Floyd roses the Schecter’s 1000 or 1500 series was the most stable I’ve EVER used! Easily Via abuse without going more the 2-3 cents out, usually dead nutz 0!
I’ve just grown tired of the “TREND” of ordering guitars without even laying a finger on them! #partscasting lets me & #parklane necks get the perfect feel! 12-14” compound radius!! YES! 🔥
When bands play with no amps, all i hear is highs and subs. Thats why playing a amp with a 4 by 12 sounds so much better imo. Stage amp volume vs tweeter sub pa volume yuk. EDIT small to medium bar-clubs with using a axe fx thru a a crappy P.A system no good.😅
WhenI walk into a venue and see a stage with no amps,I walk right back out
I thought I’d disagree with this whole list, but I don’t. I agree with most of it, if not all. Good list.
As a quad cortex, Helix, and kemper owner, I still prefer playing my 100w archon thru my Mesa 4x12. I honestly almost regret going down the digital modeler/profiler rabbit hole. They all sound great but option paralysis is real! I just feel more creative and want to write more when I’m jamming thru an actual amp that provides some feel and feedback.
I don’t get that problem with overwhelming options, try five sounds and go with the best sounding one.
@@notsure1135 I get that but those 5 sounds are always evolving with new product firmware updates and more amp models and effects becoming available. Don’t get me wrong, I love all three and the endless options are great to have, but sometimes when I sit down to write a song, I tend to get stuck trying to find a tone or effect up front and then hours later, I’m still menu scrolling
Remember to keep your older equipment. Streaming services of video and music give us experiences that we enjoy. But we can still enjoy our hard copy formats. It would suck if we go broke and end up with regret to teach us that we don’t need to keep paying for a cd/dvd that we already have in our possession.
A 4x12 is definitely ‘not’ more omnidirectional. It’s actually more beamy.
Even an angled 4x12?
@@JakeLeighGuitar Yes, I think so, less than a straight one, but more than a 1x12. If memory serves it does not really ‘spread out more’, as one might think, what happens is that the sound from one speaker interferes with the sound from another speaker, and this makes it lose high frequencies off axis. And we’re only talking about closed-back speakers, since having an open-back changes the whole thing.
I could be wrong, but I’m pretty sure this is how I’ve seen it explained in the past.
Fishmans got a HUGE advantage by figuring out the battery issues - e.g., where to put it.
what??? I fail to see how it has any advantage over EMG in that regard
@@genghisghost having the battery in the rear trem pocket cover is much better than having to slacken the strings, take apart the pick guard and jam a 9v in whatever random spot you can find.
@@Andyanddiana467 you realize that has nothing to do with shitman or emg right? that’s where your guitar builder decides to put it
@@genghisghost The practicality and gig-proofness of such a system is part of the whole package. But, if you wanna waste time taking apart a pick guard, fighting to get your floating strat trem up to proper tension, and making life hard ten minutes before a gig, be my guest.
And for the record, I like EMGs too; I use the passive Geezers in my bass.
@@Andyanddiana467 again, that has nothing to do with the design of the pickups themselves
4x12 cabs won't ever go out of fashion for two reasons: biggest/widest projection and cool factor.
100w heads have always been too much volume wise but they sound bigger and have more headroom.
Emg's are a classic and they work well for what they are/do...even a jcm800 can be seen as obsolete (especially for metal) but it's a classic and will always have its place.
its all about choice. I will alway prefer 4x12 cabs because you can lean into the volume and feel the power. tube preamp distortion and tube powered amps will always be my preference but I do enjoy seeing other peoples ideas and rigs.
I never thought i would live to see the day that anyone, let alone someone who knows what they are talking about, would say that 4x12's are overkill for anything.
Although, to be fair, i only ever ran a 2x12 Peavy setup, but I was never in danger of needing to project to more than 200 people
So fun story! A few years ago, on our local marketplace came up a Marshall 4x12 1960A slanted cab…for a screaming deal. It looked to be 80’s…so I grab the truck and head on over. It was rough, it had been gigged for what looked like for years. I never even put an amp through it, I just gave the guy cash and loaded it up. So cut to later that day, I decide to open the back up and take a look, ya know see what speakers are in it, if they have been changed…anything like that. So when I open it up, I notice a date written in white chalk, or wire marker pen, and the date on it states May 25th, 1989. No to most people that means nothing….but to me May 25th, 1989 is my birthday, year too. This cab was loaded with speakers and finished in England on my birthday! How incredible! And btw it rips! I love to run my Marshall Class 5 or my Origin 20 head. Both sound insane through it. I will never never never ever sell it. It was literally built for me on the very day I was born! ❤ I love it! And always will. I’ll leave it to my kids after I’m gone, they can sell it or do whatever they want with it. Maybe they should throw in down in the hole with me? What y’all think? 😂
Love my two full Marshall stacks!
I recently bought the 5150 Iconic 15 watter. I run it at 1/4 power at the apartment and I know it would be plenty loud for live applications
EMG’s sound incredible in everything ive had them in, even a cort g254 with the steve lukather set, super versatile.
Agree my lpc with 81/85 set was incredible
High output pickups rules. They actually do sound different compared to low output pickups. And yes I use high output pickups with a Marshall JVM.
I used to own a jackson wth emgs and a pull knob that gave the pickups a ridiculous boost. The previous owner was the former player of the band ministry. They played high gain metal but he used a jcm800... It makes sense on that context but i always found myself wishing it were a coil split because i literally never used the boost. It was just too ridiculous for use in anything other than metal
I know the EMG 89R has a split coil in it you could probably swap the pickup really easily as EMG's are solderless.
@@josephhutchins8 that would be cool but unfortunately I sold that guitar a while back. But it was cool to own a guitar Louis svitek used to use with ministry During his run with them. I think he also used it with mindfunk as well as the case was covered with mindfunk stickers too
Luckily for me the Telecaster plugged into a Fender Super Reverb trend is still going strong.
Been using Kemper stage with 2 Kemper Kabinets with 5150 EL34 profile past several years never have had an issue with equipment, always cuts and can be heard, and always have people coming up after gigs asking how the hell my tone sounds so good! I can bring all my gear into venue in one trip. Keep it simple.
It’s astounding how much better you can sound with a well developed modeled tone and in ear monitors. But you have to work at it. Just like if it was a real amp. You still have to work at it.
I play bass, but I’m using a Headrush pedal and build a great base tone with it and then turn effects on or off and it works great.
You will never sound as good as a pushed tube head, but the only reason the modeler sounds better is because you aren’t making a full stack echo in a room, killing your sound.
Never cared for EMGs or any active pick ups. I much prefer passive that allows the full tone of the guitar and your fingers come through.
100% with you. I detest EMG sound
I prefer recording direct with a real amp through an ir rather than a modeler. They're just easier to get a good sound out of.
@@taylolz do you have a favourite load box/reactive load? I’m using a Two Notes Captor and I’m not completely happy with it right now.
@@JakeLeighGuitar I don't use a load box. I had a 5150iii that I used the Line Out with. I currently have a Mesa combo that I use the Slave Out with. Unfortunately it won't be silent recording. But from videos I've seen, the Suhr load box has the most accurate eq curve of a real speaker.
@@taylolz thanks! Yeah I’ve been trying to decide between giving the Suhr or the Fractal one a try. Glad you’re getting good results from the line outs/slave outs.
@@JakeLeighGuitar I'll send you a short recording if you want
*Sees title of video*
Looks over at my 2 4x12’s. One with a Peavey Butcher, and a Mesa Mark III Red Stripe, and the other 4x12 having a 1975 Superlead, and a DSL 50.
Thank God for the Fryette Powerstation.
EMG are still king imo. Just not into the quacky sounding fishman fluence tone.
As a slide player i feel personally attacked over the amp comment. Sooo umm 5 watts is umm, ill see myself out 😂.
I have an early 80s Manson superstrat with EMGs. I liked the sounds but batteries didn't last long
That sounds like a seriously cool guitar! Definitely the kinda thing I’d play. That’s weird, I’ve always found them to last ages. Thanks for the comment!
@@JakeLeighGuitar better still, it has a pointy headstock, locking trem and JEM-style hand grip!
My battery lasted well over 6 months (with daily use).
Don't keep the amp cable connected to your guitar. That keeps the pickups powered and the battery running.
I like headroom too. I think it does really help a high gain tone sound big and retain clarity. I use a 120W Peavey and I like playing my PRS through it that came with active EMGs. I fully intended to swap those pickups out for something else but once I plugged into the Peavey and hit a few down-tuned chugs, I decided to keep them.
Damn, my timing is shit. I've been anti emg out of ignorance and growing up just hearing the 81 in the bridge. I got into emgs a couple months ago with their retro active line and I love them. Then I tried the het set in a flying v I built and it's now my favorite sounding guitar. In my head emgs are still the new kid on the block, but Metallica was using them all the way back in the 80s
I recently got a set of 707x and I will not give em up on that guitar, no matter what.
Drummer perspective here. Scooped mid and boosted lows all me to hear you live over bass. From a mixing stand point, when you palm mute I want to see the speakers move.
Funny -- in my experience, and also according to my scientific understanding, a 4x12 is much more directional than a 2x12 or a 1x12. The 4x12 creates a powerful "beam" of sound that blasts out into the audience, which is maybe good if you like to play loud and don't want to overwhelm other bandmates or microphones onstage. Due to the cancellation/reinforcement effects of the same signal projecting from multiple points, the natural spread of a single 12" speaker turns into a focused beam, very similar to "synthetic aperture" radar. A clear example is the old-school PA columns, used for voice reinforcement in churches and auditoriums (not used as often with bands). They would have a bunch of speakers, like 6 or 8, all in a vertical row. Did this cause a wide fan-out effect vertically, as might seem to be the case? No, just the opposite: the vertical line of drivers creates a *horizontal* fan, with the vertical spread tightly restricted. Then, by angling the column slightly downward, the "fan" can be aimed to spread across the audience, while mostly passing over the microphones onstage, preventing feedback. With a 4x12, you have the tightened beam effect in both the horizontal and vertical axes. With a 2x12 cabinet, knowing about this effect, you have a choice of whether you want a vertical "fan" or a horizontal one, depending on how you place the cabinet. With the two drivers vertical, you get *horizontal* spread. With the drivers horizontal (cab on its "side"), you get a *vertical* fan, which might be good because you can aim it "past" a vocal mic further downstage. For maximum spread in all directions, use a 1x12. It's counterintuitive!
Thank you. I was going to say this exact thing but happy to see someone else knows this. 4x12s look cool and sound cool for the player, but if you’re in the audience and not in front of the guitarist, you’re not going to hear a thing. Very directional and not in following any scientific understanding of dispersion. They were originally made simply because it took 4 speakers to be able to handle a 100 watt head. Not enough is said about how modern speakers are much more efficient and can achieve the same volume from a 25 watt amp. Go with a 1x12, and if you want the bigger cab sound, then put it in an oversized cab. But I would make the argument that doing that is better more for a recording situation than a live stage where you want to control your variables more by using a regular sized cab with interior treatment and decoupled from the floor.
@@bertryman773 Yep. Indeed, originally the available 12" speakers could only handle 15W each, not even 25W, so for a 100W amp you really needed 8 speakers. They tried making an 8x12, but it was way too ungainly, so that's how we ended up with a stacked pair of 4x12s with a 100W amp on the top. When Boogie and others started using a single powerful 12" speaker to handle 60W or 100W, it seemed like a revelation and the natural direction of progress, but I guess people got accustomed to the impressive look of a wall of 4x12s; nowadays, they're often dummy cabs...
Silent stages absolutely suck. They should never have been a thing ever. Proud user of a park lead 100 halfstack and a silver jubilee half stack
Nothing like a Park/Kitchen amp.
Jim Marshall rules! 🤘
Keep yelling at clouds ☁️
@@HimothyBurton nah the clouds yell at me, they can't handle the huge wall of sound😉.
Can I ask what do mean by silent stages? I have severe tinnitus / hyperacusis (loud noises literally painful … like an instant horrible ear ache) and my playing out days have been over for 6+ years now. Is there a way to play out without having sound on stage ? I’ve been out of the loop.
@@joeylodes It's when no amplifiers are used and everything goes straight to the board. In other words, the only thing pushing air are the pa speakers.
With all the amp sims and modelers out these days that is route many bands go.
Even most monitors these days are in-ear, so if you got behind the foh all you'd hear pretty much is silence.
My first video I’ve seen of yours, the edits and the content’s fantastic.
Nice job bud, agreed. Wattage is my one at the moment…want an Soldano slo100 for my 40th…the slo 30 seems like sacrificing something but I will try one…..
But ultimately may ditch them both for a QC and high end Ibanez….4k is a lot of dough (but carry on saving 😂
I play a Les Paul with Fishman’s into both a quad cortex and Marshall Origin. I get a way better sound with the quad. I get a more fun tone with the tubes. Still running a 4x12 but for gigs I’ve been blending the neural with a Boss Katana and I haven’t gone back. Digital is better. I play an Epiphone semi hollow as well, with p90s. Passive. No hum.
You can pry my EMGs and 412 from my cold dead hands
I love EMGs.
I’ll be real, I’m guilty of all of these except EMGs. You’ll have to pry my 81s from my cold dead hands 😂
installing pickups is a breeze, unless there's a super 5 way switch involved anyone can do it with a few tips from someone experienced. Take some photos, it's at best 5 solders each pickup on really complicated wirings. EMG should promote their preamps more for electric guitars. I remember showing off this guitar project on a group and I had 2-3 people ask about the afterburner. Now high output pickups still have their purpose due to the fact when you coilsplit, go parallel and so forth the volume drops become too much on a crappy 1959 PAF pickup set, but I suppose some people will say "oh use pedals!, use a different amp channel"
With EMG active pickups they won't last, their sound is out dated, all the money people spend upgrading their favorite guitar by the time you pay for the pickups and some will pay to get the solder free parts in, by that point you might as well buy a few pedals or an amplifier that isn't made by Line 6.
I wonder if the fall of 4x12’s is also being accelerated by the increasing quality of the digital modelling things like Kempler - I remember watching a few rig rundowns a while back and a bunch of guitar players live are running into those kind of things straight to the PA system and they have dummy cabs on stage, same thing with the effects with the exception of a Wah pedal
I kinda agree. I would personally rather have a quad cortex that can get me any tone I need pretty much than have to lug around a 4x12 and a large amp
I play 100 watt amps (Dual Recs, Matamp GT1 or Suhr PT100) on 4x12 cabs and own multiple of them. I play fullstacks and if I have to at least one 412 Mesa OS cab. Les Paul Customs with Dimarzio pickups or some guitars with EMGs. And I still see many of these rigs on stages. On the other hand, yes .... digital modellers and silent stages are huge. Thats why I cut back on visiting concerts. Killed the fun for me. I dont care if its the same sound than on the album. I want a real living show and interaction between guitar and amp.
My EMG 81/60 sets (back when I'd have to wait for a 60 to be made...) aren't going anywhere in any of my guitars. However I've been trying to sell my Marshall jcm900 1960A 4x12 for a couple years reasonably priced and I bought it new in 1999....nobody wants to lug them around anymore myself included. That's been all the feedback I've been getting trying to move it on.
I play at home as a hobby with a Jackson into a 6505 1992 original re-release into a Peavey 2x12 but ive considered getting a 4x12 to piss of the neighbors
Got my trusty well worn LP clone w/ 85B/58N EMGs. People love how it sounds. Plenty of mids, not too harsh, volume knob rolls off only volume. Unlike passive pickups, the bass will not roll off. Touch dynamics are more of a volume setting and adding a dirt pedal or using a cleaner amp sound with a dirt pedal. My fovorite dirt pedal w/ EMGs is the Boss Blues Driver, which is the worst branding in history. This thing will push the mids & just a hint of treble edge, and act as a great boost.
The amp that surprised me most and I wish I could have afforded, was the Workhorse Pony. It was a 30 Watt clean pedal platform amp with a weird hubcap grill. But put aside the looks, and the dispersion you got out of that little 30 watt amp was incredible. It's a case of players not being able to deal with something looking so different. I was playing it side by side w/ Mesa Boogies and Fenders at the store. It was easily the most articulate amp, and it was because you could hear what you were getting out of the speaker without the high frequency ice pick spike direcly in front of a speaker / cab.
The closest modern thing I've seen to this are the Barefaced Audio cabinets which, shockingly, are designed purposefully to disperse the sound. There are a few British youtubers who've shown these things off and you can clearly see the enthusiasm for them. But guitar players are notoriously known to hear with their eyes, not their ears. That's just a reality.
There’s nothing like the feeling of a 4 x 12 pushing some air into your back. It feels like the soul of rock is being ripped out of rock and metal. I’d love to have seen someone tell Lemmy to use a modeller and give up his cabs as he was too loud if he was still alive
Honestly I would rather use a modeler than have to lug around a 4x12 every gig
I moved out of the U.S. about 14 years ago. Fortunately, i have got to make a living playing in countries that some people would call 3rd word, but for me, i dig it. Everything you checked off is still alive and well from South American to South Asia. I imagine mostly because of laws and how cheap it is to move around these countries. When i first came back to the U.S. about 2018. Everything you checked off is pretty much true. I borrowed a 5150 from a friend and went to the venue, and they won't let me use it. I had to buy a power amp and a pre amp pedal to play at most venues. Things have really changed. Same deal in Canada.
I love my Mesa Fillmore 50 on my 2x12 cab. Playing w a Lace Sensor vintage 80s Fender strat w a Blues Driver and a Klon. I've never been an EMG fan nor a 4x12 cab fan. Mostly cause I hated moving em around.
I have 1 by 12 and 2 by 12 . I have a Marshall 18 watt clone head . Marshall make them as a combo with a single green back . I tried a few months ago it through a 4 by 12 cab . It sounded massive. Had a 50 watt plexi in the room. They sounded almost identical .so I am looking at getting a 4 by 12
I was using 2 x 12" for years as it was much handier to get around to gigs. I played stereo so brought one for either side of the stage. Just the fact there were two meant you could still throw or in a taxi in the back seat and one in the boot meant a non driver like me could get around with them. Mids? Never scooped, probably been accused of too much mids though.
5150 II into a 4x12 (gt-12-75) and a 2x12 (vm-30s) Boss noise suppressor ,boss 7 band EQ and a JHS attenuator at the end of the loop. If you have a high gain amp and cabs get yourself a JHS attenuator. It will change your life. I basically rarely touch the volume on my amp. When i need to turn down i just use the attenuator knob on the pedal board. You keep all the gain/tone/touch . I have played my big rig while my family was sleeping before and did not wake them up. Even When I jam with a full band it still doesn’t go pass 3:00
(5:00 means it’s wide open)