Active PUs are great, they open a door to a lot of possibilities, BUT, obviously, they require power, and the music instrument industry has never ever worked on a STANDARD to power guitars via the audio cable, like for instance a reliable 4-WIRES CABLE STANDARD or a PHANTOM POWER XLR as a solution where every amp, every pedal would be able to power anything like any guitar or any connected instrument requiring power ... anything working as a standard to power an electric guitar with active PUs or any other type of onboard electronics (acoustic guitars too). If we had that extremely useful INDUSTRIAL STANDARD, a lot of people wouldn't hesitate anymore in using guitars with active PUs. Batteries is an annoyance for a lot of people, rechargeable ones too (you wind up with chargers everywhere around the place).
I'll never understand the hatred for EMG pickups by some people. EMG cleans are amazing imo, their single coils are underrated af, and the 81 remains a mainstay in metal to this day. Love my HM Strat with 89/SA/SA and 24v mod.
I am not a hater or anything. I actually have EMG passives on 3 of my guitars. I have tried the EMG 81s and a set with 81/85s, but they sounded really harsh. They are high output, though. Sorry.
@@bradrehn1007 Yeah, I might be a little jealous. Given his age (I'm one year ahead of him). I could never pull off the cross legged working arrangement.
EMG single coils are totally being slept on. The notes pop in a way that make you notice and when you switch between positions, every setting is even more distinct in a pleasing way.
@@premierguitar, they didn't use to have that. So I was surprised by this video. I've never liked them because of their top-end 80's kind of terrible synthtetic treble, but this video wasn't like that.
Sounds great! I have used EMG’s in my 83 Strat for decades. In my case though, these pop in guards didn’t exist so some routing had to be done. I change the 9 volt once a year just to ensue no gig failure.
I also bought their TX active pickups for my Tele. I ordered an SPC control like from the David Gilmour set and use that instead of the tone knob. Can go from spanky to a humbucker like tone. Terrific sounds. Note: if anyone wants to do this, don’t order the TX boxed set with control plate. You won’t be able to swap in the SPC for the tone because there is a circuit board on the set. Order the individual TX pickups, an SPC and you’re all set.
Guy in our worship band dropped EMGs in his Sterling Luke and they sound amazing. I would also recommend anyone who hasn't to seek out a Knopfler spec Suhr Classic. They do not sound like you think!
I recently bought a 2013 Fender American Ultra Telecaster that had EMG pickups already installed and the original pickups came with it too. I left the EMG’s in it and am extremely pleased with the active setup. First time user as well.🎸🇺🇸
Glad y'all liked that. Seriously through after hearing this demo I'm seriously considering throwing these prewired EMGs into my 90's Squire II... Although, then I'll wanna address the fret sprouting!... Hey John....😅🎸🏁❤️ Shout out from Asheville!
Thanks John; super interesting. Curious about powering the SL20 with a ES-918 /TRS cable combination instead of the 9V battery. Also, happy seeing that you work on your gear using the same luthier's bench as the rest of us; ha! Happy holidays to everyone at PG; we appreciate all of you!
For strats and other single coils guitars EMG's are amazing, completely hum free, cleans are ultra clean, but these pickups can also roar so impressive. I put a set in a 90s strat std, and the sound is like night and day compared to the originals, really as John said HI FI ! Great demo thanks! I also support for John a workbench for Christmas, unless he enjoys sitting on the carpet, he's a hippie or he's into yoga. Cheers !
EMGs rock. No being shocked also because you are not the ground anymore. I love them. I have a set of three SAs and I also have two humbuckers in a strat and they rip ! ❤
8:50 is literally the first thought i had when i tried EMGs for the first time. It’s so hi-fi, it’s almost like plugging your guitar straight to a desk, but not in an unpleasant way.
I put a set of their passive Revelation humbuckers in my Charvel SoCal. A really great sounding set. They also use the no solder connectors and pots and the kit came with everything you need. So much nicer than whipping out the soldering iron.
I'd like to see a pt. 2 where John throws in some crunch and distortion. I like the polished glassy sound. What else can it do. And let's do this with a tele too !
I have these in my basket at Thomann! Looks like Santa is bringing me some at some point 😁 RJ Ronquilio demo'ed sime a while back, they're great in his hands.
If you go for the 81/85 set in a Les Paul, don’t use the pre wired EMG tone control with 0.1uf caps or it’ll do the compressed muddy angry bees sound and not much else, run 22nf for the bridge tone control and 47nf for the neck tone. Really opens them up and gives an amazing variety of tonal options.
My original Fender Lace Sensor Golds from 1989 (Clapton) are still the best pickups ever. Paired with a good amp they can do anything! And batteries aren’t a problem guys let’s be realistic!!!🎸🔥
One thing that’s also nice about emgs is if you want to swap out a single coil for a humbucker or vice versa all you have to is unplug the old pickup and plug in the new one. Same pin outs, uses the same pots. You spend more time installing it into a new pick guard than actually installing the pickup. 😂
Hey John, I see you have the same tuner I have (the StageRight)on your pedalboard! I like them because they have really huge and bright lettering and whenever I try a different one, they always seem hard to read so I always go back to the SR tuner! Also i was surprised to see that huge swimming pool route under your strats pickguard. crazy eh?
Yeap... It's very clean and quiet...But I still think 'active' pickups still lose some of the 'bite' and 'grit' of a single coil pickup. They do sound 'nice' if you're looking for a 'nice' tone.
Changing the battery would be difficult. I think as a selling point to entice people to try EMG should come up with a battery door in the pick guard or something.
It would be nice if we could have a ‘sleep mode’ for active pickups as I and others will put the guitar down, still with the jack connected and forget.... Pick up the guitar the next day and you’ve got a dead battery.
The sleep mode is engaged by unplugging the cable. I switched to passive pickups many years ago. But i never lost the habit of unplugging when I’m done. Its burnt into my muscle memory
I think it is a trade off when it comes to emg`s vs stand. pickups. When I first installed a set of 81-85 set in my les paul 20- ish years ago, i was very impressed with the punch, the pick attack and overall clarity of them. I have since had them in a couple guitars, but what they really lack in my opinion is harmonic overtones and dynamics! Also too saturated sounding. ( My opinion you guys) Not hating on this at all. Glad you like em` 😀.
I prefer the sound of your original pickups. Funny enough, I was looking at this set for my Strat…nope. You’re one hell of a player, and if you can’t make them sing, then I certainly can’t.
I keep looking at the Gilmour’s to replace my Texas specials. I feel like companies like EMG and Fishman keep taking more market share. Duncan’s and Dimarzio’s are still great but the solderless kits really are game changers
They need to bring back the cool silver stamp logos like that! some of the 2000's fenders made in mexico have them too! I wonder if anyone watched John build the guitar in real time so the music is super slowed. He used a power drill to tighten the strtings thats a first. Nuance from the pickups is everything for an artist. that's why i like teles, they pickup every little nuance of the player. I think I may be getting some EMGs soon... Cant blame me, Im too much of a classic rock head! But hey, Metallica is classic rock now too if you think about it! Lots of great guitarists started played active strats in the 80's and 90's, Mark Knopfler and David Gilmour. Sometimes you never think about it because your mind gravitates back to what guitar they got famous with, but active pickups have a huge sound its undeniable.
to me active pickup just all around pickup, fit all different type of music ,somehow active pickup always gave people impressions like for the metal or heavy stuffs , even good for jazz stuffs if you know how to use your right hand picking techniques , only one thing i hate active pickup is the battery , sometime your cant find a 9v battery laying around, i hope manufacturers change to use USB-C for rechargeable battery ,because you always find a usb c cable and battery bank or charger around you, 9v battery sucks, is just me..??
I’ve used EMG’s for nearly four decades now. The batteries last forever. I use my guitars everyday and change all the batteries every January during a string change. Not once have I had one die on my, you just have to get into the habit of unplugging the guitar when not in use. I read somewhere that rechargeable batteries don’t last near as long as regular 9v batteries.
@@Dan_Rangerim more like lost my batteries😅i got 2 active pickup guitar, but always got 1 batteries, because when i need a battery, the most convenient way is stealing the 9v battery from my other guitar, and im not a gigging musician, not really well maintain my gear, if like a cellphone build in batteries,a usb cable for charging would be awesome for bedroom guitar player like me.😅
As much as I remember, their output is completely incompatible and overwhelming in a normal pedalboard/amp setup if you need to switch to any passive pickups guitar during show or rehearsal. Settings in your setup have to be completely changed. Am I wrong?
The sound is slightly different, the average listener won’t know the difference. Pickup reviews are silly in a way because it really hits in the feel and not the sound.
All their parts work like lego, it's the most fun and hassle free to work with. You want to switch that tone knob for a tbx or whatever you want? Fine... just swap it.
If this set had an SPC and EXG like the Glimour set does, it would sound phenomenal. This way it sounds muddy and lacks character, especially on cleans imho.
So they don't have that terrible icey, synthetic, sharp sssss on the top-end anymore? EMG's, Valvestate Marshall, piezo-pick ups etc, used to have kind of the same synthetic sharp top-end. Didn't like it. And it wasn't possible to just turn down the treble either, there was something wrong, in my opinion. Alot of people liked the 80's … :) with the synthetic top-end treble on everything. The only thing I didn't like about Prince' guitar playing was that his custom guitars had EMG's, they sounded … EMG, but in this video, you say they sounds hi-fi, that's not what I'm hearing here, sounds "round" in the top, and nice. A little more sceptic to the overdriven sound. Hmm …
Active PUs are great, they open a door to a lot of possibilities, BUT, obviously, they require power, and the music instrument industry has never ever worked on a STANDARD to power guitars via the audio cable, like for instance a reliable 4-WIRES CABLE STANDARD or a PHANTOM POWER XLR as a solution where every amp, every pedal would be able to power anything like any guitar or any connected instrument requiring power ... anything working as a standard to power an electric guitar with active PUs or any other type of onboard electronics (acoustic guitars too). If we had that extremely useful INDUSTRIAL STANDARD, a lot of people wouldn't hesitate anymore in using guitars with active PUs. Batteries is an annoyance for a lot of people, rechargeable ones too (you wind up with chargers everywhere around the place).
People I think only moved away from them because of the advent of grunge and of course country folks never really took to them. Dan Baird of Georgia Satellites had EMGs in his Tele for their hits.
Sorry but to me, dynamic lowers, all notes are same leveled, like roll off tone, your strat is now less expressive. I prefer passive pickups. Just my opinion.
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Active PUs are great, they open a door to a lot of possibilities, BUT, obviously, they require power, and the music instrument industry has never ever worked on a STANDARD to power guitars via the audio cable, like for instance a reliable 4-WIRES CABLE STANDARD or a PHANTOM POWER XLR as a solution where every amp, every pedal would be able to power anything like any guitar or any connected instrument requiring power ... anything working as a standard to power an electric guitar with active PUs or any other type of onboard electronics (acoustic guitars too).
If we had that extremely useful INDUSTRIAL STANDARD, a lot of people wouldn't hesitate anymore in using guitars with active PUs.
Batteries is an annoyance for a lot of people, rechargeable ones too (you wind up with chargers everywhere around the place).
Love EMG pickups, best choice imo. Super balanced and clean. High output too. Haters gonna hate, lovers gonna love!
I'll never understand the hatred for EMG pickups by some people. EMG cleans are amazing imo, their single coils are underrated af, and the 81 remains a mainstay in metal to this day.
Love my HM Strat with 89/SA/SA and 24v mod.
I am not a hater or anything. I actually have EMG passives on 3 of my guitars. I have tried the EMG 81s and a set with 81/85s, but they sounded really harsh. They are high output, though. Sorry.
@@TheRealcdawg22 EMG SVs or SAVs are the best of both worlds. Passive feel but active in construction
I think we all need to chip in and get JB a work bench for xmas.
Or we should all get down lotus style to work on our guitars... he seems a whole lot more limber than most guitarists below or above his age!😂
@@bradrehn1007 Yeah, I might be a little jealous. Given his age (I'm one year ahead of him). I could never pull off the cross legged working arrangement.
Yeah, him doing this on his carpet was both unexpected and unsettling 😂
😂
EMG single coils are totally being slept on. The notes pop in a way that make you notice and when you switch between positions, every setting is even more distinct in a pleasing way.
The best thing about EMG is they have awesome customer service.
The candid reaction is great! 🤣 He’s an awesome player and great person!
Yeah, he’s a total blast!
The originals had a snap to them like a Tele. The actives are warmer, completely balanced, no noise and the overdrive tones were to die for 👍
Sounds warmer to my ears..but then again my memory is shot lol Thanks for the vid!
I agree, those active pickups definitely have a unique warmth to them!
@@premierguitar, they didn't use to have that. So I was surprised by this video. I've never liked them because of their top-end 80's kind of terrible synthtetic treble, but this video wasn't like that.
Awesome pickups and great playing as always! Major Jeff Beck vibes
I was at the show this week seeing him play this guitar. He’s a beast!
Sounds great! I have used EMG’s in my 83 Strat for decades. In my case though, these pop in guards didn’t exist so some routing had to be done. I change the 9 volt once a year just to ensue no gig failure.
I just installed the 3 single coil version in my Strat a couple days ago. Sounds great.
That's awesome, enjoy!
I also bought their TX active pickups for my Tele. I ordered an SPC control like from the David Gilmour set and use that instead of the tone knob. Can go from spanky to a humbucker like tone. Terrific sounds.
Note: if anyone wants to do this, don’t order the TX boxed set with control plate. You won’t be able to swap in the SPC for the tone because there is a circuit board on the set. Order the individual TX pickups, an SPC and you’re all set.
Great playing. Sounds warm and crystal clear . Seen this pick guard mod in a lot of vids and it really suits your guitar in looks alone
Thanks John, I like the tone of your EMGs , nicely balanced in all positions , noiseless and very practical for a gigging guitarist.
Loved it!! The honest reaction outtake was awesome too❤😊
Guy in our worship band dropped EMGs in his Sterling Luke and they sound amazing. I would also recommend anyone who hasn't to seek out a Knopfler spec Suhr Classic. They do not sound like you think!
I recently bought a 2013 Fender American Ultra Telecaster that had EMG pickups already installed and the original pickups came with it too. I left the EMG’s in it and am extremely pleased with the active setup. First time user as well.🎸🇺🇸
Fun video. 1:30 is pretty spot on for me too 🤣
Damn looks like John could get a part-time job over at Stu Mac ❤🎸🏁
Great sounding Pickups! Love your videos John!
Glad y'all liked that. Seriously through after hearing this demo I'm seriously considering throwing these prewired EMGs into my 90's Squire II... Although, then I'll wanna address the fret sprouting!... Hey John....😅🎸🏁❤️
Shout out from Asheville!
They sound great. My personal favorite single coils are Lace Holy Grails.
Thanks John; super interesting. Curious about powering the SL20 with a ES-918 /TRS cable combination instead of the 9V battery. Also, happy seeing that you work on your gear using the same luthier's bench as the rest of us; ha! Happy holidays to everyone at PG; we appreciate all of you!
That was an awesome video. It is cool to try things out!
Right?! It's all about having fun!
Good job John... my ears here the strat pickups were brighter , and better dynamics. 2 cents..
They sound great and are probably the most underrated pickup along with Filtertrons
I just put the EMG SL20 set in a MIM Hendrix Strat. Totally awesome. 100x better than the DG20 I took out.
For strats and other single coils guitars EMG's are amazing, completely hum free, cleans are ultra clean, but these pickups can also roar so impressive. I put a set in a 90s strat std, and the sound is like night and day compared to the originals, really as John said HI FI ! Great demo thanks! I also support for John a workbench for Christmas, unless he enjoys sitting on the carpet, he's a hippie or he's into yoga. Cheers !
John-wild! I have the same 40th anniversary strat in Sunburst--we share a Black Les Paul Custom and PRS DGT in common too!
I keep hearing great things about emg single coils. I gotta try it out some day
Luke’s Valley Arts and original Music Mans had EMGs.
EMGs rock. No being shocked also because you are not the ground anymore. I love them. I have a set of three SAs and I also have two humbuckers in a strat and they rip ! ❤
8:50 is literally the first thought i had when i tried EMGs for the first time. It’s so hi-fi, it’s almost like plugging your guitar straight to a desk, but not in an unpleasant way.
Hey looks amazing after I mean sounds great but the color combo is fantastic!
John brother I think I got your strat's twin over here, it's a '90 and it is a very sweet sounding instrument! Cheers guys happy holidays
That's fantastic, glad you love it!
The Black looks wicked good against the Green Body & Maple Neck!
This EMG single coils sound like instant 80's clean tone to me
The most difficult aspect of the pickup swap is getting off the floor afterward! #icanrelate
I put a set of their passive Revelation humbuckers in my Charvel SoCal. A really great sounding set. They also use the no solder connectors and pots and the kit came with everything you need. So much nicer than whipping out the soldering iron.
Nili Brosh and Marty Friedman use their passives too.
I'd like to see a pt. 2 where John throws in some crunch and distortion. I like the polished glassy sound. What else can it do. And let's do this with a tele too !
I especially love EMGs in teles.
The EMG retroactive tele set is one of the best designed pickup sets I've ever used.
I have these in my basket at Thomann! Looks like Santa is bringing me some at some point 😁
RJ Ronquilio demo'ed sime a while back, they're great in his hands.
If you go for the 81/85 set in a Les Paul, don’t use the pre wired EMG tone control with 0.1uf caps or it’ll do the compressed muddy angry bees sound and not much else, run 22nf for the bridge tone control and 47nf for the neck tone. Really opens them up and gives an amazing variety of tonal options.
EMGs sound immeasurably better. It’s not even close
Haha that strat sounds amazing before the emgs
My original Fender Lace Sensor Golds from 1989 (Clapton) are still the best pickups ever. Paired with a good amp they can do anything! And batteries aren’t a problem guys let’s be realistic!!!🎸🔥
Big fan of Lace Sensor pickups!
One thing that’s also nice about emgs is if you want to swap out a single coil for a humbucker or vice versa all you have to is unplug the old pickup and plug in the new one. Same pin outs, uses the same pots. You spend more time installing it into a new pick guard than actually installing the pickup. 😂
Roy Buchanan had a signature guitar made by Roger Fritz a few years before he passed away that came stock with EMG pickups.
Hey John, I see you have the same tuner I have (the StageRight)on your pedalboard! I like them because they have really huge and bright lettering and whenever I try a different one, they always seem hard to read so I always go back to the SR tuner! Also i was surprised to see that huge swimming pool route under your strats pickguard. crazy eh?
I’ve never understood the EMG hate…I have a home built Strat since the late 90’s sporting SA’s with a SPC
…and it sounds killer.
David Gilmour's Pulse tone is great.
EMG's are the real deal.
Damn! Impressive!
Mike Caswell usted actives and Valley Arts.Great crear player.
Yeap... It's very clean and quiet...But I still think 'active' pickups still lose some of the 'bite' and 'grit' of a single coil pickup. They do sound 'nice' if you're looking for a 'nice' tone.
I have the same bridge and neck pickups in my Warmoth build.
Very nice John , there no magic in vintage pickups or gear !
Except that badass amp!!!!
Easy there!
Where did you install the 9v battery without routing a battery cavity on the back?
Under the pickguard in the control cavity
Changing the battery would be difficult. I think as a selling point to entice people to try EMG should come up with a battery door in the pick guard or something.
When that shaker comes in at 4:10 😮💨
Larry Carlton loved EMG’S enough said
Sounds good. Darker.
Next video in the the JB series? Upgrading that pedalboard! Talk about a fly-rig!
Just kidding! 😆Sounds good and that's what matters.
Maybe someday, but for now, enjoy that sweet Strat tone! 🤘
It would be nice if we could have a ‘sleep mode’ for active pickups as I and others will put the guitar down, still with the jack connected and forget.... Pick up the guitar the next day and you’ve got a dead battery.
The sleep mode is engaged by unplugging the cable. I switched to passive pickups many years ago. But i never lost the habit of unplugging when I’m done. Its burnt into my muscle memory
that does it i got to do this now on my les paul
I wanted to see where the 9v goes dude.
on a strat you have to stuck in under the pickguard
@@TorvickZeBerzerk that's what i was afraid of, but was hoping it was in the back cavity. Thanks man.
@@TorvickZeBerzerk That's what I was afraid of. Was hoping it was somehow in the back cavity. Thanks man.
I think it is a trade off when it comes to emg`s vs stand. pickups. When I first installed a set of 81-85 set in my les paul 20- ish years ago, i was very impressed with the punch, the pick attack and overall clarity of them. I have since had them in a couple guitars, but what they really lack in my opinion is harmonic overtones and dynamics! Also too saturated sounding. ( My opinion you guys) Not hating on this at all. Glad you like em` 😀.
I prefer the sound of your original pickups. Funny enough, I was looking at this set for my Strat…nope. You’re one hell of a player, and if you can’t make them sing, then I certainly can’t.
Not much different than say, hum canceling single coils into a clean boost and mild compressor. I love EMGs. They record really well.
I keep looking at the Gilmour’s to replace my Texas specials. I feel like companies like EMG and Fishman keep taking more market share. Duncan’s and Dimarzio’s are still great but the solderless kits really are game changers
Tengo una guitarra Fretlight 400, le puse un Floyd Rose y le sustitui los pickups por el set que usaba Steve lukater en los noventas 👍👍👍👍👍👍
I think the pickups in my guitar are active? I have to charge them from time to time, at any rate. Noiseless and sound great, IMO, though.
I prefer passive pickups and a active Bohlinger!
They need to bring back the cool silver stamp logos like that! some of the 2000's fenders made in mexico have them too!
I wonder if anyone watched John build the guitar in real time so the music is super slowed. He used a power drill to tighten the strtings thats a first.
Nuance from the pickups is everything for an artist. that's why i like teles, they pickup every little nuance of the player. I think I may be getting some EMGs soon...
Cant blame me, Im too much of a classic rock head! But hey, Metallica is classic rock now too if you think about it! Lots of great guitarists started played active strats in the 80's and 90's,
Mark Knopfler and David Gilmour. Sometimes you never think about it because your mind gravitates back to what guitar they got famous with, but active pickups have a huge sound its undeniable.
DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAM!
We always like them before taking a strat
I would love to do this to a strat, I need another strat 😅
"old school" active pickups have been around since the 80's
That does sound phenomenal.....probably helps if your name is Bohlinger ;-)
In between settings are better on passive but otherwise I preferred the actives
to me active pickup just all around pickup, fit all different type of music ,somehow active pickup always gave people impressions like for the metal or heavy stuffs , even good for jazz stuffs if you know how to use your right hand picking techniques , only one thing i hate active pickup is the battery , sometime your cant find a 9v battery laying around, i hope manufacturers change to use USB-C for rechargeable battery ,because you always find a usb c cable and battery bank or charger around you, 9v battery sucks, is just me..??
I’ve used EMG’s for nearly four decades now. The batteries last forever. I use my guitars everyday and change all the batteries every January during a string change. Not once have I had one die on my, you just have to get into the habit of unplugging the guitar when not in use. I read somewhere that rechargeable batteries don’t last near as long as regular 9v batteries.
@@Dan_Rangerim more like lost my batteries😅i got 2 active pickup guitar, but always got 1 batteries, because when i need a battery, the most convenient way is stealing the 9v battery from my other guitar, and im not a gigging musician, not really well maintain my gear, if like a cellphone build in batteries,a usb cable for charging would be awesome for bedroom guitar player like me.😅
gotta lift the whole pick guard every time you change the battery. what's the battery life these days?
2000 hours
As much as I remember, their output is completely incompatible and overwhelming in a normal pedalboard/amp setup if you need to switch to any passive pickups guitar during show or rehearsal. Settings in your setup have to be completely changed. Am I wrong?
We didn’t touch any settings on John’s amp or pedalboard to match the before and after tone test.
The sound is slightly different, the average listener won’t know the difference. Pickup reviews are silly in a way because it really hits in the feel and not the sound.
JB is just the best - love the guy
Weird how he gave his "honest" opinion, then had a real honest opinion when he thought the camera was off
All their parts work like lego, it's the most fun and hassle free to work with. You want to switch that tone knob for a tbx or whatever you want? Fine... just swap it.
Wish Fender still used Lace.
If this set had an SPC and EXG like the Glimour set does, it would sound phenomenal. This way it sounds muddy and lacks character, especially on cleans imho.
He’s not allowed to be too negative.
There’s nothing to be negative about EMG’s
@ I meant about guitar stuff in general. Plus, that’s subjective.
So they don't have that terrible icey, synthetic, sharp sssss on the top-end anymore? EMG's, Valvestate Marshall, piezo-pick ups etc, used to have kind of the same synthetic sharp top-end. Didn't like it. And it wasn't possible to just turn down the treble either, there was something wrong, in my opinion. Alot of people liked the 80's … :) with the synthetic top-end treble on everything. The only thing I didn't like about Prince' guitar playing was that his custom guitars had EMG's, they sounded … EMG, but in this video, you say they sounds hi-fi, that's not what I'm hearing here, sounds "round" in the top, and nice. A little more sceptic to the overdriven sound. Hmm …
Active PUs are great, they open a door to a lot of possibilities, BUT, obviously, they require power, and the music instrument industry has never ever worked on a STANDARD to power guitars via the audio cable, like for instance a reliable 4-WIRES CABLE STANDARD or a PHANTOM POWER XLR as a solution where every amp, every pedal would be able to power anything like any guitar or any connected instrument requiring power ... anything working as a standard to power an electric guitar with active PUs or any other type of onboard electronics (acoustic guitars too).
If we had that extremely useful INDUSTRIAL STANDARD, a lot of people wouldn't hesitate anymore in using guitars with active PUs.
Batteries is an annoyance for a lot of people, rechargeable ones too (you wind up with chargers everywhere around the place).
I actually preferred the original pickups….
sounds like hifi on my computer ....
sounded better with the previous pickups.
People I think only moved away from them because of the advent of grunge and of course country folks never really took to them. Dan Baird of Georgia Satellites had EMGs in his Tele for their hits.
Punchy warm noiseless..
They sound great but it's certainly not the strat sound. Horses for courses.
I like EMGs. Just sayin
It sounded better before.
immediately sounds like billboard country wtf
Sorry but to me, dynamic lowers, all notes are same leveled, like roll off tone, your strat is now less expressive. I prefer passive pickups. Just my opinion.
Active no option for me, my legs would fall off after 30 min on the floor like that!